Well we've never seen it happen before. So we don't know what happens. It seems likely, but there's enough wiggle room for anything to be the case still. Nothing has been definitely stated.
A lady mantle transfer?
Sure we have. Now you could make an argument I suppose, about, uh, whats-her-face, the old summer lady being a changling, and so embracing her fey side to become a faerie when she gets the mantle.
But in the earlier books (summer knight, as well as the one with the billy goats) Harry explicitly states that the reason there are the knights is so that the courts have a mortal dude to run about, fiddling with things. This would pretty heavily imply that it's not possible to have a Queen of the faerie who is, y'know, not a faeire.
Well, Daniel has only showed up once really. Hard to be "beloved". And Elaine has proved you can be MIA and still turn up later and it works. So having a nice supply of characters could be handy.
He's been there a lot of times (roughly every time the kids are seen), but he was school-age for most of the series. Remember that there's roughly a year between books.
Daniel Carpenter never showed up (or was even mentioned), with all the time spent in the Carpenter household.
He's pretty old now, I don't think he lives there anymore.
Was I the only one having trouble keeping track of the Carpenter children? Oldest to youngest went...Molly - Daniel - Alicia (wasn't mentioned?) - Amanda / Hope / Harry Jr.?
EDIT: Apparently according to the wiki there is another son, Matthew, but I don't remember him ever being mentioned.
Butcher should start murdering some of these beloved characters with extreme prejudice, too many to keep track of and it sucks when you go several books without hearing from someone.
The vast majority of characters are specialized and do things other than helping Harry, which is what makes them good characters. Forthil, for example, isn't exactly the most useful guy outside of the church and providing advice. Daniel is headstrong, but too young and naïve to really take much part. Butters is actually doing alright for himself, all things considered. Harry's kind of wary of bringing the wolf pack back into the fold because they're horribly outclassed a lot of the time.
The characters tend to not be ubiquitous, which is good.
Plus Will and Georgia have a kid now, right? Georgia was pregnant after Changes, so they'd have a ~2 year old. 8~ months from Changes to Ghost Story, 6 more months from there to Cold Days, then another year until Skin Game.
also, remember that if anything is said in an internal harry monologue it's dubious information at best. we know his concept of how magic works is flawed so anything he talks about regarding how the FAE work is also probably grossly inaccurate (it doesn't mean he's lying or wrong, just that he's unreliable as a source that is infallible). There are probably only a handful of characters we've met that can be trusted on the information they provide about other beings.
Sure, Harry isn't always reliable, but the idea that Molly is still human has so many problems with it, the least of which is that it isn't in any way supported by the actual text.
Sure, Harry isn't always reliable, but the idea that Molly is still human has so many problems with it, the least of which is that it isn't in any way supported by the actual text.
Well, there's the "Fae can't harm mortals without loopholes.". Which granted that's how Molly got the Mantle, but removing someones humanity through 7 degrees of Queen of Air and Darkness is pretty drastic since she in no way actually consented to it. It also made a point that Lily was weak willed. And again fairly sure Mab wasn't always Mab. Need to track that bit down. It's very likely Molly is Fae, but there are enough loopholes for her to be not, too. And just on a story level I don't want to see Harry having 1 more thing to feel guilty about if she's not human now, even if practically speaking it makes no difference as evidenced so far.
Also it seems unlikely the Ladies can put down the mantles, since Summer would have done so.
They might not be able to put them down, but they may be able to use different mantles at different times. There's been strong emphasis from Kringlodin that he's bound by different rules and has different properties depending on which mantle he's using - it could very well be that Kringle is Fae, but Odin is not, Kringle always must speak the truth, but Odin can lie to your face.
Civics is not a consumer product that you can ignore because you don’t like the options presented.
Well, Daniel has only showed up once really. Hard to be "beloved". And Elaine has proved you can be MIA and still turn up later and it works. So having a nice supply of characters could be handy.
He's been there a lot of times (roughly every time the kids are seen), but he was school-age for most of the series. Remember that there's roughly a year between books.
