“...alongside those men a number of women had come to this glittering city. Women who were perhaps equally powerful, though they had to find more subtle ways to wield their power.”

“... she had always found risk headier than the finest champagne.”

“I've learned to choose my allies carefully and believe in them once I've made my choice.”

“When one has suspected a thing for weeks, why is being confronted with stark evidence so much worse?”

“If women had power, what would men be but women who can't bear children? And what would women be but men who can?...I mean, men give her [a queen] power. They let her use their power. But it isn't hers, is it? It isn't because she's a woman that she's powerful, but despite it.”

“The problem with people who have power is that they start thinking more about what it takes to keep that power than they do about what's right or wrong or just plain a bad idea.”

“Your growling and posturing might impress the sort of women you're accustomed to consorting with,but quite frankly, I find them to be a bit of a bore.Portia to Julian”