This Woven Kingdom Quotes
"Alizeh stitched in the kitchen by the light of star and fire, sitting, as she often did, curled up inside the hearth."
"She often wished she were a body with hinges, that she might throw open a door in her chest and fill its cavity with coal, then kerosene. Strike a match."
"A miracle, then, that the fire had only disintegrated her clothes and clogged the small house with smoke that singed her eyes."
"So long as the kingdom remained at peace, the royal elite—legitimate and illegitimate alike—would continue to host parties and incur debt."
"The streets had been gilded with liquid sun to usher in the era of this tenuous peacetime, every royal article stamped with the maxim of a new age: May Equality Reign Always Supreme."
"She'd been given a rotting closet in the attic, wherein she'd discovered a cot, its moth-eaten mattress, and half a candle."
"A soapy bucket. The coarse bristles of a floor brush. Her parents, laughing."
"I would’ve rather worked a needle and thread by the light of the sun, but she spent her days doing the work that really mattered: scrubbing the rooms and latrines of Baz House."
"The day—and her long, heavy curls—crashed down around her shoulders."
"The Jinn who endured against all odds were plagued always by a rage trapped in their chests, a rage held at bay only by the weight of an unyielding shame."
"The young woman might’ve shown you mercy but I see no reason to do the same. You expect to walk away from this without judgment? Without justice?"
"The boy—whose name he did not know—choked on his own blood, on the knife still buried in his neck."
"His grandfather—his father’s father—had overcome all manner of tribulations."
"The gall of this child, Kamran could scarce believe it."
"Hatred had grown between the two nations not unlike an impassable mountain range."
"In the fraction of a second he saw the blur of the servant’s snoda he was reminded, again, of the girl."
"The world had begun to come alive on her journey back, fresh snowfall dotting every effort to awaken the city of Setar."
"The king took Kamran’s hands and held them, his warm eyes appraising the prince with an undisguised curiosity."
"The king said only: 'You thought the girl a spy.'"
"Better not to think on any of it, better to simply push every day through the pain and the fear until she, too, was finally consumed by eternal darkness."
"One day, her father had said, this world will bow to you."
"The whole of the empire is discussing the prince’s return to Setar."
"There was always so much she wanted to say, but she’d been forbidden—over and over—from speaking her mind."
"The cruelty of her life seemed suddenly unbearable."
"Violence alone, she knew, would accomplish nothing."
"She could not explain it; his body seemed anchored to hers."
"The beauty of Kamran’s life was often lost on him, but not always."
"Dressing the king took an agonizingly long time."
"Only once every military badge and royal insignia was secured... did the king ask his man to leave them."
"Yes," he said. "I know you’ve come to change my mind."
"Ice runs through the girl’s veins," he said, shaking his head.
"An uprising would wreak havoc across the land."
"Your reasoning, while admirably impassioned, will not weather the storms of the real world."
"I can no longer listen to another ridiculous word that comes out of your mouth."
"She promised herself things wouldn’t always be this hard."
"Life, it seemed, possessed a sense of irony."
"The entire reason I so desperately sought the unification of the races was to get ahead of the prophecy."
"I’ve been invited to the ball tomorrow night as a special guest of the king."
"There’s so much I’d like to ask you, but I fear we have very little time."
"You are perhaps in part moved by her innocence."
"Your criticisms strike me not only as unfair, but fabricated entirely from fantasy."
"Pain made people prickly sometimes. It was par for the course; a symptom of the condition."
"You have always been elegant, miss. I’m only sorry you’ve been tortured into thinking otherwise for so long."
"I destroy your enemies, so that you might reign supreme."
"My actions that night had no ulterior motive. That much is true."
"I would ask that you allow me only this in my own defense: Do not misunderstand me. I wish you no harm."
"Your safety is dependent on the results of my search."
"I think very highly of you. You may not know much of me, but I’ve seen enough now to understand that you’ve been treated abominably by the world and its inhabitants, myself among them."
"It was a modest victory, and it had cost Alizeh dearly."
"She wanted to laugh; she wanted to cry. What a strange day this had turned out to be."
"You dare dismiss me from my own room? How do you manage to be so kind in one moment and so vexing in the next?"
"You are the first to think me capable of such dichotomy."
"Do you not think I am allowed to experience a full spectrum of emotion?"
"I think you will soon be missed by your despicable housekeeper."
"Oh, she wanted to shake him. There was no use trying to convince him of anything."
"You think the fault lies with me, then? You think me inconstant?"
"I am inclined to agree. Impossible as my dreams might be, I would much prefer that we persevere in silence, and part as strangers."
"You might ask the girls a single question instead of standing there like a statue."
"You want me to finish it now? Here? In your room?"
"We were in fact never meant to meet like this, but I’ve received a warning, and I’m duty bound now to escort you."
"Why would you bother taking work as a seamstress if your life is in danger?"
"These are all excellent questions. You pack, and I will ask."
"You cannot be serious. Are you in fact acquainted with assassins?"
"If you don’t know where to go, your feet will assist, if you fear being seen, the gown will protect your identity."
"I may have exaggerated a bit. The article was actually quite complimentary."
"This entire night was nothing short of a disaster."
"Your Excellency, This is no way to treat our guests. I will ask you once to douse your fire and release the lady."
"If the prince had been able to spot her in the crowd, he must’ve also seen her speaking with the blue-eyed stranger."
"You dare speak ill of the king in his own home—on his own land?"
"I must, I'm sorry, but I have to leave— I need to find somewhere to hide, somewhere he won’t—"
"No matter what happens tonight, you must remember your duty to this empire."
"There will be no fight, Your Majesty. When I am done with you, you will be begging me to end your life."
"I’ve been bled dry for too long in repayment for my father’s sins and I’m tired of it."
"Pray tell me, sire, how will you reach my head? With what magic will you walk through fire to claim it?"