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“But as soon as Cye walked away, everything fell out of Esther's mind save for the repetitive movement of the braiding and the question Cye had left her with. Not the question Cye had asked— do you believe everything you read?—but the question they hadn't asked: why do you believe everything you read?”
― Sarah Gailey, Upright Women Wanted

“You can fuck right off into the Canyon," Esther said, trying to keep the grin out of her voice.

Amity tipped her hat. "I've just been waiting for an invitation," she said. "I'll go let the boss know about it. Wouldn't want to fuck off into the Canyon without giving notice.”
― Sarah Gailey, Upright Women Wanted

“She let her hand linger on his shoulder for a moment as she dismounted, and she hated herself for it, for all of it. For charming him. She hated herself, because she didn't rightly know why she was bothering to do it— she didn't need anything from him other than safe and free passage in and out of Endurance. But she did it anyway, more of a compulsion than a reflex. Her speech drifted to the familiar, the ungrammatical, the helpless. She caught herself tucking her chin down, trying to make herself look just a little shy.”
― Sarah Gailey, Upright Women Wanted

“Between Esther and the horizon, the wagons shimmered in the heat. She knew that they weren't an oasis— no cool shade or sweet water was waiting for her there. But they weren't a mirage, either, and that hope felt like just enough to fit in her fists.”
― Sarah Gailey, Upright Women Wanted