Young Adult Fiction

"You know what would help this boy? Farming." "Mother-" "Six months behind a plough. Excellent character building."

"Well...sure good to be together again. Arguing. Almost dying. Abject terror. Oh, look. It's our floor."

"I picked up the jar. The spirit of Hope fluttered inside, trying to warm the cold container. "Hestia, I give this to you as an offering." "I am the least of the gods. Why would you trust me with this?" "You're the last Olympian. And the most important." "And why is that, Percy Jackson?" "Because Hope survives best at the hearth. Guard it for me and I won't be tempted to give up again.""

"My son here convinced me that perhaps I should prioritize my list of enemies. As much as I dislike certain upstart demigods, it would not do for Olympus to fall. I would miss bickering with my siblings. And if there is one thing we agree on-it is that you were a TERRIBLE father."

"I wouldn't worry too much. The last Great Prophecy about you took almost seventy years to complete. This one may not even happen in your lifetime." "Maybe, but it didn't sound so good." "No. It certainly didn't. She's going to make a wonderful Oracle!"

"She raised an eyebrow. "You got something to say to me, Seaweed Brain?" "You'd probably kick my butt." "You know I'd kick your butt." I brushed the cake off my hands. "When I was at the River Styx, turning invulnerable . . . Nico said I had to concentrate on one thing that kept me anchored to the world, that made me want to stay mortal." Annabeth kept her eyes on the horizon. "Yeah?" "Then up on Olympus," I said, "when they wanted to make me a god and stuff, I kept thinking—" "Oh, you so wanted to." "Well, maybe a little. But I didn't, because I thought—I didn't want things to stay the same for eternity, because things could always get better. And I was thinking . . ." My throat felt really dry. "Anyone in particular?" Annabeth asked, her voice soft. I looked over and saw that she was trying not to smile. "You're laughing at me," I complained. "I am not!" "You are so not making this easy." Then she laughed for real, and she put her hands around my neck. "I am never, ever going to make things easy for you, Seaweed Brain. Get used to it."

"You're still my best friend." He grinned. "Except for Annabeth." "That's different." "Yeah," he agreed. "It sure is."

"So we call the Gods by their Greek names because that's their original form. But saying their Roman aspects are exactly the same-that's not true. In Rome, they became more warlike. They didn't mingle with mortals as much. They became harsher, more powerful-the Gods of an empire." "Like the dark side of the gods?" "Not exactly. They stood for discipline, honor, strength-"

"You named him Festus? You know that in Latin, 'festus' means 'happy'? You want us to ride off to save the world on Happy the Dragon?"

"I'm the son of Jupiter! I'm a child of Rome, consul to demigods, praetor of the First Legion. I slew the Trojan sea monster, I toppled the black throne of Kronos and and destroyed the Titan Krios with my own hands. And now I'm going to destroy you, Porphyrion, and feed you to your own wolves."

"He called us...what, demigods?" "Don't know what demi means, but I'm not feeling too godly. You guys feeling godly?"

"A street sign labeled the road to the main gate as VIA PRAETORIA. The other road, cutting across the middle of camp, was labeled VIA PRINCIPALIS. Under those markers were hand-painted signs like BERKELEY 5 MILES; NEW ROME 1 MILE; OLD ROME 7280 MILES; HADES 2310 MILES (pointing straight down); RENO 208 MILES; and CERTAIN DEATH: YOU ARE HERE!"

"Until that morning, her brother Nico had been the most powerful demigod she knew. The others at Camp Jupiter saw him as a traveling oddball, about as harmless as the fauns. Hazel knew better. She hadn't grown up with Nico, hadn't even known him very long. But she knew Nico was more dangerous than Reyna, or Octavian, or maybe even Jason. Then she'd met Percy. At first, when she saw him stumbling up the highway with the old lady in his arms, Hazel had thought he might be a god in disguise. Even though he was beat up, dirty, and stooped with exhaustion, he'd had an aura of power."

"Pluto's cool. It's not his fault he runs the Underworld. He just got bad luck when the gods were dividing up the world, you know? Jupiter got the sky, Neptune got the sea, and Pluto got the shaft."

"Banks can be robbed. Building can burn down. Strange things conspire when one tries to cheat fate."

"There! A prophecy. You can add it to your books, engrave it on your floor, whatever." "This says, 'Go to Alaska. Find Thanatos and free him. Come back by June twenty-fourth or die.'" "Yes. Is that not clear?" "Well, my lord... prophecies are usually unclear. They're wrapped in riddles. They rhyme, and..." "Yes?" "The prophecy is clear! A quest!"

"Oh, I'm strictly nonviolent. I can act in self-defense, but I won't be drawn into any more Olympian aggression, thank you very much. I've been reading about Buddhism. And Taoism. I haven't decided between them." "But... Aren't you a Greek goddess?" "Don't try to put me in a box, demigod! I'm not defined by my past."

""What are these guys?” he whispered."

