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Twelve Months - What our you expecting from it?

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KurtinStGeorge:
I've been thinking about Twelve Months and I think it will be a different type of story than anything we've read so far in any of the previous Dresden Files case books.  It almost has to be different.  I'm paraphrasing here, but on more than one occasion Jim has said that the story of every Dresden Files novel is the worst two or three days of Harry's life in that given year.  Except for the first three or four novels, which take place about only 4 to 9 months apart from one to another. 

Up till the present, all of the previous Dresden Files novels have had Harry playing beat the clock while facing seemingly insurmountable odds, but not this time.  OK, at some point in the next novel; probably near the middle of the novel, Harry will realize he is facing a deadline to accomplish some seemingly impossible goal, but almost certainly, it won't be like Death Masks, Turn Coat or Changes; where a Red Court vampire challenges Harry to a duel right at the start of the story, or when Harry has a wounded Morgan show up on his doorstep asking to hide him from the Wardens or when Susan tells Harry in the first paragraph of the first chapter that the Red Court has kidnapped Harry and Susan's daughter.  I'm guessing Twelve Months will be more of slow burn type of story.  The conflict or conflicts in Twelve Months will unfold at a more deliberate pace   

So, that has me asking what the through line will be; the main story, that will flow through the entire novel.   I suppose we could get twelve short stories, one for each month, but I seriously doubt Jim would take that route.  So, what will Twelve Months be about? 

We know Harry will be dealing with the trauma of losing Murphy and the general trauma of what occurred during Battle Ground.  We also know that Harry talked to Michael about reinventing himself, becoming The Wizard of Chicago; whatever that will mean.  Though Harry has always self-identified as the black sheep of the White Council, someone skeptical of the leadership, the quality of their decision making and even their morality, he has also seen himself as being part of the same Council.  Now he has to create a new identity for himself.

So, the above give us a couple of themes which might carry through the novel: grief, recovery and reinvention.  However, themes are not the plot, they are ideas which underlie the story.  So in asking what the story will be, we need to look at the elements Jim will be working with. 

*We know Harry will be going out on dates with Lara Raith.
*We know that Molly will have a role in planning these dates; Mab ordered her to set them up, most likely after negotiating with Lara or possibly
  Lara's proxy, on where the dates will be held and other important elements related to these public outings.
* We know Lara was caught off guard by Mab's declaration that Lara would marry the Winter Knight to cement the alliance between
   Winter and White Court; however, we can confidently guess that Lara will quickly realize she has been given a golden opportunity to firmly place
   Harry under her control.  My guess is if Mab makes an early appearance in Twelve Months and Harry points this out to her, Mab will respond that it
   is Harry's responsibility to see that this doesn't happen.
  Speaking of Mab...
* We know Mab expects demands that Lara and Harry will get married at the end of Twelve Months.  Does this mean there will be twelve
  dates?
* We can confidently assume the Winter Queen has been or will be setting up Lara for something else beyond being an ally of Winter.  Mab always
   plans for multiple possible outcomes in any given situation.  Possibly Mab sees Lara as a potential replacement for Molly, though that is just a
   guess on my part.
* We know that Harry told Ebenezer that he won't try to get out of being the Winter Knight unless he can bring Molly out of Winter as well.  Maybe
   we will see the beginnings of such a plan take place in Twelve Months.
* We can safely guess that Ebenezer will go ballistic when he hears that Harry and Lara are making public appearances together, that they are
   romantically involved.  The rest of the Senior Council and Harry's friends; maybe former friends, on the Council, like Luccio and Ramirez, won't be
   very happy either.
* We know that LTW will be coming back at or near the end of the story to tell Harry if he and his allies will help Harry understand what it means to
   be Starborn.  Whether this will play an important role near the end of Twelve Months or set up an important plot point in a later novel is anyone's
   guess.  If this element is important to the end of Twelve Months, I think that would likely mean that Outsiders will be playing an important role in
   Twelve Months, necessitating Harry learn more about being Starborn ASAP. 
   Speaking of Outsiders...
* We know Justine is possessed by Nemesis and that she is pregnant.  However, her pregnancy won't carry through the entire the entire novel,
   though it will probably be an important story element for the first two thirds of the novel.
* We know that Waldo Butters has the perfect weapon to harm Nemesis and probably drive it from Justine and her unborn child, without harming
   either one of them.  We can guess that at some point Waldo will become involved, but perhaps Jim will have Waldo preoccupied with another
   mission to keep the easy solution from being an option.
* We know Thomas is locked up under Demonreach, but there isn't any time limit on how long he will remain there.  Maybe a time limit will be
   introduced, but we have no way to know if such a thing will occur. 
* We can safely assume that if Thomas is released from his imprisonment, the Swartalves will still be looking for him.
* We know there is a "Men in Black" like organization; the Librarians, who will almost certainly have an operative or two in Chicago.  They will
   almost certainly be interested in Harry.  Being a mortal, he is the easiest member of the supernatural community; the ones with power, not low
   level members who hang out at Mac's, to keep track of and perhaps even approach.  Conversely, Harry might notice he's being followed and
   decide to initiate contact himself.
* Harry made a promise to the survivors of those people who followed his Banner during the Battle of Chicago, that they can come to him once,
  should any of them need his help.
* Finally; just to be clear, the earlier point that Mab expects Harry to marry Lara Raith at the end of Twelve Months does set up a ticking clock, just
   a really slow clock.  And also, not a ticking clock leading to an outcome as dramatic as Demonreach blowing up and taking half of North America
   with it or Ethniu destroying the mortal world.  The stakes in Twelve Months are much more personal and life altering for Harry than end of the
   world for everyone else. 

