Quotes from The Assassin and the Desert

“Words could be just as deadly as steel.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“If you can learn to endure pain, you can survive anything. Some people learn to embrace it—to love it. Some endure it through drowning it in sorrow, or by making themselves forget. Others turn it into anger. But Ansel let her pain become hate, and let it consume her until she became something else entirely—a person I don’t think she ever wished to be”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“And Celaena felt it.
She felt each footstep, the phantom bruises on her face throbbing with the memory of Arobynn's fists. And suddenly, as the memory of that day echoed through her, she remembered the words Sam kept screaming at Arobynn as the king of the Assassins beat her, the words that she somehow forgotten in the fog of pain:
'I'll kill you!'
Sam has said it like he meant it. He'd bellowed it. Again and again and again.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“As the memory of that day echoed through her, she remembered the words Sam kept screaming at Arobynn, as the King of the Assassins beat her, the words that she'd somehow forgotten in the fog of pain: I'll kill you! Sam had said it like he meant it. He'd bellowed it, again and again and again...”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“Arobynn hit her-her ribs, her jaw, her gut. And her face. Again and again and again. Careful blows, meant to inflict as much pain as possible without doing permanent damage. And Sam kept roaring, shouting words that she couldn't quite hear over the agony. The last thing she remembered was a pang of guilt at the sight of her blood staining Arobynn's exquisite red carpet. And then darkness, blissful darkness, full of relief that she hadn't seen them hurt Sam.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“Where do men find it in themselves to do such monstrous things?”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“Well, he was certainly desirable-as desirable as Sam, maybe. Sam-when had she ever thought of him as desirable? He'd laugh until he died if ever knew she thought of him like that.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“With nothing else to distract her, Celeana eventually returned to thinking about Sam. Even weeks later, she had no idea how she'd somehow gotten attached to him, what he'd been shouting when Arobynn beat her, and why Arobynn had thought he'd need three seasoned assassins to restrain him that day.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“But there are some times when words are necessary - when explanations are needed that mere gestures cannot convey.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“Alone in the hallway, Celaena watched the shadows cast by the torches. It hadn't been the mere impossibility of a relationship with Ilias that had made her pull away.
No; it was the memory of Sam's face that had stopped her from kissing him.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“Hisli's tail flicked to the side as the arrow buried itself in the sand just inches behind her rear hooves. But Ansel didn't dare look over he shoulder. She kept riding, and she did not stop. Celeana lowered her bow and watched until Ansel disappeared beyond the horizon. One arrow, that had been her promise. But she's also promised Ansel that she's had twenty minutes to get out of range.
Celeana had fired after twenty-one.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“I think you will leave a lasting imprint on Ansel's heart. You spared her life, and returned her father's sword. And maybe when she makes her next move to reclaim her title, she will remember the assassin from the North and the kindness you showed her, and try to leave fewer bodies in her wake.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“Mikhail truly liked Ansel-that much was obvious. he always found excuses to touch her, always smiled at her, always looked at her as if she were the only person in the room. Celeana sloshed her wine around in her glass. If she were being honest, sometimes she thought Sam looked at her that way. But then he'd go and say something absurd, or try to undermine her, and she'd chide herself for even thinking about him. Her stomach tightened. What had Arobynn done to him that night? She should have inquired after him. But in the day's after him, she's been so busy, wrapped up in her rage... She hadn't dared look for him, actually. Because if Arobynn had hurt Sam the way he'd hurt her... Celeana drained the rest of her wine.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“Wasn't that wonderful?"
Breathing hard, Celeana didn't say anything as she punched Ansel so hard in the face that the girl went flying off her horse and tumbled onto the sand. Ansel just clutched her jaw and laughed.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“The undergarments were plain-and folded. Who folded their undergarments? Celeana thought of her enormous closet back home, exploding with colour and different fabrics and patterns, all tossed together. Her undergarments, while expensive, usually wound up in a heap in their drawer. Sam, probably, folded his undergarments. Though, depending on how much of him Arobynn left intact, he might not be able to now. Arobynn would never permanently main her, but Sam might have faired worse. Sam had always been the expendable one.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“When you give your master his letter, also give him this. And tell him that in the Red Desert, we do not abuse our disciples.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“Where do men find it in themselves to do such monstrous things? How do they find it acceptable?

"We'll make them pay for it in the end." Celaena grasped Ansel's hand. The girl squeezed back. "We'll see to it that they pay."

"Yes." Ansel shifted her gaze back to the stars. "Yes, we will.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“The Mute Master had told her that people dealt with their pain in different ways—that some chose to drown it, some chose to love it, and some chose to let it turn into rage.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“One arrow, that had been her promise. But she'd also promised Ansel that she had twenty minutes to get out of range. Celaena had fired after twenty-one.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“If you can learn to endure pain, you can survive anything.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“They might be vicious, but they're not invincible.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“It’s an Asterion horse,” Ansel breathed, her red-brown eyes growing huge.

