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Were you lying? I never lie, he said piously. About what? The sand, the snake. For a young man who never lied, he seemed surprisingly unoffended by the question.

Megan Whalen Turner

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Megan Whalen Turner
Age: 59
Born: 1965
Born: January 1
Novelist
Writer
Men
Snakes
Lied
Sand
Seemed
Question
Lying
Piously
Young
Surprisingly
Never
Snake

More quotes by Megan Whalen Turner

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I was listening, the king said, aggrieved. I closed my eyes to listen better. What did you hear? I'm not sure, he said. That's why I was listening so closely. I may have to ask the baron to repeat some parts of his report on his grain tax. I am sure you can arrange an appointment. I am sure I can too.
Megan Whalen Turner
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Irene- Don't call me that. You were the princess Irene the first time we met. It means 'peace', Attolia said. What name could be more inappropriate? That I be named Helen? Eddis suggested. The hard lines in Attolia's face eased, and she smiled. Eddis was a far cry from the woman whose beauty had started a war.
Megan Whalen Turner
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Ah, said the magus, understanding at once. I see that he means to be prepared if he meets him again. Surely that's unlikely, said Sounis. I don't think unlikely means to him what it does to the rest of us, said the magus.
Megan Whalen Turner
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Then come out, said the king, helping him, knowing you'll never die of a fall unless the god himself drops you.
Megan Whalen Turner
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Discretion prevented me from saying that I thought she was a fiend from the underworld and that mountain lions couldn't force me to enter her service.
Megan Whalen Turner
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-You know-- Eddis hesitated, not sure how far to push the Attolian Queen. -Go on. Attolia inclined her head. -I was going to say that you look like a polecat when you smile like that. -Do I? Attolia still smiled. -You look a little vulpine yourself. The two queens sat for a moment in happy agreement.
Megan Whalen Turner
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I want you to steal something. I smiled. Do you want the king's seal? I can get it for you. If I were you, said the magus, I'd stop bragging about that. His voice grated. My smile grew. The gold ring with the engraved ruby had been in his safekeeping when I had stolen it away.
Megan Whalen Turner
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Her queen danced like a flame in the wind, and the mercurial king like the weight at the center of the earth.
Megan Whalen Turner
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Who am I, that you should love me? You are My Queen, said Eugenides. She sat perfectly still, looking at him without moving as his words dropped like water into dry earth. Do you believe me? he asked. Yes, she answered. Do you love me? Yes. I love you. And she believed him.
Megan Whalen Turner
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If I am the pawn of the gods, it is because they know me so well, not because they make my mind up for me.
Megan Whalen Turner
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I was not so comfortable with my new authority that I could say 'We eat the chicken now!' but the magus had seen that I was considering it.
Megan Whalen Turner
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Safety is an illusion, Costis. A Thief might fall at any time, and eventually the day must come when the god will let him. Whether I am on a rafter three stories up or on a staircase three steps up, I am in my god's hands. He will keep me safe, or he will not, here or on the stairs.
Megan Whalen Turner
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Who am I, that you should love me?
Megan Whalen Turner
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When we opened the doors, we saw that the entire room was scorched black and you were on the floor possibly dead, surrounded by broken glass. Window glass is expensive, you realize that? Yes, Your Majesty, he said meekly.
Megan Whalen Turner
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Why didn't you tell me to take Attolia's advice from the beginning? I thought you should figure it out. What you learn for yourself, you will know forever, said Eugenides. Pol used to say that, said Sounis, surprised. I learned it from him. I just wish to my god that I had his patience for the process.
Megan Whalen Turner
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A thief never makes a noise by accident.
Megan Whalen Turner
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You are treasure beyond any price.
Megan Whalen Turner
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From shadow queen to puppet queen in one rule. That's very impressive. When he rules your country and he tells you he loves you, I hope you believe him. At least that's one lie I didn't tell you.
Megan Whalen Turner
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He looked gravely at the king. It isn't an easy thing to give your loyalty to someone you don't know, especially when that person chooses to reveal nothing of himself. But no matter, Your Majesty. You are revealed at last. The king looked down at his nakedness and back at the captain. Was that a joke? he asked.
Megan Whalen Turner
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On the bed, Eugenides stirred restlessly. Upset at the sight of blood? he said. Not my wife, Ornon. Your blood, the ambassador pointed out. Eugenides glanced at the hook on his arm and conceded the point. Yes, he said. He seemed lost in memory. The room was quiet.
Megan Whalen Turner