Fever Series Theories
The Fever Series, by Karen M. Moning
Character & Theory Discussion by SusanAshlea
Who is Jericho Z. Barrons?
Well, isn’t that the $64,000 question! As a dedicated reader of this series, I have been waiting four books to find out. Ms. Moning is master of suspense and redirection, and she must have a brain the size of Texas for her continuity alone. Each month (or maybe twice a month, we’ll see) we are going to discuss a different theory for the Fever Series. But first, a few terms you need to know before you read any further:
*disclaimer: the following post is rated R for language.
Mac: MacKayla Lane, from Georgia, now residing in Dublin, Ireland
Alina: Alina Lane, Mac’s sister, from Georgia, studying in Dublin, now dead.
Sidhe seer: pronounced “She-seer,” one who can see the Fae
Fae: also known as Faery, or Tuatha De Danaan (“too-a-day da-naan”) Mythical creatures; no wings; propensity toward mischievousness
OOP: Object Of Power. Fae relics that have special powers.
Spear: The Spear of Destiny; Fae OOP, can kill Unseelie Fae
Seelie: The “good” Fae. Kind of a misnomer, because even the good Fae are evil in their own way. Also known as “Death-by-sex” Fae. Their victims die craving sex.
Unseelie: The “bad” Fae. Many different castes; very ugly; very deadly
Pri-ya: a word describing a woman who is addicted to Fae sex
Shades: a caste of Unseelie that are mere shadows and kill by sucking the life out of their victims. Only sidhe seers can see them.
V’Lane: Seelie Fae prince who insists he’s there to help Mac
Jericho Barrons: Owner of Barron’s Books & Baubles, Mac’s partner in crime
Sinsar Dubh: pronounced “Shee-sa Du”; the ultimate OOP that everyone in the book is trying to find
In the Fever Series, MacKayla Lane finds out about the death of her sister. Alina leaves a very cryptic message on Mac’s voicemail, which convinces her that she needs to travel to Ireland in order to do some investigating of her own. Within a few days of being in Dublin, she discovers that she is privy to a world she never knew existed, and that her parents tried dearly to keep her away from.
Mac is a sidhe-seer. She can see Fae, Seelie and Unseelie. After getting lost in a particularly barren section of Dublin, she stumbles in to Barrons Books and Baubles and meets Jericho Z. Barrons. Once she meets him she realizes her life will never be the same.
Jericho knows Mac’s special powers immediately and he ends up assigning himself the role of protector. Several times during the course of the next four books, Mac frequently asks him, “Who are you?”
That is what we want to find out. So, our first theory is: Who is Jericho Barrons?
Theory No. 1: Protector
Jericho notices powers in Mac that she herself doesn’t understand from the very first moment she inquires about the Sinsar Dubh. Realizing that she is in way over her head, he stakes himself outside the window of the modest Bed & Breakfast she is staying in. He tries to convince her to stay at the bookstore a few times, but when she refuses, he still stands watch over her. Over the course of the series, he frequently bails Mac out of trouble. He has rescued her from more than one perilous situation: he gives her the cell phone with three preprogrammed numbers and he goes so far as to tattoo ancient runes on her scalp while she is asleep.
Meesh says: I think he’s a protector of some sort, but I have yet to figure out if he’s a bad guy or a good guy. I would like to think he’s good, but I can only imagine the Fae of the dark court don’t see themselves as villains.
Saluki says: However, he has also shown that under that tough exterior he has a heart. Sure, he needs Mac for her OOP detection ability, but he has gone out of his way repeatedly to keep her safe from all manner of danger. He was tracking the OOP’s just fine before Mac, so he could do it again if something happened to her. But, he obviously cares enough about her to make sure that doesn’t happen.
I say: I’m holding out that Jericho is good, given his protective stance of Mac. He has grown fond of her, and even though he tends to be a jackass most of the time, I think he’s doing it for Mac’s own good. He has a variety of protective measures at his disposal, and he doesn’t hesitate to delve into his supernatural bag of tricks when it comes to saving Mac from yet another life-threatening situation. I just consider his attitude “tough love.”
