In this, the fourth book of ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'', Harry encounters faerie intrigue, an old flame, and the hostile internal politics of the White Council. And counters it with WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes references and literary quips as much as magic.

* Harry investigates the death of one Ronald Reuel for the Winter Queen of the Fae. Ronald Reuel is what the 'R. R.' in Creator/JRRTolkien stands for. Reuel is also described as a "creator of worlds"/fantasy illustrator.
* Ebenezar calls Harry 'Hoss'. It's a reference to Hoss Cartwright of ''Series/{{Bonanza}}'', an ugly, gentle giant, overly strong and not too bright.
* Meeting Mab makes Harry feel "sort of like Tokyo when Franchise/{{Godzilla}} comes up on the beach." He also compares his own situation alternately to [[WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes Tweetie Bird confronting Sylvester]], or WesternAnimation/WileECoyote realizing he'd just run off a cliff.
** Mab recounts the classic fable of [[TheFarmerAndTheViper "The Scorpion and the Fox"]].
* The Western movie cliche about [[RaceTropes Native Americans saying "How"]] is parodied and lampshaded. Knowing Harry, it could be a reference to when ''Series/TheBradyBunch'' parodied the same thing, rather than to actual vintage cowboy flicks.
* Bob calls Harry [[Literature/MobyDick Captain Ahab]] because of his self-destructive obsession with curing Susan.
* Harry denies having read ''Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus''.
* Harry's famous battle cry, "I don't believe in faeries!", is a shoutout to ''Literature/PeterPan''. Really funny because the source material says that every time someone says that, a fairy drops dead somewhere. Perfect war-cry!
** Later in that same scene, when Harry [[spoiler:first steals the Unraveling from Aurora]] and runs like hell, he makes sure to give her a hearty "[[WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes Meep, meep]]!"
** He called Elidee "Tinkerbell" earlier, also a ''Franchise/PeterPan'' reference.
** Elaine calls ''Harry'' "Peter Pan" when he suggests she project happy thoughts to distract the unicorn.
*** "[[Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk Unicorns. Very dangerous. You go first.]]"
* Averted for much of the book, lampshaded on the last page and finally invoked in the last line of the book. Billy the werewolf comments that "All of those faeries and duels and mad queens and so on, and no one quoted old [[Creator/WilliamShakespeare Billy Shakespeare]]. Not even once." Harry laughs and his inner monologue thinks, [[Theatre/AMidsummerNightsDream "Lord, what fools these mortals be."]] (A Midsummer Nights Dream Act 3, scene 2, 115)
** Double points for the battle taking place at Midsummer. At Night. On Clouds.
* Harry muses that Spenser's ''Literature/TheFaerieQueene'' never mentioned that said Queen had a great ass.
* Billy chides Harry for taking on too much responsibility alone, saying he's not Franchise/{{Superman}}.
** Harry thinks "[[Creator/AdamWest Holy vigilantes,]] Franchise/{{Batman}}" while discussing the Alphas, and mentally compares their do-gooding to that of Radio/TheLoneRanger.
*** This is also a (possibly unintentional) CallBack to ''Literature/FoolMoon'' when he thinks "[[Series/Batman1966 Holy]] ''Film/IWasATeenageWerewolf,'' Series/{{Batman|1966}}" when he first saw the Alphas.
** He makes a ''Series/{{Lassie}}'' crack when one of them arrives in wolf form and indicates Harry should follow.
* Harry calls Maeve "[[Literature/{{Goldilocks}} Coldilocks]]". When she and Jenny Greenteeth come on to him, he starts composing a letter to ''Penthouse'' aloud.
* The door of the Mothers' cottage opens with a Film/HammerHorror creak.
** Mother Winter herself references UsefulNotes/AlbertEinstein.
* Before learning his name, Harry nicknames Grum "[[Film/KingKong Kong]]" in his own thoughts.
** He also reasons that Grum is [[WesternAnimation/YogiBear smarter than the average bear]] for a hired ogre, and thinks he dresses like an extra from ''Film/TheUntouchables''.
* The "Literature/{{Jabberwocky}}" reference "snicker-snack" is used when Murphy cuts loose with a {{chainsaw|Good}}.
* At Reuel's funeral, Harry opts not to bring his staff because it would be arriving armed for bear, Creator/JohnWayne war-movie style.
** Spotting nobody lurking with a knife or twirling a mustache, he gives up on the WesternAnimation/DudleyDoRight means of villain identification.
* Slate snidely calls Harry "the great Kreskin", after the RealLife mentalist.
* A '''botched''' reference to ''Franchise/SherlockHolmes'' crops up when Harry describes Reuel's apartment as imported from ''429''-B Baker Street.
** A straight one also, when Harry calls the landscape around the Mothers' cottage "very [[Literature/TheHoundOfTheBaskervilles Baskerville]]".
* The Stone Table is probably a reference to the object/place of the same name in Literature/TheChroniclesOfNarnia.
** Although Harry, being Harry, calls it a [[WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones table]].
* "Hell, for all I knew, the MoleMen used the changing rooms as a place to discuss plans for world domination with the Psychic Jellyfish from Planet X and the [[Literature/TheWhispererInDarkness Disembodied Brains-In-A-Jar]] from the [[Film/TheDayTheEarthStoodStill1951 Klaatu]] Nebula."
* Elaine tries -- vainly -- to head off Harry's inevitable [[Creator/EdgarAllanPoe Poe]] quip, when a raven flies past them.
** Or... ra-vainly?
* Another beer-advertising reference, when Harry compares the unicorn to a Budweiser Clydesdale.
* "[[WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}} Phenomenal cosmic powers]] be damned. I had a lease."
* The Blue Beetle's name has been a superhero reference throughout ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'', but in this book, Elaine pinpoints where Harry actually got the idea: ''not'' the LongRunner comic book/radio franchise, but the bumbling wannabe whose misadventures aired on ''Series/TheElectricCompany1971''.
* Billy makes an UsefulNotes/OlympicGames reference, saying Harry gave Maeve's magic a rating from the Russian judge.
* The sight of Chicago-over-Chicago as a battlefield is so spectacular that it gets Harry thinking about [[Music/RichardWagner Wagner]].
* Harry sums up Elaine's explanation for her helping Justin as "the devil made me do it". This ''could'' be a reference to Geraldine Jones's CatchPhrase in comedy routines from ''The Flip Wilson Show'', but given Harry's age and love of cartoons, is more likely a ShoutOut to [[WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes Yosemite Sam]]'s own ShoutOut to that line.
* Murphy calls Harry's marbles-on-the-floor plan a [[WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes Looney Tune]].
* Shaking hands, Ebenezar's grip could [[WesternAnimation/{{Popeye}} crush a can of spinach]]. All in all, this is the book that ''proves'' Harry watched too many cartoons as a kid.
* Graymalkin's manifestation as a feline with only one facial feature visible is reminiscent of [[Literature/AlicesAdventuresInWonderland the Cheshire Cat's]].
** Maeve's "Off with his head" T-shirt is a complementary reference.
* The obligatory ''Franchise/StarWars'' reference: Harry pegs Morgan's 3-D map at the Council meeting as having been ripped off from ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi''.
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