Review by jjsoupsworth - Somewhere Beyond the Sea

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jjsoupsworth 's review for:

Somewhere Beyond the Sea by TJ Klune

5.0

funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

(There will be spoilers in this review!)

It took me a pretty long while to finish this book and I am absolutely shocked to say that it is just as wonderful as its predecessor to me.

This book is simultaneously more of the lighthearted shenanigans I've come to love in Klune's work and something infuriating and gut-wrenching. The courtroom scene that introduced Rowder made me want to set something on fire. As did everything out of the mouth of the secondary antagonist Marblemaw. The exchange between Arthur and Phee at the end of Chapter 11 nearly made me cry. The latter half of Chapter 12, but especially the line "And for the first time, Arthur Franklin Parnassus wept for himself" did make me cry.

And talking about moments that made me cry, I would be remiss to not mention the opening dedications. I started reading this book in early December of 2024 (if you know, you know). It was something I desperately needed to hear, and a great opener to a heartwarming story about the lengths people go to to protect their loved ones against hatred and abuse.

Content Warnings