Keeper of the Lost Cities: Forkle's Pared-Down Identities

This post contains MAJOR SPOILERS from late in the set.  Do not read this post unless you've read ALL of the books that have been published.  You've been warned.

In April 2023, I had found the anagram in Kenric's name, and I was certain that Kenric is Forkle.  I expected this information to be widely known when I went online to read discussions, and I was shocked to see no mention of the anagram and very little mention of the possibility of Kenric being Forkle.  Naturally, I doubted myself, so I wanted to prove beyond any doubt that Kenric really is Forkle.  I immediately began reading the books again to search for clues.

I was reading digital copies of the books, but I purchased a set of paperback books so that I could mark pages with sticky notes.  I used four different colors, one for each of Forkle's identities.

Kenric = hot pink
Forkle = blue
   Leto = orange
  Astin = lime green

I flagged the first page of each scene in which one of the four identities appears.  I did not mark places where the identity was just mentioned by name.  I was looking for a pattern of the actual appearances, and I found one quickly.

This photo shows #1-8, 8.5, and 9 arranged from left to right with the pages facing the front.  Remember to click on images in order to see them better.

#1 is the first book on the left, and #9 is the last book on the right.  The books are arranged this way so that all of the pages in the set are in order from left to right.  That would not be the case if the spines were facing the front.

Kenric is present in the first three books and then only in the Forgotten Secrets in the last two books.

Forkle shows up minimally in the first three books, then he is the most prominent identity beginning after Kenric's death.

Leto appears quite often but less than Forkle.

Astin only appears in #1, 4, and 5.

Here's a closer look.  This picture is of #1-3.

Here are #4-6.

Here are #7-9.

In Book 5, the older Forkle twin is killed by Gethen.  The surviving younger Forkle tells Sophie that he will have to cut back on his identities.

Book 6, Page 181   "Mostly it involves me learning to do less, since I'll have to shoulder the burden alone now.  I don't think either of us truly believed this would be our reality, but… here we are."

Book 6, Page 182  "And I'll probably need to pare down my total number of identities.  I'm just struggling to decide the best way to do that without drawing too much attention."

This has always confused me a bit, because he doesn't seem to cut back at all.  My assumption has always been that Forkle cuts back on his Astin identity.  Astin certainly doesn't show up in the later books, but he is barely present in the early books. Cutting back on Astin doesn't make much of a difference.  

Book 6, Page 184  "Everyone who heard about my death will have to know the truth about my brother, otherwise they'll wonder why Magnate Leto is still at Foxfire, and why Sir Astin will sometimes appear in the Lost Cities, and why this bloated body will still be an active part of the Collective."

What Forkle says seems to indicate that all of his known identities will remain active, although his comment about Astin makes it clear that Astin will continue to be elusive.  

How does Forkle cut back on his identities?  He doesn't cut back in any way that is appreciable.  That's why I've wondered about it.  

What I forgot is that Forkle is supposed to have five identities.  What is the fifth identity? 

As I've mentioned, I believe the fifth Forkle identity is Ethan Benedict Wright II.  This character doesn't appear at all, so he's unknown.  

Ethan is likely the identity that Forkle dropped when he pared down his total number of identities.  Forkle must have spent a lot of time as Ethan.  

My current theory is that the younger Forkle twin abandoned the Ethan identity after the older twin was killed.  He wrote Ethan's obituary and got Eleanor set up with a guardian. 

I have believed for some time that Kenric is Ethan, and I have struggled with the idea of Kenric hurting Eleanor.  But now I understand.  Being Ethan would have taken up a lot of time.  With one Forkle twin dead, the remaining one had no choice but to reduce his identities.  He did have a good reason, even though it hurt Eleanor.

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Note:  It was pointed out to me that Eleanor and Ethan supposedly die before Sophie comes to the Lost Cities.  The obituary found by Forkle and later by Keefe does state that Eleanor was 10, so this does appear to place their disappearance before Sophie's arrival.  However...

Book 9.5, page 351  "Blond woman, about as tall as me, wearing a fancy cloak?"  "Sounds like her," Keefe muttered, ..."I take it that means you've met Mommy Dearest."  "No—but I saw her."  "When?"  "Doesn't matter."  "See, but it really does... Where did you see my mom?  And how long ago was it?"

There you go.  Eleanor says that Lady Gisela is "about as tall as me."   Eleanor would be taller now than she was back when she was 10.  Since I doubt that Lady Gisela is as short as a 10 year old, this indicates that Eleanor has seen Lady Gisela relatively recently, like in the last year.  Unless Eleanor is hiding some connection to Lady Gisela, then the deaths had to have been faked not long ago.

I still believe that Ethan is the pared-down identity.  I do not believe that the obituary can be trusted.  If I'm right about all of this, Mr. Forkle wrote the obituary.  He would have obscured the truth.

All of my past Keeper posts are linked from this page:

Keeper of the Lost Cities Summaries, Reviews, and Theories

Keeper of the Lost Cities: The Clues about Forkle's Identity

This post contains MAJOR SPOILERS from late in the set.  Do not read this post unless you've read ALL of the books that have been published.  You've been warned.

Note:  Yes, this post is a lot to digest.  I wanted it all in one place so that fans don't have to dig through dozens of posts.  I have added some brief explanatory comments to many of the clues.  The explanations are much more detailed in my previous 80+ posts.  If you read through all of my previous posts in order, then you'll see how I gradually figured everything out.  This post is just a summary.

I also want to point something out, since some fans think none of this means anything.

Shannon uses 74 pages of Stellarlune for Kenric's Forgotten Secrets.  The secrets must be very important for Shannon to devote 10% of the book to them.  It's been curious to me that many fans have dismissed the Forgotten Secrets when they are clearly important.  Here's what is going on:

Kenric requested that Oralie give his cache to Sophie.  He rigged the cache so that Sophie couldn't open it without Oralie's help.  Kenric wanted both Oralie and Sophie to view his Forgotten Secrets.  The Forgotten Secrets are Kenric's way of telling the Moonlark and her mother how Project Moonlark came to be.  Why would Kenric do that?  Because he is Forkle.

Finally, keep in mind that since Kenric is Forkle, he must be a pair of twins.  It's been suggested that I invented a twin for Kenric.  No, that was Shannon.  Everything that is true about Forkle also applies to Kenric.

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The purpose of this post is to put all the clues about Forkle in one place.  The first clue is the anagram in Kenric's name (see post from 2023).  I looked at some of my oldest posts where I kept saying things like "if Kenric is Forkle." 

Girl, you knew he was from the day you decoded the anagram. 

Since fans were so dismissive about the possibility of Kenric being Forkle, that took away my confidence to state it boldly.  No more. 

This photo is from the annotated edition of the first Keeper book.  Click on the image to see it more clearly.

Shannon's note in the margin says, "Sentences like this... take me hours to write, since naming all those stars is so much work."  Consider that the names of the stars aren't that important to the plot, yet Shannon spent hours on them.

I would say that a major character's name is even more important.  Shannon had to have spent hours on Kenric Elgar Fathdon's name alone.  The name was designed as an anagram—a very specific anagram.  As such, Kenric must be Forkle, since the anagram says that he is.  It's impossible for Kenric's full name to rearrange to form such a specific plot-relevant anagram (Forkle grin and teach) without it meaning exactly what it says.  "Grin" is Kenric, and "teach" is Leto/Astin.  

This means that Kenric is Forkle.

Forkle recruited Oralie to donate her DNA to Project Moonlark.  We know Forkle must have been the elf who recruited her.  On page 170 of Book 6, Tiergan tells Sophie that only Mr. Forkle knew her parents' identities.  Mr. Forkle must have been the one to convince Oralie.

If Forkle recruited Oralie, then we can conclude that Kenric (as his Forkle identity) recruited Oralie. 

