Amanda Stevens

“For those of us who can, there are certain precautions we must take in order to protect ourselves and those around us. The first and most important is this-never acknowledge the dead. Don't look at them, don't speak to them don't let them sense your fear. Even when they touch you"..."The second thing you must remember is this," Papa said. "Never stray too far from hallowed ground."..."Rule Number Three," he said. "Keep your distance from those who are haunted. If they seek you out, turn away from them, for they constitute a terrible threat and cannot be trusted." ..."Rule Number Four," he said sternly. "Never, ever tempt fate.”

“Let me enjoy my fan-wanking. Your what?Let me arrange the story to meet my own personal needs.”

“We southerners worship our ancestors.”

“I think some weirdo with a little red wagon is the last thing you need to be worried about in these hills”

“But that was New Orleans for you. The old didn’t die here. They were just forgotten.”

“There was something so primal and hungry about the way he stared down at her..the way their bodies unconsciously strained toward one another as if nothing - not even time, not distance, not even death- could ever keep them apart.”

“It's hotter than a two-peckered alley cat up in here. Humidity must be close to a hundred.”

“There are a lot of things in this world to be afraid of, but a dead body isn't one of them.”

“Rosehill was shady and beautiful, the most serene place I could imagine. It had been closed to the public for years, and sometimes as I wandered alone - and often lonely - through the lush fern beds and long curtains of silvery moss, I pretended the crumbling angels were wood nymphs and fairies and I their ruler, queen of my own graveyard kingdom.”