The Alchemist and the Angel Quotes

“Curiosity breeds discovery.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“She believed in me. Where I had doubt and fear, she had faith.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“The true meaning of our philosophy will be unintelligible to the arrogant, the boastful and the mocking. Beware of those who exhibit such traits.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“But history has been adapted here, re-spun to tell Jan's tale: the story of a boy caught up in a world of change and opportunity, trickery and wonder. A story inspired by a city and its legends.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“While Cabinets of Curiosities were intended to be microcosms of the world, and to symbolise a ruler's all-powerful control of his realm, Rudolf's came to mean much more than that. It become his refuge from personal and political turmoil, a private universe he could control.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“Don't you think company is more precious than all these objects?”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“The evening sky was sprinkled with stars ...”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“They spent their days together and their nights dreaming of one another.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“Next time I see you, I'll tell you everything, she promised.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“Death continues to stalk the streets, stealing the souls of our children as they sleep. We're running out of fingers to close their eyes, voices to bless their souls, hands to dig their graves. Poisonous fumes from their unburied bodies contaminate the alleys, and the ghosts of those who have been buried rise nightly. Their tiny forms dance above their tombstones, an agonising reminder that we've failed them.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“A scientist must be a traveller, an explorer. Knowledge comes from experience. ... The path to enlightenment is never linear.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“It's unwise to let rage get the better of you. And you shouldn't hinge everything on whether you'll get to see the Emperor. Being obsessed with one thing like that has made him a sad, lonely man.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“Do you believe people can change their fate, or do you think our lives are mapped out before us? I mean, do you think we're each doomed to die a certain death?”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“Jan knew it was pointless to ponder the rights and wrongs of Greta's decision, for the decision had been made and they were on their way to a foreign city. He would just have to make the best of things, for all their sakes. He tried to turn his attention to more practical matters, ...”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“Eggs possess an elemental power. Their outer shell is earth. Their white is water. The membrane that lines the shell is air, and the yolk at the core is fire. The core of the egg preserves life and being, and therefore represents heaven and earth, while the white represents chaos.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“No need for apologies. ... it's good to question things, but you must have faith too.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“All things are poison and nothing is without poison. Only the dose determines whether something is poisonous or not.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel

“Along with astronomy and alchemy, collecting was what made Rudolf happy. He mistrusted people. He could hear them now. Whispering voices. Murmuring in the walls. Rustling through leaves. He heard them everywhere he went. Everywhere, that is, except within the confines of his private chambers. Here the voices fell silent. He felt comfortable surrounded by his curiosities, for objects can't answer back. Objects can't betray.”
― Joanne Owen, The Alchemist and the Angel