Who would Kenric/Forkle select to be Sophie's father?  Kenric needed Oralie because he needed his number one match.  Therefore, Kenric (that is, one of the twins) is Sophie's father.  

The anagram is the proof of who Forkle is, which in turn proves who Sophie's father is.  Let's go through what's in the books.  

The early books introduce key points about Sophie but are sparse on clues that Kenric is Forkle, aside from the anagram itself.  Instead, the early books lay some groundwork that ostensibly shows that Kenric cannot be Forkle. 

In Book 1, Kenric and Astin appear together in a scene (before readers know that Forkle is a pair of twins).  In Book 2, Kenric asks for the compass that led Sophie to the Black Swan, which is exactly what would be expected if he weren't connected to the Black Swan.  In Book 4, Astin makes a strongly-worded statement about how Kenric would never hurt Oralie by faking his death.  All misdirection...

Now, the clues.  I've gone through my Kindle notes and all of my posts.  I've compiled everything that ties to Kenric and Forkle in this post.  I also read the Forgotten Secrets again and glanced at a few other parts of Book 9.  I included a few new minor observations from the Forgotten Secrets.

I've undoubtedly left out some important points, but I should have most of them gathered here.  Some are vague, but they are all meaningful because Kenric is Forkle.  The anagram establishes who Forkle is without a doubt, so the clues do hold weight. 

Many of the clues are parallelisms.  Certain characters use the same phrases as other characters, and I firmly believe this is deliberate.  Shannon has set up numerous parallelisms in the series, including both plot parallelisms and narrative parallelisms.  

Book 1

Page 64  Kenric:  "I've never seen such natural talent.  You're even a natural at our language."  Astin uses the word "natural" on page 175.

Page 71  We learn that Sophie is clumsy, and Sophie's clumsiness is mentioned regularly throughout the series.  Kenric, Forkle, and Leto are each depicted as clumsy in later books.

Page 81  Sophie counts the seconds for the first of many times.  Kenric also counts the seconds (Book 9), and Forkle mentions counting the seconds (Book 5).  No other characters count or mention counting the seconds.

Page 175  Sir Astin says that Sophie is a natural.

Page 312  Alden points out how odd it is that Sophie knows the location of a star that only the Councillors know how to find.  Someone on the Council must be providing information to the Black Swan.

Page 360  Alden tells Sophie that the formula for Frissyn is "highly classified" and that he's "never seen the entire directions before."  And yet, the Black Swan implanted those classified directions in Sophie's brain.

Book 2

Page 142  Dex tells Sophie that Mr. Forkle had said in Paris, "You can do this, Sophie."  Kenric uses the same encouraging phrase in Book 3 on page 218.

Page 235  Alden tells Sophie that he's never heard of the nook she described finding in his mind.  Both Forkle (page 504) and Kenric (Book 9, Forgotten Secret #5) know about the nook, yet Alden didn't.

Page 456  The Black Swan warns Sophie, "Stop searching for things you are not ready to understand."  Along with the note is a piece from Sophie's pink journal, removed by Forkle years before.  Only the Council and Keefe know about Sophie's interest in her journal, so Mr. Forkle is either a Councillor or part of their inner circle.

Page 462  Leto's "lips twitched—almost like he wanted to smile."  Leto is purposefully not showing any lighthearted behavior.

Page 468  The Black Swan gives Sophie an alicorn prattles pin.  Mr. Forkle must have some sort of inside connection, like if he were a Councillor, to be able to acquire the rarest prattles pin for Sophie.

Page 500  We learn that Forkle has an impenetrable mind like Sophie.

Page 504  Forkle mentions the nook inside the mind.  See Book 9, Forgotten Secret #5, where Kenric also mentions using a nook inside the mind.

Book 3

Page 58  Kenric acts like he knows what Sophie is thinking, despite her impenetrable mind.  He immediately makes an excuse and leaves after Sophie worries about having to tell what happened to a Councillor.  

Page 129  Leto checks "his overly gelled hair."  Leto is self-conscious about his hair.

Page 132  Leto knows that Fintan's upcoming healing is classified, which suggests that he has some connection to the Council.  

Page 133  Leto is emotional when speaking of not having a wife.  

Page 215  Kenric gives Sophie a suggestion on how to inflict, but adds, "At least, that's what I remember studying."  The reader isn't yet aware that Forkle inflicted on Sophie years before in San Diego, and Bronte certainly doesn't know about it.  Kenric knows more about inflicting than he should and is covering his knowledge.

Page 218  Kenric says, "You can do this."  See Book 2 Forkle mention.

Page 455  Sophie asks Forkle if he could betray his own father.  Mr. Forkle says that he's done far worse.  He's referring to how he as Kenric betrayed Oralie by faking his death.  

Page 490  " 'The Council has already considered all other possibilities,' Councillor Emery interrupted, emphasizing the word 'Council' to make it clear that Magnate Leto was not a part of it."  This isn't so much a clue as more of an ironic situation.  If Leto is Kenric, then he very recently was a Councillor.

Page 494  Magnate Leto says, "I might not be a Councillor, but I am a Telepath..."  And this is the kind of response we'd expect if Leto is Kenric.

Book 4

Page 23  Oralie says that Kenric told her that Sophie was "the spark of change our world needed."  On page 434, Forkle makes a similar statement.

Page 102  Mr. Forkle tells Sophie that he washed her memory of the boy who disappeared.  This establishes that Forkle is a Washer, and we learn in Book 8.5 that Kenric was a Washer.

Page 201  Forkle "required quite a lot of thrashing and flailing" as he arose from his beanbag.  This suggests that Forkle is clumsy like Sophie.

Page 240  " 'Do you think we're going to find a clue about the Neverseen in his memories?' she asked... 'It seems likely.  No one keeps up a pretense perfectly.  In fact, I've made several slips I'm stunned you didn't catch.' "  Shannon is hinting that she has placed clues in the books.  

Page 292  Mr. Forkle admits that Astin gave Sophie the list of unmapped stars.  The location of the unmapped stars is known only to the Councillors.

Page 296  Forkle says this about Oralie:  "Oralie was very brave to give this to you...  Oralie is far cleverer than you know.  It's easy to underestimate the quiet beauties."  Forkle has a soft spot for Oralie.

Page 353  "Magnate Leto smoothed his black hair, even though it was coated with so much gel it couldn't possibly move."  This is a hint that Leto's hair is unruly and difficult to tame.

Page 368  Mr. Forkle tells Sophie that he is not her genetic father, but he does say that he is family.  This Forkle is probably her uncle.

Page 369   "Have I ever met them?  Sophie transmitted back.  I can't tell you that—and I'm begging you to stop guessing.  Should you finally settle on the correct answer, you will trigger a chain reaction that could topple our world."  The only way the identities of Sophie's parents "could topple" the Lost Cities would be if they were Councillors.

Page 370  Mr. Forkle reveals that his middle name is Loki.  "Loki," Sophie repeated, tempted to roll her eyes.  "You named yourself after the Nordic trickster god?"  "Actually, he was inspired by me... I've always been partial to that part of the world, and in my younger days I may have had a bit too much fun there.  It was so easy to take on disguises and cause a little chaos."  The Norse god Loki is commonly depicted as having red hair.  

Page 395  Sophie is placed in the Ambi (purple) hemisphere at Exillium.  On page 409 of Book 5, we learn that Leto is also in the Ambi hemisphere.

Page 434  Forkle tells Sophie:  "You're a natural force for change."  See Kenric quote from page 23.

Book 5

Page 34  Leto says, "I've never been a fan of my reflection—especially in this form."  This implies that Leto is not his true identity.

Page 36  Leto says, "Questionable actions can be forgiven when they're done with good intentions."  This is Leto acknowledging that he has done many questionable things.  If he's Kenric, then he devastated his love by faking his death. 

