The Locked Room Quotes
"When she was growing up here, her mother always seemed to be in possession, even – mysteriously – when she wasn’t actually present."
"For the truly righteous, religion is a full-time job."
"The house could do with a refresh; once these were just part of what made up her home, but looking at the place with fresh eyes, she could understand the desire to freshen things up a bit."
"Ruth can’t think where she gets it from. Kate’s father, DCI Harry Nelson, is allergic to the word philosophy."
"Ruth takes the shoebox of photos into her room and puts it by her case."
"‘Boys need more space,’ Jean used to say, in answer to Ruth’s regular complaints."
"Ruth picks up the clothes, though she knows she should make Kate do it herself."
"Ruth has packaged her mother’s clothes into two bin bags, one for charity and one for recycling."
"Cathbad apologises if he disturbs a spider’s web. ‘They are great works of art,’ he says."
"Nelson hasn’t been able to avoid hearing about the deadly flu that apparently started in China."
"‘Do you really think it’ll come to that?’ she says. ‘Shops running out of things?’"
"‘No,’ says Cathbad. ‘But I like to be prepared.’"
"‘Well, it’s beautiful everywhere in Norfolk.’ Ruth warms to her neighbour."
"The students, who are only in their second term, look at each other nervously."
"A human being weighs very little in the end."
"‘It’s just a shock,’ says Saffron. ‘I just can’t believe it,’ she says, taking a tissue from the floral-printed box on the table."
"‘I know,’ says Nelson. ‘But it can’t hurt to check up.’"
"Her books are dog-eared and arranged by psychic connection."
"‘I’ll just pop the hoover over it.’ This makes Ruth feel worse than ever."
"It was great to see you on Saturday. Maybe it’s old age (!) but I’ve been thinking a lot about school. And about you."
"Ruth doesn’t apologise for not responding. She wants to break David of the habit of emailing at all hours of the day and night."
"‘I’ll be on the side of truth,’ says Ruth, but only in her head."
"If you bite it, write it. If you nibble it, scribble it. If you lick it, Bic it."
"‘Why did you decide to come today?’ asks Zoe. She’s spooning out the last of her froth. Ruth has given up on hers."
"It’s how you feel inside, isn’t it? I’ve been fat and I’ve been thin and there’s no doubt in my mind that people are nicer to you when you’re thin."
"‘I never thought I’d hear you talking about hand sanitiser,’ says Ruth."
"‘There’s nothing fair about this life or the next,’ says Janet."
"‘Nothing,’ says Nelson, ‘is like it is in the books.’"
"Sounds great. Remember to let the interviewee get a word in edgeways, won’t you."
"I worked for Westminster Libraries for a while. A funny little place in Mayfair. Interesting readers though."
"It was a bond I had with Avril. We were both from near Edinburgh. I just can’t believe she’s gone."
"It was a terrible shock. Avril always seemed so cheerful. I looked forward to her days."
"We’re relying on them more and more these days. There aren’t enough trained librarians to go round."
"Is it true? That she committed suicide? That’s what people are saying but I just can’t believe it."
"The streets are very quiet. Is everyone staying inside because of the threat of coronavirus?"
"It’s a great comfort. I like watching the birds too."
"Isotope analysis is a particularly useful tool for archaeologists."
"We’ve been able to extract DNA from the bones."
"That’s just it. Sometimes we forget to love ourselves."
"People have been shouting at me all morning."
"Nothing's as bad as that, she seems to imply."
"They think everyone has a nice safe home to go back to."
"It’s a comfort to know that there’s someone on the other side of the fence though."
"If I have freedom in my Love, And in my soul am free, Angels alone that soar above, Enjoy such Liberty."
"Lockdown is going to make adultery a lot more difficult."
"Do not adultery commit. Advantage rarely comes of it."
"It’s a funny day, isn’t it? Even if you don’t go to church it feels different from other days."
"I’ll pray for him. I watch mass on the computer every day. Yesterday I went to the Vatican."
"It's not necessarily anything to worry about. It just means that they can look after him properly."
"I'm praying too," says Judy, "and I haven't prayed for years."
"Everything happens for a reason," Cathbad always says but now Cathbad is seriously ill in hospital and nothing makes sense anymore.
"He must have planned this, she thinks. He's prepared a bed for her."
"There's no way out. The only escape is to make your own exit. Take the narrow gate."
"Wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction."
"Stay strong, Cathbad," says Judy. "I'm praying to all the saints and all the spirits. I'll even become a druid if it helps."
"What will she do when they run out of pre-recorded episodes?"
"May the gods keep this child perfect and let anything that is negative stay far beyond her world."
"I don’t know how to pray but she sends out a message to the wakening world, the waving grass, the swirling seabirds. Please save Cathbad."
"You'll never be able to work out the new software that Jo's ordered."
"I wanted to live here as soon as I saw the cottages. Maybe I sensed that it had been a safe place."
"It's never been difficult to summon my love for my children."