Sarah Rees Brennan

“You're dying every minute, but you won't die yet.”

“Jared kept walking down the hall past rows of dead aristocrats. He was looking for someone. Then he saw her name, ELINOR LYNBURN, in faded gold on black wood. She looked even weirder than the dude in the white wig. She was wearing a cone-shaped headdress with a veil, and she seemed to be bald, which was hard luck on Elinor.”

“He kills people. Now I'm no expert, but doesn't that make you a bad person?"Jamie glared at Nick. "You've killed a lot more people than he has. What does that make you?""Not a person," Nick murmured, not sounding particularly interested. "Surely you remember.”

“Wearing that? Wouldn't you fancy a shapeless cardigan instead? You rock a shapeless cardigan, honey.”

“I can try to wheedle information out of people," Holly offered. "For which I'll need a lower-cut top.”

“Hi," Kami said to Dorothy, the head librarian…"Can you tell me where I could find the books on Satanism?"Twenty minutes later, she had Dorothy convinced that it was for a school project, and she really did not have to telephone Kami's parents.”

“Put the jerk in the south wing, you won't see him for weeks at a time. Or lock him in the attic. The law will not be on your side, but literary precedent will.”

“Nothing else ever mattered to me, and you weren’t even real. All I ever wanted was you.”

“Why are you putting on lip gloss, my daughter?” Dad asked. “Trip to the library? Trip to the nunnery? I hear the nunneries are nice this time of year”…“Is this true, Kami? Are you going out on a date?” Dad asked tragically. “Wearing that? Wouldn’t you fancy a shapeless cardigan instead? You rock a shapeless cardigan, honey.”

“A leather jacket,” Kami said as he shrugged into it. “Aren’t you trying a little too hard to play into certain bad boy clichés?”“Nah”, said Jared. “You’re thinking of black leather. Black leather’s for bad boys. It’s all in the color. You wouldn’t think I was a bad boy if I was wearing a pink leather jacket.”“That’s true,” Kami said. “What I would think of you, I do not know. So what does brown leather mean, then?”“I’m going for manly,” Jared said. “Maybe a little rugged.”“It’s bits of dead cow; don’t ask it to perform miracles.”

“And about that," he continued. "Now that Kami and I have met, she likes me better than you. So you can leave.”

“I hate this, I want this to stop, how are we supposed to live with this, and how am I supposed to walk away? You’re real and I hate you for it.”

“Hark,” he said, his tone very dry. “What stone through yonder window breaks?”Kami yelled up at him, “It is the east, and Juliet is a jerk!”Jared abandoned Shakespeare and demanded, “What do you think you’re doing?”“Throwing a pebble,” said Kami defensively. “Uh… and I’ll pay for the window.”Jared vanished and Kami was ready to start shouting again, when he reemerged with the pebble clenched in his fist. “This isn’t a pebble! This is a rock.”“It’s possible that your behaviour has inspired some negative feelings that caused me to pick a slightly overlarge pebble,” Kami admitted.”

“The Lynburns built this town on their blood and bones.""That was their first mistake," Jared said. "They should've built a city on rock and roll.”

“I only date college guys.”“You don’t know any college guys,” Kami pointed out.Angela’s gaze went to Kami, and she smiled. “Which leaves me with more time for napping.”

“Boys. Listen up. We are going out for a girls’ night, where there will be dancing.”Kami did an illustrative shimmy. Angela looked resigned.Jared looked amused. “What was that?”“You’ve got to dance like nobody’s watching, Jared,” Kami informed him.“Have you considered that perhaps nobody’s watching because they’re too embarrassed for you?”“Fine,” said Kami, grinning at him. “Be a hater of dances. Be a hater of joy. I don’t care. You’re not invited!”

“I have a serious girls’ night question for you,” said Kami. “I know you’re new to this, but I will require an answer quickly. Are you prepared to eat at least five éclairs tonight?”

“Jared had his back to the wall, which Kami thought was a reflex when he was uncomfortable. She wanted to shield him. “He was doing some—Zen jogging,” she claimed.Jared flicked her an incredulous glance. “Yes,” he said slowly. “Zen jogging. I wasn’t wearing that many clothes because—that’s part of the process. You’re meant to commune with the elements. Normally, I wouldn’t have worn my jeans, but I put them on because I know the English are a modest people.”

“If you weren’t there, how do you know someone pushed her?” Sergeant Kenn asked.“Well …,” said Jared.“And what were you doing, running through a strange town at night?”“I was jogging?” Jared offered.“Without your shirt or your shoes?”“Uh,” said Jared.”

“When a guy says,'I'll call you,' and he doesn't say when-that means he won't call you." Kit pulled his phone out of his pocket and pressed a couple buttons. My phone vibrated in my pocket. I fished it out, smiling. "Madness," Kit whispered softly into his phone. "I meant I'd call you. This is me calling you.”

“Do you like him? Ty asked. "Not that I care." "I do," I said, because it was true. Even though it didn't matter anymore. "Not that I care you don't care. Though you clearly do care, and I don't care about that either." "Well, I don't care that you don't care that I don't care. In fact i'm glad. Because, um, if I were seeming someone that I liked, I'd want you to be happy for me.""Are you seeing someone?" I asked, pretty sure he wasn't. "Not that I care.”

