Hey ForeverBookers,
How are you all today? I hope you’re well!
I’ve just finished “Somewhere Beyond The Sea” by TJ Klune and I really enjoyed it!!! It was very sweet and wholesome and quite funny in places too!
4 Stars!
We follow our main characters, Arthur Parnassus and Linus Baker from book 1, “The House In The Cerulean Sea” as they try to make their home for delinquent youths ready for another. All of this goes well, until DICOMY or the Department In Charge Of Magical Youth gets involved. They want to challenge Arthur because they believe him to be an inadequate host to the magical youths he’s looking after. Of course, Linus, our MMC from book 1 is very supportive of Arthur. He’s in love with him, even. Do the children get moved or do they get to stay in the house on the Cerulean Sea? I’ll let you read for yourself!
I read “Somewhere Beyond The Sea” for a couple of readathons. They were:
Reading Rivalry - Eleven’s Eggos - I don’t know the context to this as I don’t watch “Stranger Things” but I think Eggos sound cute and the children in “Somewhere Beyond The Sea” are cute!
Always Fully Booked 2025 Reading Challenge - 2024 Award Winning Book - “Somewhere Beyond The Sea” won the Goodreads Choice Award for Fantasy in 2024!
Spoilers Below…
“Arthur chose his words carefully. “As you know, Linus and I will be travelling over the next few days, and I want to make sure you all understand what we’re doing.”
“You’re testifying,” Phee said. “In front of the government.”
“Yes, I am. I have been asked to provide an account of my time here on the island when I was a child.”
Theodore clicked a question, a single word: why?
“Because . . .” He paused. Then, “Because if there is a chance someone will listen and learn from the past, then that’s a chance I need to take. You know my history with the island, how I was brought up in this house and how it . . . ended.”
“The cellar.”
A flash of memory—screaming until his voice was horse, fire raging around him, smoke thick and noxious—and he didn’t push it away. He let it settle, gave it room to breathe, and though he felt the low thrum of decades-old anger, it smoldered rather than burned. The children didn’t know everything about his time on the island, but they knew enough. “Yes, the cellar. However, it wasn’t just that. It was this house. The island. The people in charge you thought they knew what was best for the rest of us. They didn’t.” - 36/37
Arthur is explaining to the magical children he cares for where he’s going to be for a few days above. He’s going to a court to be heard for the crimes of DICOMY, the organisation he works for at the beginning of “Somewhere Beyond The Sea” to care for the magical youths! Let’s just say that the trial, as it were, doesn’t go quite according to plan! Arthur is very upset at the trial. So upset that he becomes his alter ego, the phoenix while being questioned. It’s Linus, the MMC of book 1, his fiancé who calms him down.
DICOMY send a battle-axe woman by the name of Miss Marblemaw to see that the children are being looked after well. By my description of battle-axe, I’m sure you can tell how not nice she is! She even goes so far as to suggest that Talia the gnome, looses her beard to make her more feminine. However, as is said in the book, Talia’s beard makes her, her! Without it, she’s nothing. Also, Lucy, the Antichrist, who is really a sweetheart, is very funny! He tries to trip Miss Marblemaw up! Does he succeed? Do any of the children lose their dad, Arthur and papa, Linus? I’ll let you read for yourself!
While the main plot of the book is that above, another smaller part, I’d say is David, the yeti. He gets brought back to the island to see if he can settle in with others. This part of the novel could have been expanded upon a little, I thought. We saw an awful lot of Lucy and his record loving ways but not so much of the other children in this novel.
Other important characters, like Zoe, the island sprite, who we meet in “The House In The Cerulean Sea,” takes it upon herself to become the queen of Marsyas Island. This is to finally and emphatically get rid of Miss Marblemaw! Does this work? I’ll let you read for yourself but it was fun to read!
Overall then, I really enjoyed reading “Somewhere Beyond The Sea.” It was a good coming-of-age novel, filled with humour and tender notes. That’s why I’m giving it 4 stars! I’m reading a crime novel next, which is different for me.
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