Daniel Carpenter never showed up (or was even mentioned), with all the time spent in the Carpenter household.
He's pretty old now, I don't think he lives there anymore.
Was I the only one having trouble keeping track of the Carpenter children? Oldest to youngest went...Molly - Daniel - Alicia (wasn't mentioned?) - Amanda / Hope / Harry Jr.?
EDIT: Apparently according to the wiki there is another son, Matthew, but I don't remember him ever being mentioned.
Butcher should start murdering some of these beloved characters with extreme prejudice, too many to keep track of and it sucks when you go several books without hearing from someone.
The vast majority of characters are specialized and do things other than helping Harry, which is what makes them good characters. Forthil, for example, isn't exactly the most useful guy outside of the church and providing advice. Daniel is headstrong, but too young and naïve to really take much part. Butters is actually doing alright for himself, all things considered. Harry's kind of wary of bringing the wolf pack back into the fold because they're horribly outclassed a lot of the time.
The characters tend to not be ubiquitous, which is good.
This is a really good point I didn't consider. It takes the sting out of missing these characters a lot and I suppose it's an example of Butcher's strength having so many well developed characters. I really liked how far Butters has come from his introduction in the morgue. Hell, they've all come so far.
There's a part where Harry is considering his old allies and he's like "Was that really 10 years ago?" and I thought, "Fuck, how long have I been reading these books?
I hope the Apocalyptic Trilogy to end the series is a blood bath, though. I like my happy endings bitter sweet.
Sure, Harry isn't always reliable, but the idea that Molly is still human has so many problems with it, the least of which is that it isn't in any way supported by the actual text.
Well, there's the "Fae can't harm mortals without loopholes.". Which granted that's how Molly got the Mantle, but removing someones humanity through 7 degrees of Queen of Air and Darkness is pretty drastic since she in no way actually consented to it. It also made a point that Lily was weak willed. And again fairly sure Mab wasn't always Mab. Need to track that bit down. It's very likely Molly is Fae, but there are enough loopholes for her to be not, too. And just on a story level I don't want to see Harry having 1 more thing to feel guilty about if she's not human now, even if practically speaking it makes no difference as evidenced so far.
They can't directly cast spells on someone who is not part of their court (people in their debt are included as people they can ensorcel), however the majority of them don't need any magic at all to hurt, harm, or kill a mortal. Summer Knight has a fair amount of allusion and direct discussion of this, and in some uncomfortable ways as well.
Skin Game stuff
I think the real worry is that Harry is still treating Molly like she's old Molly, but not enough. Molly before this was clever, sneaky, and could trick Harry fairly regularly. Harry is still acting like she's his apprentice and asking her for favors, or accepting them from her. However she's Fae with a capitol "F" now. That means he's getting dangerously deep in her pocket (And not in the way she's asked for) and not paying attention to the bill he's racking up. Even if she's not all gone, she's still bound to the nature of the fae, and that says that for a gift given one must be given in kind.
Sure, Harry isn't always reliable, but the idea that Molly is still human has so many problems with it, the least of which is that it isn't in any way supported by the actual text.
Well, there's the "Fae can't harm mortals without loopholes.". Which granted that's how Molly got the Mantle, but removing someones humanity through 7 degrees of Queen of Air and Darkness is pretty drastic since she in no way actually consented to it. It also made a point that Lily was weak willed. And again fairly sure Mab wasn't always Mab. Need to track that bit down. It's very likely Molly is Fae, but there are enough loopholes for her to be not, too. And just on a story level I don't want to see Harry having 1 more thing to feel guilty about if she's not human now, even if practically speaking it makes no difference as evidenced so far.
They can't directly cast spells on someone who is not part of their court (people in their debt are included as people they can ensorcel), however the majority of them don't need any magic at all to hurt, harm, or kill a mortal. Summer Knight has a fair amount of allusion and direct discussion of this, and in some uncomfortable ways as well.
