“Quaint stone cottages lined the cobblestone streets, and an immense ocean lay to the far right, dozens of pirate-like ships riding its gentle waves. In the distance, a castle towered up to touch the blue-gray sky, its tallest spears hiding in the misty cloud cover. Paradise.Sorin stood up beside Clara.“What is this place?” “It’s where I belong.”

“It's easy to fall in love among the winding cobblestone streets and snow-covered castles of Prague, but is it a good idea?”

“The sky was rarely more than pale blue or violet, with a profusion of mighty, weightless, ever-changing clouds towering up and sailing on it, but it has blue vigour in it, and at a short distance it painted the ranges of hills and the woods a fresh deep blue.”

“1821," I told him, noting mailboxes of castles and pirate ships and the street numbers painted on them. I had to fis hmy penlight from my pack to see the numbers; streetlights were scarce, and the sky bulged with low, sooty clouds instead of helpful moonlight.”

“The ocean rose up around me, hiding that low, dark patch from my eyes. The daylight, the trailing glory of the sun, went streaming out of the sky, was drawn aside like some luminous curtain, and at last I looked into the blue gulf of immensity which the sunshine hides, and saw the floating hosts of stars. The sea was silent, the sky was silent. I was alone with the night and silence.”

“Late in February, she stood on Munich Street and watched a single giant cloud come over the hills like a white monster. It climbed the mountains. The sun was eclipsed, and in its place, a white beast with a gray heart watched the town.”