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kelly_e's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Title: The House in the Cerulean Sea
Author: T.J. Klune
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 5
Pub Date: March 16 2020
T H R E E • W O R D S
Whimsical • Feel-good • Comforting
📖 S Y N O P S I S
When case worker, Linus Baker is given a special assignment at the mysterious island orphanage, home to the most dangerous magical children, his entire world is turned upside down. Linus, a by-the-book rule follower is tasked with ensuring the children are safe, and finds his own assumptions challenged when he meets the kids and the man who runs the orphanage. A powerful story of love and family, and finding a place to call home.
💭 T H O U G H T S
I'd recently heard T.J. Klune talk during an author event I attended, and instantly knew I wanted to read some of his work. I decided to start with The House in the Cerulean Sea, which I'd seen so many glowing reviews for. I'd like to start out by saying that fantasy books are not typically my cup of tea, and I tend to avoid them. Additionally, I'm often disappointed my books that are loved by so many, but this was a delightful surprise.
This was such an enjoyable and much needed reading experience for me. I loved the cast of unique and endearing characters, as each one brought something different to the table. I won't soon forget all of the positive and inspirational messages put forth in this phenomenal book. The writing was immersive and it just made me have hope in humanity when so many terrible things seem to be going on. The unconventional love story was a breath of fresh air, the tackling of contemporary issues such as homophobia and cultural bias were handled well, and the theme of what a family and home is added depth. I am always satisfied when a book takes me on an emotional journey, and this one did just that.
This is a special kind of book that doesn't come around everyday, a comforting embrace in the form of a book! Compassion, empathy and acceptance are something we could all use a little more of. I highly recommend it to readers of all ages, and it's perfect for any mood. Eventually, I could see it becoming part of the school curriculum. I cannot wait to read his forth coming novel!
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• anyone whose ever felt like they don't belong
• readers looking for a literary hug
• Harry Potter fans
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"'They fear what they don't understand. And that fear turns to hate for reasons I'm sure even they can't begin to comprehend. And since they don't understand the children, since they fear them, they hate them. This can't be the first time you've heard of this. It happens everywhere.'"
"'Home is where you feel like yourself.'"
"'Just because you don't experience prejudice in your everyday doesn't stop it from existingf0r the rest of us.'"
"The world likes to see things in black and white, in moral and immoral. But there is gray in between. And just because a person is capable of wickedness, doesn't mean they will act upon it. And then there is the notion of perceived immorality. I highly doubt Chauncey would even consider laying a tentacle on another person in violence, even if it meant protecting himself. And yet people see him and decide based upon his appearance that he is something monstrous.'"
"...home isn't always the house we live in. It's also the people we choose to surround ourselves with."
Author: T.J. Klune
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 5
Pub Date: March 16 2020
T H R E E • W O R D S
Whimsical • Feel-good • Comforting
📖 S Y N O P S I S
When case worker, Linus Baker is given a special assignment at the mysterious island orphanage, home to the most dangerous magical children, his entire world is turned upside down. Linus, a by-the-book rule follower is tasked with ensuring the children are safe, and finds his own assumptions challenged when he meets the kids and the man who runs the orphanage. A powerful story of love and family, and finding a place to call home.
💭 T H O U G H T S
I'd recently heard T.J. Klune talk during an author event I attended, and instantly knew I wanted to read some of his work. I decided to start with The House in the Cerulean Sea, which I'd seen so many glowing reviews for. I'd like to start out by saying that fantasy books are not typically my cup of tea, and I tend to avoid them. Additionally, I'm often disappointed my books that are loved by so many, but this was a delightful surprise.
This was such an enjoyable and much needed reading experience for me. I loved the cast of unique and endearing characters, as each one brought something different to the table. I won't soon forget all of the positive and inspirational messages put forth in this phenomenal book. The writing was immersive and it just made me have hope in humanity when so many terrible things seem to be going on. The unconventional love story was a breath of fresh air, the tackling of contemporary issues such as homophobia and cultural bias were handled well, and the theme of what a family and home is added depth. I am always satisfied when a book takes me on an emotional journey, and this one did just that.
This is a special kind of book that doesn't come around everyday, a comforting embrace in the form of a book! Compassion, empathy and acceptance are something we could all use a little more of. I highly recommend it to readers of all ages, and it's perfect for any mood. Eventually, I could see it becoming part of the school curriculum. I cannot wait to read his forth coming novel!
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• anyone whose ever felt like they don't belong
• readers looking for a literary hug
• Harry Potter fans
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"'They fear what they don't understand. And that fear turns to hate for reasons I'm sure even they can't begin to comprehend. And since they don't understand the children, since they fear them, they hate them. This can't be the first time you've heard of this. It happens everywhere.'"
"'Home is where you feel like yourself.'"
"'Just because you don't experience prejudice in your everyday doesn't stop it from existingf0r the rest of us.'"
"The world likes to see things in black and white, in moral and immoral. But there is gray in between. And just because a person is capable of wickedness, doesn't mean they will act upon it. And then there is the notion of perceived immorality. I highly doubt Chauncey would even consider laying a tentacle on another person in violence, even if it meant protecting himself. And yet people see him and decide based upon his appearance that he is something monstrous.'"
"...home isn't always the house we live in. It's also the people we choose to surround ourselves with."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying and Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Body shaming, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, and Mental illness
Minor: Child abuse
discriminationkeen's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I came into this book immensely hesitant. I'm not a fan of romance. I find most stories to be either be too quick with the development, or so slow I forget it was even a part of the book. And overall, it's just not my thing. Additionally, I'm a fan of horror and thriller stories. So, aside from the urban fantasy and found family aspects, I thought I wouldn't get much from a "lighthearted" and "romance" book. This was not helped by me finding the main character, Linus, to be a very different protagonist than I expected: A 40-something year old child service worker with a stuffy, distant attitude.