Page 299  Sophie notices that Mr. Forkle carries a lot around in his pockets.  Later, Sophie carries items around in her many pockets. 

Page 409  Magnate Leto's "levitation was wobblier than he probably wanted—and his feet nearly grazed the crowd's heads."  This is a clue that Leto is clumsy like Sophie.

Page 409  Leto's cape is "marked with a purple handprint," which means he is in Exillium's Ambi hemisphere just like Sophie.

Page 474  Mr. Forkle mentions counting the seconds.  "I bet you have no idea how long you've been in here.  Maybe you should've thought to count the seconds."  

Book 6

Page 181  " 'That's why even with his final breaths, my brother made sure there would be no gaps in my memories.'  He reached into his pocket and removed the round gadget that Mr. Forkle had pressed into Sophie's hand as he lay dying."  See Book 9, page 257.

Page 199  Mr. Forkle tells Oralie, "I would've made the same choice my brother did in that moment."  One Mr. Forkle died for Oralie, and the other would have as well.

Page 605  Leto's "usually sleek hair looked much more disheveled than usual as he led the way into his triangular office."  This is a sign that Leto might have unruly hair.

Page 606  Leto "sank into his own chair, which was more of an upholstered throne now."  This doesn't mean anything, but it's humorous if Leto is Kenric.

Page 608  Ro tells Leto that the Councillors are "too stuffy."  Leto smiles.  My take is that Kenric is amused by the Councillors coming across as stuffy.

Book 7

Page 136  Sophie realizes that Elwin might be suspicious "if he saw Magnate Leto searching her memories, since only Mr. Forkle and Fitz could sneak past her mental blocking."  See Book 3, Page 58.  Kenric appears to know what Sophie is thinking, which means that he can slip past her blocking.

Page 206  Leto's "greasy hair" is mentioned, yet another sign that Leto hides unruly hair.

Page 481  Mr. Forkle criticizes Fintan:

"Fintan successfully faked his death.  None of us had the slightest suspicion that he was still alive.  And his order already relied on cloaks to hide their identities.  So he had absolutely no reason to show his face the day he threatened the Council in Eternalia—other than his own vanity.  He wanted credit for the feats he'd pulled off."

The above passage is telling.  Fintan wasn't the only elf who faked his death, but the other elf is not seeking credit.  He will stay hidden until he has a reason for revealing himself.

Page 513  Flori designs clothing for Sophie that has lots of pockets.

Book 8

Page 3  Sophie wonders if Forkle's lips are "twitching with a smile."  This indicates that Forkle has a more lighthearted side that he's hiding.

Page 4  Mr. Forkle winks.  Same as above.

Page 8  Sophie hopes to see "clues to who Mr. Forkle truly was" in his office.  This is a way of telling the reader that Leto is not Forkle's true identity.

Page 195  Sophie is unhappy about having to wear a crown.  In Book 9 on page 246, Kenric doesn't like his circlet.

Page 343  Forkle mentions how he gave Sophie the location of the unmapped stars and the formula for frissyn.  Only the Councillors know the locations of the unmapped stars.  The frissyn formula is highly classified.

Page 480  "[Forkle] turned to Sophie, and she was a little surprised by the level of pride radiating from his expression—like a dad whose kid had just hit a game-winning home run."

Page 591  Mr. Forkle grins, which he never does in the early books.

Page 655  Sophie points out that her enhancing is particularly strong with Empaths and Telepaths.  This indicates that her parents could be an Empath and a Telepath.

Book 8.5

Forgotten Secret #4 Kenric and Oralie at Night (see post)

Page 526  We learn that Kenric was a Washer.  Mr. Forkle is a Washer as well.  

Page 527  Oralie remembers being with Kenric in her sitting room, that his smile was off, and that someone else was there.  Both Kenric/Forkle twins were present, and one of them was wearing an addler. 

Page 529  Kenric mentions that he's thought about leaving the Council.  This is a clue that he faked his death in Book 3.

Page 531  Kenric informs Oralie that he knows about Project Moonlark and Oralie's role in it.  He lies to her about how he knows, since he steps away from her before he answers so that she won't detect the lie.  Kenric also steps away from Oralie as he lies that he learned nothing when he breached Fintan's mind.

Page 532  Oralie mentions that Kenric stopped by right after she finished donating her DNA.  He was checking to make sure she was okay.

This Forgotten Secret occurs before Sophie is brought to the Lost Cities.  At this time, the Councillors are unaware of Sophie's existence.  They think that the strand of DNA was a hoax.  And yet, Kenric says this:

Page 533  "You're going to need all the allies you can get.  Especially since someday the Black Swan is going to bring their moonlark into play.  You know that, right?"

This remark reveals that Kenric knows more than he should.  He's aware that the DNA was not a hoax and suggests that the Black Swan will "bring their moonlark into play."  Kenric must be part of the Black Swan.

Page 733  Mr. Forkle's "lips curled with another smile."

Page 734  Mr. Forkle laughs and also "smiled his widest smile yet."

Mr. Forkle is delighted that Sophie burned the storehouse.  He's also proud of Sophie's moonlark symbol and tells her that he's keeping the drawing.  He sounds just like a proud father.

Book 9

The Forgotten Secrets are in Kenric's cache, but they are Forkle's secrets.

Forgotten Secret #1 Bronte and Kenric (see post)

Page 199  Kenric counts the seconds, thus revealing that Kenric shares an odd trait with Sophie.  Sophie, Forkle, and Kenric are the only three characters who count the seconds.

Forgotten Secret #2 The Matchmaker Memory (see post)

Kenric secures proof that Oralie is his number one match, which is why the Black Swan asks Oralie to donate to Project Moonlark.

Forgotten Secret #3 Kenric and Oralie in Kenric's Readying Room (see post)

Page 217  Kenric props up his feet.  See Leto on page 490.

Oralie is upset that Kenric left during her dinner and calls Kenric out on lying about it.  Kenric most likely left the dinner to switch with his twin.  

Oralie confronts Kenric about him voting against her becoming a Councillor.  He lies about why.  He most likely voted against Oralie because the twins were attracted to her and didn't want that complication on the Council.

Forgotten Secret #4 Kenric and Oralie with Fintan (see post)

Page 232  "Though... Kenric could be quite intimidating when he wanted to be."  Forkle is intimidating.

Kenric learns about Elysian when he enters Fintan's mind.  Kenric may also have retrieved the map of Elysian from Fintan's mind as well.

Forgotten Secret #5 Kenric and Prentice (see post)

Kenric recruits Prentice to be his personal keeper, or rather, the keeper of the Black Swan.

Kenric mentions that he is a Washer and that he would hide the secrets in a nook where they would only be revealed if triggered by a word or phrase.  The skill is called "implanting" and is a rare skill.  Forkle previously explained to Sophie that he did just that with her.

Page 246  Kenric refers to his circlet as "obnoxious."  See Book 8 where Sophie doesn't like wearing a crown.

Page 247  Kenric props "his feet on what looked like a polished tree stump."  See Leto on page 490.

Page 257  Prentice questions how Kenric would know not to recruit him again if the memory is washed.  Kenric replies, "I have a way to prevent that."  Kenric is probably referring to the round gadget mentioned by Mr. Forkle in Book 6 on page 181. 

Forgotten Secret #6 Kenric and Oralie in Elysian (see post)

Page 263  Kenric swipes at the butterflies "again and again—nearly losing his balance the second time."  This is a clue that Kenric is clumsy like Sophie.  In three different books, Forkle, Leto, and Kenric have each been depicted as clumsy.

Page 266  The Washer's face is blurred.  The Washer was probably Kenric's twin, and he was wearing an addler.

Forgotten Secret #7 Map of Elysian (see post)

Both Kenric and Forkle had maps of Elysian.

