The Bright Sword

by Lev Grossman

I can’t be the first person to observe, she thought, how often those best placed to take care of a child have the least idea what it needs.

She loved him more than he loved himself. And was that not the point of a marriage, to love a person more than they can love themselves?

“My dear Nimue, when it comes to guessing the terrible secrets concealed in a man’s soul, one’s choices are sadly limited. There are three or four at most to pick from.