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A review by peytonm
The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
3.0
Hmm, a story with a lovely, lighthearted tone that also deals with systemic child abuse and abandonment. The kids, deemed 'monsters' by the government, are adorable, and Arthur, their foster father, competently and lovingly guides them through childhood. Lucy (short for Lucifer) especially shines.
The dystopian government's stooge, Linus aka our main character, leads a miserable life. I mean, I could barely get through the first third of the book because he was just endlessly shat on. When he arrives at the house for a government inspection, his life improves. He finally sees the ocean, he enjoys the sunshine, he goes on adventures with the children. A quibble for me - a lot of fat talk about Linus. At the house, it's treated as more of a fact than an insult but still. In his office, it is treated as an insult. It's nice that he grows to question his part within this terrible system, but... why did it take this long? I don't know. The tone made it seem like it wanted to be a romantic 'escape from the city to the country side with bonus romance' story, but it felt at odds with how terrible society was.
The dystopian government's stooge, Linus aka our main character, leads a miserable life. I mean, I could barely get through the first third of the book because he was just endlessly shat on. When he arrives at the house for a government inspection, his life improves. He finally sees the ocean, he enjoys the sunshine, he goes on adventures with the children. A quibble for me - a lot of fat talk about Linus. At the house, it's treated as more of a fact than an insult but still. In his office, it is treated as an insult. It's nice that he grows to question his part within this terrible system, but... why did it take this long? I don't know. The tone made it seem like it wanted to be a romantic 'escape from the city to the country side with bonus romance' story, but it felt at odds with how terrible society was.