Ellen > Ellen's Quotes

“That was the message. For me, alone among mortals, the gods send their messenger to tell me to stop whining. That’ll teach me to go hide in a temple.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia

“There's an old saying in Avenia that goes, "Just because it's calmer than a hailstorm doesn't mean it's calm.”
― Jennifer A. Nielsen, The False Prince

“Hail His Majesty, the scourge of my life," Conner said to Roden and Tobias as he stomped up the stairs. "I fear the devils no longer, because I have the worst of them right here in my home!”
― Jennifer A. Nielsen, The False Prince

“Conner answered, "Mrs. Turbeldy warned me that you have a history of running away. Where did you go?"
To the church of course. To confess my sins.”
― Jennifer A. Nielsen, The False Prince

“Valuable lessons were code words for pain that no one apologized for.”
― Jennifer A. Nielsen, The False Prince

“I sometimes believe his lies are the truth, but I have never mistaken his truth for a lie.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia

“You have to believe him, because he's going to have your entire palace up in arms and your court in chaos and every member of it from the barons to the boot cleaners coming to you for his blood, and you are going to have to deal with it."
Attolia smiled. "You make him sound like more trouble than he is worth.
"No," said Eddis thoughtfully. "Never more than he is worth.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia

“He lies to himself. If Eugenides talked in his sleep, he'd lie then, too.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia

“I didn't think about being king,” he said, his voice hoarse.
Eddis stared. “Your capacity to land yourself in a mess because you didn't think first, Eugenides, will never cease to amaze me. What do you mean you didn't think about being king? Is Attolia going to marry you and move into my library?”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia

“Irene-"
"Don't call me that."
"You were the princess Irene the first time we met."
"It means 'peace'," Attolia said. "What name could be more inappropriate?"
"That I be named Helen?" Eddis suggested.
The hard lines in Attolia's face eased, and she smiled. Eddis was a far cry from the woman whose beauty had started a war.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia

“I would very much like to strangle someone. Why don't you go away until I decide it isn't you?”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia

“Sometimes, if you want to change a man's mind, you have to change the mind of the man next to him first.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“Eddis looked at her minister, curious. “Your head?” she asked.
Attolia explained. “He had to be forcibly dissuaded from strangling his son.”
“So have we all from time to time,” Eddis said seriously.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia

“Treachery," said the Mede.
"Diplomacy," said Attolia, "in my own name.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia

“You are wary of treachery?"
"More wary of stupidity.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia

“Relius looked away. "He said that you...cried," he said softly.
"But not that he cried as well," said the queen, amused at the memory. "We were very lachrymose... would you like to hear more romance of the evening? He told me the Guard should be reduced by half, and I threw an ink jar at his head."
"Is that when he cried?"
"He ducked," said Attolia dryly.
"I had not pictured you for a fishwife."
"Lo, the transforming power of love.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“Will there be poppy juice in it?"
Phresine shook her head.
"Good. My wife and I agreed that only my wine was to be poisoned.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“You're awake," he said.
"Phresine is not," pointed out the queen.
"Oh?"
"You gave her lethium."
"She gave it to me first.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“If we truly trust no one, we cannot survive.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“You didn't know I could do that, did you?" he asked, conversationally.
"I did not, Your Majesty," Teleus gasped.
"My grandfather killed a man that way once, using the edge of the wooden sword."
"I hadn't realized the Thieves of Eddis were so warlike."
"They aren't, mostly. But like all men, Teleus, I have two grandfathers." Teleus rolled his eyes to look up at him, and the king said, "One of mine was Eddis."
"Ah," said Teleus.
"Ah, indeed," said the king.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“Those men want to take Laurence from me, and put him in prison, and execute him, and I will not let them, ever, and I do not care if Laurence tells me not to squash you," he added, fiercely, to Lord Barham.
— Temeraire”
― Naomi Novik, Throne of Jade

“He slept once again in the small tent by his side, even though he thought Temeraire was well over his distress, and was rewarded in the morning by being woken early, Temeraire peering into the tent with one great eye and inquiring if perhaps Laurence would like to go to Dover and arrange for the concert today.

“I would like to sleep until a civilized hour, but as that is evidently not to be, perhaps I will ask leave of Lenton to go,” Laurence said, yawning as he crawled from the tent. “May I have my breakfast first?”

“Oh, certainly,” Temeraire said, with an air of generosity.”
― Naomi Novik, His Majesty's Dragon

“He limped slowly over to his own wooden sword and stooped awkwardly to pick it up. Trailing it on the ground behind him, he limped toward the queen, and the courtyard quieted as he approached and was silent again as he dropped to his knees before her and laid the sword across her lap.
“My Queen,” he said.
“My King,” she said back.
Only those closest saw him nod his rueful acceptance. He lifted his hand to brush her cheek softly. As the entire court listened breathlessly, he said, “I want my breakfast.”
The queen’s lips thinned, and she shook her head as she said, “You are incorrigible.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“My beautiful queen. Your entire court is staring at you, and I can't blame them."
They were, too. The queen turned to look. Her glance swept through the crowd like a reaping sickle through grain. Mouths slammed shut on every side. There was a scuffling sound as the people in the back shifted, trying to screen themselves from view. The queen looked back at the king, who was broadly smiling.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“Costis bowed stiffly. “I am here to make sure that you stay in bed, Your Majesty, because if this offends you and you order me summarily executed, it is no loss. Politically speaking.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“Were you lying?"
"I never lie," he said piously. "About what?"
"The sand, the snake."
For a young man who never lied, he seemed surprisingly unoffended by the question.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“He should have said something, why hadn't he? Costis wondered. In fact, the king had. He had complained at every step all the way across the palace, and they'd ignored it. If he'd been stoic and denied the pain, the entire palace would have been in a panic already, Eddisian soldiers on the move. He'd meant to deceive them, and he'd succeeded. It made Costis wonder for the first time just how much the stoic man really wants to hide when he unsuccessfully pretends not to be in pain.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“Your Majesty, is it true that your cousins held you down in a water cache? Is it also true that they wouldn't let you out until you agreed to repeat insults about your own family?"
"I could send you to ask them."
"It would be a long trip, your Majesty. I would much rather hear the answer from you."
"Oh the trip would be much faster than you think. Most of my male cousins are dead."
"Forgive me, Your Majesty, if I offended.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“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 margin. When I can.” “I didn’t believe you,” the queen admitted with a delicate smile. “Now you know better.” The king smiled back. They might as well have been alone. The queen turned her head to listen. There was shouting in the guardroom. Costis tensed. His hand went to his belt, looking for his sword. “That will be Dite,” said the king. “He must have been in the outer rooms. I may as well see him.” The queen rose and stepped behind the embroidered screen in front of the fireplace. Her attendants withdrew. The king’s attendants remained, digesting the fact that their helpless, inept king had promised his wife to destroy the house of Erondites in six months and had done it in ninety-eight days.”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia

“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”
― Megan Whalen Turner, The King of Attolia