Red Seas Under Red Skies (Gentleman Bastard, #2)

by Scott Lynch

“If you must play, decide upon three things at the start: the rules of the game, the stakes, and the quitting time.”

“As for history, we are living in its ruins. And as for biographies, we are living with the consequences of all the decisions ever made in them. I tend not to read them for pleasure. It’s not unlike carefully scrutinizing the map when one has already reached the destination.”

You know who waxes philosophical about the tiniest weaknesses of enemies? The powerless.”

So this is what a command is. Staring consequences in the eye and pretending not to flinch.