Skin Game stuff
I think the real worry is that Harry is still treating Molly like she's old Molly, but not enough. Molly before this was clever, sneaky, and could trick Harry fairly regularly. Harry is still acting like she's his apprentice and asking her for favors, or accepting them from her. However she's Fae with a capitol "F" now. That means he's getting dangerously deep in her pocket (And not in the way she's asked for) and not paying attention to the bill he's racking up. Even if she's not all gone, she's still bound to the nature of the fae, and that says that for a gift given one must be given in kind.
There is an easy way around this:
Buy her pizza.
Civics is not a consumer product that you can ignore because you don’t like the options presented.
Also that depends if pre mantle stuff counts. Molly might be in debt to Harry, not the other way around.
I kind of doubt it, but I do agree that there's a simple response to it, if Molly wants.
As far as we've seen, it's up to the fae to decide what counts as a legit trade, so she could do all that shit for Harry in exchange for like, a smile, if she wanted.
Has anyone had any experience with Butcher's 'Beta Readers'? There was a section of his personal forums where I think he allowed people to read parts of the book before they were finished to get feedback so nothing was totally out of left field.
I am in the business of saving lives.
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webguy20I spend too much time on the InternetRegistered Userregular
Has anyone had any experience with Butcher's 'Beta Readers'? There was a section of his personal forums where I think he allowed people to read parts of the book before they were finished to get feedback so nothing was totally out of left field.
Man I would hate to do this for a series I love. It would be like slow torture.
Has anyone had any experience with Butcher's 'Beta Readers'? There was a section of his personal forums where I think he allowed people to read parts of the book before they were finished to get feedback so nothing was totally out of left field.
Man I would hate to do this for a series I love. It would be like slow torture.
Yeah, there's a reason I refuse to read like, pre-release chapters.
I never read any of the chapters for Skin Game until it came out and there's a few chapters released for Winds of Winter that I've been avoiding too.
Also it seems unlikely the Ladies can put down the mantles, since Summer would have done so.
They might not be able to put them down, but they may be able to use different mantles at different times. There's been strong emphasis from Kringlodin that he's bound by different rules and has different properties depending on which mantle he's using - it could very well be that Kringle is Fae, but Odin is not, Kringle always must speak the truth, but Odin can lie to your face.
Yeah the whole thing with mantles makes this an issue on which saying anything definite is problematic. I think Molly might well be partly human still but all knowledge she has as the winter lady is off limits if she goes around it. The emphasis all them christian bros put on free will and such should at least tell us that it's a more complex issue.
Sure she changed but that doesn't mean she's just like all the other fae.
Has anyone had any experience with Butcher's 'Beta Readers'? There was a section of his personal forums where I think he allowed people to read parts of the book before they were finished to get feedback so nothing was totally out of left field.
He puts them in the foreward of the books a lot and talks about them at cons (And talks to them and points them out at panels). They're called the "Beta Asylum", they're hand picked by him and get a chapter at a time. This isn't quite what you think because things change a lot between renditions of the same chapter*. They aren't reading for editing, but for content. He's got a mix of people who focus on different things with different perspectives. Some are heavily into guessing ahead, some aren't, some are buffs on the timeline or the characters or the mechanics, and that's kinda just the ones he's talked about.
*As an example, here's Jim reading the first couple chapters of Skin Game from an earlier draft. Minor changes because it was just before it got sent out (also horrible audio)
Oh, wow, that's really cool. But if you don't think some of those readers shoot him e-mails detailing "Hey, this doesn't fit a book six books ago!" you're crazy.
Maggie is the only counter point I can think of. Maggie is the only named yet non-dangerous woman in the series.
And that's because she's like 6yrs old and barely able to speak. I bet that by her 10th birthday she has become a personification of Death who wipes out Outsiders with a thought.
Hahah yeah, I came to the same conclusion
You mean
Dinosaur Cowgirl?
I wonder what Maggie will think when she finds out Dresden rode around on a dinosaur skeleton
I thought that was a throwback. I'd assumed that someone told her that her dad was one.
Okay, so here's something that I'm just going to throw out there for shits-and-grins. Whole-series spoilers, I guess?
