The Black Bird Oracle (All Souls #5)

by Deborah Harkness

In every soul, there is a place reserved for Shadow. Mine was safely hidden, tucked in a blind spot at the corners of my memory, under a hollow bruise that I thought had healed long ago.

Messengers between the dead and the living, ravens often symbolized the first step in the alchemical transformation that led to the philosopher’s stone.

“Light isn’t a weapon, Diana. It’s a resource.” Gwyneth cupped her palm as though she held a baby chick. “You want to hold it gently, not turn it into a missile.”

“Think about the people you love, the satisfaction you feel when one of your students achieves a new level of understanding, the curiosity that drives your research,” Gwyneth said, ticking off other options. “Draw on these feelings. Be specific. Your secret desires are your real weapons—not a bolt of fire or a spell.”

“Curiosity and wonder are often all it takes to keep Darkness at bay. They, too, reside in Shadow, where promise and potential disaster can be found in equal measure. It was that ambiguity that really terrified your father.”

Often the queries we don’t utter are the most important, and the most profound.”

“Never forget the feeling of being aligned with your purpose. It will steer you through Shadow and illuminate your path no matter where it leads.”

“I’ve never been afraid of you, Matthew, or your Shadows, or your anger. But you are filled with fear, and it makes you Darkness’s willing prey.”

“I came to Ravenswood and shed my old skin in favor of one that fits,” I replied. “I’m glad you realized that size extra-small doesn’t suit you. It doesn’t look good on most people, come to think of it,” Chris said with a grin. “When you try to shrink yourself, or believe one size fits all, you aren’t the only one who’s uncomfortable. It makes the rest of us uneasy, too. Especially Becca and Pip.”

“Magic is nothing more than desire made real,”

“Nothing has changed, mon coeur. This has always been the truth, even if we weren’t aware of it. Now we face it, together.”