Megan Whalen Turner Quotes

I know, Attolia soothed him. I did not say that I am afraid. He is, though, I think. Afraid of his own desire for power. He is not unused to wielding power, but it has always been in secret. I could,...

I was captivated. My own hair was easily as long as Olga's, but it frizzed and knotted at every opportunity. When it was combed, it didn't float in perfect fans down to my shoulders.

I was listening, the king said, aggrieved. I closed my eyes to listen better.What did you hear?I'm not sure, he said. That's why I was listening so closely. I may have to ask the baron to repeat some...

I woke with a terrible headache and wobbled around 'till I fell out the window.You what?Fell out the window. That one over there. She [Edwina] gestured to the curtain behind her. I broke my back. My s...

I wouldn't destroy an entire house to destroy one man. But I would destroy a man to destroy a house.

If I am the pawn of the gods, it is because they know me so well, not because they make my mind up for me.

One cannot toss ambassadors back like bad fish, said Eugenides. You treat them with care, or you'll find you've committed an act of war.

Ornon says, Ornon-who-always-has-something-to-say says, the Thieves of Eddis don't have breaking points. We have flash points instead, like gunpowder. That's what makes us dangerous. -Eugenides

Please, he whispered. His voice was low but clear. Don't hurt me anymore.Attolia recoiled. Once, as a child, she'd thrown her slipper in a rage and had knocked an amphora of oil from its pedestal. The...

Thank you, thief.You're welcome, my queen.

The Magus must had eyes like a thief because he told Pol to stop and dismount to walk alongside me, one hand resting just above my knee ready to shake me if I fell asleep. He shook hard and resorted t...

The gossip will carry to Attolian spies, who will report to Relius, Attolia's master of spies, and he will carry the news to her.Her secretary of the archives, murmured the magus.Hmm? asked the queen....

Unkingly, in so many ways, My King.

What he brought out was a wooden gag they put in someone's mouth before doing something drastic, like cutting off a leg.

Are you badly hurt?Hideously, said the king, without sounding injured at all. I am disemboweled. My insides may in an instant become my outsides as I stand here before you.

Costis, I am speechless!Not noticeably, Your Majesty.

I never understood why she didn't marry you.The king settled further into the seat with a snort. Maybe the prospect of being driven out of her mind put her off.

That one,-he nodded toward the closed door- will rule more than just Attolia before he is done. He is an Annux, a king of kings.

The gate was made out of blocks of stone bigger across than I am tall. Something else supposedly built by the old gods, it was topped by a solid stone lintel with two carved lions that were supposed t...

The room was full of people. Ninety-eight days, said the queen, folding her hands in her lap. You said it would take six months. Eugenides picked at a nub in the coverlet. I like to give myself a marg...