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* Despite all the pieces of the Will being male, Dame Primus is female. [[spoiler: Because the Architect is female.]]
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** The name "The Will of the Architect" ends up meaning something different than first thought. [[spoiler: While it seems to be a will as in testament, it ends up proving to be more as in the architect's will be done.]]
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Oh and this
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** Grim's Grotesques are named for the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yan_tan_tethera Yan tan tethera]] sheep counting system, though the individual spellings come from differing regional variants of the system, and in fact both Sethera and Azer mean "six".
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** Grim's Grotesques are named for the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yan_tan_tethera Yan tan tethera]] sheep counting system, though the individual spellings come from differing regional variants of the system, and in fact both Sethera and Azer mean "six"."six" (Az'''a'''r, however, ''does'' mean seven).
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Bleh, apparently I clicked save when I meant to preview.
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** Grim's Grotesques are named for the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yan_tan_tethera Yan tan tethera] sheep counting system.
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** Grim's Grotesques are named for the [http://en.[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yan_tan_tethera Yan tan tethera] tethera]] sheep counting system.system, though the individual spellings come from differing regional variants of the system, and in fact both Sethera and Azer mean "six".
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** Grim's Grotesques are named for the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yan_tan_tethera Yan tan tethera] sheep counting system.
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** Near the start of ''Sir Thursday'', Arthur's precedence within the House is given as six. One can speculate who the five above him are, though Sir Thursday, Lady Friday, Superior Saturday and Lord Sunday are the obvious candidates for four of them. Who the other one is remains a mystery, though it could perhaps be the Architect.
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** Near There's not really any reason to say Saturday is the highest because those higher than her aren't Denizens; Arthur isn't a Denizen, but still has a position in precedence. Indeed, near the start of ''Sir Thursday'', Arthur's precedence within the House is explicitly given as six. One can speculate as to who the five above him are, though are; Sir Thursday, Lady Friday, Superior Saturday and Lord Sunday are the obvious candidates for four of them. Who the other one is remains a mystery, though it could perhaps be the Architect.
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**Near the start of ''Sir Thursday'', Arthur's precedence within the House is given as six. One can speculate who the five above him are, though Sir Thursday, Lady Friday, Superior Saturday and Lord Sunday are the obvious candidates for four of them. Who the other one is remains a mystery, though it could perhaps be the Architect.
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* MobileShrubbery: An illusory one is used by Arthur in the Incomparable Gardens, reasoning that a walking shrub won't look out of place.
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* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: The way the House's hierarchy works. Each Denizen has a number representing how close they are to being full authority. The exact identity of number one is uncertain, and may be Lord Sunday, Dame Primus, the Architect, or some other powerful entity. The lower their number is, the stronger they tend to be. (Directly mentioned in the seventh book when someone tells Suzy that knocking a Denizen out isn't done with the strength of the kick but of authority.)
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* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: The way the House's hierarchy works. Each Denizen has a number representing how close they are to being full authority. The exact identity of Superior Saturday is number one is uncertain, and may be Lord Sunday, Dame Primus, the Architect, or some other - more powerful entity. The lower their number is, the stronger they tend to be. (Directly mentioned in the seventh book when someone tells Suzy that knocking a Denizen out isn't done with the strength of the kick entities exist, but of authority.)they're not Denizens.
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** When Arthur barters information from the Raised Rats they agree on a three questions three answers each type of agreement. Arthur, however, is quick to ask for clarification whether there is a 'trick' to it, such as asking that question counts, or whether it's only significant questions. It's the latter.
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Entry \'Honour Before Reason\' Bit long, if someone can shorten it, would be great.
** The Mariner is one of the most powerful beings ever, being son of the Architect, and helps out Arthur. However, he keeps reiterating he's trying to be ChaoticNeutral.
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* BrilliantButLazy: Mister Monday
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* BrilliantButLazy: Mister MondayMonday. Lord Sunday to an extent, being too proud to actually do anything [[spoiler: until it's too late]] but possibly the most powerful Denizen in the House.
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* ChainedToARock: The Old One, a Prometheus-like character (or maybe the real deal) is chained to a clock, from which wooden puppets appear every twelve hours to remove his eyes, which grow back painfully over the next few hours.
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* ChainedToARock: The Old One, a Prometheus-like character (or maybe the real deal) is chained to a clock, from which wooden puppets appear every twelve hours to remove his eyes, which grow back painfully over the next few hours. Reinforcing the Prometheus similarities is that it used to be his liver that was taken before his eyes. (May or may not have been by a vulture).
* Despite all the pieces of the Will being male, Dame Primus is female. [[spoiler: Because the Architect is female.]]
* HonourBeforeReason: Arthur battles with this after [[spoiler: Dartbristle]] is killed trying to fulfil a task. Despite working for The Piper, Arthur is encouraged by the Will to finish his last act. However, he decides to do it, and accept the concenquences later because it's what he feels is right. [[spoiler: Turns out it allows The Piper to get into the Upper House. Not great.]]
** Despite being the highest in authority of the Dusks, meaning increasing snobbishness, Sunday's Dusk 'The Reaper' takes time out of his [[spoiler: kidnapping of leaf]] to help 'a comrade' who is in trouble when in the door. [[spoiler: It's the Lieutenant Keeper, and despite the Reaper saying Sunday could make him whole, he dies and passes on his sword and duty to Leaf]] scuppering his plan. The Reaper laments on what a mistake this was and just leaves to report his failure.
** Despite being the highest in authority of the Dusks, meaning increasing snobbishness, Sunday's Dusk 'The Reaper' takes time out of his [[spoiler: kidnapping of leaf]] to help 'a comrade' who is in trouble when in the door. [[spoiler: It's the Lieutenant Keeper, and despite the Reaper saying Sunday could make him whole, he dies and passes on his sword and duty to Leaf]] scuppering his plan. The Reaper laments on what a mistake this was and just leaves to report his failure.
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* LargeAndInCharge: Almost a physical law in the House. The more power or authority you have, the taller you are (it's suggested they do this to intimidate the lower peons); the holders of the Keys are seven to nine feet high. Being demoted shrinks you.
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* LargeAndInCharge: Almost a physical law in the House. The more power or authority you have, the taller you are (it's suggested they do this to intimidate the lower peons); the holders of the Keys are seven to nine feet high. Being demoted shrinks you. Denizens like heights apparently.
