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"There is magic in the ordinary, magic that has the power to change the world."
The House In The Cerulean Sea is hands down one of my all time favorite stories, so I was over the moon when I discovered that there was going to be a sequel. I was granted early access to a sampler, which only made me want to read Somewhere Beyond The Sea even more... And I have to say that this sequel I was everything I hoped it would be and more. I loved meeting up with this cast of characters again, and I loved that we saw the story through Arthur's eyes this time around. Somewhere Beyond The Sea is very much a sequel, and I would recommend reading the books in order to get a proper introduction of all the characters and their development. There are a couple of new characters in this second book as well, and David made for such a great addition to the group of children living on Marsyas Island! The banter, the growing bonds, the friendship... You just want to wrap them all up in a big hug and protect them from harm. It's not all rainbows and sunshine though, as there is a lot of focus on child abuse, discrimination, politics and corruption along the way... And Arthur and the rest will have to fight to keep their family together. The ending was perfect for this story, and Somewhere Beyond The Sea is a worthy addition to my list of 2024 favorites as well as all time favorites.
Graphic: Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racism, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Xenophobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Gaslighting
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Physical abuse, Racism, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Gaslighting
I am delighted to report that is not the case with Somewhere Beyond the Sea. It's as fun and heartwarming as its predecessor, while maintaining equally high stakes. Klune has a real talent for writing children, that shines throughout both books in this series thus far. And I think he learned from the heavy-handedness that I noted when I read The House In the Cerulean Sea, as this book strikes a better balance and allows for a bit more diversity of opinion and respectful disagreement.
Oh, and I still love Lucy so much, he's probably one of my favorite characters ever.
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Child abuse, Violence, Death of parent
Minor: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Transphobia, Blood, Religious bigotry, Murder, Gaslighting
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Torture, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Colonisation
Moderate: Bullying, Violence
Minor: Body shaming, Transphobia, Blood
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Gaslighting, Abandonment
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Body shaming, Violence, Death of parent