So, we have some potential for strong drama, some possible comedy on the dates with Lara and Harry; plus, maybe there will be some Outsiders besides Nemesis making an appearance, or not.  Then there is this new group, the Librarians.  A possible threat, but perhaps also possible allies.  Lots of possibilities but no easy to identify story here.  How do you think the story will play out, or more clearly, what will the story be?

I'll make this guess on how Twelve Months might start, based on nothing in particular.  Molly, or more likely a proxy she sends in her place because she is busy with Winter Lady duties (Also, because Jim will want to keep Harry isolated from his strongest ally), will deliver a message to Harry describing the details of his first date with Lara; where it will be, what he is expected to ware and so forth.  If Molly sends a proxy in her place, it will be someone like the Redcap who Harry despises.  Harry will be told on a Monday that date will be on Friday and he is expected to make a good showing for Winter.  Harry will brood about being used as; not a brood mare, a brood stud, for Mab.

However, Harry will be pulled out his self pity mood when one of the people Harry promised to do a favor for, shows up asking to collect on that favor.  Whatever help this person needs, it will look like a relatively simple task for the Wizard of Chicago to perform but will reveal a much deeper threat, not just for that individual but for many others as well.  It will be the kind of thing that Harry would have called into the Council when he was a Warden, but he can't do that any longer.  Harry will need to use all his skills and some luck to survive, make good on his promise and show up for his first date with Lara on time.

Maybe this new threat will involve Outsiders or perhaps a group of Fomor who weren't able to retreat to Lake Michigan and instead took up temporary residence in Undertown or maybe it will be Cowl or some major family of the White Court looking to take Lara down a peg or two or perhaps the Librarians will pose some existential risk we can't yet imagine.  It could also be some combination of these or other supernatural players. 

Whoever, whatever or wherever the threat comes from, Harry will only get a glimpse of it in the first month of Twelve Months.  He will need to use his detective skills to find and put together clues in the following months.  All the while he will also have to deal with Lara and Mab's schemes, unwanted interference from Ebenezer, his seeming inability to help Thomas and his own depression and sense of loss.

My alternative beginning involves Harry running down a clue to Justine's whereabouts, which misses Justine but uncovers something else.  Something scary, sinister and only hints at what is to come.

Now it's your turn.  Be as detailed or not as you like.  What are you expecting to see in Twelve Months? 