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* LosingYourHead: Denizens can also survive ''decapitation'', if they get their head reattached to the rest of their body soon enough.
** Hell, they can survive decapitation outright ''and'' regrow their bodies, with appropriate medical attention. Yes, even if it's due to the rest of their body being dissolved by Nothing.
* MagicMirror: The Fifth Key.
** Hell, they can survive decapitation outright ''and'' regrow their bodies, with appropriate medical attention. Yes, even if it's due to the rest of their body being dissolved by Nothing.
* MagicMirror: The Fifth Key.
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* LosingYourHead: Denizens can also survive ''decapitation'', if they get their head reattached to the rest of their body soon enough.
** Hell, they can survive decapitation outright ''and'' regrow their bodies, with appropriate medical attention. Yes, even if it's due to the rest ofenough. If their body being dissolved by Nothing.
is not available, they can regrew it from simply a head.
* MagicMirror: The FifthKey.Key, which allows the wielder to travel, or send someone, to any place as long as 1. The person has been there before and 2. It has a reflective surface.
** Hell, they can survive decapitation outright ''and'' regrow their bodies, with appropriate medical attention. Yes, even if it's due to the rest of
* MagicMirror: The Fifth
* NiceToTheWaiter: Arthur is polite to everyone, including those below him. This is such a rare occurence in the House that the telephone operators go out of their way to help him, including defying Saturday herself, because he thinks of saying please, and even recognise him just because he is so polite to them.
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* OnlyAFleshWound: Denizens can survive most wounds that should kill - one jarring example in particular is in Drowned Wednesday, where Ichabod gets a large splinter right through the stomach... and promptly complains about how that was his best shirt. Priorities.
* OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent: Arthur, except he's twelve.
* OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent: Arthur, except he's twelve.
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* OnlyAFleshWound: Denizens can survive most wounds that should kill - one jarring example in particular is in Drowned Wednesday, where Ichabod gets a large splinter right through the stomach... and promptly complains about how that was his best shirt. Priorities.
Priorities. One denizen ends up being decapitated, in so much as his body gets dissolved by Nothing leaving only his head, and has to spend time regrowing his body. They're resilient alright.
*OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent: [[OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent Ordinary Primary School Student: Arthur, except he's twelve.
*
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* AdultsAreUseless: The main heroes are children and the Denizens of the house are either too stupid or stubborn (or corrupt, or bureaucratic, or evil) to change anything. The Piper's Children are also shown to be much more helpful to Arthur than most Denizens. On the other hand, pretty much all the adult humans in the story are shown to be competent or even [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Reasonable Authority Figures]].
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* AdultsAreUseless: The main heroes are children and the Denizens of the house are either too stupid or stubborn (or corrupt, or bureaucratic, or evil) to change anything. The Piper's Children are also shown to be much more helpful to Arthur than most Denizens. On the other hand, pretty much all the adult humans ''humans'' in the story are shown to be competent or even [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Reasonable Authority Figures]].
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* [[spoiler:EndOfTheWorldSpecial: At the end of the series, Arthur becomes the successor to the Architect and is given the opportunity to replace the universe that was just destroyed. Instead of starting from scratch, he just recreates the old universe.]]
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* [[spoiler:OutsourcingFate: It turns out that the purpose of Arthur's quest was to become the new Architect. See the EndOfTheWorldSpecial entry above.]]
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Mismatched Eyes is now disambiguation page. Please check to see if this example fits one of the tropes under Mismatched Eyes and re-add with context explaining why it fits the new trope.
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* MismatchedEyes: The Old One.
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* YearInsideHourOutside: The overall implication is that Earth and the House proceed in lockstep (or at least at a steady ratio), but that when someone goes through the Front Door, it adjusts the time flow for convenience. Note that the only occasions that time proceeds forward on Earth are when Arthur and Leaf are pulled in via the Border Sea and when Arthur teleports in via the Fifth Key. Scamandros mentions leaving for a journey that took several months and when they came back only 5 minutes had passed.
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* MeleeATois: Superior Saturday VS Lord Sunday VS The Piper VS Lord Arthur, culminating in one final showdown in Lord Sunday.
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* MeleeATois: MeleeATrois: Although it begins with just Arthur VS the Morrow Days, by the final two books it's now Superior Saturday VS Lord Sunday VS The Piper VS Lord Arthur, culminating in one final showdown in Lord Sunday.''Lord Sunday''. When [[spoiler: Arthur gets Saturday's key, she]] is enslaved by the Piper leaving only the three sides. The Mariner, who counts as a side by himself, is ChaoticNeutral in all this, but eventually comes over to Arthur's side.
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* YearInsideHourOutside: The overall implication is that Earth and the House proceed in lockstep (or at least at a steady ratio), but that when someone goes through the Front Door, it adjusts the time flow for convenience. Note that the only occasions that time proceeds forward on Earth are when Arthur and Leaf are pulled in via the Border Sea and when Arthur teleports in via the Fifth Key.
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* XMustNotWin: Funnily enough, Arthur's side could be considered as X [[spoiler: since the other main combatants know if he succeeds the House will be destroyed.]]
* YearInsideHourOutside: The overall implication is that Earth and the House proceed in lockstep (or at least at a steady ratio), but that when someone goes through the Front Door, it adjusts the time flow for convenience. Note that the only occasions that time proceeds forward on Earth are when Arthur and Leaf are pulled in via the Border Sea and when Arthur teleports in via the FifthKey.
Key. Scamandros mentions leaving for a journey that took several months and when they came back only 5 minutes had passed.
* YearInsideHourOutside: The House seems to move a lot faster than the Secondary Realms. Suzy was taken from the time of the black plague but mentions having been in the house for thousands of years. Arthur's to and fro through the door is explained later as the House adjusting time accordingly so that the person returns to the same time as they left. Sorcery can make the door glitch though, and Scamandros mentions having left for a few months and come back to find only 5 minutes have passed.
