The King's Agent Quotes
"Here one must leave behind all hesitation; Here every cowardice must meet its death."
"Florence needed him now; it could not wait while he found love or conceived children."
"Quiet hugged the palazzo in its nightly embrace as Battista made his way unremarked and unnoticed to the ground floor."
"The cries erupted as the guards jumped to their feet, overturning chairs, upending tables, in their rush toward the intruder."
"Seconds, the thought rushed at him as rushed across the hall. It gives me seconds, no more."
"And just as he who, with exhausted breath, having escaped from the sea to shore, turns to the perilous waters and gazes."
"Worldly renown is naught but a breath of wind, Which now comes this way and now comes that, And changes name because it changes quarter."
"In that book which is my memory, On the first page of the chapter that is the day when I first met you, Appear the words, 'Here beginneth a new life.'"
"This miserable state is borne by the wretched souls of those who lived without disgrace and without praise."
"In every situation an opportunity always presented itself; the stronger his belief, the more it became truth."
"He hovered on the fringes of the gathering, waiting."
"Battista paced the room as time vanished, lost intangibly forever."
"The last notion settled Battista’s mind; he would have to make his move, diversion or no."
"With elegance and splendor, the marquess of Mantua made his entrance."
"The ease with which he passed through the corridors frightened him."
"He dared to run up them, safe in the seclusion of the dark stone walls."
"The chest was made of wood, of that he was sure, but of such a dark cast he could not deduce its variety."
"With a growl of anger, Battista reeled, running back up."
"You’ll never walk away from that drop. This way. I’ll get you out."
"Here sighs, complaints, and deep groans sounded through the starless air, so that it made me weep at first."
"If the present world go astray, the cause is in you, In you it is to be sought."
"I am not sure if you should continue, Aurelia," he muttered, anticipating the argument before she gave it her voice.
"You cannot leave now. The real festivities have yet to begin."
"I long to bathe," she said without turning, pleased to hear Battista bark an uncomfortable laugh.
"It is not just them. I have found some vague references to a society of men."
"Life’s true beauty is often concealed where the eye cannot see it. It may be found only if one is open to it."
"We are more highly attuned to the supernatural."
"The darkest days of death do not occur as the loved one is laid in the ground, but rise up as life continues, their absence keen amidst the forever-changed normality."
"The wisest are the most annoyed at the loss of time."
"In the middle of the journey of our life I came to myself within a dark wood where the straight way was lost."
"These two squares, perhaps they are the key."
"I am for my bed," she told them, stepping around the jumble of furniture and heading for the stairs.
"I have always wondered what it felt like to walk in men’s shoes."
"Without discussion, they stepped off the tiles, heading for the door."
"We have to run for it," Aurelia said, heading back for the tile.
"Did you see these pots?" Battista ignored her, giving her no ground to continue.
"I think if we place a pot on each spot, we will keep the door open."
"Too much, you have given too much ... you must take some back, for only with equal giving can another rejoice in the gift."
"Put your hand on my shoulder. I will lead you."
"We must keep going," she said, as much to herself as to Battista.
"No doubt the lost souls stranded in Purgatory feel the same."
"I have never been so frightened as when I saw you falling."
"But there is not enough light to see what it may tell us."
"We can make it," Aurelia said, knowing—with irrefutable certainty—they could.
"No!" With an anguished cry, she threw out her arms.
"Thence we came forth to see again the stars."
"Art, as far as it is able, follows nature, as a pupil imitates his master; thus your art must be, as it were, God’s grandchild."
"Oh human race, born to fly upward, wherefore at a little wind dost thou so fall?"
"For he who sees a need but waits to be asked is already set on cruel refusal."
"But then my mind was struck by light that flashed and, with this light, received what it had asked."
"Many feel as you do. The grandeur of the sea, the earth, is one of God’s divine gifts."
"His mouth lit upon hers, drinking of her with a deep and passionate kiss."
"O lady, you in whom my hope gains strength, you who, for my salvation, have allowed your footsteps to be left in Hell."
"Every year on May 6, new recruits are sworn in to the Swiss Guard in commemoration of the soldiers’ bravery on that fateful day."
"Borgherini’s wife thrust herself between della Palla and his bounty, castigating him as ‘a most vile dealer in secondhand goods, a cheap salesman.’"
"At the age of sixty-two, Michelangelo Buonarroti began three years of work on one of the greatest of all his masterpieces, The Last Judgment."
"If I was made for art, from childhood given / A prey for burning beauty to devour, / I blame the mistress I was born to serve."
"It is the little victories, / That bring us the big ones."
"As the kings made merry, their ambassadors and delegates made diplomacy."
"‘Be sure to send them a personal invitation to court,’ Henry commanded, his voice low with intent."
"‘You are much better looking,’ Chabot continued, eliciting laughter."