“Gideon Lightwood said he was at the Institute in Madrid. What on earth was he doing there?''Faffing about, most likely', said Will.”

“A very magnanimous statement, Gideon,” said Magnus.“I’m Gabriel.”Magnus waved a hand. “All Lightwoods look the same to me.”

“Gideon laughed. "I like to be direct.""Okay," I said. "But I warn you, I like to be evasive, inserutable and generally send mixed messages." "I doubt it.""Human interaction is not my strong point," I told him. "Not seriously.""Seriously," I said. Thinking: There is so much about me he doesn't know. Gideon put his hand on my leg. "What's your strong point, then?""Goats," I told him. "I am excellent with goats.”

“What he remembers with perfect clarity is sitting on a train headed for Madrid, feeling the sort of happiness he imagines spirits might feel, freed of their earthly bodies but still possessed of their essential selves.”

“What are you doing ?" She said and laughed. "I was curious," he whispered. "About what ?""If happy tears taste the same as the sad ones," he said.”

“Gideon knew exactly what I liked. Not because I’d told him, but because he paid attention to everything about me.”