We know that Harry's birth was "something special," and that his Mom was super, super close to the fae.
We know that Harry summoned Old Mother Winter by using some really old names for her, and when Mother Summer shows up, she checks whether or not Harry called her by a certain name, but doesn't actually call her by it. Something like, "Oh, he called me Atropos and [foo]," "Did he call you .. ?" "Nope."
Mother Winter doesn't get out much since she lost her walking stick.
Harry's maternal grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, has a special, totally badass Blackstaff.
Mab was mortal once, and has daughters - some of whom are full fae (Maeve, but was she always?), some of whom are changlings (Sarissa).
Just throwing darts here, but ... What if the name Harry didn't call Mother Winter by was, like, Great-Grandma?
Okay, so here's something that I'm just going to throw out there for shits-and-grins. Whole-series spoilers, I guess?
We know that Harry's birth was "something special," and that his Mom was super, super close to the fae.
We know that Harry summoned Old Mother Winter by using some really old names for her, and when Mother Summer shows up, she checks whether or not Harry called her by a certain name, but doesn't actually call her by it. Something like, "Oh, he called me Atropos and [foo]," "Did he call you .. ?" "Nope."
Mother Winter doesn't get out much since she lost her walking stick.
Harry's maternal grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, has a special, totally badass Blackstaff.
Mab was mortal once, and has daughters - some of whom are full fae (Maeve, but was she always?), some of whom are changlings (Sarissa).
Just throwing darts here, but ... What if the name Harry didn't call Mother Winter by was, like, Great-Grandma?
Also, PARKOUR!
She was checking more for names like Hecate or the Norns, since they are those mythological peoples as well or possibly, since they are literally the defenders of the planet and have control over the elements, Gaeia
Okay, so here's something that I'm just going to throw out there for shits-and-grins. Whole-series spoilers, I guess?
We know that Harry's birth was "something special," and that his Mom was super, super close to the fae.
We know that Harry summoned Old Mother Winter by using some really old names for her, and when Mother Summer shows up, she checks whether or not Harry called her by a certain name, but doesn't actually call her by it. Something like, "Oh, he called me Atropos and [foo]," "Did he call you .. ?" "Nope."
Mother Winter doesn't get out much since she lost her walking stick.
Harry's maternal grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, has a special, totally badass Blackstaff.
Mab was mortal once, and has daughters - some of whom are full fae (Maeve, but was she always?), some of whom are changlings (Sarissa).
Just throwing darts here, but ... What if the name Harry didn't call Mother Winter by was, like, Great-Grandma?
Also, PARKOUR!
She was checking more for names like Hecate or the Norns, since they are those mythological peoples as well or possibly, since they are literally the defenders of the planet and have control over the elements, Gaeia
Why would Mother Summer be worried about Harry calling her that, though?
Okay, so here's something that I'm just going to throw out there for shits-and-grins. Whole-series spoilers, I guess?
We know that Harry's birth was "something special," and that his Mom was super, super close to the fae.
We know that Harry summoned Old Mother Winter by using some really old names for her, and when Mother Summer shows up, she checks whether or not Harry called her by a certain name, but doesn't actually call her by it. Something like, "Oh, he called me Atropos and [foo]," "Did he call you .. ?" "Nope."
Mother Winter doesn't get out much since she lost her walking stick.
Harry's maternal grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, has a special, totally badass Blackstaff.
Mab was mortal once, and has daughters - some of whom are full fae (Maeve, but was she always?), some of whom are changlings (Sarissa).
Just throwing darts here, but ... What if the name Harry didn't call Mother Winter by was, like, Great-Grandma?
Also, PARKOUR!
She was checking more for names like Hecate or the Norns, since they are those mythological peoples as well or possibly, since they are literally the defenders of the planet and have control over the elements, Gaeia
Why would Mother Summer be worried about Harry calling her that, though?
I don't think it was worry, more like "Oh hey, does he know?"
