In the Name of the Family Quotes

“Birth, coupling, death. The more she thinks about it, the more it seems that that is all there is: a wheel turning over and over, moving so fast that sometimes you cannot even make out the spokes. It is a wonder there is any room for poetry.”
― Sarah Dunant, In the Name of the Family

“As the last chimes die away, a series of contorted male shrieks rise up from somewhere nearby; a late coupling between the sheets or a few early knife thrusts into a belly? He smiles. Such are the sounds of his beloved city, the sounds indeed of the whole of Italy.”
― Sarah Dunant, In the Name of the Family

“It is the disease of youth to mistake speed for strategy.

Gravel mixed with honey: the perfect tone for delivering lies and ultimatums.

Poverty doesn't bring men dignity. On the contrary it encourages envy and crime.

A diplomat's face must be as unreadable as his mind.

Kingdoms fall through luxury. Cities rise through virtue.

No diplomat worth his salt should say everything that he is thinking.

For all the bombast and hyperbole about the wonders of Rome, It was Valencia that had made Rodrigo Borgia what he is: a churchman in love with women, wealth, orange blossom and the taste of sardines.

Dreams are what men use to comfort themselves when they cannot get what they want. It is my conjecture that the great men of history did without sleep.”
― Sarah Dunant, In the Name of the Family

“After the death of Alfonso, she had vowed she would never trust him again, had believed that she would hate him for ever.
Yet almost against her will, he has found his way back into her thoughts, so that there have been moments these last months when she realises that she is missing him: his diamond-sharp energy, his certainty and confidence about everything, and his raw, absolute, undying love.”
― Sarah Dunant, In the Name of the Family

“Lucrezia”
― Sarah Dunant, In the Name of the Family

“Sometimes it is useful to fear something too much, for it makes the real thing quite bearable.”
― Sarah Dunant, In the Name of the Family