Mira:

   I don't know what to expect frankly.  Harry is grieving and from the few hints we do have from the short stories is suffering from depression, though maybe not on the level he was going through at the beginning of Summer Knight.  My prediction if you could call it that is, not just Harry, but both Lara and Molly will fight Mab on her plans for this marriage.  The real reasons why Mab wants it and their reasons for not wanting it, will make the story interesting.  It's a given that Eb will go postal upon hearing the news, but will he then step forward and attempt to do his Blackstaff duties?  Because I cannot imagine the White Council would be very happy upon hearing the news and if they really want to off Harry, they will try and get it done before he makes yet another powerful ally when he marries into the White Court.  And yes, I can see maybe two voices of sanity finally explaining to Harry what he is and what his birth means, those two voices belong to Rashid and Listens to Wind.

Fox:
I think if Mab is setting up Lara as a replacement for anyone it’s for herself, not Molly. She’s on record saying she doesn’t think Molly could handle her job.

g33k:

--- Quote from: Fox on May 15, 2024, 12:49:22 PM --- ... She’s on record saying she doesn’t think Molly could handle her job.
--- End quote ---

Which would be why she's looking to Lara as a Molly-replacement.

But I don't think that's significant -- Mab is always looking ten steps ahead.  Her backup plans have backups, and contingencies, and emergency-exits.

It wouldn't surprise me -- at all! -- if Mab had a dozen or more potential Winter-Lady replacements being groomed, at any given time.

Yuillegan:
I think you have covered it pretty well KSG. I suspect we will get more books that don't follow the standard formula for Dresden Files stories, as Jim said he wants to challenge himself more as a writer and keep it interesting for him.

I do think a lot of this book (as stated by Jim) will be about Dresden's various traumas, particularly the ones he hasn't dealt with.

Other things I think will happen:

* As you said KSG, The Librum Bellum aka Men in Black aka the Librarians presence will be there, probably subtly. I suspect we may even meet one of their agents. A new, highly dangerous threat. Even Vadderung was wary of them. A lot of what Harry does in the book (hopefully helping people) will be noticed, but also some of the more destructive stuff. Something to note: Librum Bellum means "War Library" which is another Warhammer reference, if I am not mistaken. Like Kemmler, I doubt he will mirror any more than that for obvious copyright reasons. But it is something to consider. If anything, I suspect they will be more like the Watchers from Buffy, with maybe a little Agent J and K thrown in. Was it one of their agents in Dog men?
* People of Chicago are going to be out in force. Some will be fine with Dresden. But some will see him as just another freak. Expect complications.
* Marcone is going to be more of an overt ruler, is my guess. Harry and he will have their fragile alliance tested. This is a Merlin and King Arthur situation, if they were actually just frenemies. I wonder about the Dresden Files versions' relationship.
* The White Council is going to take issue with Dresden. He might have to fight a few of them, but I suspect if they go to arrest him it will go badly. Whatever happens it won't be until the end. That showdown in Peace Talks was just foreshadowing. This will make the Listens-to-Wind bit harder - but Harry might finally understand why he has been ostracized for so long. And it might be to his advantage.
* This would be the perfect book for the return of Cowl and Kumori...but we'll see.
* Harry's life is one long torture, I am not so sure he will get out of marrying Lara. Remember, Mab has a reason for this happening. Ebenezar is right, he knows the Whamps play long games, subtle games. Harry might be more ensnared than he realises. Harry might actually end up liking Lara, and might actually need to marry her. He'll never love her. His Murphy-love shield will protect him, for a while at least. I see lots of parallels with Harry's mother's journey - it's not for nothing she decided to be with Lord Raith. I suspect Harry will learn more about his mother as well, at least from Lara, in this book. Not to mention, what the Whamps have to do with the Cycle.
I do like the idea of Mab's replacement being Lara - although Cold Days would seem to suggest Molly is next in line - given that if Mab were killed Maeve was expected to take over (which was a Bad Thing) and if Harry killed Mab after Maeve's death, Molly would become the new Mab. If anyone made sense to be Mab in Winter, I would have thought it would be Lea. But, I wonder if there is a particular reason Lea cannot become Mab. That all said, there is a big stone table in Tir Na Nog. If you wanted to transfer a mantle, seems like the place to do it. We've seen it done once before. Might be a way of getting ahead of the Adversary. Then Lara could jump the cue. That said, Ms Duck's theory that Mab=Molly would be incorrect, and so the universe might collapse.

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