“You're weird," Nick grumbled, but he turned his face back to critically examine the new hand."You're weird," Jamie returned. "As soon as this whole magical war is over, I'm going to make us some friendship bracelets, and we will wear them everywhere because we are best friends.""Drop dead," said Nick, and Jamie looked serenely pleased.”

“Oh my gosh,Nick. You're not wearing a shirt! This must be one of those exciting days ending in Y.”

“I'm always on your side.”

“His desperation and misery swept her up like a storm capturing the sea. She turned her mind to even these feelings, because they were his, like his terrified rage in the lift when they had first met, being wrapped in his arms in the cold well, being dazzled by his wonder at the woods and her home and her. Like being a child, awareness of him the morning chorus that woke her and the lullaby that sent her to sleep, his thoughts always her first and last song.I love you, Kami told him, and cut.”

“Lay the knife at the tips of your fingers," Rob commanded. "So close you can feel the blade against your skin. Then cut the shadow away."Jared had been silent in her head. Now Kami turned her mind to his and let his thoughts and feelings flow through her. Kami, please, please wait just another moment, Jared begged, I'll save you, and later I'll be better, I'll do anything you want, be anything you want me to be. Please don't do it.”

“For a moment, they all stood staring at each other. Then Holly shattered the stillness by throwing herself at Angela. "God, Angie!" she exclaimed, arms locked around her neck. "What Happened?”

“Kami drew in a slow shuddering breath, and reached out for comfort where she could always find it. I can hear him coming back, she told Jared. I'm scared.Don't be scared, Jared told her. He won't touch you. I'm coming, and I'm going to kill him.”

“You couldn't do it?" Rob Lynburn sneered."I know her," Ash said in a low voice."I can't... hurt someone I know.”

“Romance is something people make fun of others for caring about, and yet it’s something that’s very natural to care about—it’s a loving connection between people, like family and friendships: it’s a significant emotional choice people make.”

“Your soul is like the souls of a thousand monkeys on crack, all smushed together.”

“If I wasn't going to be a world-famous journalist and if I didn't have such respect for truth and justice, I could be an amazing master criminal.”

“Technically speaking, you drive like a rabid chicken who has hijacked a tractor.”

“Kami'd always retold her fairy tales to make the fair maidens braver and more self-sufficient, but she had never had any real objection to the handsome prince.”

“Listen to me. I don’t know what’s going on. I don’t know what any of this means. But I know this much. It doesn’t matter. You’re not one of them. You never were. You’re not theirs. You’re mine.”

“Angela spared a glare for Kami, and then resumed her marathon glaring session at Jared. 'It's too weird. I'm going to call you Carl.'Jared scowled. 'I don't want you to call me Carl.''That's interesting, Carl,' said Angela, cheering up.”

“One of the lambs fixed its attention on Jared. “Baa,” it flirted. “Boo,” said Jared.“Oh my God, Jared. Don’t tough-talk the lambs.”"It was giving me a funny look.”

“Nick scowled out the window. "I have friends in Exeter already. I have-those people, you know, they hang around outside the bike sheds, they're always hassling Jamie.""Those are some awesome dudes," Jamie muttered. "Don't let them get away.”

“There's a card up in your little sweetshop advertising Pomeranian cross puppies free to a good home," he observed. "What's your point?" "I'm not a puppy, you can't give me away.”

“If I beat my against this desk, maybe things will make sense," Angela murmured. "Or if I beat someone else's head against this desk...." She eyed Jared speculatively”

“I'm not calling you that," she announced flatly. "It's too weird. I'm going to call you Carl." "I don't want you to call me Carl." "That's interesting, Carl," said Angela, cheering up.”

“Well, mi amore, this is awesome news! Let's get right on that," said Kami, and began to undo the buttons of her blouse. She looked down at the red buttons slipping out one by one from the black fabric of her shirt. She only had eight buttons, and there went the fourth. Jared sucked breath out of a horrified void and shouted, "stop that!" He angled himself to protect her from the eyes of a crowd that was not there. He hesitated, possibly because now he had a view directly down into shadows and curves.”

“He doesn't have to talk nonsense in a whisper in your ear," Jared said. "As opposed to talking nonsense in a whisper in my brain?" Kami asked.”

“Jared glared. Some people, Kami knew, had bedroom eyes. She was saddened to have to admit that Jared had filthy alleyway eyes. The thought reached Jared and he tilted his head, and Kami felt what he felt: startled and amused.”

“Don't feel bad, Angela," Kami said. "You know guys, they only want one thing. Repartee. I can't count how many times men have admired my well-turned phrases.”

“Your timing is amazing," Kami told him. "By which I mean, I am amazed by it.”

“What the hell is going on?" demanded Kami's dad, advancing with his black eyes snapping. Jared blurted, "My intentions are honourable."Kami sat up straight in her bed and stared in Jared's direction. "Are you completely crazy?" she wanted to know. "This isn't the eighteenth century. How do you think that's going to help?""Well, I mean," Jared said, back against the wall like a cornered animal. "When we're older. I mean-""Please shut up," Kami begged."I agree with Kami," said Dad. "When you're in an abyss-like hole, quit digging.”

“Respect the sheep.”

“Also, vampires don't eat food. You never get to eat chocolate again. Ever. I'd rather die.”

“Personally, I'd prefer a guy who wants to see my boobs.”