* YearInsideHourOutside: The overall implication is that Earth and the House proceed in lockstep (or at least at a steady ratio), but that when someone goes through the Front Door, it adjusts the time flow for convenience. Note that the only occasions that time proceeds forward on Earth are when Arthur and Leaf are pulled in via the Border Sea and when Arthur teleports in via the Fifth
* YearInsideHourOutside: The House seems to move a lot faster than the Secondary Realms. Suzy was taken from the time of the black plague but mentions having been in the house for thousands of years. Arthur's to and fro through the door is explained later as the House adjusting time accordingly so that the person returns to the same time as they left. Sorcery can make the door glitch though, and Scamandros mentions having left for a few months and come back to find only 5 minutes have passed.
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* CoDragons: Each Morrow Day has or had 3 specific 'superior denizens' which count as their second in command (Noon, Dawn, and Dusk). Grim Tuesday took his three denizens, melded them into one and then separated that into seven, calling them Grotesques and giving them each different names. It's unknown what time they can be on Earth.
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* TheDragon: Each trustee has or once had minions named Dawn, Noon, and Dusk whose job it is to be this, but their loyalties vary.
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* MeleeATois: Superior Saturday VS Lord Sunday VS The Piper VS Lord Arthur, culminating in one final showdown in Lord Sunday.
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* InsectoidAliens: In ''Lord Sunday'', Arthur accidentally visits a planet of these using the Improbable Stair.
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*** The Sixth Part of the Will, which gave Arthur orders he didn't have time to follow. (Kindness, opposing empathy but lacking the sense of priorities the other virtues grant)
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*** The Sixth Part of the Will, which gave Arthur orders he didn't have time to follow. (Kindness, opposing empathy envy but lacking the sense of priorities the other virtues grant)
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** There is, in fact, an entry missing from this page because it would be to big of a spoiler: [[spoiler: OmnicidalManiac]]
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fixed bad tags. oops.
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** As noted in TooDumbToLive example above, this is almost as much of a source of problems in the house as the vices, and the deviations from the seven heavenly virtues (most notably the substitution of [[spoiler Judgement for Patience as an opposing virtue to Wrath]], but also the use of looser protestant virtues in general rather than their classical counterparts as primary identifiers) are actually clues for the alert reader that something is [[OmnicidalManiac not quite right]] with the Will.
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** As noted in TooDumbToLive example above, this is almost as much of a source of problems in the house as the vices, and the deviations from the seven heavenly virtues (most notably the substitution of [[spoiler [[spoiler: Judgement for Patience as an opposing virtue to Wrath]], but also the use of looser protestant virtues in general rather than their classical counterparts as primary identifiers) are actually clues for the alert reader that something is [[OmnicidalManiac not quite right]] with the Will.
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* VirtueViceCodification: Each part of The Will represents one of seven virtues, most likely intended as opposites to the SevenDeadlySins, but differing from the classical SevenHeavenlyVirtues. They also refer to the Heavenly virtues themselves [[spoiler in a twisted way that hints at the source of the trouble]]. In order of Monday to Sunday, they represent Fortitude(Diligence), Prudence (Charity), Faith(Chastity), Justice(--), Temperance (Moderation), Charity(Kindness), and Hope(Humility).
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* VirtueViceCodification: Each part of The Will represents one of seven virtues, most likely intended as opposites to the SevenDeadlySins, but differing from the classical SevenHeavenlyVirtues. They also refer to the Heavenly virtues themselves [[spoiler [[spoiler: in a twisted way that hints at the source of the trouble]]. In order of Monday to Sunday, Sunday (classical counterpart in parentheses), they represent Fortitude(Diligence), Prudence (Charity), Faith(Chastity), Justice(--), Temperance (Moderation), Charity(Kindness), and Hope(Humility).
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*** The Second Part of the Will, which holds a contest to decide who will use the Key to stop Nothing from consuming the universe. (Charity, opposing greed, but without temperance/prudence)
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*** The Second Part of the Will, which holds a contest to decide who will use the Key to stop Nothing from consuming the universe. (Charity, opposing greed, but without temperance/prudence)temperance/prudence, wants everyone to have a fair shot)
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* VirtueViceCodification: Each part of The Will represents one of seven virtues, most likely intended as opposites to the SevenDeadlySins, but nonetheless differing from the classical SevenHeavenlyVirtues. In order of Monday to Sunday, they represent Fortitude, Prudence, Faith, Justice, Temperance (Moderation), Charity, and Hope.
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* VirtueViceCodification: Each part of The Will represents one of seven virtues, most likely intended as opposites to the SevenDeadlySins, but nonetheless differing from the classical SevenHeavenlyVirtues. SevenHeavenlyVirtues. They also refer to the Heavenly virtues themselves [[spoiler in a twisted way that hints at the source of the trouble]]. In order of Monday to Sunday, they represent Fortitude, Prudence, Faith, Justice, Fortitude(Diligence), Prudence (Charity), Faith(Chastity), Justice(--), Temperance (Moderation), Charity, Charity(Kindness), and Hope.Hope(Humility).
** As noted in TooDumbToLive example above, this is almost as much of a source of problems in the house as the vices, and the deviations from the seven heavenly virtues (most notably the substitution of [[spoiler Judgement for Patience as an opposing virtue to Wrath]], but also the use of looser protestant virtues in general rather than their classical counterparts as primary identifiers) are actually clues for the alert reader that something is [[OmnicidalManiac not quite right]] with the Will.
** As noted in TooDumbToLive example above, this is almost as much of a source of problems in the house as the vices, and the deviations from the seven heavenly virtues (most notably the substitution of [[spoiler Judgement for Patience as an opposing virtue to Wrath]], but also the use of looser protestant virtues in general rather than their classical counterparts as primary identifiers) are actually clues for the alert reader that something is [[OmnicidalManiac not quite right]] with the Will.
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** The Will. Specifically:
*** The First Part of the Will, which leads Arthur into a trap.
*** The Second Part of the Will, which holds a contest to decide who will use the Key to stop Nothing from consuming the universe.
*** The Third Part of the Will, which wants to waste time while its worshipers sing hymns.
*** The Fourth Part of the Will, which spits acid into the face of the general of a much larger army during a ceasefire.
*** The Fifth Part of the Will, which spends more time eating armor than helping Arthur.
*** The Sixth Part of the Will, which gave Arthur orders he didn't have time to follow.
*** And the Seventh, which escapes by virtue of not being onscreen enough to cause problems.
*** The First Part of the Will, which leads Arthur into a trap.
*** The Second Part of the Will, which holds a contest to decide who will use the Key to stop Nothing from consuming the universe.