I teared up three times, and by the epilogue, my eyes were so wet I had to wipe them with a paper towel to be able to see the words on the screen.
I very rarely cry from any story. When I do, I know it has ensnared me. I also very rarely think about books in terms of "Boy, I really wish people would write fanfiction about this." So imagine my surprise when I read nearly seven chapters straight.
The romance isn't the main aspect of this story. The main love story is Linus taking on a fatherly role towards the children in the 'orphanage' and how those kids grow to love him. The way each character developed was so subtle I barely noticed how much had changed until the end.
One complaint I had while reading this story was, "How is this described as lighthearted and middle-school reading?" The story almost feels dystopian at first. A society blatantly prejudiced against the supernatural, going as far as to harm children in its hatred. I'm a black, trans-masc person, so some parts of this story took me by such surprise that I was actually uncomfortable.
But that's not an actually a complaint. By the end of the story, I understood. It's a story about overcoming your own bigotry, learning from people you never expected to interact with (much less care for), and taking the first steps in changing society. Parts of this story gets dark, but I would happily hand this book to a pre-teen.
This story literally made me feel brighter. It made me more confident about choosing the best path in my life, no matter what society says it should be.
I teared up three times, and by the epilogue, my eyes were so wet I had to wipe them with a paper towel to be able to see the words on the screen.
I very rarely cry from any story. When I do, I know it has ensnared me. I also very rarely think about books in terms of "Boy, I really wish people would write fanfiction about this." So imagine my surprise when I read nearly seven chapters straight.
The romance isn't the main aspect of this story. The main love story is Linus taking on a fatherly role towards the children in the 'orphanage' and how those kids grow to love him. The way each character developed was so subtle I barely noticed how much had changed until the end.
One complaint I had while reading this story was, "How is this described as lighthearted and middle-school reading?" The story almost feels dystopian at first. A society blatantly prejudiced against the supernatural, going as far as to harm children in its hatred. I'm a black, trans-masc person, so some parts of this story took me by such surprise that I was actually uncomfortable.
But that's not an actually a complaint. By the end of the story, I understood. It's a story about overcoming your own bigotry, learning from people you never expected to interact with (much less care for), and taking the first steps in changing society. Parts of this story gets dark, but I would happily hand this book to a pre-teen.
This story literally made me feel brighter. It made me more confident about choosing the best path in my life, no matter what society says it should be.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Cursing and Murder
kammitrout's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Fatphobia, and Mental illness
jehansflowers's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
this book was really cute. it had a major whimsical vibe, and i absolutely ADORED all of the kids. i was a bit disappointed by linus & arthurs' characters though. i just kinda found linus annoying and arthur bland.
edit: going back and changing my rating from 4 stars to 3.5 bc this book just really didn’t leave an impression
edit: going back and changing my rating from 4 stars to 3.5 bc this book just really didn’t leave an impression
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia
Moderate: Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Fatphobia, Mental illness, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Child death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Violence
bookishnatalia's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Bullying, and Mental illness
Moderate: Fatphobia, Religious bigotry, Child abuse, Confinement, Hate crime, and Homophobia
rini's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
CW: talk of weight, fat-shaming, and dieting (with pushback against it!)
I don't remember the last time I cried this many happy tears while reading a book!
And sad tears!
And laughed!!
This book has ALL the feels and all the delightful feel-good lovely unexpected characters and yes, they're queer, and no, it's not a big deal in the story, it just is, and yes there's talk of weight, fat-shaming, and dieting, but it's pushed back against throughout the book (except for right at the very start when Linus hasn't yet met the characters who push back against it, but that's hardly any of the book at all).
I don't even have a favourite character, I just love them all!
Though, my one little disappointment was that Zoe, Helen, Arthur, and Linus couldn't all adopt all the kids together...
I don't remember the last time I cried this many happy tears while reading a book!
And sad tears!
And laughed!!
This book has ALL the feels and all the delightful feel-good lovely unexpected characters and yes, they're queer, and no, it's not a big deal in the story, it just is, and yes there's talk of weight, fat-shaming, and dieting, but it's pushed back against throughout the book (except for right at the very start when Linus hasn't yet met the characters who push back against it, but that's hardly any of the book at all).
I don't even have a favourite character, I just love them all!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization and Mental illness
Moderate: Body shaming, Confinement, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Xenophobia
kirkspockreads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book was extremely MY SHIT! I love found families, but queer found families? YES PLEASE! I want that shit in my eyeballs ALWAYS.
What a delightful read after all the shit I’ve been feeling recently because of... *gestures at everything*. This book was soul cleansing and heartwarming. An incredibly lovely ending. Reminded me a bit of “In Other Lands” because it also deals with magical children in a world similar to our “real” world.
If you have a younger reader in your life I think they would enjoy this, especially if they’re an HP person.
What a delightful read after all the shit I’ve been feeling recently because of... *gestures at everything*. This book was soul cleansing and heartwarming. An incredibly lovely ending. Reminded me a bit of “In Other Lands” because it also deals with magical children in a world similar to our “real” world.
If you have a younger reader in your life I think they would enjoy this, especially if they’re an HP person.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
Moderate: Fatphobia and Body shaming
Minor: Homophobia, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Hate crime, Cursing, Confinement, and Bullying
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