Alice of Oz Quotes

“the dragon screamed once—the short scream, the morning one, the one that meant nothing but I am here, and so is the sun.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“Everything is less frightening when you are not alone.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“I was once younger and did not have a compass that led me so faithfully toward what was right. Though one thinks a man would mature as a woman does. That is far from the way of it.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“Your disappointment has nothing to do with me,” Alice proclaimed. “I am not defined by your expectations, but my own choices. My identity isn’t a topic to be debated over with anyone but myself. And that is all there is to say about that.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“I am not defined by your expectations”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“Some thoughts are like wells. One does not lean over them long.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“a father of two dreamers — he writes heroines who rewrite the rules of the worlds they’ve been given.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“And to my mother, who lives now in the unseen lurlicite threads between worlds. Every story I have is one you gave me first. Thank you for all of them. I can still hear you through the glass.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“Loud was battle. Loud was fear, and joy, and Tuesday. Silent was the held breath before the strike.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“Because it’s you, Alice, you do impossible things! You always have!”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“You have not bargained for power. You have sold your soul for slavery.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“He had kissed her, and her giggle had been the best part, which he understood was not what the poets promised. The poets had not met Alice. She laughed at the door of enormous things. He had watched her do it at the mouth of a dragon’s cave. And he intended, if permitted, to spend a great many years watching her do it everywhere else.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“The night before last, he had told Alice that he loved her. He had used the words “the very essence of my being,” which he had carried for years in dreams and never once said out loud. Said aloud, in the open air, to her face, the words had left him the way a tooth flees you as a child—all at once, with a socket behind. She had not said it back. She had said, “Yes, you may,” which was a better answer than most,”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“He pulled away and gently moved his head, kissing her again, this time a bit more fully and deeply. The butterflies in her stomach responded with enormous delight.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“He touched her chin so delicately, in a very gentlemanly way, and softly his lips pressed to hers. Alice tried not to assess the experience in her mind, but without fail, her mind began to describe it. It was more enjoyable than anything she had ever imagined while reading the works of Brontë.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“He smelled clean and musky at once, and she burrowed closer to him. Perhaps this was all the moment needed to be, but she wished she had the boldness to look up at him, and that he would take her face in his hands…”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“In that moment, the only thing that her mind began to obsess over was what it would be like to kiss him, and how his strong nose would fit against her face. She tried to push those thoughts from her mind, feeling his gaze fixed on her cheek and eyelashes. The moment was exciting enough without daydreams disrupting it.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“In that moment, the only thing that her mind began to obsess over was what it would be like to kiss him, and how his strong nose would fit against her face.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“Alice, nearly every night, it’s as if I escape to a world where you love me as any man could hardly deserve, and in return, I love you with the very essence of my being,”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“But you do not know me.” “I do. It is you who does not know me,”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“There was a time, long before now, when witches would sever the foot of a rabbit and wear it as an amulet so that they could speak to Gods.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“I’m sure it’s possible. You are quite good at impossible things.” The words settled and disarmed her. He held her eyes a moment longer, then looked away just as her cheeks flushed.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“How long had grief over her mother lived just beneath the surface of her skin? She cried without any way to control it. “You are never too old to have that sort of love and care, Alice,” the queen said softly. “Accept it when you can. Accept my admiration now.” And so, Alice did accept it. She did not wish to have hair that was neither this nor that. She wished to feel seen as the queen saw her. She wished to see herself as such. Alice didn’t mind being alone in her life, but she realized now that it would be much easier if she thought more highly of herself.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“When you, Alice, do everything in your power to do what is just, you will need to accept the outcome, good or bad, for it is no one’s responsibility but your own. You will accept that it is yours to bear, and you will do so with surrender, for you have done what is right.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“I am a queen who is exceptionally beautiful and both extremely good and extremely just. I am, however, not lenient. Some may say I am merciless.” She nodded grandly. “I want things to be their greatest and most beautiful. Beauty is the most important goal for which one should strive. When that potential is not met or, worse, it is disrupted, it must pay a price.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“Does a storm cause harm, Alice?” she asked coolly. “It can, yes.” “Does a storm not also replenish the land?” Alice sat for a moment. Was she as destructive as a storm, as blind and aimless? The queen took advantage of the silence. “I sense that you hold the weight of guilt when others suffer at someone else’s hand. Yet, you may be averse to your true responsibility when you are at fault, which is rare, but it is unavoidable. Your empathy is the reason you assume blame when you are not the responsible party. Your stubbornness is why you do not see your own fault.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“If you were to answer honestly, you would admit that you know exactly who you are, but that you have submitted to those that challenge you. My guess is it easier for you to submit to someone who is likely less intelligent than you, as it is futile to argue with someone who lacks intelligence, isn’t it?” “I suppose that is not untrue,”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“Gifts, Alice, have a purpose. What is the purpose of having that gift if not applied?”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“I was quite sure of who I was for a time. When I was younger, as a younger person does, I suppose. There are times now, where I doubt almost everything about who I am.” “I see. And what causes this doubt?” “I suppose, when you are told you are delusional…”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel

“She was unapologetically everything a woman was not supposed to be, and Alice admired that.”
― Terence Sullivan, Alice of Oz: A Novel