The house in the cerulean sea

 

Author: T.J. Klune

Genre: Sci-Fi

Publication date: March 16, 2020

Book description:
A magical island. A dangerous task. A burning secret.
Linus Baker leads a quiet, solitary life. At forty, he lives in a tiny house with a devious cat and his old records. As a Case Worker at the Department in Charge Of Magical Youth, he spends his days overseeing the well-being of children in government-sanctioned orphanages.
When Linus is unexpectedly summoned by Extremely Upper Management he's given a curious and highly classified assignment: travel to Marsyas Island Orphanage, where six dangerous children reside: a gnome, a sprite, a wyvern, an unidentifiable green blob, a were-Pomeranian, and the Antichrist. Linus must set aside his fears and determine whether or not they’re likely to bring about the end of days.
But the children aren’t the only secret the island keeps. Their caretaker is the charming and enigmatic Arthur Parnassus, who will do anything to keep his wards safe. As Arthur and Linus grow closer, long-held secrets are exposed, and Linus must make a choice: destroy a home or watch the world burn.

Thoughts:

I heard a lot of this book at the end of the year and the start of this year in several people's favorite books of the year. It was as heartwarming as I had expected. I am not sure how to place my thought in order to review it. 

If I allow myself a single-word description of what it felt like reading this wonderful story. 

Awesome, heartwarming, adorable, wholesome, whimsical. 

I love the characters, the found family, the blossoming relationships it includes very small aspects of two men and two women. But the romantic relationships are not the main aspect but they are important indeed.  There are hardships, of course, we see children be abused. Not graphic or too many details but the children in the orphanage had a very difficult life. People always fear what they don't understand and can't control. The organizations that are supposed to protect them are rigid and indifferent to those same children they are meant to protect. It is a very difficult topic to read. I mean not everyone is affected the same. 

You see personal growth in Linus, as you can already guess. He was not a bad person but he simply kept himself separated from everyone and everything. You have to allow yourselves to be invested in others and their lives even if that is a scary prospect. 

The children here are not the main characters, but they feel real, very well flushed out. It felt like they were more at the forefront. And we get to know them very well. The adults felt a little less detailed. Linus had a full arc. He grows a lot during that one month and the next few weeks. 

Rating: 

This book was used for the Buzzwordathon. The word is House.