So I finally finished the other new book I was working on, and bought this yesterday morning since it was my day off. Just plomped down on the couch and read the whole thing. Man it was good.
Some stuff
The stuff with him and Maggie was heartwarming and such, but what really got to me was just him being with Mister and talking about how he was his buddy. As someone who was for a while a catted bachelor, it really resonated with me and the relationship I have with my cat. I'll probably cry if Mister ever ends up on the casualty list.
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JuliusCaptain of Serenityon my shipRegistered Userregular
Okay, so here's something that I'm just going to throw out there for shits-and-grins. Whole-series spoilers, I guess?
We know that Harry's birth was "something special," and that his Mom was super, super close to the fae.
We know that Harry summoned Old Mother Winter by using some really old names for her, and when Mother Summer shows up, she checks whether or not Harry called her by a certain name, but doesn't actually call her by it. Something like, "Oh, he called me Atropos and [foo]," "Did he call you .. ?" "Nope."
Mother Winter doesn't get out much since she lost her walking stick.
Harry's maternal grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, has a special, totally badass Blackstaff.
Mab was mortal once, and has daughters - some of whom are full fae (Maeve, but was she always?), some of whom are changlings (Sarissa).
Just throwing darts here, but ... What if the name Harry didn't call Mother Winter by was, like, Great-Grandma?
Also, PARKOUR!
She was checking more for names like Hecate or the Norns, since they are those mythological peoples as well or possibly, since they are literally the defenders of the planet and have control over the elements, Gaeia
Why would Mother Summer be worried about Harry calling her that, though?
I don't think it was worry, more like "Oh hey, does he know?"
So
Harry fucked his grandmother?
I dunno man, I don't think that's going to be what that meant.
Okay, so here's something that I'm just going to throw out there for shits-and-grins. Whole-series spoilers, I guess?
We know that Harry's birth was "something special," and that his Mom was super, super close to the fae.
We know that Harry summoned Old Mother Winter by using some really old names for her, and when Mother Summer shows up, she checks whether or not Harry called her by a certain name, but doesn't actually call her by it. Something like, "Oh, he called me Atropos and [foo]," "Did he call you .. ?" "Nope."
Mother Winter doesn't get out much since she lost her walking stick.
Harry's maternal grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, has a special, totally badass Blackstaff.
Mab was mortal once, and has daughters - some of whom are full fae (Maeve, but was she always?), some of whom are changlings (Sarissa).
Just throwing darts here, but ... What if the name Harry didn't call Mother Winter by was, like, Great-Grandma?
Also, PARKOUR!
She was checking more for names like Hecate or the Norns, since they are those mythological peoples as well or possibly, since they are literally the defenders of the planet and have control over the elements, Gaeia
Why would Mother Summer be worried about Harry calling her that, though?
I don't think it was worry, more like "Oh hey, does he know?"
So
Harry fucked his grandmother?
I dunno man, I don't think that's going to be what that meant.
Oh no, I kind of agree. I don't really think Ebenezar banged one of Mab's human daughters.
Okay, so here's something that I'm just going to throw out there for shits-and-grins. Whole-series spoilers, I guess?
We know that Harry's birth was "something special," and that his Mom was super, super close to the fae.
We know that Harry summoned Old Mother Winter by using some really old names for her, and when Mother Summer shows up, she checks whether or not Harry called her by a certain name, but doesn't actually call her by it. Something like, "Oh, he called me Atropos and [foo]," "Did he call you .. ?" "Nope."
Mother Winter doesn't get out much since she lost her walking stick.
Harry's maternal grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, has a special, totally badass Blackstaff.
Mab was mortal once, and has daughters - some of whom are full fae (Maeve, but was she always?), some of whom are changlings (Sarissa).
Just throwing darts here, but ... What if the name Harry didn't call Mother Winter by was, like, Great-Grandma?
Also, PARKOUR!
She was checking more for names like Hecate or the Norns, since they are those mythological peoples as well or possibly, since they are literally the defenders of the planet and have control over the elements, Gaeia
Why would Mother Summer be worried about Harry calling her that, though?
