I kept the character's name out of the title so as not to potentially spoil those who haven't read the series. If you've read all of my posts, then you know that this character's death was what sent me on a search for clues. I then became obsessed with this series.
Shannon Messenger apparently addressed this character's death in an interview. According to fans who saw the interview, she stated that this dead character is definitely not coming back. And yet, I feel that Shannon has placed clues throughout the books that point to this character being very much alive. Am I right, or should I believe the interview?
This situation reminded me of what happened shortly after the release of the book Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire in 2000. J.K. Rowling addressed fan speculation about Snape.
From My Thoughts on My Rereading of Harry Potter:
Sometime after book 4 was published, I joined a Yahoo! group that was devoted solely to discussion of which side Snape was on. I checked that group often, reading the new messages each day. I was enthralled. I was utterly fascinated with Snape. I just knew that he was somehow torn between the two sides. I knew it.
At some point after I devoted so much time to reading the discussions about Snape, J.K. Rowling made a statement that caused me to lose much of my interest in the series. I don't know whether this statement was in an article or in a filmed interview. I also don't remember the exact words. All I can do is paraphrase what I recall hearing over 15 years ago.
J.K. Rowling said something like this: "I am shocked that people think Snape is good. He is clearly evil!" I'm sure those aren't the actual words, but that is the meaning of whatever she said. It was like a punch in the gut. Why bother reading the rest of the books?
This serves as an example of when an author should not say anything at
all. Snape is a conflicted character. He is a bully and just a
horrible person to be around. It is revealed in the final book that
Snape indeed was playing both sides and that he was helping Harry, even
though he treated Harry in the worst way possible.
Sigh.
Rowling deliberately misled fans when she should have not said anything at all. Her statement about Snape truly did spoil my reading of the final books in the series when I first read them in the 2000s. My enjoyment of books 6 and 7 was not what it should have been when I first read them years ago. I was quite nettled when I reached the Snape reveal in book 7 and saw how Rowling had misled us. Grrr. It just spoiled the whole thing for me.
That's why I went 13 years before reading the books again. I have been annoyed about Rowling's Snape quote this entire time.
Before I continue, I want to point out that what especially annoyed me about J.K. Rowling's Snape comment was how she said it. The statement made it seem like she thought we were idiots for thinking that Snape might be good. I understand that she was trying to throw people off, but the way she said it was insulting. The statement was also so definitive that it left no doubt (so I thought), which disappointed me.
I was annoyed because J.K. Rowling had ruined my fun.
I am no longer naive about book authors like I was back in 2000. Since Shannon Messenger has addressed the fan speculation about a certain character's death, I wanted to know exactly what she said. I believe the character is alive, regardless of what she has said. I haven't forgotten what J.K. Rowling did, so I know I can't believe what an author says about possible spoilers.
This post contains MAJOR SERIES SPOILERS. Stop reading NOW if you have not already read all of the books including #8.5 and #9.
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Please visit this page for links to my previous posts.
Keeper of the Lost Cities Summaries, Reviews, and Theories
The videos linked in this post are cued to the beginning of the portions that I have quoted.
Shannon Messenger Nightfall Book Signing 2017
One of the things that an author does, if you really want to think about it this way, is we kind of deceive our readers. I mean, obviously, there's certain things that we want you guys to, when you get to that moment, you're thinking, "I knew it!" But we also strive really hard for the moments where you're like, "Wow, I did not see that coming!" So we have to kind of trick you guys and make you think we're going to curve one way and then accidentally curve the other way and throw you all off your game.
Shannon admits here that she misleads her readers. Of course she does! That's been apparent to me all along ever since Kenric died in the Everblaze without a proper description of what really happened and without any sign of a body. It was too vague and didn't sit right with me.
Kenric is such a great character. He wouldn't be wasted that way.
The people who are most active in online discussions apparently believe that Kenric is dead for sure. They also believe that Kenric isn't Sophie's father because Mr. Forkle says that Kenric isn't.
I read one comment where a fan pointed out that Mr. Forkle wouldn't lie about Kenric being Sophie's father because Kenric is dead. What that fan meant is that since Kenric is dead, then the Council couldn't punish him for being Sophie's father. Therefore, Mr. Forkle would have no reason to hide Kenric's identity as Sophie's father since Kenric is dead. But that's the problem: Kenric isn't dead. Forkle must lie about Kenric being involved because Kenric is in fact alive.
Now let's get to the important quote where Shannon mentions Kenric's death.
Shannon Messenger Lodestar Interview
There is one character that I won't say who, but they... they didn't make it through Book 3. And I get a lot of emails from kids like, "Are you gonna bring them back?" Not really the plan just because if they were still alive, they would basically be the worst person ever for letting everybody mourn for them. Because it's a world where death is very, very rare and very devastating so it's... Usually if I've said that someone we like dies, they're probably dead. Because otherwise—they're coming back—they're gonna be a villain because you have to be villainous to fake your death in that kind of world.
All right! Let's dissect this. I italicized two phrases that are especially important. She says that she's been asked if she's bringing Kenric back. Her response begins with "not really the plan." That's not a definitive answer. "Not really the plan" means that it could be the plan. Who knows?
Shannon also says that "they're probably dead." She uses "probably" in front of dead which leaves doubt as to whether Kenric is dead. She also begins that sentence with "usually," so she's saying "usually ... they're probably dead." Uh, that sounds pretty indefinite if you ask me.
Most importantly, Shannon says that she has a "spoiler-free" policy. She won't spoil the books, not for anything. Therefore, we cannot believe what she says about Kenric. He might or might not be alive. She's not going to say. And I would not want her to say for sure. It's more fun trying to figure it out.
As I have mentioned before, the name "Kenric Elgar Fathdon" is an anagram for "Forkle grin and teach" which translates to "Forkle, Kenric, and Leto." My conclusion is that Kenric is alive and that he's Forkle/Leto.
For a time, it mystified me that the anagram was in Book 3 when the series is much longer than that. Shannon at first only had 3 books purchased by Simon & Schuster. She got a fourth book and didn't know if it would go any farther. Since she believed that her series would be much shorter, it's logical that she would place a major clue in one of the first few books.
I suppose it's fortunate that nearly all fans have failed to notice the anagram for Kenric's full name, so the secret remains safe. I keep mentioning it, but the fan base isn't reading this blog.
I'm fine with the fan base not reading this blog, since I'm pretty sure that they'd tell me that I'm wrong. I could be, but I don't think so.
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