Page 290  Mr. Forkle mentions that he thought Sophie "would need the formula for frissyn someday, as well as the name and locations of the unmapped stars."  Book 1 establishes that only the Councillors can find the unmapped stars and that the formula for frissyn is highly classified.

Page 334  "Mr. Forkle's lips twitched with a hint of a smile."

Page 483  "Magnate Leto patted the sides of his heavily gelled black hair."  

Page 487  "But I've lost far too many years searching for rivers that do not exist."  Forkle spent years searching for rivers, just like Kenric.

Page 490  Leto props his feet on his desk, which is bizarre behavior that doesn't fit with my image of Leto.  This is an extremely obvious clue after the multiple mentions of Kenric propping up his feet.  Shannon wants us to make a connection between Leto and Kenric.

Page 493  Leto "looked far less put-together than usual, with weird creases in his hair, as if he'd been trying to drag his fingers through the crispy gelled strands."  Leto has unruly hair that he gels to hide it.

When Shannon reveals Oralie as Sophie's mother, the series begins to build towards its climax.  Shannon takes it further with Oralie's Forgotten Secret, which provides some clues about Kenric without being obvious about them. 

During this same time, Shannon begins providing stronger hints about similarities between Kenric and Forkle by having Forkle begin to smile or laugh.  With Kenric's Forgotten Secrets, Shannon reveals secrets about Kenric that lay bare that he must be involved with the Black Swan and is therefore Forkle.  Meanwhile, Shannon begins dropping more obvious clues that Forkle has some of Kenric's traits.

Stellarlune's cliffhanger is a moment that Shannon has planned from the beginning of the series.  She's said that Elysian is the Lost Cities' darkest secret.  The story is near the climax of the series, and the end-of-series payoff is well underway. 

In my opinion, the very best books of the series in no particular order are 1, 8, 8.5, and 9.  The first book sets up the series and is magical.  Books 8, 8.5, and 9 dole out answers and are all part of the end-of-series payoff. 

All of my past Keeper posts are linked from this page:

Keeper of the Lost Cities Summaries, Reviews, and Theories

Keeper of the Lost Cities: Fan Denial about Certain Theories

This post contains MAJOR SPOILERS from late in the set.  Do not read this post unless you've read ALL of the books that have been published.  You've been warned.

Most fans who don't think Kenric can be either Forkle or Sophie's father are likely taking everything at face value that is stated in the books.

Even so, the anagram in Kenric's name should hold weight.  It is extremely improbable that a full name (first, middle, last) can be rearranged to form a perfect anagram—using each letter once and no letter more than once—that is relevant to the plot of the book.  It is nearly impossible, unless the author designed the name to form that exact anagram. 

Such is the case with Kenric Elgar Fathdon, whose name rearranges in a perfect anagram as "Forkle grin and teach."  The anagram is exactly why theories about Kenric cannot be discarded as most fans have done.

In April 2023, I decoded the anagram from Kenric's name, and I felt certain that Kenric is Forkle.  I also felt that Kenric is Sophie's father.  I couldn't find anything about it online, so I posted about the anagram on Reddit.  I very much doubt that I was the first fan to discover the anagram.  After all, Book 3 was published eight years before I decoded the anagram.  Surely, somebody had already discovered it.  I appear to have been the first person to post about it online.

After seeing that most fans weren't interested, I've almost completely kept to myself this entire time, just writing in this blog.

In the two years since my post, I have found it strange that online discussion hasn't budged at all.  It's as if I had never posted about the anagram. 

My blog posts appear high in Google's results for searches for Kenric, Oralie, and Forkle.  Despite that, the vast majority of fans think that Sophie's father is still a mystery.  They favor Gethen or Elwin.  Gethen makes no sense, and it would be sickening for a murderer to be Sophie's father.  Elwin is logical only because Google gives him as the answer due to a false rumor.

A couple of us recently made a few comments in the main Keeper subreddit about Kenric and Forkle.  One person became hostile and dismissed us as the same person.

Since then, two more threads about Sophie's father have been posted.  When I read them, I felt like I was in a bizarre alternate reality.  It's weird to have clues pointing to Kenric, yet fans are completely oblivious.  

Most fans are in complete denial even when presented with evidence.  Let's go through how they respond.

Forkle said that Kenric isn't Sophie's father, and Forkle doesn't lie.

I don't know where fans have gotten the idea that Forkle doesn't lie.  The books make it clear that Forkle does lie.

Book 8, Page 232  Keefe tells Sophie that Forkle is "a way better liar."

Book 8.5, Page 375  In the section titled "Things I know about Mr. Forkle," Sophie notes, "He lies sometimes.  Maybe all the time.  Who knows?"

And there are other places where Sophie thinks that Mr. Forkle has lied.  

How have fans acquired this unyielding belief that Forkle doesn't lie?  I'm baffled, because he clearly does lie.

Since Forkle lies, we cannot rule out Kenric as Sophie's father.  In fact, even Sophie doesn't rule him out.

Book 8, Page 261  Then again, she supposed all of that could be a reason for Mr. Forkle to lie to her about Kenric.  Maybe she shouldn't rule him out as her biological father after all...

Mr. Forkle says that Sophie's parents don't know each other, so Sophie's parents cannot be Kenric and Oralie.

See above.  If Forkle lies, then this doesn't hold any weight.  I have already mentioned in past posts (see here and here) that Forkle uses tricky language when he tells Sophie that her parents had no connection.  

Forkle has confirmed he (Forkle) isn't Sophie's father, so this also rules out his identities including Kenric.

But Forkle is a pair of twins.  Both twins were still alive when one Forkle tells Sophie that he isn't her father.  That statement does not rule out his twin brother.

Shannon has repeatedly told fans that Kenric isn't coming back.

No.  She hasn't.  I have found exactly one interview where she addresses the situation (see post).  This is an exact transcription:

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.

That's pretty vague.  She appears to be saying that he won't return, but she is not stating it for sure.  "Usually... they're probably dead."  That's a bit indefinite.  It's indefinite enough that fans shouldn't be shutting down posts about Kenric being alive.

The Wanderling trees for Kenric and the deceased Forkle don't look alike.

I recall that the ruckleberries are wearing off as Forkle dies.  

Book 5, Page 659  It was hard to see past the blood, but his body seemed to be in a strange in-between state.  Like the ruckleberries were wearing off, but hadn't completely.

We know from the Book 4 Forkle identity reveal that Forkle always turns into Leto when the ruckleberries wear off.  For that reason, the natural assumption is that Leto is Forkle's true identity.

Book 6, Page 213  The seed had no real color—just a faint milky tone—and was shaped like dried-out, already-been-chewed gum.  But coiled carefully across it was a strand of thick black hair..."

Perhaps the disguise caused the Wanderling for Forkle to be different from that of Kenric.

This is Kenric's tree:

Book 3, Page 340  The sniffles turned to quiet sobs as a tiny sapling sprang from the earth and sprouted vivid red leaves.

This is Forkle's tree:

Book 6, Page 213  The trunk was narrow, but the bark was thicker than other trees, and coarser too, with a swirled pattern of brown and gold and red and black and even a few threads of green.  The leaves were equally varied—some wide and flat, some thin and curled, some shiny, and others covered in a cottony fuzz.  Berries sprouted among them, the exact blue as Mr. Forkle's eyes... The rest was such a hodgepodge of colors and textures, it almost felt like the Wanderling was trying to reflect all of Mr. Forkle's identities at once."

This is ambiguous, enough that we can't be certain how different the two trees are.  I thought that the different colors were the leaves, and that would make the trees completely different.  Instead, sneaky Shannon is describing the specific colors of the bark of Forkle's tree.  She then switches to the texture and shape of the leaves of Forkle's tree. 

