The House in the Cerulean Sea

The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune (2020, 394 pages)

 

Mr. Linus Baker is nothing but a cog in the corporate machine. He has his desk, hovering supervisor, cranky neighbor, and pet cat. As a case worker for the Department of Magical Youth, he helps evaluate government-run homes for children touched by the occult. He does his job and he does it well.

His reward for his hard work? Extremely Upper Management (yes, the official title) assigns him a new case -- a mysterious home on a remote island off the last train stop. There live 6 dangerous children and their caretaker. Mr. Baker's job is to live there for one month and determine the quality of the home, on the children's behalf. His morals will come into question, his comfort zone pushed, and perhaps he might even make a few friends.

This book is very character driven -- it doesn't do a lot of world building. There's no explanation for the magic in the world, or the economy, or the culture, etc. But I don't find it necessarily confusing. It's a fun, heartwarming, go-with-the-flow type of magic which I find charming!

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