I don't think it was worry, more like "Oh hey, does he know?"
So
Harry fucked his grandmother?
I dunno man, I don't think that's going to be what that meant.
Come on. You'd have to admit ...
... it wouldn't be the weirdest match in the series.
Hell, it probably wouldn't be the weirdest match in Harry's love life.
Also, you can't really have sex with a thunderstorm.
No matter how phat it is.
Man, I miss Sanya.
I do like that the current Knights of the Cross are a Jewish Jedi and a Russian Agnostic.
Okay, so here's something that I'm just going to throw out there for shits-and-grins. Whole-series spoilers, I guess?
We know that Harry's birth was "something special," and that his Mom was super, super close to the fae.
We know that Harry summoned Old Mother Winter by using some really old names for her, and when Mother Summer shows up, she checks whether or not Harry called her by a certain name, but doesn't actually call her by it. Something like, "Oh, he called me Atropos and [foo]," "Did he call you .. ?" "Nope."
Mother Winter doesn't get out much since she lost her walking stick.
Harry's maternal grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, has a special, totally badass Blackstaff.
Mab was mortal once, and has daughters - some of whom are full fae (Maeve, but was she always?), some of whom are changlings (Sarissa).
Just throwing darts here, but ... What if the name Harry didn't call Mother Winter by was, like, Great-Grandma?
Also, PARKOUR!
She was checking more for names like Hecate or the Norns, since they are those mythological peoples as well or possibly, since they are literally the defenders of the planet and have control over the elements, Gaeia
Why would Mother Summer be worried about Harry calling her that, though?
I don't think it was worry, more like "Oh hey, does he know?"
Continuing whole series spoilers:
But he does know that Mother Winter is also other immortals throughout the ages - hence calling her Atropos and whatever else he called her. Why would Hecate / the Norns / Gaia be so special?
Okay, so here's something that I'm just going to throw out there for shits-and-grins. Whole-series spoilers, I guess?
We know that Harry's birth was "something special," and that his Mom was super, super close to the fae.
We know that Harry summoned Old Mother Winter by using some really old names for her, and when Mother Summer shows up, she checks whether or not Harry called her by a certain name, but doesn't actually call her by it. Something like, "Oh, he called me Atropos and [foo]," "Did he call you .. ?" "Nope."
Mother Winter doesn't get out much since she lost her walking stick.
Harry's maternal grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, has a special, totally badass Blackstaff.
Mab was mortal once, and has daughters - some of whom are full fae (Maeve, but was she always?), some of whom are changlings (Sarissa).
Just throwing darts here, but ... What if the name Harry didn't call Mother Winter by was, like, Great-Grandma?
Also, PARKOUR!
She was checking more for names like Hecate or the Norns, since they are those mythological peoples as well or possibly, since they are literally the defenders of the planet and have control over the elements, Gaeia
Why would Mother Summer be worried about Harry calling her that, though?
I don't think it was worry, more like "Oh hey, does he know?"
Continuing whole series spoilers:
But he does know that Mother Winter is also other immortals throughout the ages - hence calling her Atropos and whatever else he called her. Why would Hecate / the Norns / Gaia be so special?
Anyway, just some spitballs.
More spitballing
What if they were worried about a certain name because it would lead to a logic chain that they don't want him following (either because it got messed up in myth and they're worried that he would get the wrong idea or because it would reveal some plan of theirs that they have reason to believe he would interfere with if he could)
Remember that names are power. Toot-toot is the name that Narrator Harry gives us, but it's not the being's true name which is something by which he can control the being or compel it.
In the Dresdenverse names go beyond just what we call things, they're the core of what each being is. Harry points out that mortal names tend to change over time as they change, but beings from the nevernever tend to always answer to the same name.
Okay, so here's something that I'm just going to throw out there for shits-and-grins. Whole-series spoilers, I guess?
We know that Harry's birth was "something special," and that his Mom was super, super close to the fae.