But then the final part says that the "rest was such a hodgepodge of colors and textures..."  The rest of what?  The leaves?  Probably, but she doesn't say.  We don't know for sure what the leaf color is on Forkle's tree.  It sounds like the leaves are all different colors, but if they are, we don't know which colors or whether one color might be more dominant.  

Kenric can't be Sophie's father because Kenric is dead.  Forkle would know that he could reveal Kenric's identity since Kenric couldn't be punished.

Let's say that Forkle reveals that Kenric is Sophie's father.  The Council would be shocked and would start wondering about it.  They'd realize that Kenric was a Telepath, and they'd probably think about how Forkle is a Telepath.  Hmm...  They might also start thinking about Oralie and her blonde hair.  

Also, Oralie would connect all the dots.  She'd know that she was Sophie's mother, and then she'd know that Kenric is Sophie's father.  Oralie would likely figure out who Forkle is.  I believe that Kenric faked his death at least partly to protect Oralie.  He can't reveal who Sophie's father is.

Even when fans allow that Forkle could be lying and are receptive to the clues, they refuse to believe that Kenric could be Forkle and/or Sophie's father due to having misgivings with the idea.

It's icky that Kenric could have had a child with Oralie without her knowledge.

We know very little about Kenric and Oralie and the full dynamics of their relationship.  Once all is revealed, I am confident that Oralie will understand why certain decisions were made.  However, I bet she'll yell at him first, and he will have to do some quick explaining and a good bit of groveling.  Shannon had better write that scene for us.  I need it.

Book 8.5, Page 528  "But Kenric would never do anything malicious—especially to me.  He and I..."

Oralie is an Empath, and I trust that she understood Kenric and that she will understand his actions.  Shannon's story is leading towards Kenric being Sophie's father.  I also trust in Shannon that she will do it right.

It's too weird for Kenric to be a pair of twins both in love with Oralie.

Two years ago, I thought that only one twin loved Oralie.  The idea of both twins loving Oralie didn't feel right to me.  At that time, I wrote this on Reddit:

I've been thinking about this since yesterday.  Oralie said something about having trouble remembering what happened when Kenric was with her one time in her sitting room and that someone else was with him.  She didn't know who.  She thought that Kenric's smile was off.

I think one twin (if Kenric is Forkle) liked Oralie and the other not so much.  That's why Kenric's smile was off.  It was the other Kenric.

The question is... which twin is still alive?  The one who liked Oralie or the one who didn't?     

For quite awhile, I've believed that the surviving twin is Sophie's father.  This is simply because I believe that Shannon is planning to wrap up the story with Sophie's biological father still alive.

I've gone back and forth on whether both twins loved Oralie.  For a long time, I thought that the surviving twin was the only one who loved her and that his DNA was used for that reason.  I still think that the surviving twin's DNA was used but for a different reason.  I'll get to that later.

I have read the Forkle twin reveal scene from Book 6 many times.  While I contend that Forkle lies to Sophie when she asks about her father's identity, I believe Forkle tells the complete truth in the twin reveal scene.  That scene is key to understanding the twins and how they lived.  It explains everything.  

I believe both twins loved Oralie.  It wasn't creepy or unnatural.  It was pure and real, and it was true love.  At the same time, it was devastatingly sad for them.  

Book 6, Page 176   "There was never any division between us.  I was him and he was me.  We only ever had one life, that we shared equally."

Book 6, Page 176   "In a way it was always me.  We shared every thought.  Every feeling.  Every memory.  Nothing was ever separate—except for our bodies."

Book 6, Page 177   "Anything we ever said or did came from both of us, even though only one of us was present in that moment."

Book 6, Page 177   "We always considered each other before we made decisions—and we updated each other on everything.  Before we manifested as Telepaths, we made it a habit of staying up late, rehashing every detail of our days.  And once we could connect our minds, we started swapping memories fully—holding nothing back.  So, when you were with him, it was no different than if you were with me."

Book 6, Page 177   "Because it was either share a life, or face the scorn of identical twins.  And back when we were born, our world was even more restrictive than what you see now.  We never would've been allowed to attend Foxfire, or been invited to join the nobility—"

Book 6, Page 179   "He gave us one name.  One inception date.  One registered strand of DNA.  And from that moment on, we were raised to see ourselves as two halves of a single whole."

Book 6, Page 182   "And then, of course, there's simply the challenge of being me.  My brother was my balance—and I was his.  I'm not sure how I'll get anything done without having him question everything I'm thinking.  It feels like I've been left with a hollow body and only half a brain, and…"

Book 6, Page 183   "What am I supposed to call you?" she asked.  "The same things you always have, Miss Foster.  I'm still him.  I always have been.  And I will be, until it's my turn to draw my last breath, should that day happen."

Book 6, Page 184   "We wanted to commemorate our shared life the same way we lived it—together, and just outside the bounds of our world."

The twins regarded themselves collectively as one person.   They shared every single thought and feeling.  It would have been impossible for one twin to love Oralie and the other not to love her.  Since the twins shared every thought and feeling, they would have both felt the same feelings.  There's no way one twin could have avoided experiencing the other's love for Oralie.  

This feels right.

Think of how horribly difficult it would be to fall in love with someone, knowing that it could never be.  Even if both Kenric and Oralie were to resign as Councillors, they could never be together.  

Book 3, Page 133   [Leto] "I don't have a wife."  His voice had turned thick, his face twisted with emotion—though Sophie doubted even an Empath could translate it.  "I'm sorry," she said quietly.  "It's not… And I still… Not that it matters…"  She wasn't sure if he was talking to her anymore.  His gaze had turned distant, like he'd fallen deep into a memory...  And when she glanced down a few floors later he was still standing there, staring into space, looking even more confused than she felt.

There was nothing creepy about both twins loving Oralie, since they lived as one person and since they never acted on their feelings.  If their shared identity had acted on their feelings, then that would have been wrong.

This explains why Kenric voted against Oralie becoming a Councillor.  He/they fell in love with her at first sight, and they didn't know what to do.  They tried to keep her off the Council.

After that didn't work, they then took the approach of being hostile to her, like what we saw in the Forgotten Secret from Kenric's readying room.  Honestly, that's one of my favorite scenes in the series.  It crackles with electricity.

I think it also possible that in spite of their strong attraction to Oralie that the twins might have found her to be annoying at first, so the hostility might not have been completely faked.  

I believe that the surviving twin will be revealed as Sophie's father. 

Book 6, Page 178   "When I made my surprise appearance—two minutes and twelve seconds after my brother made his—my parents had to make a choice.  And they chose this."

Book 6, Page 178   He lifted the swollen folds around his neck, revealing a registry pendant set onto a strained silver chain.  "Technically, the feed this crystal generates isn't mine, and never has been.  But it's the only life I've ever known."

My theory is that the second twin, the younger one, would have been used as the donor.  Since the Lost Cities have a belief that twins are defective, then why not use the one that they might consider more defective as the donor?  My thinking is that the younger twin would be considered the extra, and thus weaker.  By doing this, the bias could be disproved by having a child who has strong abilities.

Kenric would never hurt Oralie by faking his death.

The last sticking point is that Kenric apparently faked his death.  It's unthinkable that he would do that to Oralie.  Astin says exactly that.

Book 4, Page 539   "No."  He cut her off before she could fully form the question.  "Kenric is gone."  "So was Fintan!"  "Yes.  But do you think Kenric would let us mourn his loss?"

Book 4, Page 540   But Sir Astin was right.  Kenric would never let Oralie suffer.  Just watching her thrash and flail and sob broke Sophie's heart.

Since a Forkle identity is telling Sophie this, we can't be sure.  In fact, Astin is determined to shut down Sophie's line of thought.  That tells me that he is protecting his secret.

But still, how could he do that to Oralie?

