1. We have been told that Nicodemus has a very specific target in mind, ostensibly kept in the Labyrinth of Daedalus. What is Nic trying to get his hands on and why?
It was originally a prison for the Minatore, slain by Theseus... perhaps, the search is for the remains of the beast... or there is some token or object Hidden by Poseidon and is still protected by a modern version of the beast. No matter what, what ever they are trying to get their hands on, it is sure to have some type of power, either something that has an apocalyptic tone... or perhaps in the center will be the only tree that still grows Ambrosia ( one bite turns you into cures any disease, two makes you immortal, three or more makes you a greek god )
2. Nicodemus apparently called in a marker from Mab to get Harry on the team. Does he have a specific plan for using Harry or did Mab twist his request? Which of Harry's capabilities will he admit to needing, and (given that this is Nicodemus after all), which abilities is he scheming for Harry to use?
Nic is one of a few enemies of Harry’s that respect him. Overall, they are going to be moving through a giant maze with puzzles and traps. Harry is fast on his feet, good detective, and can punch holes in walls if nessacerry…. I would want him there… but you know Nic, he will probably have two other reasons other than that.
3. Jim has mentioned that the book will be "Ocean's Eleven". Who else did Nicodemus recruit? How will they interact with Harry?
3. Harry's general method of operation is to call on his friends for help. In this book, Harry is (initially) allowed one extra backup member on the crew. Who will it be? Which of Harry's other allies will "interfere" before the plot is over? 9/10/13 an interview was published that answers the first half of this question. (edit: Sort of) Those that guessed what he said in that interview (at least partially) have been logged by the curators, but this will probably go down as some kind of extra credit or something, so keep Predictin! (edit: And things might not be binary simple...)-Serack
Well, Harry doesn’t know any greek gods, but considering the company he is keeping I would hope that he wouldn’t choose any “plain folk” like Murphy. If I were a betting man, it would be one of three.
Billy (will)- not my top pick, but mouse is watching Little Maggie and I can’t see Harry pulling him away from that. But Life is always easier when you have a wolf.
Thomas- supernaturally strong and loyal. Fought against the denarians before, could do a whole lot worse.
Last on my list but my No.1 draft pick… Sasha. When Surrounded by demons, good to have your own guardian angel.
Mr. Butcher will probably throw us a curve ball and do something wacky like have him borrow Bob and have him in ride along mode.
5. This is a Denarian book, so (unlike the last "end of the world" showdown), the Swords will almost certainly be present. In fact, there have been various hints... Which Sword wielders will appear in the next book and how will their interference/help affect the plot?
Being the only Knight still in action, it is a givin that Sasha will be popping in, I also believe that one of the other swords will be put into play… I believe that Murphy will be convinced to carry Shiro’s blade full time… It will either be Uriel, Sasha or circumstance that convinces her, but I think her sense of purpose will be made clearer to herself.
6. Mab is apparently against Nicodemus succeeding in this heist. In the Cold Days, we found that Mab had complex reasons for wanting Harry to kill Maeve. What are Mab's reasons in this book? Is it simple thwarting or is there something deeper?
I believe that the reason will be directly connected to the attack on Arctis Tor that Harry stumbled on in “proven Guilty”. During the battle preceeding Harry’s attack, I believe, Nic took something that belonged to queen Mab… something she is willing to trade for to get back.
7. At the end of Cold Days, Harry needs to stay on the island to keep his growing headaches at bay. The start of Skin Games implies that those headaches will need to be resolved by the end of the book. Who or what is causing those headaches, and how will the whole thing get resolved by the end of the book?
After going back through the series, the one weakness we share with Harry is that when he has the mind “whammy” put on him, we are blinded as well. We can only see it when he remembers, or discovers it himself. The only thing we can do is work through the clues we are givin, and work through it. Here is my suspect list… these are the only entities we know who have the ability to live in his head.
Margret – Harry’s mom is the least likely candidate, but a shadow version of her lives in his head, and has since birth. I would hope that after the Soul gaze that Harry and Thomas shared she would have gone away having served her purpose… but I think the shadow of Margret interacted with him once before ( the Lake House in “storm front” ) which means her shadow had more than One purpose in his head… pray it was benine.
The adversary – Middle of the road with this one… Mr. N could have infected Harry, but it would have to have been before “Cold Days” and though Harry is supposed to have power over the outsiders later, still not sure how or why he is going to get it… could be a by-product of being infected and fighting it off.
Lash-Lasciel – No1. Contender… Hands down. Lets start with what we know about their life together. Harry had headaches for years, but they did not start really hitting him until he received the coin, and they kept getting stronger, even after she “fell on the sword” in the wraith deeps. Lash tried to convince him to pick up the coin for years, and she knew that he would never willingly take up the coin. I believe one of two things happened at the end of “white knight”
A) Lash was acting in earnest at the end of the book, took he metaphysical bullet for Harry and MOST of her presence died when Harry’s brain overloaded in the deeps. I think that a lot of us (yes, I am including myself) forgot that she was more of a spiritual being. At the end of the book, Harry could still play Spanish guitar, which points to the fact that something must have been left in. Also you have to take in Harry’s healing ability. In the normal Human brain, when brain cells die they are completely gone forever… but as our favorite medical examiner likes to point out, Harry is not normal. If his brain can repair the portions that lash was living in, it stands to reason she may be able to rebuild herself using the strands of what was left. Growing in Harry’s mind until she is strong enough to take over.
B) Her death was a sham, She was never in any real danger. She knew she was losing the battle for Harry’s soul, and she did not want to keep letting him use her like another Bob. So she uses the situation to her advantage. ALL of Harry’s information about “ brain damage” and her “death” comes from her at the end… She allows him to draw his own conclusion, and she hides deeper inside of him. Only giving him subliminal seeds of doubts and constant migranes, until an opportunity presents itself either to nudge him to the coin, or make him pay for rejecting her.
Hence the “female shadow” evident in “ghost story”, She was punishing him by convincing him to commit suicide by hitman.
Either way, she was not expecting Mab to rescue him, and when she was discovered by the winter queen and demonreach she was put in an awkward situation and used her part in keeping Harry alive as a lever to keep them silent.
8. One of the key components of the "Ocean's Eleven" movie is that there is a final twist/reveal. Given that we've got Nicodemus, Harry, Mab, and potentially Hades (and who knows who else) all trying to get the better of each other, if there's one thing you can count on it's some sort of last minute quintuple-cross. What will be the nature of the twist and how will it all fall out? No clue, ask bob.
