*Some parts of this article might not make sense to those who did not read the book. 

Overview of Book  

The novel “The House on the Cerulean Sea” written by TJ Kulen is a science fiction about orphans with superpowers. The most “dangerous” of the kids are sent to an island called Marsyas where they are taken care of by Arthur and Ms. Chapelwhite.  

 Linus is a case worker that observes different orphanages to make sure care takers are doing their job. One day Linus was put on a special assignment to visit this house (which was surprising because most people -including Linus- did not even know the house existed). Here he finds that the kids are just that, kids. They are not scary creatures who are looking to harm you. On this island he found a since of belonging and community that his life was lacking (along with Arthur his love interest) before so in the end he decided to stay and leave his past life and responsibilities behind.  

My Thoughts 

This book is extremely well written and has you hooked from the first chapter. And the overall theme of being an outcast and chasing happiness is presented in very effective ways. The characters are well developed, and we can see them progress throughout the story from being afraid of Linus to being more comfortable around him and seeing him as more of a part of the family.  

The best part of the story in my opinion is seeing the change in Linus. He started as a work orientated, bland and a word follower. Taking time for himself was something he would not allow himself to do. But as he interacts with the kids on the island and the caretakers, he gets more relaxed and does not care about what people think of him. He also allows himself to fall in love with Arthur and we see their feelings for each other grow, which makes the book more interesting.  

Over all I would give this book a 4.5/5 stars. It had a great storyline and characters. But it is not a 5/5 stars because I felt like some parts of it seemed to drag on.