“ Mr. Dortmunder, this is too good a story to just jump in and tell the end. Dortmunder hated stories that were that good, but Donald E. Westlake
“ Wish you would. Right. When I had the emerald again, I was in a cell. I guess they were afraid the rest of the guys might try to spring me right away, ’cause they hid me out in a precinct on the Upper… Donald E. Westlake
“ They turned and found themselves facing a bullet head on an ICBM body lumpily stuffed into a black shirt and a brown suit. It was as though King Kong were making a break for it, hoping to smuggle hims… Donald E. Westlake
“ Dortmunder had helped by expressing doubts. If the Puerto Ricans all come here, he’d said, for instance, how come it’s such a hot idea for us to go there? Another time, he’d expressed the opinion that… Donald E. Westlake
“ Two days in a row with morning appointments! What kind of evil cloud was he under here, all of a sudden? Donald E. Westlake
“ Dortmunder followed Kelp as he carried the tray down along the bar past the regulars, where the third was now saying, The idea of the flat tax is, you just pay the same as one month’s rent. Donald E. Westlake
“ But other things had added to Jerry’s present weird mood, his new view of himself as someone who’d suddenly found he was in a six-foot-deep rut when all along he’d thought of himself as sailing. Donald E. Westlake
“ Novelists, when their characters drive cars, never feel compelled to describe precisely what the physical actions are of hands, feet, eyes, knees, elbows. Yet many of these same novelists, when their… Donald E. Westlake
“ Well, you might not think it to look at me, Dortmunder told him, but I got a family crest. Have you? Yeah. And it’s got a motto on it. I am anxious to hear this motto. Quid lucrum istic mihi est. Mr.… Donald E. Westlake
“ Nobody gets everything in this life. You decide your priorities and you make your choices. I'd decided long ago that any cake I had would be eaten. Donald E. Westlake
“ Apart from the scenic majesty of the mountainous countryside, unspoiled by modern, conveniences, there is also the small but vibrant capital city of Quetchyl (pronounced Clutch), with its many squares… Donald E. Westlake
“ There are no Territories to light out for, not in this century. It was no longer easy to become the new you. New or old, you were already you. Donald E. Westlake
“ The way London carries on about the Thames you’d think it was a big deal, including lining it with all their classiest buildings, such as Parliament. San Francisco, the wind-up toy of cities, never ge… Donald E. Westlake
“ Probably nobody ever jogs toward the room where they will write their suicide note, Donald E. Westlake
“ If buyer’s remorse ever accomplished anything in this world, Max said, we’d all still be living in caves. Donald E. Westlake
“ I Googled it all. Dortmunder had heard of this; some other nosey parker way to mind everybody else’s business. Donald E. Westlake