Book 3, Page 455   "I've done far worse," Mr. Forkle whispered.  "The right road is rarely the easy road.  And no war was ever fought without casualties."  

The above quote is in response to Keefe asking Forkle if he could betray his own father.  Forkle says that he's done worse, and he must be referring to Oralie.

Kenric had to hurt Oralie in order to protect her.  Also, since the twins knew that they never could be with her, they might have done it to set her free.  

I also want to mention something else.  Some fans have complained that there aren't enough significant deaths in this series.  They are annoyed about the Forkle death and twin twist, saying that Shannon came up with a twin to undo the death.  No, not at all.

The Forkle death is the most significant death in the series, and it has far-reaching consequences.  The death of one Forkle—that is, one Kenric—means that the remaining one could be with his love, Oralie, someday.  This is huge.

The Forkle death was utterly devastating for the surviving Forkle.  They shared their life as one.  How awful for the surviving one to lose his other half!  Forkle has said as much.  There are plenty of instances of him having a catch in his voice when speaking of his twin.  He's in deep grief.

Kenric is a complex and fascinating character, and this is why Kenric is interesting.  Layered characters who behave ambiguously add a depth to the story.  The Keeper of the Lost Cities series was in part modeled after Harry Potter.  Kenric's counterpart in the Harry Potter series is Dumbledore.  Dumbledore does plenty of things that are problematic and that could even be considered mean to Harry, like making him live with the Dursleys or not sharing information with him during the 5th book.  Dumbledore has reasons for his actions, and he's not an evil character.  

Kenric and Dumbledore are exactly alike.  Each will do anything to further their cause.

Book 5, Page 36   [Leto] "Questionable actions can be forgiven when they're done with good intentions."

This is both Kenric and Dumbledore in a nutshell.

My next post will contain all of the evidence about Kenric.

All of my past Keeper posts are linked from this page:

Keeper of the Lost Cities Summaries, Reviews, and Theories

Tracking Down Books Read When Young

When I was in elementary school, I read a set of children's biography books.  I loved the books, and I have wondered for years what the books were.  You know how it is when you can't remember something, and it keeps bothering you because you can't remember?  That's what it is.  I am not interested in collecting the books or in reading them again.  I'd just like to know what they were.

Each book featured a historical figure.  The books were dark blue with a drawing of the person featured in the center of the cover.  I'm pretty sure that the books were picture books.

I searched online for children's biographies that are blue.  This led me to the Childhood of Famous Americans series.   The below image is from Amazon.

This blue book version of the Childhood of Famous Americans series is too new.  The books I read were published at least 45 years ago based on when I would have been reading picture books.

The Childhood of Famous Americans series has been around for a long time.  Here's a picture from eBay of an old set of blue books.

These aren't the books, either.  The covers don't depict an image of the person featured in the story.  I also distinctly remember that one book featured either Mozart or Beethoven, and neither composer was an American.  These books aren't picture books, either.

I have done all sorts of searches for vintage children's biography books including the word "blue" and also using both "Beethoven" and "Mozart" in some searches.

The books couldn't have been the Landmark Books or the We Were There books because neither series are picture books.

I couldn't find anything that remotely looked like the books I read.  I couldn't find any blue books that were what I recalled.

Huh.

It kept bothering me.  Every so often, I'd try again with no luck.

Recently, I randomly thought of these books again and suddenly realized something.  The books probably were rebound library editions, and that's why I couldn't find the dark blue picture books online.  The books could have been any color before they were rebound.

I knew that I had seen vintage picture book biographies online that I had ignored because they looked nothing like the books I checked out.  I searched again, and this time I didn't eliminate the ValueTales set of biographies from consideration.  I looked at them carefully.

The ValueTales books don't look right at all, because I know that the books I read were dark blue with shiny covers.  That's why I ignored them during all of my searches. 

Despite the books looking completely wrong, I am now nearly certain that the books I read must have been rebound copies of the ValueTales book series.  There's nothing else that the books could have possibly been.

Wikipedia page on the ValueTales set

Thriftbooks product page

This picture is from an eBay listing for a bunch of the books.

One of the books does feature Beethoven, so that tallies.  The center of each cover does depict an image of the person featured, so that tallies as well.  The books are the wrong color, but books can be rebound as library editions in any color of binding.

The age of the books tallies as well.  The series was published beginning in 1977.  I would have checked out the books from my elementary school library most likely during the span of years from 1978 to 1980.  The Beethoven title was published in 1979.

The ValueTales books must be the books I read. 

I have no interest in revisiting the books.  I found an image of one page from the Christopher Columbus book online, and it doesn't appeal to me.

If I were to stumble upon a set of the books with the dark blue library binding, I wouldn't be able to resist, just because of nostalgia.  Otherwise, they are of no interest.

Nancy Drew #56 The Thirteenth Pearl eBay Listing with Insane AI Description

I recently saw an eBay listing for Nancy Drew #56 The Thirteenth Pearl that had a wildly bizarre description of printing points.  I couldn't figure out where the seller got the information.  Later, I realized that the description must have been generated by eBay's AI.

First, here are the seller's photos so that you can see what was offered.

Here is the bizarre and mostly fictitious description of the printing points:

Up for sale is a rare 1979 second printing of Nancy Drew #56, The Thirteenth Pearl – a must-have for collectors seeking unique misprint variants. This copy is the notorious "Triple Hoax" edition, featuring several key printing anomalies that set it apart from standard editions:

• Missing Yellow Bar on the Front Cover: The originally intended yellow bar that appears on first printings is absent, a primary indicator of this variant.

• Replacement of Unique Interior Imagery: Instead of the two distinctive Nancy images on the inside front cover pages, this copy displays the standard generic stamps found on other volumes in the series.

• Plate Substitution Error on Interior Covers: The specialized printing plates for #56 were inadvertently swapped with those from the next publication in the series, resulting in a uniform design that strips away its intended individuality.

• Dark Top Page Edge: An additional subtle feature is the darkened edge along the top of the pages—a recognized marker among collectors of this misprint.

Additional Details:

• Edition/Printing: 1979 Second Printing (Triple Hoax variant)

• Collectible Appeal: This edition is highly sought after by Nancy Drew enthusiasts and collectors due to its unique misprint and design anomalies.

Whether you’re a seasoned collector or a fan of the classic Nancy Drew mysteries, this rare misprint variant is a standout piece that perfectly encapsulates the quirks and charm of the series. Don’t miss your chance to add this unique copy to your collection!

Thirteenth Pearl never had a yellow bar at the top, and what's up with the idea that the yellow bar on any Nancy Drew book would make it a first printing?

The AI description mentions "two distinctive Nancy images on the front cover pages" that are "Unique Interior Imagery."  Apparently the AI is describing the double oval endpapers as "Unique Interior Imagery."  I believe most collectors would agree with that assessment, however odd it sounds.

I don't understand any of the paragraph that mentions the plate substitution error.  AI on crack, maybe?

Where does it get the idea that this is a misprint?

This serves as a good example of why eBay sellers should refrain from using eBay's AI to write their item description. 

The Keeper of the Lost Cities Echo Chamber

This post contains references to theories that could be MAJOR SPOILERS.  Do not read this post unless you've read ALL of the books that have been published.  You've been warned.

I published my first Keeper post, My Keeper of the Lost Cities Obsession, on April 16, 2023.  I wrote:

The series is still in progress, but I have found an anagram pointing to what I believe is the big secret.  When I ran a Google search the other day, there were no results.  How strange.  The book that has this clue was published in 2014.  I cannot possibly be the only person who has figured out the anagram. 

I posted about it on Reddit a few days ago to see what would happen.  I got some downvotes at first.  I have upvotes as well, and it appears that I've shocked some people.  

