The House in the Cerulean Sea

The House in the Cerulean Sea (2020) TJ Klune

I’ve read several TJ Klune books, and I am not always sure how I feel about them when I am done.

That was not a problem here.

Linus works for the agency in charge of monitoring the welfare of magical children. He is a caseworker who looks into issues at orphanages and children that may be a danger to themselves or others.

Linus is quirky and alone but takes great pride in his job and firmly believes his job is important because he needs to make certain that children are safe and being well-cared for.

(S)ometimes, we can’t always control the … gifts we’re given. And it’s not necessarily the fault of those with said gifts.”

That didn’t seem to make her feel better. “Then whose fault is it?”

Linus blinked. “Well, I suppose there are all sorts of factors. Modern research suggests extreme emotional states can trigger instances such as yours. Sadness. Anger. Even happiness. Perhaps you were so happy, you accidentally threw a chair at your friend Marcus?” It was the reason he’d been sent here in the first place. Marcus had been seen in hospital in order to have his tail looked after. It’d been bent at an odd angle, and the hospital had reported it directly to the Department in Charge of Magical Youth as they were required to do. The report triggered an investigation, which was why Linus had been assigned to this particular orphanage.

“Yes,” Daisy said. “That’s exactly it. Marcus made me so happy when he stole my colored pencils that I accidentally threw a chair at him.”

Let’s just say that government agencies in charge of magical children seem to be just as soulless as the government agencies that exist now.

He put on his pajamas, buttoning up the front. They were monogrammed with an LB on the breast, a gift from the Department after fifteen years of service. He’d selected them out of a catalogue he’d been given on the day of. The catalogue had two pages inside. One page was the pajamas. The second page was a candleholder.

His boring and organized life, however, is about to be overturned when he is sent to spend a month at an orphanage on a secluded island to assess both the children and the master.

Although the kids are a big part of this story, it is Linus’s story from start to finish, but the kids are fun and quite kid like.

“(I)f there are cannibals, yell back at us when they start to eat you so we know to run away.”

“What if they eat my mouth first?”

Lucy squinted up at him. “Um. Try not to let that happen?”

“You can pick out two flavors,” Arthur told her. “Nothing more. You don’t want to spoil your appetite for dinner.”

“Yes, I do,” she assured him.

Be aware that although this is pretty much a YA book, it involves kids who have been mistreated by the system that was supposed to keep the safe. We don’t get details, but we do get to see some of the results of the damage they have suffered.

It’s a good story, and I do recommend it.

Publisher: Tor Books
Rating: 8/10

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