*** The Third Part of the Will, which wants to waste time while its worshipers sing hymns.
*** The Fourth Part of the Will, which spits acid into the face of the general of a much larger army during a ceasefire.
*** The Fifth Part of the Will, which spends more time eating armor than helping Arthur.
*** The Sixth Part of the Will, which gave Arthur orders he didn't have time to follow.
*** And the Seventh, which escapes by virtue of not being onscreen enough to cause problems.
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** The Will.Will, because each represents a classical virtue related to the keyholder's sin, but untempered by the presence of other virtues. Specifically:
*** The First Part of the Will, which leads Arthur into atrap.
trap. (Diligence, opposing Sloth, but without patience) The flip-side of this is that the virtue's overabundance of motivation and dearth of sense is also why it escaped [[spoiler: while the others had to be rescued]].
*** The Second Part of the Will, which holds a contest to decide who will use the Key to stop Nothing from consuming theuniverse.
universe. (Charity, opposing greed, but without temperance/prudence)
*** The Third Part of the Will, which wants to waste time while its worshipers singhymns.
hymns (temperance, opposing gluttony but without diligence).
*** The Fourth Part of the Will, which spits acid into the face of the general of a much larger army during aceasefire.
ceasefire. (Judgement, opposed to unthinking wrath, but lacking patience) [[spoiler: the fact that Judgement is used rather than the more traditional counter-virtue of Patience is plot-significant.]]
*** The Fifth Part of the Will, which spends more time eating armor than helpingArthur.
Arthur. (Chastity, opposing lust but lacking... anything sensible)
*** The Sixth Part of the Will, which gave Arthur orders he didn't have time tofollow.
follow. (Kindness, opposing empathy but lacking the sense of priorities the other virtues grant)
*** And the Seventh, which escapes by virtue of not being onscreen enough to cause problems. However, given that it is Humility (opposed to Pride) the fact that it's the virtue that [[spoiler: Dame Primus]] has been working without for the entire book is significant.
*** The First Part of the Will, which leads Arthur into a
*** The Second Part of the Will, which holds a contest to decide who will use the Key to stop Nothing from consuming the
*** The Third Part of the Will, which wants to waste time while its worshipers sing
*** The Fourth Part of the Will, which spits acid into the face of the general of a much larger army during a
*** The Fifth Part of the Will, which spends more time eating armor than helping
*** The Sixth Part of the Will, which gave Arthur orders he didn't have time to
*** And the Seventh, which escapes by virtue of not being onscreen enough to cause problems. However, given that it is Humility (opposed to Pride) the fact that it's the virtue that [[spoiler: Dame Primus]] has been working without for the entire book is significant.
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* MobileMaze: The Great Maze, the section of the House used to train the Glorious Army of the Architect. It is a one thousand by one thousand grid of one mile by one mile tiles which randomly switch their positions every day.
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Justifying edit.
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** Let's be fair, here: it's likely that the majority of Denizens shown are practically asexual, given their creation for specific purposes, and most of those that aren't are likely to be preoccupied with other things. And as for the main protagonist, who is twelve, and caught up with inheriting existence...
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\"Everything\'s Worse With Bears\" clean-up
* BearsAreBadNews: Part Two of The Will
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* EverythingsWorseWithBears: Part Two of The Will
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** [[HitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy Arthur]] spends much of the third book in his dressing-gown.
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** [[HitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy [[Franchise/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy Arthur]] spends much of the third book in his dressing-gown.
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moved to namespace
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[[redirect:KeysToTheKingdom]]
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->"On the first day, there was a mystery.
->On the second day, there was darkness.
->On the third day, there were pirates.
->On the fourth day, there was war.
->On the fifth day, there was fear.
->On the sixth day, there was sorcery.
->On the seventh day, there was a choice."
--> -- KeysToTheKingdom
A fantasy series of seven books by Creator/GarthNix, consisting of [[LazyBum Mister Monday]], [[{{Greed}} Grim Tuesday]], [[VillainousGlutton Drowned Wednesday]], [[UnstoppableRage Sir Thursday]], [[{{Lust}} Lady Friday]], [[GreenEyedMonster Superior Saturday]], and [[{{Pride}} Lord Sunday]].
At the epicentre of the universe is The House, a non-afterlife CelestialBureaucracy created by [[{{God}} The Architect]] to be responsible for recording everything that happens in the rest of the universe, the Secondary Realms. After [[HaveYouSeenMyGod the disappearance of The Architect]], the seven most powerful denizens of The House decide not to appoint a mortal from the Secondary Realms as the Rightful Heir in accordance with The Will she had left behind, but instead to break and imprison The Will in seven parts and keep the power of the titular Keys To The Kingdom for themselves. Ten thousand years later, Part One of The Will escapes its imprisonment and is partially successful at tricking one of the trustees into handing over part of his Key to a mortal Rightful Heir, Arthur Penhaligon. Initially reluctant, Arthur is charged with defeating each of the trustees and [[GottaCatchThemAll claiming their]] Keys. However, he also discovers difficulty not only with the House and its residents, but also with the fact that he may or may not be coming home...
----
!This series provides examples of:
* AdultsAreUseless: The main heroes are children and the Denizens of the house are either too stupid or stubborn (or corrupt, or bureaucratic, or evil) to change anything. The Piper's Children are also shown to be much more helpful to Arthur than most Denizens. On the other hand, pretty much all the adult humans in the story are shown to be competent or even [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Reasonable Authority Figures]].
* AGodAmI: A side effect of using sorcery, not just for mortals, but having it on call seems to affect the thinking of many senior Denizens as well.
* AlternateHistory: Arthur's world is ''almost'' the same as ours, except it was the scene of a devastating plague that prompted the government to take the hard line on any epidemic.
** However, it may not apply. Arthur's hi-tech cast in Drowned Wednesday, and the fleetingly mentioned electronic paper are two examples of future technology, meaning that the plague could be a future event, and the story is set TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture.
** When Leaf thinks about people walking on the moon, she recalls Chinese astronauts.
* ApocalypseHow: Class Z. If the House is consumed by Nothing, Earth and the rest of the Secondary Realms will be gone as well.
