Blitz Quotes

“Over the centuries, many Pawns had fallen prey to the seductive charms of succubi, incubi, and, in several memorable and bewildering instances, incunabula.”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz

“Until I was eleven, I lived with a Checquy Pawn and her husband in Oxford,” Pamela told me. “They were lovely—I still write to them. They schooled me and three other girls in the basic skills of reading, writing, firearms, arithmetic, religious education, history, unarmed combat, science, sketching and watercolors, armed combat, and, of course, the core skill of any Checquy operative.” “Which is?” I asked her. “Keeping one’s abilities secret.”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz

“Young Pamela was moved immediately to Misselthwaite Manor, an isolated house in Yorkshire, where an extremely gentle and courageous staff took care of her and guided her through the techniques of exploration and self-control (the drastically”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz

“Arrow, a famous boat-train connecting London and Dover. A woman named Rebecca Steward, who appeared to be Mrs. Carmichael’s chatelaine/drill sergeant, coordinated moving the luggage. Also present was a Miss Pamela Verrall, Mrs. Carmichael’s private secretary.”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz

“Instead, she is a master of strategic oversight. She selects excellent people and delegates power and authority to them. This is not to say that she pays no attention to the business. She reviews summaries and results and expertly identifies what needs to be addressed before it becomes a problem. This combined with unannounced, detailed, and seemingly random spot checks ensures that the fortunes of Carrisford & Crewe are not harmed by incompetence or corruption. And there are a number of fortunes. Built on her father’s initial (fabulously lucrative) investment in diamond mines, the company has expanded under Mrs. Carmichael’s leadership to include a variety of interests around the globe, including real estate, shipping, and manufacturing. It is far more diverse than our own import/export business and, accordingly, even more complex.”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz

“In their day to day lives apprentices were always under pressure to remain discreet, concealing their true nature from the civilians around them. It was heady to be plunged into a situation where everyone knew the truth of matters and there was no need to hide.”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz

“They knew never to take a hat-wearing South American man to bed without first checking to see if the chapeau concealed a blowhole, marking him as a boto, a river dolphin in disguise.”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz

“You can now be summoned to active Checquy duty immediately, working under the Official Secrets Act, the Unofficial Secrets Act, the Secret Officials Act, and the Official Acting Unofficial Secret Officials Act.”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz

“If not for you, they might never have figured out that the murderer was a beech tree.”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz

“Freedom is only the distance between the hunter and his prey. —Bei Dao”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz

“There was some village in Brittany that they never managed to conquer.”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz

“She felt like a well-buttered cat that had been thrown down a bobsleigh run.”
― Daniel O'Malley, Blitz