The House in the Deep Cerulean Sea

Hello and welcome back friends. And, Happy Pride Month! This month, I’ll be featuring LGBTQIA+ authors on the blog, and I am so excited. In personal news, I got another job and have started a course for the summer. So, I am extremely busy right now and this first week of being busy again has thrown me off a bit. Which is why this post is coming out a few hours later than normal. But, I’m doing my best and not beating myself up about that. So, without further ado, this week I will be reviewing TJ Klune’s hit novel The House in the Cerulean Sea. And, I’ll be making a Deep Blue (or Cerulean) Sea cocktail. Enjoy!

Deep Blue Sea Recipe

(This is another cocktail that has about 20 different recipes on the internet. I just chose the one that sounded the best to me.)

2oz Vodka

0.75oz Blue Curaçao

0.5oz Sour Mix (simple syrup mixed with lemon and lime juices)

0.5oz Pineapple Juice

~2oz Sprite*

*Sprite is an optional ingredient.

In a cocktail shaker with ice, add all ingredients except Sprite and shake for approximately 10 seconds. Strain into a hurricane glass* filled with ice and top with Sprite. Garnish with a cocktail umbrella and enjoy!

*Traditionally, this drink would be strained into a martini glass, but I used a hurricane glass because it worked better with my garnish. So you have a choice on what glassware you’d prefer.

This week, my special ingredient is Sprite. I chose Sprite because two of the main characters, Zoe and Phee, are Sprites. Zoe was one of my favourite characters in the novel, so this seemed like an obvious and easy decision for me. I also added a cocktail umbrella to this drink. Normally there would be no garnish, but the first few chapters have Linus consistently forgetting his umbrella and I thought that was funny and cute, and wanted to play with it a bit in my drink.

I 100% preferred this cocktail with my special ingredient in it. The classic version tasted like straight vodka with a hint of pineapple juice and Blue Curaçao. But with the Sprite, the taste of the vodka was much more subtle and the drink was significantly more palatable. Tom agreed with me and really enjoyed this drink. And, this one is another fun summertime patio drink, so maybe I’ll be making more over the next couple months!

The House in the Cerulean Sea Synopsis

(from book cover)

Linus Baker is a by-the-book caseworker in the Department in Charge of Magical Youth. At forty, he lives in a tiny house with a devious cat and his old records for company. But his quiet life is about to change.

Linus is summoned by Extremely Upper Management and given a curious and highly classified assignment: travel to an orphanage on a distant island and determine whether six dangerous magical children are so dangerous, in fact, that they’re likely to bring about the end of days.

When Linus arrives at the strangest of islands he’s greeted by a series of mysterious figures, the greatest mystery of which is Arthur Parnassus, the master of the orphanage. As Linus and Arthur grow closer, Linus discovers the master would do anything to keep the children safe, even if it means the world has to burn. Or worse, his secret comes to light.

Review

“‘The world is a weird and wonderful place. Why must we try and explain it all away?'”

So, when I first started seeing this novel all over Instagram I knew I had to read it. Everyone was raving about it and the cover compelled me. I actually thought this was a YA novel because of the cover, but learned it is more so an adult fantasy even though young adults would also love it. I bought this book without reading the synopsis and planned to just read it for fun, but I couldn’t wait any longer so I decided to read it for the blog. And what better time than Pride Month to read this one! As with all books that come highly recommended, I was scared The House in the Cerulean Sea wouldn’t live up to the hype. But, I’m happy to report it definitely does!

This book is fun. I thoroughly enjoyed every second of reading this novel. I smiled, I laughed, I cried. It was great. The writing is beautiful and descriptive, the characters capture your heart, and the story is magical. What else could you ask for? But, I guess I’ll go into more detail than that…

The House in the Cerulean Sea is written in a simpler writing style than some of the others I’ve reviewed lately. But, I loved it all the more for that. It was a much more accessible read and I was never taken out of the story trying to figure out what was going on or what I just read. The descriptions were also amazing. I could perfectly picture Linus’ workplace, his home, the island, and all the characters. (Except I weirdly always pictured Linus as Doctor Delbert Doppler from the 2002 movie Treasure Planet? I have no idea why! Linus is a human not a half-dog… just similar personalities I guess.)