Theory 2: Unseelie King
This is one of those theories that I’m pretty sure can be disproven easily, but with KMM’s writing; you never know when a good person is going to turn bad and vice versa. The Unseelie King is a reprehensible creature who is greedy, and known for taking great measures to get what he wants. That sounds like Jericho to me, in a nutshell.
Saluki says: Is he the Unseelie King? Well, he can touch the spear of destiny, so it seems unlikely that he’s Unseelie.
This seems to be the biggest factor toward disproving the Unseelie King theory. Unseelie Fae can’t touch Seelie relics. End of story. However, Jericho has proven over and over again that he defies the nature and logic of all mythology; he is a highly skilled sorcerer on top of everything, so is it possible that he can weave a spell that would enable him to touch Seelie relics? Mac has also seen Jericho using the Silvers, an Unseelie Hallow that only the higher castes have been able to use.
Theory 3: The Prisoner
As Mac’s powers begin to develop, she starts to sense that things aren’t on the up and up with Jericho. The two have a very turbulent relationship and while Jericho knows everything there is to know about Mac (including things that she herself doesn’t even know), he refuses to give her any information about him.
In the series, Mac comes across a diary written by a boy who has been imprisoned by the Seelie Queen. Very little is known about this particular story arc, but there seems to be a deep connection between this prisoner and what Jericho chooses to divulge about his past.
Theory 4: Immortal/Druid
Jericho displays a deep knowledge toward the mystical, and Mac describes him as having a “timeless” look about him. He is said to be around the age of 30, yet there is no record of a Jericho Barrons having ever existed. He is well versed in “Voice,” an ancient druid skill that commands someone to do their bidding (think “alpha’s orders” in Twilight). He is covered in tattoos that are ancient runes and Mac frequently hears him speak in an ancient language that she describes as “one of those dead languages that no one ever speaks anymore.”
Currently, this is the winning theory. It becomes increasingly obvious throughout the series that Jericho is immortal, but whether or not he is Fae remains to be seen.
Theory 5: Sex God
Silly, I know, but valid. In DreamFever, Mac has been made a victim of the death-by-sex Fae. They have corrupted her very being, made her an addict and obsessed. People don’t come back from being Pri-ya, yet Mac somehow did, but only at the guiding hands of a Mr. Jericho Z. Barrons.
Meesh says: He’s obviously a sexual stud since he brought back an addict of the death-by-sex-Fae. I wouldn’t mind spending a few months [like that]. Think about it: I mean, get past the good sex in the book and think about how magical his sex must be to be able to do that. He is actual competition for death-by-sex-Fae. That’s fucking impressive. Or impressive fucking. Or both.
The simple fact that Jericho had the ability to bring Mac back from the brink of a Pri-Ya death, regardless of the method, is impressive. It shows that, not only does he have some kind of otherworldly powers at his disposal, but he also has feelings for Mac that go beyond a basic protector/protectee relationship. His comment in DreamFever about how he was losing his “rainbow girl” displayed emotion that he rarely lets anyone see.
What we do know about Jericho is that he is an enigma, wrapped in a conundrum, tied up with a shiny mysterious bow.
Saluki has this to say: What I can say for sure is that JZB is one of the sexiest men in fiction. Sure, he is rough around the edges and has no problem being an asshole. In the end, I think I love Jericho so much because of all his contradictions. It’s as if he’s the hero and the bad guy all wrapped up in one, sexy package of man. I can say one thing for sure, I’m eagerly anticipating KMM’s next book in the series so that I can discover once and for all just who Jericho Barrons is.
At this point in time, there is no set release date for ShadowFever, the final book in the MacKayla Layne Chronicles. We won’t know everything until the last page of that book, and even then I bet we’ll still have some questions. But until then, we are left with the information that Jericho reveals about himself little by little. Unfortunately that isn’t much to go on, which leads me to believe that Jericho has all of us exactly where he wants us…
What are your thoughts? Have you read the Fever Series? Do you have a different theory about Jericho Barrons? Make sure to leave a comment, or visit us in The Lair to discuss!
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