The Heroes (First Law World #5)

by Joe Abercrombie

Strange thing, that–the fewer years you have to lose the more you fear the losing of ’em. Maybe a man just gets a stock of courage when he’s born, and wears it down with each scrape he gets into.

“Time might come we regret not killing those folks there.” “Not killing don’t tend to weigh as heavy on my conscience as the alternative.”

well… every war is only a prelude to talk, isn’t it?”

“Bloody hell, no! Take it from me, who’s lived through more than one melee, wars are hard enough work without people fighting in the middle of ’em.”