I remember how I felt after I posted on Reddit.  I was taken aback at the downvotes, and I even thought about deleting the post.  Looking back on it, the responses weren't bad at all.  They were overall receptive, even though some people didn't know what to think.  They would treat me a lot worse now.

A few months after my Kenric anagram post, I answered a poll about favorite Councillors.  I mentioned it in my post, Keeper of the Lost Cities: Oralie and Sophie:

I write my thoughts only in this blog because I have been downvoted on Reddit for the very few comments that I have made.  In one case, I answered a poll about my favorite Councillor.  The person who created the poll left off Kenric and put an unimportant Councillor who never speaks in his place.  I had to vote for Oralie.  Oralie got quite a few votes with Bronte coming in at first place.

In the comments, someone said that the people who voted for Oralie must not have read all the books.  Excuse me?  I've read them, and I won't apologize for liking Oralie.  I replied, "I've read all of the books, and I like Oralie the best of the Councillors who were included in the poll.  My favorite Councillor is actually Kenric with Oralie in second place."

I was downvoted.  They didn't approve of me liking Kenric and Oralie.  So, that's why I write my thoughts only here.  I get a low number of views and no feedback, but at least I'm not getting downvoted by fans who don't like my opinions.

I have carefully avoided the temptation to comment on the occasional Kenric-as-Forkle and Kenric-as-Sophie's-father posts that are made on Reddit.  I have wanted to comment, but I didn't want to deal with the toxicity.  For some reason, people are not allowed to voice theories about Kenric having anything to do with Project Moonlark or Forkle.  I mean... people do make posts about Kenric from time to time, but just about every response disagrees, so that effectively shuts down the posts.

Recently, someone read my blog posts and made several comments in this blog, agreeing with what I wrote about Kenric.  They explained some of their ideas, and I replied.  Hours later, I saw that they had posted on Reddit.  Their post began, "Just finished to read all the KOTLC books, and it became so clear for me that Mr Forkle is Kenric, and Kenric is a biological father of Sophie."

I knew they were in for it.  People immediately began to pile on, saying that they were wrong.  These people refuse to consider the idea that Kenric is Forkle.  They apparently believe that Forkle always tells the truth.  Forkle said that Kenric isn't Sophie's father and that Sophie's parents don't know each other.  In their minds, there's no point in discussing it.  Forkle never lies, and he says that Kenric wasn't involved, so that's it.  

Their logic perplexes me.  Sophie has said that Forkle lies.  If he lies, then we can't be sure that what he says about Kenric's lack of involvement in Project Moonlark is actually true.  If they'd let people discuss it, then they'd realize that Forkle has obscured the truth by flat-out denying it.

Since I had just interacted with the person who posted, I decided to comment, knowing that I would get ripped for it.  I mean... how dare anyone think that Kenric could be Sophie's father or Forkle.  

My first comment:

I completely agree about Forkle's identity and about who Sophie's parents are.  Shannon has hidden the truth in plain sight but has obscured it just enough that most readers don't see it.  The way she's done it is brilliant.  The crux of the problem is that readers believe that Forkle has always told the truth.

Sophie says that Forkle has lied to her.  If Forkle has ever lied, then we can't be sure about anything.  For that reason, we cannot use Forkle's denials as proof that Kenric can't be Sophie's father.  His statement about Sophie's parents not knowing each other was just to throw Sophie off.

The other thing is that many readers have failed to see the significance of the Forgotten Secrets in Stellarlune.  The Forgotten Secrets are Forkle's secrets.

There.  I said it.  I was downvoted, as expected.  The OP interacted with me.  All of my responses were downvoted.

Two people were receptive and asked for examples.  I replied:

I'm not the OP, but I've written extensively about what I've noticed in the books. This link will take you to a page that lists all of my posts.

https://series-books.blogspot.com/p/keeper-of-lost-cities-posts.html

Clues are mentioned throughout all of the posts, but start with "The Identity of Sophie's Creator" and all of the posts on the Forgotten Secrets. The posts about Unraveled cover some key thoughts. Stellarlune and Unraveled are important books because Shannon is pulling it all together and has laid the groundwork for both the Forkle and Sophie's father reveal.

Also look at the very end of each individual book post for some of the clues.

Next, someone who was a bit combative began commenting.  They listed six points to counter what the OP posted.  The points they were countering weren't mine, but I couldn't resist addressing their second point, which was that multiple characters count seconds including the kids.

I wrote:

Awhile back, I actually ran a search for the word "seconds" in all the digital texts of all the books and examined each time that word appears.  Only three characters in the entire series are ever mentioned as counting the seconds: Sophie, Kenric, and Forkle.  Nobody else is ever mentioned as counting the seconds.  

By the other person's response, it was apparent that they were taken aback.  They asked if I had searched all of the books.

Ever since I discovered the anagram in Kenric's name, I've been searching for clues.  That's why.  If Shannon would go to the trouble to design Kenric's name in such a way that it forms a revealing perfect anagram, then I figured that she placed clues through all the books.

To be clear, I have searched the texts of #1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 8.5, 9, and 9.5 for the word "seconds." Just three characters actually "count" the seconds, the three that I mentioned.

The penultimate paragraph was phrased so as to leave no doubt that I meant exactly what I wrote.  Yes, I really did search every book for the word "seconds" and read those passages.   
  
I then saw that they added to their response.  I was told that the theory is nonsense and that I and the OP were the same person hiding behind multiple IDs.

Nonsense?  Well, I never!  But who I am has already been revealed in my post history on Reddit, so I had nothing to hide.  I outed myself.

I replied:

No, indeed.  My name is Jennifer White, and I have a blog where I've written extensively about these books.  I don't hide behind screen names, and I don't know who the OP is.  I don't usually comment here since my comments get downvoted like what is happening today.  The OP commented in my blog in the last couple days.  I replied, and we exchanged additional comments.  When I saw their post here this morning, I continued our discussion. 

There was a reason why only two of us were conversing in the post about Kenric.  It's not because we were the same person, and it's not because we are the only people who think Kenric is Forkle.  It's because everyone who thinks Kenric is Forkle or Sophie's father has been run out of the subreddit.  

The last time someone posted about Kenric recently, they were shut down by everyone.  They deleted their post.  Kenric posts tend to get deleted.  The Reddit Keeper fans have created their own echo chamber.  

Something good has come from all of this.  I now have a distinct opinion on whether Eleanor Olivia Wright is human or an elf.  This is why I try to find people who have expressed opinions about Kenric, Forkle, Ethan, and Eleanor.  Reading well-thought-out opinions helps me figure things out.  We can find answers better when we are allowed to discuss theories without immediately being shut down. 

Several Keeper posts about Kenric, Forkle, Ethan, and Eleanor will be posted soon.

Update: 

After I wrote this post, the combative poster began to bully the same person on another theory post.  They actually told the person with the theory to "stop" and said that they would be reporting all of their similar future posts as spam. 

That was the moment I decided to take action.  I reported the comment to the moderators, not knowing if it would be addressed (the comment was removed two days later).  I felt so frustrated that bullies were dictating what would be discussed.

While I don't want to run a Keeper subreddit, I created one.  We need a place where we can freely discuss Kenric without being shut down.

https://www.reddit.com/r/KotLCTheories/

All of my past Keeper posts are linked from this page:

Keeper of the Lost Cities Summaries, Reviews, and Theories

Nancy Drew #2 The Hidden Staircase 1930A-1 eBay Auction

A 1930A-1 first printing book and jacket for Nancy Drew #2 The Hidden Staircase recently sold on eBay for $1,312.00.

While the condition is rough, so was the condition of the 1930A-1 Old Clock that recently sold for $6,877.  Old Clock is more in demand, but Hidden Staircase should be worth at least half that of Old Clock.  There are very few 1930A-1 jackets in any condition for any of the books in the breeder set.  I feel that this Hidden Staircase is worth $2,000 to $3,500 when compared to how the Old Clock auction did.

