gilda_elise

A magical island. A dangerous task. A burning secret.

Linus Baker leads a quiet, solitary life. At forty, he lives in a tiny house with a devious cat and his old records. As a Case Worker at the Department in Charge Of Magical Youth, he spends his days overseeing the well-being of children in government-sanctioned orphanages.

When Linus is unexpectedly summoned by Extremely Upper Management he's given a curious and highly classified assignment: travel to Marsyas Island Orphanage, where six dangerous children reside: a gnome, a sprite, a wyvern, an unidentifiable green blob, a were-Pomeranian, and the Antichrist. Linus must set aside his fears and determine whether or not they’re likely to bring about the end of days.

But the children aren’t the only secret the island keeps. Their caretaker is the charming and enigmatic Arthur Parnassus, who will do anything to keep his wards safe. As Arthur and Linus grow closer, long-held secrets are exposed, and Linus must make a choice: destroy a home or watch the world burn.

An enchanting story, masterfully told, The House in the Cerulean Sea is about the profound experience of discovering an unlikely family in an unexpected place—and realizing that family is yours.

I don’t think I’ve read a more magical book in a long time. If ever. Not only are the characters enchanting, but they’re so lovable that they can’t help but steal your heart.

Yes, there’s Arthur and Linus, two lovely and loving men. But there are also the children: Talia, Lucy, Chauncey, Phee, Sal, and Theodore. As the reader gets to know these characters, you can’t help but be drawn to them and to the lives they lead.

And while I loved them all, there had to be favorite, and oh, how could I not love Theodore. Yes, he’s a wyvern, but that makes him even so much more lovable.

Though the novel stands alone, I do so wish there was a sequel, so that I could go back to the house in the Cerulean Sea and visit all who abide there.

Forgot to say, made it to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro!

Mount TBR 2022 Book Links

Links are to more information regarding each book or author, not to the review.

1. The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson
2. The Book of Accidents by Chuck Wendig
3. The Autumn Throne (Eleanor of Aquitaine #3) by Elizabeth Chadwick
4. Grant's Final Victory: Ulysses S. Grant's Heroic Last Year by Charles Bracelen Flood
5. Doctor Sleep (The Shining #2) by Stephen King
6. The High House by Jessie Greengrass
7. Leadership: In Turbulent Times by Doris Kearns Goodwin
8. Nightmare Country by Marlys Millhiser
9. The End of the Ocean by Maja Lunde, Diane Oatley (translator)
10. 'Salem's Lot by Stephen King
11. The Bear (The Grizzly King: A Romance of the Wild) by James Oliver Curwood
12. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
13. The Wrong End of Time by John Brunner
14. The Hidden Child by Louise Fein
15. The Familiar Dark by Amy Engel
16. The Virtues of War by Stephen Pressfield
17. Our Oldest Companions: The Story of the First Dogs by Pat Shipman
18. The Man in the Moss by Phil Rickman
19. The Redemption of Wolf 302 by Rick McIntyre
20. John of Gloucester by Wendy Miall
21. Inventing Latinos: A New Story of American Racism by Laura E. Gómez
22. The Cold Calling (The Cold Calling #1) by Phil Rickman
23. The Keep (Adversary Cycle #1) by F. Paul Wilson
24. Pines (Wayward Pines #1) by Blake Crouch
25. The Speed of Souls: A Novel for Dog Lovers by Nick Pirog
26. The Yorkists: The History of a Dynasty by Anne Crawford
27. With Face Aflame by A.E. Walnofer
28. The Gypsy Morph by Terry Brooks
29. Madhouse at the End of the Earth: The Belgica's Journey into the Dark Antarctic Night by Julian Sancton
30. Wardenclyffe (The Secret History of the World) by F. Paul Wilson
31. Goblin by Josh Malerman
32. The Queen Who Never Was by Maureen Peters
33. The Ministry of Truth: A Biography of George Orwell's 1984 by Dorian Lynskey
34. Richard III’s Books by Anne F. Sutton & Livia Visser-Fuchs
35. Gwendy's Final Task (The Button Box #3) by Stephen King, Richard Chizmar
36. Malorie (Bird Box #2) by Josh Malerman
37. Where We Come From by Oscar Cásares
38. The Unconquered Sun by Ralph Dulin
39. The Zookeeper's Wife by Diane Ackerman
40. The God Eaters by Jesse Hajicek
41. The X Factor by Andre Norton
42. The Last Wild Horses (Climate Quartet #3) by Maja Lunde, Diane Oatley (Translator)
43. The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner
44. Double Threat by F. Paul Wilson
45. Wayward (Wayward Pines #2) by Blake Crouch
46. Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
47. Good Neighbors by Sarah Langan
48. Mean Spirit (The Cold Calling #2) by Phil Rickman
49. The Killing of Richard the Third (Henry Morane #1) by Robert Farrington
50. The Curious Case of H. P. Lovecraft by Paul Roland
51. Daughters of Sparta by Claire Heywood
52. The Great God Pan and Other Classic Horror Stories by Arthur Machen
53. He Who Types Between the Rows: A Decade of Horror Drive-In by Mark Sieber
54. Night After Night (The Cold Calling #03) by Phil Rickman
55. The End of Men by Christina Sweeney-Baird
56. Biloxi by Mary Miller
57. Facing the Anthropocene: Fossil Capitalism and the Crisis of the Earth System by Ian Angus
58. The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa, Philip Gabriel (Translator)
59. The Visitant by Kathleen O'Neal Gear, W. Michael Gear
60. Lovell our Dogge: The Life of Viscount Lovell, Closest Friend of Richard III and Failed Regicide by Michele Schindler

61. Atoms and Ashes: A Global History of Nuclear Disasters by Serhii Plokhy
62. The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune

Goodreads 62

OCTOBER- Murder or Magic. Read a murder mystery book or a magical realism book.

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

Island-The House in the Cerulean Sea