The horse was black as pitch, with dark eyes that bored into Celaena’s own. She’d heard of Asterion horses, of course. The most ancient breed of horse in Erilea. Legend claimed that the Fae had made them from the four winds—spirit from the north, strength from the south, speed from the east, and wisdom from the west, all rolled into the slender-snouted, high-tailed, lovely creature that stood before her.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“She was babbling. She should stop. Actually, she should just stop talking. Forever.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“So when their campfire was nothing but embers and the horses were dozing behind them, Ansel and Celaena lay on their backs on the side of a dune and stared up at the stars.

Her hands tucked behind her head, Celaena took a long, deep breath, savoring the balmy night breeze, the exhaustion ebbing from her limbs. She rarely got to see stars so bright—not with the lights of Rifthold. The wind moved across the dunes, and the sand sighed. “That’s the stag,” Celaena breathed. “The Lord of the North.”... the smile faded when she stared at the familiar constellation. “Because the stag remains constant—no matter the season, he’s always there.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“and Mullin. Harding took a step in front of them, his”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“Si aprendes a soportar el dolor, eres capaz de sobrevivir a todo. Algunas personas aprenden a aceptarlo... a amarlo. Algunos lo soportan ahogándolo en tristeza o se fuerzan a sí mismos a olvidar. Otros lo transforman en ira.
Ansel, en cambio, dejó que su dolor se tornará odio, y que la consumiera hasta convertirla en alguien distinto; una persona que sin duda jamás deseó llegar a ser.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

“Jeśli nauczysz się znosić swój ból, będziesz w stanie przetrwać wszystko, Niektórzy ludzie wchłaniają cierpienie, przyzwyczajają się do niego, a nawet zaczynają je kochać. Inni pogrążają się w rozpaczy lub jakoś o nim zapominają, Jeszcze inni przekuwają swój ból w gniew.”
― Sarah J. Maas, quote from The Assassin and the Desert

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“She’d wanted to completely shave her head: I don’t want long hair, I don’t want short hair, I don’t want hair at all, and I don’t want to be a girl or a boy, I want to be a yellow and orange leaf some little kid picks up and pastes in his scrapbook.”
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“Don't believe that, dear. Don't ever believe that. Nobody's bad just because of the way they look. It's what's inside a person that counts.' 'But, Ma, what's inside a person? When people look different are they different inside, too?' Ma didn't answer, she was looking at her hands now, kneading a ball of dough. Saroj thought she had forgotten her and so she said, 'Ma?' Ma turned her eyes back to Saroj. 'I'll show you in a moment, dear. I'll just finish making these.' Saroj watched the stack of dhal puris grow into a flat round tower and then Ma said she was finished and covered them with a cloth and washed her hands. Then she opened the cupboard where she kept her spare jars and bottles and took out six jars and placed them on the kitchen counter. 'Do you see these jars, Saroj? Are they all the same?' Saroj shook her head. 'No, Ma.' The glasses were all different. There was a short flat one and a tall thin one and a medium-sized one, and other shapes in between. Some were different colours: green or brown or clear. 'All right. Now, just imagine these jars are people. People with different shapes of bodies and colours of skin. Can you do that?' Saroj nodded. 'Right. Well, now the bodies are empty. But look…’ Ma picked up a big glass jug, filled it at the tap and poured water into all the jars. 'See, Saroj? Now all the glasses are filled. All the bodies are alive! They have what we call a spirit. Now, is that spirit the same in all the glasses, or different?' 'It's the same, Ma. So people are —' But Ma broke in. 'Now, can you run into the pantry and get the tin where I keep my dyes? You know it, don't you?' Saroj was back even before Ma had finished speaking. Ma opened the tin and picked up one of the tiny bottles of powdered dye. It was cherry-coloured. Ma held the bottle over one of the jars and tipped a little of the powder into the water. Immediately, the water turned pink-red. Ma returned the cap to the bottle and picked up another one. The water turned lime-green. She did that six times and each time the water turned a different colour so that in the end Ma had six different shaped jars of six different colours. 'So, Saroj, now you answer me. Are these people here all the same inside, or are they all different?' Saroj took her time before answering. She puckered her brow and thought hard. Finally she said, 'Well, Ma, really they're all the same but the colours make them different.' 'Yes, but what is more real, the sameness or the differences?' Saroj thought hard again. Then she said: 'The sameness, Ma. Because the sameness holds up the differences. The differences are only the powders you put in.' 'Exactly. So think of all these people as having a spirit which is the same in each one, and yet each one is also different — that is because each person has a different personality. A personality is made up of thoughts, and everyone has different kinds of thoughts. Some have loving thoughts, some have angry thoughts, some have sad thoughts, some have mean thoughts. Most people have jumbles of thoughts — but everybody's thoughts are different, and so everybody is different. Different outside and different inside. And they see those differences in each other and they squabble and fight, because everyone thinks the way he is, is right. But if they could see through the differences to the oneness beyond, linking them all, then…’ 'Then what, Ma?' 'Then we would all be so wise, Saroj, and so happy!”
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“Would you not marry even for love?'
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― Sharon Shinn, quote from Summers at Castle Auburn

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