I know TJ Klune has a few series under his belt, but this is the first time, as far as I can tell, that he has done a sequel in his adult-oriented tales. And maybe he should do them more often. A lot more often.
The sequel to his beloved House in the Cerulean Sea, former DICOMY (Department In Charge of Magical Youth) inspector and lonely workaholic Linus Baker has abandoned his stale, sad life, and moved to Marsyas Island to live with Arthur Parnassus and his orphanage of special children. Forest sprite Phee, garden knome Talia (I always get them mixed up), adorable green blob who is a trained bellhop Chauncey, wyvern Theodore, mature writer and shapeshifter Sal, and the superpowered seven-year-old Lucy, aka Lucifer, aka The Antichrist, some might say.
Well, DICOMY sent Linus to the orphanage because he was one of the most devoted and pragmatic employees, and they expected him to give a rebuke of a report and have this place of strange and dangerous young beings shut down. But it didn’t work out that way. So they’re about to try again. Headed by a treacherous woman named Jeanine Rowder, (and after a moment, you might realize who Klune based the character on) DICOMY is threatening to send a different inspector in with some cemented ways of belief. And Arthur, Linus and the children will realize they have to suit up, because they won’t let these people destroy their family so easily.
The House In The Cerulean Sea and Under The Whispering Door were very good little tales of men finding their soul again after mistaking work for living for too long, Linus because he was too scared and Wallace because he had a superiority complex that his work fed into like a drug. Both books made me happy, and I gave them three and a half stars out of five. In The Lives of Puppets, however, was disappointing. The adventure moved at a snail’s pace, it was predictable, and the humour was very repetitive. But I had no qualms about picking this book up the first chance I got. Linus, Arthur, Lucy, Chauncey and the rest of the Parnassus clan have always stuck around my head, and Klune delivered on taking me back to what made me so charmed by them.
Out of all the TJ Klune books I’ve read (this is my fourth), while all of them have his special style of condensing dystopian fantasy worlds into little non-revolution fables about lonely men rediscovering themselves, this is the first time he’s been flat-out angry. This book is an attack against companies, groups, and individuals who fear and hate those who live different than their status quo. And this ferocity makes it the best TJ Klune book by far.
Some have criticized this book for being preachy, but the arguments made against Arthur and his family are used so heavily today to try to unfairly brand people, that it’s required to have a steadfast counterattack. There is a tense court hearing, and a frightening final confrontation that had me on the edge of my seat more than any other books of his I’ve read.
Arthur Parnassus may be able to turn into a fiery, shining phoenix, but this book shines just as bright. If you think there’s no way the book could be more wholesome, Klune dedicated Somewhere Beyond The Sea to trans people worldwide, telling them they are seen, heard, and supported. Books like these open the door for more tales in this genre, to help us all feel supported enough to stand and fight back.
My grade: 4 and a half stars out of 5
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