Week 4 - Part IV (Chapters 9 - 15)

[Edward C. Patterson]

And the Beat goes on in this, my longest book to date (I say to date because Book 4 looks like a humdinger also)

Week 4 - Part IV - The Spirit Keepers (Chapters 9 - 15)

Chapter Nine - Happy Forgeries

1 - Where does the title of this Chapter come from (pardon the dangling participle)?

2 - Why would I have the book be a pharmacopoeia?

3 - Why would Pelesar show Silky the pages and potentials of the red egg talisman?

Chapter Ten - Chance Encounter?

1 - Now that I have several characters in place, I lace them loosely together with Tadzio's impromptu tour. Is that tour so impromptu?

2 - Now that we know what Connie Wilson is doing, why would Nick want to manipulate Tadzio?

Chapter Eleven -  The Mistress of the Ke-ting

1 - How is the interchange between Sung Yi-di and Silky changing?

2 - What does Nick recognize in Sung Yi-di?

Chapter Twelve - Premonitions on the Presidio

1 - What devours Rowden's peace of mind and spirit?

2 - What's in the room?

BTW: The treatise on the Later Han Eunuchs IS as dry as dust and that's why I changed the names to protect the innocent (or miscreant). However, E. A. Kracke's fine works on Sung government is a wonder and is one of the reasons I became a sinologist.

Chapter Thirteen - The Black Potion

This chapter is a horse of a different color.

1 - Sung Yi-di's preparation of the potion and the doll is very detailed. There's a parallel in the preparation which echoes from a previous chapter. What is the connecting element?

2 - Sung's witchcraft is stirring far beyond the ke-ting. To where?

3 - Who is Zia Berenice's lover?

4 - Why does Rowden smell onions?

Chapter Fourteen - The Hero of the Castro

Another county heard from. The Painted Lips.

1 - The man asks: "Why are these flowers glowing? (Why are they glowing? and I'm glad I wrote this before Cameron came up with Pandora at night). 

2 - The action sequence is fast-paced and wide flung. Why is this so? Who is orchestrating it (besides the author)?

3 - Why does Nicky suddenly revive?

(BTW: these last two chapters was like writing a symphony or at least a barn dance. Continually turning and churning, developing and moving to a punctuation point - Rowden waking up, as if the whole thing is a dram, which it isn't. It was a real challenge to my art, but I was lucky in the my characters were enlisted to do their best, especially Mother DeFluerry, who told me not to worry, that she had everything under control).

Chapter Fifteen - The White Room

1 - Where have we encountered the White Room before?

2 - Do you think Audrey will let Rowden go to China?

3 - When Nick finally settles back into the White room, where does he go?

4 - And then where does he go?

Now, I will give any one of my books to the reader who can answer this question for FREE in any format. You only get one guess and it must be sent in a PM. If you guess wrong, I'll tell you. If right, I get you your book.

I spoke about hanging a lantern on logic flaws, an authors tool borrowed from the film industry. The last two chapters serve in its entirety as a lantern that covers a logic flaw - an on purpose logic flaw that I will never correct, because to do so would fly in the face of art. What is that logic flaw?

Back to Sydney in China next . . .

[dnagirl]

Week 4 - Part IV - The Spirit Keepers (Chapters 9 - 15)

Chapter Nine - Happy Forgeries

1 - Where does the title of this Chapter come from (pardon the dangling participle)?  Happy forgeries are the trinkets that people collect that look close enough to the original that they are happy with them, even if they are not real.

2 - Why would I have the book be a pharmacopoeia?  Because Silky has been visiting the herb shop.  It contains spells that use herbs, which he will be able to obtain.

3 - Why would Pelesar show Silky the pages and potentials of the red egg talisman?  Pelesar knows that Xiao yi-di has the red egg talisman and he thinks that he can either tempt or use Silky to get his hands on it.  Either that, or he only suspected that Xiao yi-di had the egg and wanted to see Silky’s reaction to the pages, to see if he could confirm.

Chapter Ten - Chance Encounter?

1 - Now that I have several characters in place, I lace them loosely together with Tadzio's impromptu tour. Is that tour so impromptu?  Nope, it wasn’t.  Nick was calling him and he came, even though he didn’t know that was what was happening at the time.