We know that Harry summoned Old Mother Winter by using some really old names for her, and when Mother Summer shows up, she checks whether or not Harry called her by a certain name, but doesn't actually call her by it. Something like, "Oh, he called me Atropos and [foo]," "Did he call you .. ?" "Nope."
Mother Winter doesn't get out much since she lost her walking stick.
Harry's maternal grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, has a special, totally badass Blackstaff.
Mab was mortal once, and has daughters - some of whom are full fae (Maeve, but was she always?), some of whom are changlings (Sarissa).
Just throwing darts here, but ... What if the name Harry didn't call Mother Winter by was, like, Great-Grandma?
Also, PARKOUR!
She was checking more for names like Hecate or the Norns, since they are those mythological peoples as well or possibly, since they are literally the defenders of the planet and have control over the elements, Gaeia
Why would Mother Summer be worried about Harry calling her that, though?
I don't think it was worry, more like "Oh hey, does he know?"
Continuing whole series spoilers:
But he does know that Mother Winter is also other immortals throughout the ages - hence calling her Atropos and whatever else he called her. Why would Hecate / the Norns / Gaia be so special?
Anyway, just some spitballs.
More spitballing
What if they were worried about a certain name because it would lead to a logic chain that they don't want him following (either because it got messed up in myth and they're worried that he would get the wrong idea or because it would reveal some plan of theirs that they have reason to believe he would interfere with if he could)
That I could buy; just not sure what the chain would be.
Posts
A lady mantle transfer?
Sure we have. Now you could make an argument I suppose, about, uh, whats-her-face, the old summer lady being a changling, and so embracing her fey side to become a faerie when she gets the mantle.
But in the earlier books (summer knight, as well as the one with the billy goats) Harry explicitly states that the reason there are the knights is so that the courts have a mortal dude to run about, fiddling with things. This would pretty heavily imply that it's not possible to have a Queen of the faerie who is, y'know, not a faeire.
He's been there a lot of times (roughly every time the kids are seen), but he was school-age for most of the series. Remember that there's roughly a year between books.
The vast majority of characters are specialized and do things other than helping Harry, which is what makes them good characters. Forthil, for example, isn't exactly the most useful guy outside of the church and providing advice. Daniel is headstrong, but too young and naïve to really take much part. Butters is actually doing alright for himself, all things considered. Harry's kind of wary of bringing the wolf pack back into the fold because they're horribly outclassed a lot of the time.
The characters tend to not be ubiquitous, which is good.
Blizzard: Pailryder#1101
GoG: https://www.gog.com/u/pailryder
Or titanium.
Which seems like it'd appeal to Harry, now that I think about it.
"Is that substance named for Titania?!?"
"Err... nope. Just some silly mortal naming thing."
Well, there's the "Fae can't harm mortals without loopholes.". Which granted that's how Molly got the Mantle, but removing someones humanity through 7 degrees of Queen of Air and Darkness is pretty drastic since she in no way actually consented to it. It also made a point that Lily was weak willed. And again fairly sure Mab wasn't always Mab. Need to track that bit down. It's very likely Molly is Fae, but there are enough loopholes for her to be not, too. And just on a story level I don't want to see Harry having 1 more thing to feel guilty about if she's not human now, even if practically speaking it makes no difference as evidenced so far.
Molly wasn't always lady winter, but now she is.
They might not be able to put them down, but they may be able to use different mantles at different times. There's been strong emphasis from Kringlodin that he's bound by different rules and has different properties depending on which mantle he's using - it could very well be that Kringle is Fae, but Odin is not, Kringle always must speak the truth, but Odin can lie to your face.
This is a really good point I didn't consider. It takes the sting out of missing these characters a lot and I suppose it's an example of Butcher's strength having so many well developed characters. I really liked how far Butters has come from his introduction in the morgue. Hell, they've all come so far.
There's a part where Harry is considering his old allies and he's like "Was that really 10 years ago?" and I thought, "Fuck, how long have I been reading these books?
I hope the Apocalyptic Trilogy to end the series is a blood bath, though. I like my happy endings bitter sweet.
