A Rattlesnake's Tail
“His jewellery jangled like a rattlesnake's tail.” (Chapter 1: The Cube)
This quote describes Artemis's perception of Jon Spiro as they shake hands for the first time. As well as being a physical description of the sound resulting from Spiro's jewelry, this simile provides insight into his character: he is a dangerous man, ready to spring the trap on Artemis at the slightest provocation. A snake is an accurate representation of Spiro's character: he is deceptive, wily, and highly dangerous, a man with no sense of morality.
A Nest of Hornets
“Butler was not so sure. His soldier's sense was buzzing like a nest of hornets at the base of his skull. There was danger here.” (Chapter 1: The Cube)
This simile emphasizes the dramatic and overwhelming sense of danger Butler feels about the situation (the meeting between Artemis and Spiro in the restaurant). The sense of warning is irritating and relentless: there is definitely something Artemis doesn't know, and even that Butler can't yet determine, but his soldier's instincts warn him of the danger before it occurs.
A String of Worry Beads
“But Spiro hadn't even noticed the jibe. He was too busy calculating, twisting his bracelet like a string of worry beads.” (Chapter 1: The Cube)
In this scene, Spiro is considering Artemis's offer to keep his Cube off the market for an entire year in exchange for a large amount of gold. The level of his mental activity is emphasized by this simile, which makes Spiro seem worried, anxious, and preoccupied. As the reader learns, Spiro is anxious because he's including another factor into his calculations: the trap he has placed around Artemis, wondering if she should take the deal or spring the trap.
Blunt the Twig
“Mister Spiro. Don't try to bluff us. Blunt may be big, but I can snap him like a twig.” - Butler (Chapter 1: The Cube)
This simile emphasizes Butler's threat: a twig is thin and brittle, easily snapped. Butler claims that his strength is so immense that he can break the body of a fully grown human male, even one as big and brawny as Arno Blunt, like he's snapping a twig. This intimidating comparison, however, does nothing to frighten Spiro, who has already set the trap in motion.
Sugar Glass
“Artemis remembered -- just in time -- to slacken his jaw. If his teeth were clenched, the sonic waves would shatter them like sugar glass.” (Chapter 1: The Cube)
The words spoken by Butler and the eighty-year-old assassin woman combine to set off a sonic bomb set underneath the table. As Artemis remembers, if a person's teeth are clenched when they are hit with the blast, they would completely shatter in the manner of sugar glass, which is a substance that looks like glass but is actually made of sugar, and it's amazingly easy to break - it almost looks like it disintegrates on impact. This simile makes the sonic blasts seem incredibly powerful.
