Verity Sparks and the Scarlet Hand Quotes

“The little case opened to make a stand, so when I went up to my bedroom I set the miniature on my dressing table, next to my framed photograph of Papa. Seeing them side by side, I smiled. They belonged together, Papa and Isabella. Isabella. Suddenly it seemed wrong to call her by her first name. She was my mother. “Mama.” As I said it out loud, tears came to my eyes. I’d resisted that word for a long time. It seemed disloyal to Ma and Pa, who’d adopted me when I was just a tiny baby. They had been simple working people, kind and honest and loving, with no money for fripperies like portraits or photographs.”
― Susan Green, Verity Sparks and the Scarlet Hand

“There was another interruption. Mrs Reilly flung open the double doors and announced in a despairing tone, “If yez don’t come now, the beef’ll be burned to blazes. It’s up to you.” She turned on her heel and stalked off. “In other words,” said SP, “luncheon is served.”
― Susan Green, Verity Sparks and the Scarlet Hand