The Siren of Sussex Quotes

“Wonderful things didn’t happen because one was cautious. They happened because one dared.”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex

“I don't wish to be filed away in a neat little category, labeled and dismissed by society as if I weren't a person full of mysterious complexities. I don't even know the full depth and breadth of what I am yet—or what I'm capable of. How can a man? How can anyone?”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex

“It’s not his responsibility to educate me. The ignorance is mine, and so must be the remedy for it.”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex

“Nothing was ever said outright. That wasn’t how civilized people operated. It was the sharp looks and the double-edged remarks. It was the lingering suspicion. As if his and Mira’s ancestry was but the first step toward committing some manner of crime.”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex

“Ahmad passed no judgment. He’d lived among working women for the better part of his life in London. Some were good and some bad, just as in every line of business. As for the morality of it, he had no fixed opinion. One did what one must to survive. Life was difficult enough without having to feel ashamed about it.”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex

“And why should I admit to a label?” Evelyn demanded, nettled. “First it’s wallflower, then it’s bluestocking, and then it’s old maid or spinster. I don’t wish to be filed away in a neat little category, labeled and dismissed by society as if I weren’t a person full of mysterious complexities. I don’t even know the full depth and breadth of what I am yet—or what I’m capable of. How can a man? How can anyone?”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex

“He sewed pockets in all of her skirts,” Anne said. “Pockets.” Julia sighed. “Imagine.” “And she didn’t even have to ask him to do it,” Stella said.”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex

“Sameness is comfortable. People like it because it reassures them. But it's nothing extraordinary. It's not true beauty. Not the kind that moves the soul.”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex

“You may find that a conscience is a luxury in London. Especially when weighed against the demands of fashionable society.”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex

“the gentry’s aversion to honest labor, but he didn’t accept it. There was nothing shameful about doing whatever was necessary to look after one’s family. Those gentlemen who refused to do so—who shrank from work and instead chose to let their estates and their families fall into ruin—deserved his scorn, not his pity. And certainly not his understanding.”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex

“And it was the differences in a person that gave rise to true beauty. Isn’t that what Mr. Malik had told her? Sameness was comfortable, but it didn’t move the soul.”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex

“He sewed pockets in all of her skirts,” Anne said.”
― Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex