The House in the Cerulean Sea cover art

The House in the Cerulean Sea

An Uplifting, Heartwarming Cosy Fantasy About Found Family

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About this listen

‘I loved it. It is like being wrapped up in a big gay blanket. Simply perfect’

– V. E. Schwab, Sunday Times bestselling author of Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil

A cosy, enchanting story about the profound experience of discovering an unlikely family in an unexpected place. The House in the Cerulean Sea is an uplifting, heart-warming queer fantasy from TJ Klune, a Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author.

Linus Baker leads a quiet life. At forty, he has a tiny house with a devious cat and his beloved records for company. And at the Department in Charge of Magical Youth, he’s spent many dull years monitoring their orphanages.

Then one day, Linus is summoned by Extremely Upper Management and given a highly classified assignment. He must travel to an orphanage where six dangerous children reside – including the Antichrist.

At the orphanage, Linus must somehow determine if these children could bring about the end of days. But their guardian, the charming and enigmatic Arthur Parnassus, will do anything to protect his wards. And, as Arthur and Linus grow ever closer, Linus must choose: his duty, or his dreams . . .

Continue the adventure with the second entry in the Cerulean Chronicles, Somewhere Beyond the Sea.

‘A modern fairy tale . . . It’s a beautiful book’ – Charlaine Harris, No. 1 New York Times bestselling author

* * *

Fans fell in love with The House in the Cerulean Sea:

‘I was completely captivated’

‘The narrator was brilliant and really brought the characters to life’

‘This is a glorious, romantic, old fashioned, queer fantasy’

‘A tale as beautiful as this one should be compulsory reading’

‘If you want a magical romance that will make you giggle and cry, this is for you’

Action & Adventure Fantasy Fiction Romance Feel-Good Heartfelt Funny

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Critic reviews

I loved it. It is like being wrapped up in a big gay blanket. Simply perfect (V. E. Schwab, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue)
A witty, wholesome fantasy that’s likely to cause heart-swelling
The House in the Cerulean Sea is a modern fairy tale about learning your true nature and what you love and will protect. Its a beautiful book (Charlaine Harris, author of the Sookie Stackhouse series that inspired HBO's True Blood)
1984 meets The Umbrella Academy with a pinch of Douglas Adams thrown in. Touching, tender and truly delightful, The House in the Cerulean Sea is an utterly absorbing story of tolerance, found family and defeating bureaucracy (Gail Carriger, author of Soulless)
Sweet, comforting and kind, this book is very close to perfect . . . I cannot recommend it highly enough (Seanan McGuire, author of the Wayward Children series)
This tale of found family is hopeful to its core. Readers will revel in Klunes wit and ingenuity
Lambda Literary Award-winning author Klune (The Art of Breathing, 2019) has a knack for creating endearing characters, and readers will grow to love Arthur and the orphans alongside Linus
Quite possibly the greatest feel-good story ever to involve the Antichrist . . . a burst of humor and hope
A beautiful little gem of both irony and, yes, kindness
A delightful tale about chosen families, and how to celebrate differences
If ever there was an author to watch out for, [Klune] is definitely that author
All stars
Most relevant
This book is one of my new favourites. it's very sweet and heartwarming. The narrator is superb at putting on voices for each character - I particularly liked his Chancy voice. His speed of narration is perhaps above average but I found by reducing the speed by 0.05, it was perfect. I hope you enjoy this book as much as me.

A lovely sweet book

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Reading other reviews I expected hard-core fantasy, with a sting of sarcasm, as it was compared to Pratchett. That's why I bought it, alas... If you are a Pratchett fan, like me, let me tell you there are little to nothing similarities. Except they both belong in the fantasy genre. It is a cute story, a fairytale suitable for children and adults. A subtle lesson in tolerance toward anyone different, including LGBT.
The narration takes a moment to get used to, but it is fine. All in all, it was fun to listen.

Cute

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Absolutely brilliant. I loved this book. Every moment of it was magical and filled with truth and hope. It left me feeling so full.

A beautiful journey

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This is one of the most wholesome, amazing and feelings invoking books I have ever listened to. The performance is phenomenal as well. 

Wholesome 

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Help I want to listen to it again straight away
It’s so beautiful !!! Thankyou Thankyou

THE BEST BOOK IVE EVER READ

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