Song of Silver, Flame Like Night (Song of the Last Kingdom, #1)

by Amélie Wen Zhao

“There are old gods and new gods, kind gods and fickle gods—and most powerful of them all are the Four Demon Gods.”

Lan preferred not to believe that her fortunes lay in the hands of some invisible old farts in the skies—no

well, how did you destroy a people? You began by cutting off their roots.

Grief is for the survivors, and I think that, rather than living my life in pain, I would live it in laughter and love. To the fullest.

“I wish for you to not go anywhere without me. In this world and the next. I wish for you to choose me.”

Grief is for the living.

So long as there was war, there was sacrifice. So long as there was power, there was bloodshed. So long as there was life, there was hope.

The greatest strength lies in getting back up after one falls down.

those with power were meant to protect those without.

Yīn and yáng, good and evil, great and terrible, kings and tyrants and heroes and villains. The tropes in the classics of old are but a matter of perspective. Really, they are two sides of the same coin. He who lives to tell the tale decides which side to pick.