couple of quick points/thoughts

[Rizzelrun]

I am here because I have a HUGE fondness for the worlds in which Jim has allowed us to glimpse and LOVE to see others with the same passion and read what they have to say and chat about all of these wonderful Ideas....

I am roughly 1/2 through Book 1 of the Cinder Spire Series.... and a couple items that have struck out strange to me and seem to drag my mind in a particular direction... (probably wishful thinking)

There are a lot of little tiny things that are pointed out or called out or spoken, that to me, allude to this possibly being sometime down stream (sorta) after an Apocalyptic occurrence with in the Dresden universe...   the Cats, the "warrior Born" who one is at least referred to as 1/2 soul, and the Feline Eyes ect... sounds like they are Fairy Born, there is a reference to the enemy that refers to them as wanting to destroy all human life regardless of spire ... Sounds like the outsiders ... there is more... but I lack the time...

thank you for humoring me and allowing me to put this out there... I have been dying to talk to someone.

[Quantus]

Welcome!

The two most popular theories Ive seen for Cider Spires are basically the same idea: either it's a post-apocalyptic Earth (Dresden or otherwise), or some think it's a post-apocalyptic Alera and the crystal tech we see is some sort of evolution of Furies.   In addition to what you mentioned there is mention of animals that are thought to be mythological (lions, horses, etc) as well as some very earth terms (and cultures by the sound of things) for the different spires. 

Personally I dont think it's outsider because I think their rule would be more...dramatic.  And I dont really see them just leaving these Spires alone.  My money is on aliens.  The real question is how many different /kinds/ of aliens?  The books mention a surface dwelling Enemy (You there yet? It's not really a spoiler), but there was also that early mention of sailers spotting an "Archangel"

What follows is what I /hope/ for, but cannot really expect: 
Dresden is a series focused on Human forces. Alera introduced us to a galactic threat in the form of the zerg vord, so maybe (just maybe) this story of with all it's crystal energy and strange beings are to be the Protoss of some giant shared Butcherverse, and years from now we'll all be reading a huge interstellar cross-over tale that is what Starcraft wished it could be. 

[Snark Knight]

Dresden is a series focused on Human forces. Alera introduced us to a galactic threat in the form of the zerg vord, so maybe (just maybe) this story of with all it's crystal energy and strange beings are to be the Protoss of some giant shared Butcherverse, and years from now we'll all be reading a huge interstellar cross-over tale that is what Starcraft wished it could be.

I suppose the whole etherealists go insane thing is conceivable as a mutation of the law that DV magic has drawbacks but what specific form they take shifts slowly over time.

[Quantus]

I suppose the whole etherealists go insane thing is conceivable as a mutation of the law that DV magic has drawbacks but what specific form they take shifts slowly over time.

Maybe, but the fact that the energy in question affects Everyone to the point of requiring goggles Or Else makes me think that they are less the source of it and more of an evolutionary adaptation to it. 

In fact my own pet theory is that Folly is not actually Damaged/Insane the way the rest of the etherealists are, but rather she was born with an atypical brain (autism spectrum style) that naturally adapted and is letting her be an etherealist without accumulating the brain damage they normally would.  I think this is why the "Enemy' wasnt able to find any purchase in her brain, there were no unnatural "holes"

[Ed0517]

I was thinking warriorborn as genetically modified humans.  Sort of like Scalzi's troopers in Old Man's War. Faster and stronger than humans - but not supermen. Grimm speaks of fighting Sark, that he could not win in a gentlemanly manner - as if he thinks if he CHEATS, he COULD win. Like "If I hit Batman in the back of the head with a wrench before he knows I'm there, I can win!" while if it is Superman... better be a Kryptonite wrench.  One difference - the engineering left Scalzi's troops sterile. Have to assume Warriorborn can reproduce, as there is a mention one COULD be an heir to a House.