Rules of Redemption (The Firebird Chronicles, #1)

by T.A. White

At home, you could sometimes feel the coming of a storm when there wasn't a cloud in the sky. He got the same feeling when he looked at her.

She had a habit of destroying the things she couldn't understand.

Nothing good ever came of someone with unclear motives stalking her.

She'd learned many hard lessons about the peril of letting hope run away with you. It was the ultimate liar, an illusion turning smart people into fools, sundering their hearts from their chests when hope inevitably crashed them against the rocky shore.

His teeth flashed again at her sarcasm, the look in his eyes saying he enjoyed their banter. Kira wasn't sure that was a good thing. It was kind of like being the sole focus of a tiger. You didn’t know if it wanted to eat you or just maul you a little.

Just because something is pretty doesn't mean it won't bite."

surviving was only the first step to living.