Quotes from Shadow of Night

Deborah Harkness ·  584 pages

Rating: (120K votes)


“Memories were short and history unkind. It was the way of the world.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“With knot of one, the spell's begun.
With knot of two, the spell be true.
With knot of three, the spell is free.
With knot of four, the power is stored.
With knot of five, the spell with thrive.
With knot of six, this spell I fix.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“Gallowglass returned to Sporrengasse with two vampires and a pretzel.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“Children needed love, a reliable source of comfort, and an adult willing to take responsibility for them.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“Occasio praeceps, experimentum periculosum, iudicium difficile."..' Opportunity is fleeting, experiment dangerous, and judgement difficult.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night



“Sir. My lord. Master Roydon." The young man blurted out most available titles except for "Your Majesty" and "Prince of Darkness." These were implied nonetheless.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“We don’t lock up books in this house,” Philippe said, “only food, ale, and wine. Reading Herodotus or Aquinas seldom leads to bad behavior.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“Change is the only reliable thing in the world.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“Magic was nothing more than desire made real,”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“You tell me that magic is just desire made real. Maybe spells are nothing more than words that you believe with all your heart,”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night



“In every moment, for the rest of my life, I will be choosing you.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“fine initium novum,’” Matthew said, gazing upon the land of his father as though he had, at last, come home. “‘In every ending there is a new beginning.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“You have found a woman who is worthy of you, with courage and hope to spare, Matthaios.’ ‘I know,’ Matthew said, taking my hand. ‘Know this, too: you are equally worthy of her. Stop regretting your life. Start living it.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“monsters always look just like ordinary men.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“I trust my wife's judgement... That's what Philippe says about Granny, just before all hell breaks loose.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night



“My experiences thus far had me planning to throttle the first Tudor historian I met upon my return for gross dereliction of duty.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“You’re impossible. Stop worrying about what other women do. Be your own extraordinary self.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“Sex and dominance. It’s what modern humans think vampire relationships are all about,” I said. “Their stories are full of crazed alpha-male vampires throwing women over their shoulders before dragging them off for dinner and a date.” “Dinner and a date?” Matthew was aghast. “Do you mean . . . ?” “Uh-huh. You should see what Sarah’s friends in the Madison coven read. Vampire meets girl, vampire bites girl, girl is shocked to find out there really are vampires. The sex, blood, and overprotective behavior all come quickly thereafter. Some of it is pretty explicit.” I paused. “There’s no time for bundling, that’s for sure. I don’t remember much poetry or dancing either.” Matthew swore. “No wonder your aunt wanted to know if I was hungry.” “You really should read this stuff, if only to see what humans think. It’s a public-relations nightmare. Far worse than what witches have to overcome.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“Nightmares are like Master Harriot’s star glass. They are a trick of the light, one that makes something distant seem closer and larger than it really is.” “Oh.” Jack considered Matthew’s response. “So even if I see a monster in my dreams, it cannot reach me?” Matthew nodded. “But I will tell you a secret. A dream is a nightmare in reverse. If you dream of someone you love, that person will seem closer, even if far away.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“Giving a woman your whole life is meaningless without giving her your whole heart as well.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night



“Your father says a wise man can see more from the bottom of a well than a fool can from a mountaintop.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“The most terrifying monsters always look just like ordinary men.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“For storms will rage and oceans roar,
When Gabriel stands on sea and shore,
And as he blows his wondrous horn,
Old worlds die and new be born.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“Ysabeau wanted me to know she approved of you. Like the gold from which it is made, you are steadfast. You hide many secrets within you, just as the bands of the ring hide the poesies from view. But it is the stone that best captures who you are: bright on the surface, fiery within, and impossible to break.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“I turned to leave, then whirled around and flung my arms around Philippe’s massive shoulders. How could such a man ever be broken? “What is it?” Philippe murmured, taken aback. “You will not be alone either, Philippe de Clermont,” I whispered fiercely. “I’ll find a way to be with you in the darkness, I promise. And when you think the whole world has abandoned you, I’ll be there, holding your hand.” “How could it be otherwise,” Philippe said gently, “when you are in my heart?”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night



“We face a dark future if children stop asking questions, Susanna," Goody Alsop remarked.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“Diana: You are everything we dreamed you would one day become. Life is the strong warp of time. Death is only the weft. It will be because of your children, and your children’s children, that I will live forever. Dad   P.S. Every time you read “something is rotten in the state of Denmark” in Hamlet, think of me.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“One should find wholeness in marriage, Gabriel, but it should not be a prison for either party,” said Rabbi Loew.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“If you’re angry with me, say it. If I’ve done something you don’t like, tell me. If you want to end this marriage, have the courage to end it cleanly so that I might—might—be able to recover from it. Because if you keep looking at me as though you wish we weren’t married, you’re going to destroy me.”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night


“Deja de ser perfecta. Intenta ser realista para que se produzca un cambio”
― Deborah Harkness, quote from Shadow of Night