Skin Game stuff
As far as we've seen, it's up to the fae to decide what counts as a legit trade, so she could do all that shit for Harry in exchange for like, a smile, if she wanted.
Man I would hate to do this for a series I love. It would be like slow torture.
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
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Yeah, there's a reason I refuse to read like, pre-release chapters.
I never read any of the chapters for Skin Game until it came out and there's a few chapters released for Winds of Winter that I've been avoiding too.
Take, for instance, our discussion about Molly and her use of technology. That's something a Beta Reader would jump all over.
Yeah the whole thing with mantles makes this an issue on which saying anything definite is problematic. I think Molly might well be partly human still but all knowledge she has as the winter lady is off limits if she goes around it. The emphasis all them christian bros put on free will and such should at least tell us that it's a more complex issue.
Sure she changed but that doesn't mean she's just like all the other fae.
He puts them in the foreward of the books a lot and talks about them at cons (And talks to them and points them out at panels). They're called the "Beta Asylum", they're hand picked by him and get a chapter at a time. This isn't quite what you think because things change a lot between renditions of the same chapter*. They aren't reading for editing, but for content. He's got a mix of people who focus on different things with different perspectives. Some are heavily into guessing ahead, some aren't, some are buffs on the timeline or the characters or the mechanics, and that's kinda just the ones he's talked about.
*As an example, here's Jim reading the first couple chapters of Skin Game from an earlier draft. Minor changes because it was just before it got sent out (also horrible audio)
Her dad was a dinosaur skeleton?
Or a dinosaur cowgirl?
We know that Harry summoned Old Mother Winter by using some really old names for her, and when Mother Summer shows up, she checks whether or not Harry called her by a certain name, but doesn't actually call her by it. Something like, "Oh, he called me Atropos and [foo]," "Did he call you .. ?" "Nope."
Mother Winter doesn't get out much since she lost her walking stick.
Harry's maternal grandfather, Ebenezar McCoy, has a special, totally badass Blackstaff.
Mab was mortal once, and has daughters - some of whom are full fae (Maeve, but was she always?), some of whom are changlings (Sarissa).
Just throwing darts here, but ... What if the name Harry didn't call Mother Winter by was, like, Great-Grandma?
Also, PARKOUR!
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Wilds of Aladrion: [https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/comment/43159014/#Comment_43159014]Ellandryn[/url]
The other thing...eeeeeehhhhh, mmmmmmmmmaaaaaaayyyyybbbbe, but seems a bit much. Harry doesn't need any more ties to bind him.
Steam: Elvenshae // PSN: Elvenshae // WotC: Elvenshae
Wilds of Aladrion: [https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/comment/43159014/#Comment_43159014]Ellandryn[/url]
Some stuff
So
I dunno man, I don't think that's going to be what that meant.
That is just too much
Come on. You'd have to admit ...
Hell, it probably wouldn't be the weirdest match in Harry's love life.
Also, you can't really have sex with a thunderstorm.
No matter how phat it is.
Steam: Elvenshae // PSN: Elvenshae // WotC: Elvenshae
Wilds of Aladrion: [https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/comment/43159014/#Comment_43159014]Ellandryn[/url]
Continuing whole series spoilers:
Anyway, just some spitballs.
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Wilds of Aladrion: [https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/comment/43159014/#Comment_43159014]Ellandryn[/url]
More spitballing
In the Dresdenverse names go beyond just what we call things, they're the core of what each being is. Harry points out that mortal names tend to change over time as they change, but beings from the nevernever tend to always answer to the same name.
That I could buy; just not sure what the chain would be.
As for @Dedwrekka's point ...
I mean, it could be her TRUE NAME (Toot-Toot : X :: Atropos : Y), I guess, but why would Mother Summer immediately assume that Harry figured it out?
Anyway, great points!
Steam: Elvenshae // PSN: Elvenshae // WotC: Elvenshae
Wilds of Aladrion: [https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/comment/43159014/#Comment_43159014]Ellandryn[/url]