* AppliedPhlebotinum: Nothing, the stuff from which everything is made and everything will eventually return. It can do a small variety of things, mostly destroy anything if given enough time and form strange "[[TheHeartless Nithlings]]" if combined with normal matter.
* AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: [[spoiler:Arthur at the end of ''Lord Sunday'' becomes the new Architect, with the power to remake the universe out of Nothing.]]
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: The way the House's hierarchy works. Each Denizen has a number representing how close they are to being full authority. The exact identity of number one is uncertain, and may be Lord Sunday, Dame Primus, the Architect, or some other powerful entity. The lower their number is, the stronger they tend to be. (Directly mentioned in the seventh book when someone tells Suzy that knocking a Denizen out isn't done with the strength of the kick but of authority.)
* AutomatonHorses: The Not-Horses used by the Glorious Army of The Architect are a literal example. They have a tough, metallic skin, run for much longer than a normal horse, and can go without sleep for a week. They do need to be cleaned with a wire brush so that they don't rust though.
* BadassNormal: Leaf qualifies as this, especially by the last book. Poor girl barely even knew Arthur and still got dragged into his adventures. She survives being kidnapped and shanghaied into serving on a ship, she goes up against Lady Friday to rescue her aunt, and she befriends Daisy and returns to the House to try and help Arthur. [[spoiler:She even manages to take a nuclear attack on her hometown in stride, rescuing and caring for all the old folks Friday's been stealing memories from.]]
* BatmanGambit: [[spoiler:See WhoWantsToLiveForever, below. If Arthur realized at any point what was going on, there is no way he would have gone through with it and the Architect's plan would have been ruined then. However, she's able to be enough of a ManipulativeBastard that he's not able to figure out the truth in time.]]
** [[spoiler:Despite the fact that it looked like Lord Sunday had plenty of time to tell Arthur when he was trying to convince Arthur to give him the Keys. In fact, telling him the truth could possibly have convinced him. Yet he didn't do it. After all, Sunday's sin is ''pride''....]]
* BiggerOnTheInside: Practically every building in The House is bigger on the inside than on the outside.
* BigBad: The pirate Feverfew is this in ''Drowned Wednesday'', and the title character of each other book in the series is the big bad of that book. In addition, Superior Saturday is responsible for bad things that happen in multiple books.
* BigGood: Dame Primus. [[spoiler: However, as Arthur suspects, she's actually not acting in his best interests at all.]]
* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:Sure, Arthur is God AND gets to be a normal boy at the same time, and Suzy gets a bit of happiness, but that doesn't change the fact that sooner or later normal Arthur is going to realize he's not mortal, and in the meantime, there's the death of all but about FIVE denizens AND Arthur's mother to worry about (though the House will probably be reconstructed quickly).]]
* BloodMagic
* BrilliantButLazy: Mister Monday
* TheCallKnowsWhereYouLive: Arthur initially ventures into the House looking for a cure for the Sleepy Plague, caused by the Nithlings sent to retrieve Arthur's part of the First Key.
* CallToAgriculture: The New Nithlings decide that they would rather be farmers than soldiers. [[SubvertedTrope Not that they have a choice in the matter.]]
* CapitalLettersAreMagic: All over the place.
* CessationOfExistence:
--->'''Arthur''' What would have happened to me if I had died?\\
'''Will''': You'd be dead. What do you mean?\\
'''Arthur''': I mean...Where am I now? Is there some sort of life after death? If the Architect created everything...\\
'''Will''': There is no afterlife that I know of. There is Nothing, from which all things once came. There is the House, which is constant. There are the Secondary Realms, which are ephemeral. When you are gone from the Secondary Realms that's it, though some say everything returns to Nothing in the end.
* ChainedToARock: The Old One, a Prometheus-like character (or maybe the real deal) is chained to a clock, from which wooden puppets appear every twelve hours to remove his eyes, which grow back painfully over the next few hours.
** [[spoiler:Arthur gets chained to a smaller version of the Old One's clock in Lord Sunday]]
* ChekhovsGun
** [[spoiler:The Compleat Atlas of the House]] is a pretty major one; in Lord Sunday [[spoiler: Arthur uses it to, ahem, remake the Universe.]]
** And the [[spoiler:ambulatory seed pod]], since Daisy is one.
** [[spoiler:Arthur finds his lost toy elephant from early childhood, and accidentally brings it to life several books later at a vital moment.]]
* ChekhovsHobby: Fred's ability to sign to the Winged Servants of the Night.
* TheChessmaster: [[spoiler:The Architect and Dame Primus.]]
* TheChosenOne: Arthur, the Rightful Heir. Arguably [[DeconstructedTrope deconstructed]], since he was chosen because he was about to die, and Monday would promptly get the key back.
* TheCollector: Grim Tuesday and Lord Sunday.
* TheCorruption: A {{Muggle}} using FunctionalMagic will accumulate a buildup of sorcerous taint, eventually transforming them into an immortal Denizen.
** On a side note, [[spoiler:the Will is revealed to have done this to the Trustees, and it's implied they weren't half as bad as they were during the series. Monday's Dusk is the only one who truly seems to be aware of this, though. There's a fairly blatant hint in Sir Thursday, where the titular Trustee's eyes are shown to be ''yellow''. Then the Fourth Part of the Will turns out to be a snake.]]
* CreativeSterility: Grim Tuesday can copy anything, but can't make anything original.
** In ''Lord Sunday'', [[spoiler:the Architect]] states that Denizens in general are incapable of creativity. In fact, this is the whole reason why [[spoiler:the Rightful Heir has to be mortal.]]
** Defied by The Piper who purposely gives [[spoiler:his creations]] the ability to learn like mortals.
* DarkIsNotEvil: Several examples, but primarily Monday's Dusk and the Servants of the Night, who both help Arthur.
* DayOfTheWeekName: The Trustees.
* DimensionLord: Lord Sunday.
* DiscardAndDraw: Arthur does this with the Keys.
* TheDragon: Each trustee has or once had minions named Dawn, Noon, and Dusk whose job it is to be this, but their loyalties vary.
* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: Experiencing calls to mind drug-taking very quickly, especially when you read Lady Friday's reaction to it.
* DrillSergeantNasty: Sir Thursday, in a particularly nasty variation; he beats his subordinates when he gets angry and once killed two Piper's Children in a fit of rage.
