Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows, #2)

by Leigh Bardugo

“What you want and what the world needs are not always in accord, Kaz. Praying and wishing are not the same thing.”

“I would come for you,” he said, and when he saw the wary look she shot him, he said it again. “I would come for you. And if I couldn’t walk, I’d crawl to you, and no matter how broken we were, we’d fight our way out together—knives drawn, pistols blazing. Because that’s what we do. We never stop fighting.”

fear is a phoenix. You can watch it burn a thousand times and still it will return.”

He’d started to think of Jesper as fearless, but maybe being brave didn’t mean being unafraid.

cannot be anything other than what I am, and if my gifts can help people, then it’s my duty to use them.”

“What kind of mother would I be to my son if I hid away my talents? If I let fear be my guide in this life? You knew what I was when you asked that I choose you, Colm. Do not now suggest that I be anything less.”

“You’re not weak because you can’t read. You’re weak because you’re afraid of people seeing your weakness. You’re letting shame decide who you are.

There’s no time to constantly be apologizing for existing.

And that was what destroyed you in the end: the longing for something you could never have.

“There is no shame in meeting a worthy opponent. It means there is more to learn, a welcome reminder to pursue humility.”