2 - Now that we know what Connie Wilson is doing, why would Nick want to manipulate Tadzio?  Nick wants to know exactly what Connie is planning.

[Edward C. Patterson]

Tracking fine DNAGirl.

Happy Forgeries is what Rowden Gray calls Win-t'o's antiques in the first book (many pages ago). It's an echo, but a far away one.  Rowden calls them Happy, because although akes they would give their owners the joy of having the real thing. (Remember Nick's vase-throw).

The Pharmcopoeia refernce is correct (your first thoughts).

Remember, Pelasar has commissionered Win-t'o to get Silky to steal the talisman, although Win-t'o is only half-hearted about it. There's more than a little reference to Bill Sykes and Fagin here with Oliver Twist, but that was more subliminal than by design as I channel Dickens on good evenings.

Nick has assumed Connie's plan, but does need confirmation. And why not from someone othe than Griffen. Why not someone whom he has "touched."

Ed P

[dnagirl]

Chapter Eleven -  The Mistress of the Ke-ting

1 - How is the interchange between Sung Yi-di and Silky changing?  It’s like she’s the Godfather or he’s her slave.  Instead of being in awe of her, he is now scared.

2 - What does Nick recognize in Sung Yi-di?  I’m assuming the presence of another being.  The demon possessing her.  Or at least influencing her.

Chapter Twelve - Premonitions on the Presidio

1 - What devours Rowden's peace of mind and spirit?  The thought that he has to leave his wife and his child, the loves of his life.  He not only dreads leaving them, he dreads telling Audrey and what her reaction will be.

2 - What's in the room?  I’m not sure, but it reminds me of the things in the shadows of Xiao Yi-di’s place.  Perhaps the evil spirit?


Chapter Thirteen - The Black Potion

This chapter is a horse of a different color.

1 - Sung Yi-di's preparation of the potion and the doll is very detailed. There's a parallel in the preparation which echoes from a previous chapter. What is the connecting element?  The jade bowls?  They appeared in the shop a few chapters ago.  Also, the herbs are from the list that Silky gave Ch’u Bai-dui.  Yi-di is making the Cursed Heart potion.

2 - Sung's witchcraft is stirring far beyond the ke-ting. To where?  Rowden’s house.  Seems to be similar to a voodoo doll.

3 - Who is Zia Berenice's lover?  Gillenhaal?

4 - Why does Rowden smell onions?  He is somehow sensing the onion field in Tuscany where the owl is buried?  Or maybe he's smelling Nick?  The owl's influence on Nick?

[Edward C. Patterson]

Yep, your still tracking right on the money. Voodoo is similar to this rite, but this is an actual (bona fide) rituals. You'e correct with the three bowls, and that brings us to the number three. THREE is an important number in China, in both Buddhism and Taoism. As you read, see how mny things come in Threes in The Jade Owl leacy, and also ponder the term TRIAD, a basic Chinese cult and occult concept. By the end of the series, the number three is an essentil element to the whole solution.

Onions. Nick's new aroma, it seems, althouh lavender is still important.

You got her lover correctly. I never wate a good (or bad) chracter.

Ed P

[dnagirl]

Chapter Fourteen - The Hero of the Castro

Another county heard from. The Painted Lips.

1 - The man asks: "Why are these flowers glowing? (Why are they glowing? and I'm glad I wrote this before Cameron came up with Pandora at night).    The influence of the jade owl makes the flowers glow.  It’s “leaking” out into all that surrounds it.

2 - The action sequence is fast-paced and wide flung. Why is this so? Who is orchestrating it (besides the author)?   Well, I think probably so we feel the tension, terror and worry that all of the characters are feeling at this point.  I know I was breathing a little faster.  Besides the author, Xiao Yi-di has a lot of orchestration here with this sequence.

3 - Why does Nicky suddenly revive?  He’s connected to the owl, which seemed to release some sort of energy to protect itself.  Since they are connected, Nicky felt it as well and it shocked him into reviving.



Chapter Fifteen - The White Room

1 - Where have we encountered the White Room before?  When Nick glimmered Silky earlier in the book and saw him laying in the white room.

2 - Do you think Audrey will let Rowden go to China?  I think she’s going to be very upset, but ultimately she will let him go.