* EldritchAbomination: Nithlings are a byproduct of proto-creation-stuff being let into the House. Have varying intelligence, all of them very, ''very'', ugly. Except for [[spoiler:the New Nithlings. They just look like ordinary humans with a tentacle or two.]]
* EvenEvilHasStandards: In the seventh book, [[spoiler:after the Piper tries to manipulate Arthur into giving up the Keys one last time, Lord Sunday tells him, in short, to shut up and deal with it.]]
* EverythingsWorseWithBears: Part Two of The Will
* EvilOverlord: All the trustees except [[spoiler:Wednesday]].
* EvilTwin: The Skinless Boy, a mute clone of Arthur created by [[spoiler: Saturday]] to blackmail him into giving up the Keys. Has a nasty MindControl ability.
* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: [[spoiler:The ''Compleat Atlas of the House and its Immediate Environs'' is a pretty literal name from the start, but by the end of the series, the extent to which it is literally "Compleat" is turned UpToEleven.]]
* ExpectingSomeoneTaller: Happens to Arthur a lot.
* ExplosiveLeash: The collars that children in the Piper's army had written onto their necks, which threatened to strangle them if they were disloyal.
* FantasticVoyage: In a submarine crewed by Rats, [[spoiler:swallowed by a kilometres-long whale.]]
* FantasyKitchenSink: Elements of Christian theology, Ancient Greek myth, and European folklore are all present in the House. The protagonist actually meets the Pied Piper, the [[Literature/TheRimeOfTheAncientMariner Ancient Mariner]], and a towering old man who is suspiciously similar to [[GreekMythology Prometheus]].
* {{Foreshadowing}}: In Sir Thursday, Dame Primus says that she suspects that the Trustees "have been influenced or induced to behave as they do, with the ultimate aim being the complete and utter destruction of the House - and with it, the entirety of creation." [[spoiler:It is the Will that's influencing them for that exact purpose!]]
* GenderIsNoObject: For Denizens, gender seems to be entirely meaningless.
* GenkiGirl, PluckyGirl: Suzy.
* GenreSavvy: Arthur spends most of the series making friends with various Denizens. He does the same in the Gardens in ''Lord Sunday'', and his new friend leads him outside. [[spoiler:Straight into a trap. Turns out the gardening boy is actually Lord Sunday in disguise.]]
* GreatBigBookOfEverything: ''The Compleat Atlas of the House and Immediate Environs''.
* GreenRocks: Nothing (that is, Nothing with a capital N - a fictional substance) can do anything needed for the plot - from dissolving stuff, powering machines, or turning you into a mouse for a day.
** Also the Keys themselves, which can do anything the user demands that is in the user's power, and quite a bit more.
* GottaCatchThemAll: The Keys To The Kingdom, and the Parts of the Will.
* HaveYouSeenMyGod: The Architect.
* HazardousWater
** The water in ''Lady Friday'' tries to drown you if you aren't protected.
** Saturday's rain drain would've killed Arthur if he wasn't [[spoiler:a Denizen]].
** And if you want to get technical, [[spoiler: the rain was Part Six of the Will. And the Will was created to destroy all Creation.]]
* HippieParents: Leaf's parents, who are not only huge on environmentalism, but also gave their children some [[WhoNamesTheirKidDude interesting names]] and keep only wooden utensils and jewellery in the house. It's implied that this runs in the family somewhat, from what Leaf says of her grandmother.
* HourOfPower
** Monday's Noon can only stay on Earth from noon to one PM. Logically, Dusk and Dawn are under similar restrictions.
** Similarly, the Trustees can only visit the Secondary Realms on the day they are named after (Monday on Monday, Tuesday on Tuesday, etc.)
* HumanoidAbomination: The Scoucher, a Nithling with tentacle-arms featured in book 2.
** Even more disturbingly, its description eerily foreshadows the dreaded [[Franchise/TheSlenderManMythos Slendy...]]
* HumansAreSpecial: Humans are apparently the most creative mortals in the Universe, the only ones ever to rival [[{{God}} the Architect]] in inventiveness.
* IJustWantToBeNormal: Arthur, once he realizes that TheCorruption, above, will eventually keep him from going home.
** Leaf goes through a more minor one [[spoiler:in Lord Sunday, when she becomes the Doorkeeper for a while.]]
* InnocentFanserviceGirl: Suzy. She thinks nothing of undressing in front of Arthur, and often wears [[ClothingDamage shredded or sliced-open clothing.]] But then, she has the body of a child....
* InvisibleToNormals: Some of the things from the House are this, such as the Fetchers who come to Arthur's school in the first book. Though Leaf can sometimes see such things, apparently her grandmother was a witch or something.
* KidHero
** Arthur, obviously.
** The Piper's Children (most notably Suzy).
** Leaf is one in some parts.
* [[spoiler: KillEmAll: Happens to everything in every universe. The people in the Secondary Realms come back to life. Most of the Denizens and Newniths in the House do not. [[TearJerker Neither does Emily.]]]]
* LargeAndInCharge: Almost a physical law in the House. The more power or authority you have, the taller you are (it's suggested they do this to intimidate the lower peons); the holders of the Keys are seven to nine feet high. Being demoted shrinks you.
** Lord Sunday, last of the Trustees and the most powerful, is ''ten feet tall''.
** [[spoiler: Arthur becomes twelve feet when he becomes the New Architect.]]
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: Averted in that washing between the ears removes all memories rather than just the personal identity.
* LineOfSightName: Arthur, to prevent being noticed, thinks of being soldier "[[CodeName Ray Green]]" in Sir Thursday from seeing the sun's rays and the forest nearby.
* LosingYourHead: Denizens can also survive ''decapitation'', if they get their head reattached to the rest of their body soon enough.
** Hell, they can survive decapitation outright ''and'' regrow their bodies, with appropriate medical attention. Yes, even if it's due to the rest of their body being dissolved by Nothing.
* MagicMirror: The Fifth Key.
* MagicMusic: The Piper's pipes can [[spoiler:force Piper's Children or Raised Rats to obey the Piper's commands.]]
* ManipulativeBastard: [[spoiler: Dame Primus.]]
* MeaningfulName: Piper's Children have their original first name followed by a set of words related to their job (Suzy and Arthur's two fake names involved ink coloring, while Fred presumably handles adding golden initials and numbers.