Some collectors on Facebook said that they never saw this listing.  I read reports that eBay's search was malfunctioning and not showing all listings to everyone.  This means that some people who might have bid also might not have seen the listing.  The auction might have closed at a higher price if eBay's search had been working properly.  

The winner of this auction was the Hollywood dealer, who will be reselling the book.  Collectors have expressed doubt as to whether the dealer can mark the price up and actually sell the book.  I am confident that he will succeed at selling the book at a much higher price.

I have noticed that when I mention the Hollywood dealer that collectors don't understand the situation.  Even when I have explained it, some collectors still don't believe me, which is perplexing.  The Hollywood dealer is a high-end bookseller (see previous related post).  He isn't selling books to the likes of us.  His clientele are wealthy.

I wrote this on Facebook in 2020:

The seller of the $6,500 Larkspur Lane is most likely the seller of the other high-priced books mentioned in the comments.  That seller is located in Hollywood. His books are always priced very high.  He does not expect any of us to purchase them, and we won't.  He sells to wealthy people.  Those people will pay a premium to purchase from someone like him rather than dealing with ordinary people like us.  Think of him as a high-end book dealer.

A Nancy Drew fan gave this response:

Interesting. I didn't think wealthy people would just throw money away.  But I don't really know any of them personally.

The Hollywood dealer's clientele have incomes that people like us can't imagine.  We have no comprehension of the amount of money that they have.  These are people who might spend $10,000 on a bottle of wine to have with their dinner.  Yes, ten thousand dollars, and I'm not joking.  People with extreme wealth spend their money on stuff like that.

Someone who has the money for a $10,000 bottle of wine would have no problem with paying $10,000 (or even more!) for the rough condition Hidden Staircase book and jacket from the recent auction.

The comment about wealthy people not throwing money away astonished me.  Let's take someone with an income of $100,000 per year.  Someone like that could purchase a book for $10,000, but they might have to charge it.  $10,000 is 10% of their yearly income.

Take someone with an income of $1,000,000 per year.  A $10,000 book is just 1% of their income.  That's quite a difference.

Let's crunch the numbers with this listing.  Hidden Staircase sold for $1,312.  For someone who makes $100,000 per year, this amount is 1.312% of their income.

Using 1.312%, this same book would be the equivalent of a book priced at $13,120 to someone who makes $1,000,0000 per year.  Put another way, a millionaire regards $13,120 the same way that one of us might regard $1,312.  If the Hollywood dealer marks the price up to $10,000-15,000, then it won't be priced too high for his clientele.  The book will sell eventually. 

I hope this explanation helps you understand.  This copy of Hidden Staircase isn't worth $10,000 or more to any of us, but someone who is wealthy would be willing to pay that much.  The high-end seller's wealthy clientele pay him a convenience fee.

More on eBay and Etsy Selling Costs

After I published my post on Friday, I powered through and listed around 60 books on eBay.  As expected, some books sold as soon as I listed them.

After waffling back and forth, I listed some of my extra original text green APC Nancy Drew books at $49.99 each.  I went with $25 each for French Nancy Drew books. 

The prices might be too high for the current market, but they might also be just fine.  I need to try to earn back some of my fees on books that are scarcer and more desirable. 

I feel that it's important to continue to offer low-cost reading copies.  I mainly offer those on Etsy, and they sell quite well.  They have a narrow profit margin.  I also must take losses on books purchased 20 years ago that I no longer want and that have decreased in value and demand.

I must try to get more for books that are currently in demand to offset the losses and low profits on other books.

I listed two books signed by Harriet Adams.  I recall reading a comment on Facebook about the value of books and items signed by Harriet Adams.  I can't find it, since Facebook's search is atrocious.  I recall the statement being that Harriet autographs aren't worth much, maybe no more than $50.

I disagree.  I feel, based on my personal opinion with nothing to back it up, that Harriet's autograph should be worth over $100.  Mildred Wirt Benson also signed many books, and signed non-first printing books by her have sometimes sold in the low hundreds.  Even though people have a more sentimental view of Mildred, I see no reason why Harriet's signature shouldn't be worth a similar amount. 

Like her or not, Harriet Adams contributed more to the enduring legacy of series books than any other person aside from her father.

It is true that Harriet's signature can be found for a relatively low price if one is patient and searches consistently.  However, that's true for just about everything.

I had two books signed by Harriet to list on Friday.  I wanted to go with $125 each just based on what I think with no data other than the knowledge that I sold one in an eBay auction last July for $86.00.  

I searched eBay's Terapeak before going with $125.  I found that a Moss-Covered Mansion picture cover signed by Harriet sold for $160 in 2023, and a Nancy Drew Cookbook signed by Harriet sold for $132.50 in 2024.  As soon as I saw those prices, I immediately listed both books at $149.99 each.  One of them sold within a few minutes, and the other one sold 24 hours later.  I wasn't wrong about books signed by Harriet being worth more than $100.

I struggle with my desire to price fairly while also being fair to myself.  I feel confident that in pricing the Harriet-signed books at $149.99 each that I was fair to both myself and the buyers.

The last time I mentioned fees, it was a reference to what my fees were in 2022:

My Etsy selling costs including postage were 27.1% while my eBay selling costs including postage were 29.8%.  The difference is not enough to matter.

I wrote on Friday that my Etsy selling costs are slightly lower than my eBay selling costs, recalling what I had noted in the past.  Not anymore.  I looked at what my eBay and Etsy selling costs were in 2024.  My eBay selling costs including postage were 32.2%.  My Etsy selling costs including postage were 32.9%.  Etsy is now becoming more expensive.  Interesting.

The slightly higher cost on Etsy might be in part due to the lower free shipping threshold.  In order for sellers to participate in Etsy's free shipping guarantee, they must agree to ship orders of $35 or more for free.  I have to use a complicated method in order to offer a free shipping guarantee at a higher threshold, and even if I do all that, then I miss out on the promotional benefits of Etsy's program.  

Etsy says to build the prices into our items.  Buyers can see through that.  I did it a number of years ago, and my sales dropped.  Buyers don't want their cheap reading copies to be priced at $14.99 each with no possibility of a discount.  A few buyers even sent messages about it, because they were annoyed.

The only option is to continue to sell reading copies cheap but to price other books higher.  

The main reason why my fees are so high on Etsy is that I am forced to participate in Etsy's off-site ads program.  During one calendar year, my Etsy sales topped $10,000.  I'm not sure whether I have been above that threshold during any other year, but it doesn't matter.  On Etsy, if a seller crosses that threshold one time, they are permanently opted into the off-site ads.

Any items I sell through Etsy's off-site ads cost me an additional 12% in fees on top of Etsy's regular fees, which I believe is currently 9.5%.  This means that I am assessed fees of 21.5% on Etsy sales that come through the off-site ads.  Fortunately, most of my transactions are not through the off-site ads, or I'd have to quit offering the cheap reading copies.

I will say that Etsy's off-site ads program is much cheaper than eBay's.  I've heard varying reports of the true cost for eBay's program, but it's apparently something like $5 per day.  That would be $150 per 30 days, which is appalling.  

Even though my fees are now slightly higher on Etsy, I feel that it's worth it.  My eBay items all get lost in the search.  Scarce items are noticed, but common items like the average Nancy Drew book are completely lost and are slow to sell.  I feel like with Etsy's off-site ads that I do have a chance on Etsy.  In fact, certain books will always be listed on Etsy because of the off-site ads.

Books like matte copies of Nancy Drew #55 and #56 fly out of my Etsy store, and they almost always sell through the off-site ads.  I find that I can price them on the high side, and they still fly out.  I sold a copy of #56 for $74.99 through off-site ads.  That's amazing, and it helps with the high fees.