The Edge of Worlds (The Books of the Raksura #4)

by Martha Wells

It was a big chamber with walls carved with a forest of spirals, plumes, fern trees, and other varieties, their branches reaching up to the domed ceiling and their roots framing the round doorways that led off to other chambers.

being the one who pointed out what things were wrong was relatively easy compared to being the one who had to decide what to do about them.

“That’s the most idiotic thing you’ve ever said, and we both know how tough the competition is.”

“They don’t want anything to come between them and their goal. They have their ideas, they don’t want facts to bother them.”

Fairly reasonable people often expected everyone they knew to be fairly reasonable too, and were shocked when this proved not to be the case.

“It said, ‘If eyes fall on this, and no one is here to greet you, then we have failed. Yet you exist, so our failure is not complete.’”