Anyways, what I’m trying to say is the writing really drew me in. The descriptions truly immersed me in the novel and I was able to read through this book so quickly because of how into it I was and how well-paced it was. Every page I had to find out what happened next and it pained me whenever I had to put the book down.

I also liked how Klune used metaphors. The treatment of the magical children in the world of the novel is not a far reach from the treatment of minorities in our world. I know I often say I don’t like when a book beats me over the head with its deeper meaning, but this one was OK. The metaphor wasn’t subtle, but it worked for this novel. Could it have been a bit less obvious and still been impactful? Yes. But, it wasn’t repeating its message every single page or being done in a condescending way. And if you read this blog regularly, you know I love it when author’s respect their reader’s ability to figure out the symbolism and real world connections.

I did, however, have a couple complaints about the writing throughout The House in the Cerulean Sea. First, I noticed a few typos and, even though it was only a handful of times, it did bug me. I know it’s to be expected in most novels, but it really brings you out of the story when there’s a mistake. However, this isn’t a huge negative for me. Just something I wanted to comment on.

Second, the dialogue felt a bit forced at times. Sometimes it was great and the characters’ voices were all unique and the dialogue flowed perfectly. Other times, the characters’ voices were lost and it felt like I was reading just anyone not that character’s specific personality. Beyond that, the dialogue didn’t feel natural. Again, this wasn’t all the time just a couple instances. But I would be reading and enjoying then my brain would go “this isn’t how people actually talk or have a conversation with another person. This is awkward.” So, unfortunately, this is my biggest downside of this novel.

Moving on from complaints, I want to talk about the characters because they were great. I mean, a novel that has you empathizing and caring for the Antichrist has to have great characters. I actually really loved all the characters, not just the Antichrist. Each main character was fleshed out, unique, interesting, and fun. They all had totally individual personalities and stood out from each other and from characters in other books. And I loved how the descriptions allowed me to vividly picture them. I hope they make a series or movie so I can see how close I was. Though I imagine I won’t be anywhere near close on Linus… but, no matter. These characters are still ones that will stick with me as being special. I know I’ve said that recently about other characters, but what can I say I’ve been picking good books lately!

I would like to quickly mention that it was difficult reading some parts of this book. Though it is a fantasy, the real world connections are clear and can be upsetting. Particularly upsetting for me this week was the descriptions of the “schools”. I don’t know if these were intended to be a representation of residential schools (they may have been more driven towards “straight camps”), but they were for me. Especially given what came to light last week. If you’re unaware, there were unmarked graves with children’s bodies found underneath an old residential school in my hometown of Kamloops, BC. So, I’d just like to put a little trigger warning on this novel that even though it is largely a heartwarming story, there are some darker aspects to it that could be upsetting for minorities and marginalized people.

That being said, it is necessary to talk about these things and bring them to light. Especially in a story where minorities are the main subject. I thought Klune incorporated these serious issues respectfully and naturally in the novel. And, the LGBTQ+ romance at the centre of the story is beautiful. It’s realistic and not stereotypical at all. In the author’s note at the back of the book it says that “Klune believes it’s important—now more than ever—to have accurate, positive queer representation in stories.” And I think he nailed that with this novel. So, if you’re looking for a book that isn’t all about token queer characters or stereotypes then this one is for you.

Overall, The House in the Cerulean Sea is a lovely, wholesome, and special story, if maybe not a totally unique idea. (It did remind me of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children quite a bit and also made me think of The Good Place a few times. Particularly the discussions on ethics and morality.) But, despite not being an entirely unique concept, the novel still feels special. I really enjoyed reading this book and happily recommend it to everyone. A great read for Pride Month and a great read in general. And as always, even if you don’t want to read the book I still recommend trying the cocktail. See you in two weeks for another review!

My Rating:

Thanks for reading! And, if you read the book or try the cocktail let me know in a comment or on Instagram. Also, if you haven’t yet read my previous reviews, I recommend reading Fallen Anxious People and The Invisible HighLife of Addie Larue if you liked this one!

Teghann

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