3 - When Nick finally settles back into the White room, where does he go?  He goes to the field where the Owl is buried.  I believe he absorbs some sort of energy from it to help heal.

4 - And then where does he go?  He seems to float from the field to China and ultimately to Wewoka (sp?) with her corn chowder and fry bread.  He probably just passed out from the drugs.


...drums keep pounding rhythm to the brain.

[Edward C. Patterson]

DNAGirl:

Again, you're right on the mark. What the flowers are leaking is "ch'i." You'll get a demonstration of that a little later on. Nick is connected to the Owl, so much so that he is revived when it falls back into place in the ground. If it didn;t do that, we'd have lost Nick and would have had a short story.

Nick ultimately goes to Connie's hotel room, where he views Tadzio naked in the mirror.

Mirrors are a tricky things for authors, and we are told not to use them to view the protagonist as it is cliche. Still, we persist. In my case, I use mirrors in a few of my books, but generally make those scenes bigger than life, where the mirror reflects more than the viewer. Inthis case, Tadzio is not looking in the mirror, because his eyes have changed to "blue." My favorite mirror sequence is in TTP, when Rowden Miss Chatty, Nick and Simone look in the hall mirror at aunt Millie's (Rowden seeing his scar for the first time) and I frame it as a "family prtrait."

Congrats on getting the challenge correct. That doesn;t end the challenge. Any and all readers can wing out their one guess. So take a deep breath, because we're joining Sydney at Yang-shuo for a bit -  and quite a twist the tale takes now.

Ed P

[dnagirl]

Yes, I did notice that Tadzio's eyes turned blue in the mirror, and figured Nick was looking out at that point.  For some reason, I didn't factor that into my answer lol!

Interesting that Xiao Yi-di's spell seems to act on multiple people.  Poor Rowden is having a horribly restless night.

[Edward C. Patterson]

Ah, but whatever possess Sung Yi-di is powerful - very powerful indeed.

Ed P

[Ann in Arlington]

Chapter Nine - Happy Forgeries

1 - Where does the title of this Chapter come from (pardon the dangling participle)?

I'd guess from the scene depicted where Silky is trying to figure out which bowl is authentic.

2 - Why would I have the book be a pharmacopoeia?

It's a hint as to why Yi-Di wants the various herbs and things she keeps sending Silky for. . . .and I'm thinking maybe he's beginning to wonder if she knows more than she says. . . .and yet he's afraid she doesn't know all and might be in danger.

3 - Why would Pelesar show Silky the pages and potentials of the red egg talisman?

He's trying to influence him to get it away from Yi-Di. . . . .obviously he wants it for himself. . . .

[Edward C. Patterson]

No. 1 - Happy forgeries goes back a few thousaand pages to when Rowden and Nick first enter Han Ch'i-wang's in The Jade Owl, where Rowden refers to Xiao Win-t'o antiques as Happy Forgeies.

rest is right on

Ed P

[Ann in Arlington]

Chapter Ten - Chance Encounter?

1 - Now that I have several characters in place, I lace them loosely together with Tadzio's impromptu tour. Is that tour so impromptu?

Yeah... .chance encounter my @$$...

2 - Now that we know what Connie Wilson is doing, why would Nick want to manipulate Tadzio?  

do we know?  I mean, we know she's out to screw the pooch (and any male person she finds, apparently) but I haven't worked out how. . . . .Nick wants to know the details too. . . . .I'm not sure I like him for encouraging Tad to use Connie's own methods on her. . . . .

[Ann in Arlington]

No. 1 - Happy forgeries goes back a few thousaand pages to when Rowden and Nick first enter Han Ch'i-wang's in The Jade Owl, where Rowden refers to Xiao Win-t'o antiques as Happy Forgeies.

rest is right on

Ed P

Ah! right!  I'd remembered that they'd been there before but didn't recall the specific phrase. . . .

[Ann in Arlington]

Chapter Eleven -  The Mistress of the Ke-ting

1 - How is the interchange between Sung Yi-di and Silky changing?

I think he's a little afraid of her. . . .also confused

2 - What does Nick recognize in Sung Yi-di?

He knows she's possessed as he is.  .. but it seems the thing that's got her is more malevolent than the Owl. . . .I've decided I don't like her much and don't trust her either.