** Also, [[KingArthur Arthur Penhaligon.]]
** Suzy's last name (mentioned once in Mister Monday) is Dyer, which fits the color stuff that most Piper's Children have going on.
* MiddleChildSyndrome: Implied with Friday's Dawn, who disapproves of his mistress' practice of experiencing and has never been allowed into her secret fortress in the Secondary Realms, unlike her Noon and Dusk.
* MismatchedEyes: The Old One.
* TheMultiverse: One interpretation of the Secondary Realms and the way the Improbable Stair works; instead of going back or forward in time, the various Landings lead to different versions of history or different worlds entirely.
* NewTransferStudent: Arthur.
* NoHuggingNoKissing: Quite surprising, considering the genre of the series, and the fact that Arthur's two companions are both girls around his age (in Suzy's case, at least physically and emotionally). Romance is not discussed at any point, and none of the characters even think about it. Kind of disappointing, actually.
** Let's be fair, here: it's likely that the majority of Denizens shown are practically asexual, given their creation for specific purposes, and most of those that aren't are likely to be preoccupied with other things. And as for the main protagonist, who is twelve, and caught up with inheriting existence...
* NoNameGiven: We never find out what town Arthur lives in, or even the ''country''. It's complicated as the series is set in an AlternateHistory. Or TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture.
** America, the UK, and Australia are all likely candidates, however. References to bushfires and the Australian emergency lines suggest Australia, but pounds are in use.
*** The reference to a "British accent" ought to rule out the UK - no UK native would ever use the term since there are so many different British accents.
** [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] in Lady Wednesday. Arthur's home is described as something along the lines of 'Odd name for a town... Never heard of that country before...'
* NoodleIncident: We never discover exactly what the Old One did that pissed the Architect off so badly. A rare example of this trope not being PlayedForLaughs.
* ObstructiveBureaucrat: Many Denizens, but Dame Primus in particular.
* OnlyAFleshWound: Denizens can survive most wounds that should kill - one jarring example in particular is in Drowned Wednesday, where Ichabod gets a large splinter right through the stomach... and promptly complains about how that was his best shirt. Priorities.
* OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent: Arthur, except he's twelve.
* OurVampiresAreDifferent: Lady Friday can be interpreted in this vein.
* ThePowerOfFriendship: Arthur has a habit of making friends wherever he is. [[spoiler:Subverted in the final book, where his new "friend" is Lord Sunday in disguise, leading him into a trap.]]
* PrimordialChaos: The substance called "Nothing".
* PunchClockVillain: The [[spoiler:New Nithlings]] are really nice chaps who only serve [[spoiler:the Piper]] because they owe him.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: The Piper's Children appear the same as when they were first brought to The House, mostly between the ages of nine and thirteen. They have lived in the House for more than ten thousand years, but due to YearInsideHourOutside were taken from Earth about seven hundred years ago. They still ''act'' like children, though.
* ReptilesAreAbhorrent: [[spoiler:Mister Monday]], the bibliophages, and Part Four of The Will (see TooDumbToLive).
* {{Retcon}}: at the end on Mister Monday, Grim Tuesday is asked to destroy a piece of enchanted cloth, presumably to further the BigBad's ends. However, in Sir Thursday it is stated that doing so would ''undo'' the BigBad's enchantment, unravelling their plan.
** Actually, the point was [[spoiler: that the shirt pocket wouldn't be destroyed, but would instead spawn the Skinless Boy (hence why he appears at the end of Grim Tuesday and leaves via the elevator, he was born at some point during the book). It was just that to defeat the Skinless Boy, Arthur himself had to plunge the pocket back into Nothing. Quoting Scamandros on the creation:]]
--> '''Dr. Scamandros''': A scrap of material that has lain next to your heart, [[spoiler: overlaid with charms and planted in Nothing to grow a Cocigrue!]]
** [[spoiler: And the Compleat Atlas on the destruction]]:
--> '''The Atlas''': [[spoiler: Lord Arthur must plunge that pocket back into Nothing.]]
** Both when a Spirit-Eater was being described in the Atlas, and when the incident with the Gray Spot was mentioned in the last book, they said it was mute, yet Leaf heard it apologizing when it was 'accidentally' bumping into everyone to spread it's influence.
* RuleOfCool: Pretty much the entire series.
** At the end of the series [[spoiler: The New Architect]] is described as wearing "cool sunglasses".
* SaveTheVillain: Arthur and Monday. This is arguably more of a 'heal the villain' than anything else, though.
* ScaledUp: [[spoiler:Mister Monday]]
* SevenDeadlySins: Since the breaking of The Will, each of the trustees has been afflicted by one of the seven deadly sins. In order of Monday to Sunday, they represent Sloth, Greed, Gluttony, Wrath, Lust, Envy, and Pride.
* ShockwaveClap: Dame Primus does this with the Second Key in Sir Thursday.
* ShoutOut: Several. Probably the most notable is [[Literature/TheRimeOfTheAncientMariner The Ancient Mariner]] being a major secondary character. And [[CoolOldGuy he's awesome]]. He also has a ship that can sail in space [[Literature/{{Discworld}} shaped like a giant turtle]].
** Subverted, hilariously, when Arthur tries it in-canon.
--->'''Ichabod:''' The ship is still mostly the counting house, albeit long-transformed and changed. This room is of the counting house, so it will always be connected somehow. If the passageway falls off, some other way will open.\\
'''Arthur''': [[{{Narnia}} Through the wardrobe maybe.]]\\
'''Ichabod''': I doubt that, young mortal. That is where I keep the Captain's clothes. It is not a thoroughfare of any kind.\\
'''Arthur''': Sorry. I was only...(trails off)\\
(Awkward silence.)
*** [[spoiler:The irony is that one of the pathways IS through the cupboard...]]
** [[HitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy Arthur]] spends much of the third book in his dressing-gown.
* ShroudedInMyth: Arthur himself. By the third book, Japheth has been assigned to writing fictionalised versions of his already fairly impressive accomplishments that portray him as seven-foot tall, and looking something akin to a Greek God. Needless to say, people often tend to be [[ExpectingSomeoneTaller somewhat disappointed on meeting him in person]].
