The House in the Cerulean Sea

September 18, 2021March 30, 2025 / Brienna / Leave a comment

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune is one of my favorite books of the year so far. Complete with a wyvern, phoenix, sprites, gnomes, and other magical creatures, this novel is a delight.

Linus Baker is a lonely, 40-year-old man who lives with his grumpy cat and alongside an even grumpier neighbor. A long-time employee of the Department in Charge Of Magical Youth, he has a reputation for impartial, detailed reports. He’s been a caseworker for decades and has never wanted or asked for more.

Pushed beyond his comfort zone when he’s assigned to visit a mysterious, classified island full of magical children, Linus must adapt to the situation or risk failure.

His task? Evaluate the “orphanage,” the children, and the headmaster, Arthur. On the surface, this assignment from Extremely Upper Management is business as usual.

Other than the classified nature of the Island (and the children), this should be just like any other case. However, Linus finds it hard to maintain his detachment after getting to know Arthur and the children. He comes to learn that perhaps detachment is not something desirable when deciding the fates of children.

This is a story about acceptance, overcoming discrimination and prejudice, and the power of a single voice to make a difference.

Linus discovers that home is not just a place, it’s people, and he’s finally found his.

“I am but paper. Brittle and thin. I am held up to the sun, and it shines right through me. I get written on, and I can never be used again. These scratches are a history. They’re a story. They tell things for others to read, but they only see the words, and not what the words are written upon. I am but paper, and though there are many like me, none are exactly the same. I am parched parchment. I have lines. I have holes. Get me wet, and I melt. Light me on fire, and I burn. Take me in hardened hands, and I crumple. I tear. I am but paper. Brittle and thin.”
The House in the Cerulean Sea

I really cannot say enough good things about this book. The world could do with more compassion, empathy, and acceptance of others who are different.

The Last House on Needless Street

May 17, 2021March 30, 2025 / Brienna / Leave a comment

This is one of those books that’s hard to write about without giving away too much. Murder mystery, as a whole, falls into that category, but this one is just extra.

I was very, very close to DNFing this book early on when Olivia was first introduced. I wasn’t thrilled with an idea of a narrating cat, one who reads the bible and says G.D. all the time. Not that actual swearing would bother me. However, I’m thrilled I continued due to the positive reviews.

There are clues, and I thought I had figured out a lot of the mystery, but holy cow. File this one under unreliable narrator 100x!

The Last House on Needless Street is chock full of interesting, no fascinating, characters. Even if you don’t like them or love them, they are really really bizarre and kept the book interesting and fresh at every turn.

My only negative comment is that while I enjoyed the audio version and the different narrators for various characters, I sometimes wanted to go back to check on the clues to the mystery. This is not the book’s fault, of course, just something that nagged at me more than it has with other audiobooks.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from NetGalley.com and Macmillan Audio in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

PS. This book isn’t out yet, but you can pre-order it now. I believe it’s coming out later this year, in September.

When the Stars Go Dark

November 27, 2020March 30, 2025 / Brienna / Leave a comment

When the Stars Go Dark is an upcoming novel by Paula McLain. This novel, a mystery-thriller, turns in a new direction for McLain and deviates from her previous historical fiction works, The Paris Wife and Circling the Sun.

Ann is running from her life and returns to her past in Mendocino. Upon arrival, she immediately gets entangled in the search to find a teenage girl. As much as she tries not to get involved, Anna feels drawn to the case, and not only because she’s spent the last several years as a detective in San Francisco, specializing in missing persons.

Set in 1993, the novel carefully interweaves Anna’s history with current events—the search for the missing girl—while hinting at what’s happened in Ann’s more recent past. Books that shift between now and past events can be tedious, and I often find I prefer only one part’s storyline. That is not the case here, with the past elements deftly woven in at just the right moments.

Anyone alive in California in 1993 probably remembers the search for missing Polly Klaas. Polly is not the focus of this novel, but her story is intertwined and is, in part, an inspiration for this novel.

This was a quick read for me, and I enjoyed every minute of it. The pacing is excellent and engaging. It reminded me of a true-crime thriller, and while Polly’s kidnapping and murder are not central to our story, I believe the details included are fact-based.

I loved the writing style of this book; the opening paragraphs seemed like poetry more than pose. The pacing is excellent and engaging.

While it does not go into graphic details, child/sexual abuse and murder are central themes of this novel, so you might want to skip if those are hot topics for you. Otherwise, I highly recommend it if you enjoy mystery-thrillers.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley.com in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Instant Karma

November 7, 2020March 30, 2025 / Brienna / Leave a comment

I picked this up because I absolutely adore Marissa Meyer’s Lunar Chronicles series. And guess what? It did not disappoint! While it’s not the greatest book in the universe, I really enjoyed it. That’s what it all comes down to, isn’t it?

It’s cute and endearing if a tad predictable. Great beach read or a good listen for a road trip. Yes, our main character Prudence is self-centered and judgemental, but she wants to be better. In fact, she does try to be better and even learns some life lessons over the course of the plot.

Now, it’s fairly obvious in some places what will happen. The novel follows a fairly standard rom-com narrative with introducing the couple, them finalizing realized what we’ve known all along (they like each other!), some sort of fight/split, and a reunion at the end. Don’t let that spoil it for you!

The things I loved:

Prudence learning that her judgemental attitude is not serving her as well as she thought, and her judgments are often wrong and hurtful.
The sea rescue!
Quint – until I didn’t.
The narrator – I listened to the audio version and felt she did a great job.

Things I didn’t love:

The obvious way Prudence was doing things wrong, but that was part of her journey, I suppose necessary for the book to happen.
The instant karma device – I’m not sure it was necessary, but I guess it worked ok? Also, it would be something kind of cool to have personally, but Prudence just didn’t get it for almost the entire book.

Overall, as mentioned at the start, this is a great beach read, or for any day when you don’t want to read something serious or heavy.

Thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley.com for a free advanced copy of the audiobook in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.