Shout Out / The Starless Sea

• While waiting for Eleanor in the Harbor, Simon becomes engrossed in a book about dueling magicians with copious footnotes and a raven on the cover.
• When Mirabel hands Zachary a sword and tells him to take it, Zachary responds, "It's dangerous to go alone." He drops this line again when he gives Dorian the sword.
• Sunless Sea is given a mention when Zachary is first looking for information about the Starless Sea on the internet.
  • He also finds a bee and a key on a coat of arms for a fictional magic school.
• Dorian's name is obviously one to The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. Mirabel Lampshades this.
• While researching the Keating Foundation, Kat describes it as "a little Gozer worshippy." She also remarks that the Starless Sea reminds her of Rivendell.
• There are many more overt mentions of famous literature throughout:
  • Kat knits Zachary a Ravenclaw scarf.
  • In the bar where he first sees Zachary, Dorian is pretending to read The Secret History, which he has read many times.
  • Zachary and Dorian find a secret passage in a wardrobe:
  It is, [Zachary] thinks, the only proper wardrobe he has ever had and after a considerable amount of time he has spent sitting in closets literally and figuratively he cannot believe he has not yet checked this one for a door to Narnia.
• Zachary is writing his dissertation on video games, so many video games are directly mentioned, including Dark Souls, BioShock, Skyrim, and The Legend of Zelda.
• Literary references abound at the masquerade at the Algonquin Hotel:
  • Mirabel is dressed as Max from Where the Wild Things Are, and Zachary proceeds to call her that for the rest of the story. Other costumes seen at the party include Edgar Allan Poe, Daisy Buchanan, Emily Dickinson, the twins from The Shining, and a man with a "Hello my name is Godot" name tag.
  • Drinks include a "Drowning Ophelia," Hemingway Daiquiris, and wine flutes with "Drink Me" ribbons.