I find it interesting that the Old Grandmother had the red stone for so long but was apparently not corrupted. .. .so it is some character flaw, I think, that makes it affect Sung Yi-di so. . ..

[Ann in Arlington]

Chapter Twelve - Premonitions on the Presidio

1 - What devours Rowden's peace of mind and spirit?

He's having premonitions of bad stuff. . . . .

2 - What's in the room?

bad stuff?  but at least he figured out who he can get to help Audrey

[Ann in Arlington]

Chapter Thirteen - The Black Potion

This chapter is a horse of a different color.

1 - Sung Yi-di's preparation of the potion and the doll is very detailed. There's a parallel in the preparation which echoes from a previous chapter. What is the connecting element?

I can't find it. . . . .it's just on the edge of my mind. . . perhaps you could provide a glimmer?

2 - Sung's witchcraft is stirring far beyond the ke-ting. To where?

I think she woke up Berenice in Italy. . . .

3 - Who is Zia Berenice's lover?

I'm guessing the other baddie we haven't run back into yet. . . .Gyllenhall

4 - Why does Rowden smell onions?

He's tuning in somehow to the field in in Italy where the Owl is buried. . . . .

[Ann in Arlington]

Chapter Fourteen - The Hero of the Castro

Another county heard from. The Painted Lips.

1 - The man asks: "Why are these flowers glowing? (Why are they glowing? and I'm glad I wrote this before Cameron came up with Pandora at night).  Grin

  The Owl is there. . . .and Nick's pulling power. . . .

2 - The action sequence is fast-paced and wide flung. Why is this so? Who is orchestrating it (besides the author)?

  Is Sung Yi-di doing all this?  I guess, but the question is why?  I can't figure out what side she's on. . .

3 - Why does Nicky suddenly revive?

Perhaps Nick can draw on the Owls power when it doesn't need it. . . .but it was directly under attack so it had to protect itself.. . .once Gyllenhall was knocked out Nick could draw on it again. . . . .or else it's because Yi-di put the doll in a box. . . .I'm so confused! 

(BTW: these last two chapters was like writing a symphony or at least a barn dance. Continually turning and churning, developing and moving to a punctuation point - Rowden waking up, as if the whole thing is a dram, which it isn't. It was a real challenge to my art, but I was lucky in the my characters were enlisted to do their best, especially Mother DeFluerry, who told me not to worry, that she had everything under control).

It's very well done. . . completely pulls you along. . . . .I didn't want to stop to answer questions!  (But I knew if I didn't I'd forget details. 

[Ann in Arlington]

Chapter Fifteen - The White Room

1 - Where have we encountered the White Room before?

Is it when Nick was recovering after his abuse in the Old Sheep?

2 - Do you think Audrey will let Rowden go to China?

I don't think she's going to have much choice, but she's sure not going to like it. . . .

3 - When Nick finally settles back into the White room, where does he go?

He goes to check on Tadzio. . . .

4 - And then where does he go?

  Hmmm. . . had to go re-read. . . .I guess first he went back to Wewoka. . . and then to Tadzio 

Now, I will give any one of my books to the reader who can answer this question for FREE in any format. You only get one guess and it must be sent in a PM. If you guess wrong, I'll tell you. If right, I get you your book.

I spoke about hanging a lantern on logic flaws, an authors tool borrowed from the film industry. The last two chapters serve in its entirety as a lantern that covers a logic flaw - an on purpose logic flaw that I will never correct, because to do so would fly in the face of art. What is that logic flaw?

Back to Sydney in China next . . .

[Edward C. Patterson]

Ah, but is it the red stone that corrupts? Or is it just a ploy used by pelsar?

The parallel in preparation mirros the three bowls in Silky's learing in the previous chapter. The number 3 is importnt in China. Triads, they are called. It will figue in this story.

Your right on track with Berenice, Gillenhall and the onon field.

Whe the Owl is plucked up, Nick collpses, but then the spade releases it, reseating it in the ground - he revives.

Sung is doing all this, yep. I won;t tell you why, because . . . that's a real spoiler.

Nick encounters the white room while he's glimmering Silky (which Silky sleeps).

Yep. I love the image of Nick looking at Tadzio's naked body in the mirror through his own eyes.

Wow, your blasting through it. Yippee.

I hope you make a guess for the free book.

Ed P