“One must always be careful of books," said Tessa, "and what is inside them, for words have the power to change us.”

“Yes, he would have done that for Tessa - died to keep the ones she needed beside her - and so would Jem have done that for him or for Tessa, and so would Tessa, he thought, do that for both of them. It was a near incomprehensible tangle, the three of them, but there was one certainty, and that was that there was no lack of love between them.”

“I know how you are with your words, and, Will- I love all of them. Every word you say. The silly ones, the mad ones, the beautiful ones, and the ones that are only for me. I love them, and I love you." - Tessa Gray”

“I have come to understand something about novels," Tessa said."And what is that?""They are not true.”

“Thank you, Will," Jem murmured as Tessa drew the stumbling girl away as quickly as she could, and Will felt the words as three needle pricks inside his heart. Always when Will did something to protect Tessa, Jem thought it was for his sake, not for Will's. Always Will wished Jem could be entirely right. Each needle prick had its own name. Guilt. Shame. Love.”

“I know there are monsters on this earth,' said Tessa. 'You cannot tell me otherwise. I have seen them.”

“Say something in Mandarin,” said Tessa, with a smile.Jem said something that sounded like a lot of breathy vowels andconsonants run together, his voice rising and falling melodically: “Nihen piao liang.”“What did you say?” Tessa was curious.“I said your hair is coming undone — here,” he said, and reached outand tucked an escaping curl back behind her ear. Tessa felt the bloodspill hot up into her face, and was glad for the dimness of thecarriage. “You have to be careful with it,” he said, taking his handback, slowly, his fingers lingering against her cheek.”