Elizabeth Bear

“The Devil can quote scripture, after all. And monsters can say "please" and "thank you" same as any mother's son.”

“She was alive. She was alive, and she had found her power — or it had found her.Tomorrow’s problems she’d take care of tomorrow.”

“If you could disagree with kings, were gods so far above?”

“Some would say a whore don't have no expectation of Heaven. I'd say, if she gives value for cash, she's got a better shot at God's blessing than your average banker. Jesus loved Mary Magdalene. He kicked over tables when He met a moneylender.”

“What was a book? Not just ink and fiber and stitchery: a series of processes. To a wizard, it was not a static object--but a human thought caught and bound, made concrete through sacred technology. Magic, then, and a deep form of it.”

“You know," he said, "every time a vampire says he doesn't believe in lycanthropes, a werewolf bursts into flames.”

“She said, "You're a warrior. So how do you kill without rage?""In compassion. Because of necessity." Hrahima set the empty water bowl back in Samarkar's hands. "The same way you carry water.”