About the author

Deborah Harkness
Born place: in The United States
See more on GoodReads

Popular quotes

“We now know that our galaxy is only one of some hundred thousand million that can be seen using modern telescopes, each galaxy itself containing some hundred thousand million stars. We live in a galaxy that is about one hundred thousand light-years across and is slowly rotating; the stars in its spiral arms orbit around its center about once every hundred million years. Our sun is just an ordinary, average-sized, yellow star, near the outer edge of one of the spiral arms.”
― Stephen Hawking, quote from The Theory of Everything: The Origin and Fate of the Universe


“All power corrupts, but we need electricity.”
― Diana Wynne Jones, quote from Archer's Goon


“Little things. The thought of losing them makes them unbearably dear ... I only think of the sweetness. Simple things. The quarter moon, the taste of an orange. The smell of the pages of a new book.”
― Patricia Gaffney, quote from The Saving Graces


“Since many of today’s best-known manufacturers no longer produce products and advertise them, but rather buy products and “brand” them, these companies are forever on the prowl for creative new ways to build and strengthen their brand images.”
― Naomi Klein, quote from No Logo


“How do you remain an individual when you are also part of so powerfully driven a pair?”
“Irrational or justified, it is what it is.” Gideon was realizing the logic of that for himself even as he spoke the words. “Perhaps, in time, it will be less acute. I have no desire to rob you of your individuality, nor do I wish to lose my own. It is difficult for me as well . . . I have been so solitary throughout my lifetime, and now, to be suddenly given such riveting company . . . I fear I cannot do you the justice you deserve. And for you it will be worse; with the influx of power you are beginning to experience it will be taxing, to say the least.”
“I know.” Legna reached up and splayed her palms over the dark silk covering his chest. “I suppose at some point, if I start to go crazy, you are going to have to knock me out or tie me up or something.”
“Hmm. The latter has possibilities,” he mused with a growling smile that erased the tension in his face.
Legna laughed, giving him a shove.
“Gideon, you are nothing but an ancient pervert,” she teased him.
“And this is an issue because . . . ?”
“You are horrible!” She pushed away from him, gaining her feet.
He reached to take her hand, pulling her closer once more and continuing to do so until she had nowhere else to go but his lap. She took the seat, her voluminous skirts spreading over them both.
“I will forgive you, this time,” she conceded.
“Thank you,” he said with honest graciousness. “Now, my beauty, tell me what you would like to do to get to know me better. I find myself looking forward to your discoveries.”
“Well, I did not think of anything specific. I imagined time would fill itself.”
“That is dangerously liberal, sweet. If you leave it up to the natural course of things, I can tell you exactly what we will end up doing.”
Legna giggled, blushing because she realized he was right. Even just sitting in his lap and talking as she was, she could feel the mutual awareness that sparked between them, constantly simmering and waiting for just a little more heat to bring them up to the boiling point.
“Very well, I am open to suggestions,” she invited.
“Again, too liberal,” he teased, his eyes twinkling with mischievous starlight.
“You are incorrigible. I never realized you were a sex fiend, Gideon.”
“I am now,” he amended, drawing a finger down the slope of her nose.”
― Jacquelyn Frank, quote from Gideon


Interesting books

The Piano Man's Daughter
(4.2K)
The Piano Man's Daug...
by Timothy Findley
Bend Sinister
(3.3K)
Bend Sinister
by Vladimir Nabokov
The Killing Game
(26.4K)
The Killing Game
by Iris Johansen
Autobiography of a Fat Bride: True Tales of a Pretend Adulthood
(8K)
Autobiography of a F...
by Laurie Notaro
Acacia: The War with the Mein
(7.9K)
Acacia: The War with...
by David Anthony Durham
The 4-Hour Body: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat-Loss, Incredible Sex, and Becoming Superhuman
(22.9K)
The 4-Hour Body: An...
by Timothy Ferriss

About BookQuoters

BookQuoters is a community of passionate readers who enjoy sharing the most meaningful, memorable and interesting quotes from great books. As the world communicates more and more via texts, memes and sound bytes, short but profound quotes from books have become more relevant and important. For some of us a quote becomes a mantra, a goal or a philosophy by which we live. For all of us, quotes are a great way to remember a book and to carry with us the author’s best ideas.

We thoughtfully gather quotes from our favorite books, both classic and current, and choose the ones that are most thought-provoking. Each quote represents a book that is interesting, well written and has potential to enhance the reader’s life. We also accept submissions from our visitors and will select the quotes we feel are most appealing to the BookQuoters community.

Founded in 2023, BookQuoters has quickly become a large and vibrant community of people who share an affinity for books. Books are seen by some as a throwback to a previous world; conversely, gleaning the main ideas of a book via a quote or a quick summary is typical of the Information Age but is a habit disdained by some diehard readers. We feel that we have the best of both worlds at BookQuoters; we read books cover-to-cover but offer you some of the highlights. We hope you’ll join us.