** Of course, [[spoiler: he actually does end up looking like this when he becomes the New Architect.]]
** The Will is turned into a Frog-Bear; Suzy into an assassin.
* SiblingRivalry: Monday's Noon and Monday's Dusk.
** The Piper sees this between himself and [[spoiler: Lord Sunday, especially since he thinks that Sunday threw him into the Nothing.]]
* SinisterScythe: The Reaper carries one.
* TheStarscream: [[spoiler:Superior Saturday and the Piper]]
* SteamPunk: A lot of the 'technology' in the House is either this or ClockPunk. The Raised Rats tech is virtually all SteamPunk.
* SupportingLeader: Dame Primus.
* SwordCane: Saturday's Noon and Dusk each have one.
* ThemeTable
* TooDumbToLive: Many of the Denizens, much to Arthur's frustration. Lower-ranked Denizens in particular seem to find it all but impossible to do anything that they weren't specifically designed for. Many of the former-bureaucrat crew of the sailing ship ''Moth'' had very little idea of what they were doing, despite having crewed the ship for several thousand years.
** Indeed, the reason the Piper created his Children in the first place is that they could actually ''learn''. What's more, he's since created [[spoiler:a bunch of New Nithlings with that ability - so much so that they would rather spend their time learning new crafts than being EvilMinions.]]
** The Will. Specifically:
*** The First Part of the Will, which leads Arthur into a trap.
*** The Second Part of the Will, which holds a contest to decide who will use the Key to stop Nothing from consuming the universe.
*** The Third Part of the Will, which wants to waste time while its worshipers sing hymns.
*** The Fourth Part of the Will, which spits acid into the face of the general of a much larger army during a ceasefire.
*** The Fifth Part of the Will, which spends more time eating armor than helping Arthur.
*** The Sixth Part of the Will, which gave Arthur orders he didn't have time to follow.
*** And the Seventh, which escapes by virtue of not being onscreen enough to cause problems.
*** It should be noted that Dame Primus, the composite of the parts of the Will, is much better about this; at one point she refuses to split into more than two parts with two Keys each because any less would be an invitation for attack.
* TotallyRadical: Subverted and inverted.
* TraumaticHaircut: [[spoiler:Subverted, Leaf has to have her hair cut off after the military is tricked into nuking her hometown. The military personnel expect her to protest but she surprises them by agreeing to it instantly just to get it over with, by this time she's got much bigger things to worry about. The members of the army rescue team she talks to admit that they found the decontamination process to be pretty awful.]]
* TryToFitThatOnABusinessCard: Arthur's full title at the end of the series is [[spoiler:"Lord Arthur Penhaligon, Rightful Heir to the House, the Keys of the Kingdom and the Architect, Master of the Lower House, Lord of the Far Reaches, Duke of the Border Sea, Overlord of the Great Maze, Commander in Chief of the Glorious Army of the Architect, Master of the Middle House, Ruler of the Upper House, Lord of the Incomparable Gardens, the House and the Secondary Realms"]] as well as being the [[spoiler:[[CrystalDragonJesus New Architect]]. Call him "Art".]]
* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture: The scenes on Earth imply it's either this or AlternateHistory. Or both.
* UnstoppableRage: Arthur, in some cases when he is using all or almost all of the Keys.
** Did we mention that Sir Thursday's [[SevenDeadlySins sin]] is wrath?
* UpliftedAnimal: The Raised Rats.
* VampireInvitation: the Fetchers, although apparently you don't have to own/live in the building to invite them in.
* TheVirus: The Skinless Boy [[spoiler:invades the mind of anyone he touches using a parasitic mold, turning them into his servants]].
* VirtueViceCodification: Each part of The Will represents one of seven virtues, most likely intended as opposites to the SevenDeadlySins, but nonetheless differing from the classical SevenHeavenlyVirtues. In order of Monday to Sunday, they represent Fortitude, Prudence, Faith, Justice, Temperance (Moderation), Charity, and Hope.
* VoluntaryShapeshifter: [[spoiler: Lord Sunday.]]
* WeWantOurJerkBack: When Suzy acts proper, to Arthur's great dismay. [[spoiler:(Even if it's only for a short while.)]]
* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic: ''Everywhere''. The series itself is named for a line from [[AsTheGoodBookSays the gospels]], and it just gets deeper from there. The Incomparable Gardens are a fairly obvious reference to the Garden of Eden for a start, and given that Lord Sunday's [[SevenDeadlySins sin]] is {{Pride}}, he could be interpreted as the equivalent to [[{{Satan}} Lucifer]]. Saturday's Tower, built with the intent of reaching the Gardens, calls to mind the Tower of Babel. The Incomparable Gardens are also hosted on "Drasils", which is suspiciously similiar to the word "Yggdrasil", the World Tree of Norse mythology.
* WingedHumanoid: Several types of Denizens and Nithlings have wings. Removable wings in varying degrees of usefulness also exist.
* WhoNamesTheirKidDude: Leaf and especially her brother Branch. Seriously, can you blame the guy for going by 'Ed' instead?
* WhoWantsToLiveForever: [[spoiler:The Architect eventually got bored of living and decided she wanted to return to Nothing. But the Old One, who was a part of her, had to be destroyed to in order for her to be dissolved, and his chains can only be broken if all of Creation is undone as well. Thus she started playing XanatosSpeedChess and created a BatmanGambit; see below and above. Also Arthur, although in his case his complaint was that the sorcery involved would leave him unable to return home without causing sickness and potentially killing his home town. It's implied this got better, though he is still immortal.]]
* XanatosSpeedChess: [[spoiler:The Architect made the Will to get the Trustees to carry out her plan to destroy all of Creation, but they refused and broke the Will. However, the Architect then twisted their natures, corrupting each with one of the SevenDeadlySins, causing them to destroy the House anyway. Then she recruited Arthur to finish the Will and, even though he resisted every step of the way, she managed to manipulate him into completing the Will regardless. Note that this "Speed Chess" took thousands of relative years.]]
* YearInsideHourOutside: The overall implication is that Earth and the House proceed in lockstep (or at least at a steady ratio), but that when someone goes through the Front Door, it adjusts the time flow for convenience. Note that the only occasions that time proceeds forward on Earth are when Arthur and Leaf are pulled in via the Border Sea and when Arthur teleports in via the Fifth Key.
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