Before They Are Hanged (The First Law, #2)

by Joe Abercrombie

But disasters are not without their lessons.’

‘It’s a sad fact, but pain only makes you sorry for yourself.’

No one likes to shake hands with the man who empties the latrine pits either, but pits have to be emptied all the same.

‘Fearlessness is a fool’s boast, to my mind. The only men with no fear in them are the dead, or the soon to be dead, maybe. Fear teaches you caution, and respect for your enemy, and to avoid sharp edges used in anger. All good things in their place, believe me. Fear can bring you out alive, and that’s the very best anyone can hope for from any fight. Every man who’s worth a damn feels fear. It’s the use you make of it that counts.’

Doing better next time. That’s what life is.’

‘Please allow me to tell you, Superior, as one piece on the board to another. We do not want them angry.’ There was a strange note in his voice. He does not threaten me. He pleads.