"Your mom used to tell me this Chinese proverb. Eat bitter-" "Eat bitter, taste sweet. I hate that proverb." "But it's true. What do they call it these days-no pain, no gain? Same concept. You do the easy thing, the appealing thing, the peaceful thing, mostly it turns out sour in the end. But if you take the hard path-ah, that's how you reap the sweet rewards. Duty Sacrafice. They mean something."

"Fair.. You'd be amazed how often I hear that word, Frank Zhang, and how meaningless it is. Is it fair that your life will burn so short and bright? Was it fair when I guided your mother to the Underworld? No. Not fair. And yet it was her time. There is no fairness in Death. If you free me, I will do my duty."

"Annabeth put her knee to Percy's chest. She pushed her forearm against his throat. She didn't care what the Romans thought. A white-hot lump of anger expanded in her chest-a tumor of worry and bitterness that she'd been carrying around since last autumn. "If you ever leave me again," she said, her eyes stinging, "I swear to all the gods-" Percy had the nerve to laugh. Suddenly the lump of heated emotions melted inside Annabeth. "Consider me warned," Percy said. "I missed you, too.""

"He had no idea where the stereotype of dumb giggly blondes came from. Ever since he'd met Annabeth at the Grand Canyon last winter, when she'd marched toward him with that Give me Percy Jackson or I'll kill you expression, Leo thought of blondes as much too smart and much too dangerous."

"He stood waist-deep in the water for a few moments longer before climbing out and handing her the book. His trousers clung to him, and he did not stop walking. In truth, I think he was afraid. Rudy Steiner was scared of the book thief's kiss. He must have longed for it so much. He must have loved her so incredibly hard. So hard that he would never ask for her lips again, and would go to his grave without them."

"How about a kiss, Saumensch?"

"[First lines] Here is a small fact: You are going to die. I am in all truthfulness attempting to be cheerful about this whole topic, though most people find themselves hindered in believing me, no matter my protestations. Please trust me. I most definitely can be cheerful. I can be amiable. Agreeable. Affable. And that's only the A's. Just don't ask me to be nice. Nice has nothing to do with me."

"She leaned down and looked at his lifeless face and Liesel kissed her best friend, Rudy Steiner, soft and true on his lips. He tasted dusty and sweet. He tasted like the regret in the shadows of trees and in the glow of the anarchist’s suit collection. She kissed him long and soft, and others and when she pulled herself away, she touched his mouth with her fingers. Her hands were trembling, her lips were fleshy, and she leaned in once more, this time losing control and misjudging it. Their teeth collided on the demolished world of Himmel Street."

"“She was right about something else too,” Dimitri said after a long pause. My back was to him, but there was a strange quality to his voice that made me turn around. “What’s that?” I asked. “That I do still love you.” With that one sentence, everything in the universe changed. Time slowed to one heartbeat. The world became his eyes, his voice. This wasn’t happening. It wasn’t real. None of it could be real. It felt like a spirit dream. I resisted the urge to close my eyes and see if I’d wake up moments later. No. No matter how unbelievable it all seemed, this was no dream. This was real. This was life. This was flesh and blood.."

"But my other words at the Mastranos’ had betrayed me: I have fun with him. Now, you should have fun with the one you love, but that shouldn’t have been what first came to my mind. I should have said, We strengthen each other, or, He makes me want to be a better person. Perhaps most importantly, He understands me perfectly. But none of that was true, so I hadn’t said those things."

"Both Christian and Adrian had worried there would be some piece of Strigoi left in him, but their fears had been about violence and bloodshed. No one would have guessed this: that living as a Strigoi had hardened his heart, killing any chance of him loving anyone. Killing any chance of him loving me. And I was pretty sure if that was the case, then part of me would die too."

"It was like one of these moments when people talked about their lives flashing before their eyes. Because as we stared at one another, every part of our relationship replayed in my mind’s eye. I remembered how strong and invincible he’d been when we first met, when he’d come to bring Lissa and me back to the folds of Moroi society. I remembered the gentleness of his touch when he’d bandaged my bloodied and battered hands. I remembered him carrying me in his arms after Victor’s daughter Natalie had attacked me. Most of all, I remembered the night we’d been together in the cabin, just before the Strigoi had taken him. We’d known each other only a year, but we’d lived a lifetime in it."

"“You’re beautiful in a battle”, said Dimitri. His cold voice carried to me clearly, even above the roar of combat. “ Like an evening angel come to deliver the justice of heaven.” “Funny”, I said, shifting the hold on my stake, “That’s kind of why I’m here.” “Angels fall, Rose.”"

"“What did you see?” I shook my head, unable to look at her either. “A nightmare,” I murmured. “ My worst nightmare coming true.”"

"I would never forget Dimitri, not for the rest of my life. And this time, I wouldn’t forget his lessons. With a speed he wasn’t ready for, I struck out and plunged the stake through his chest. My strength was there- sliding the stake past his ribs and straight into his heart. And as I did it, it was like piercing my own heart at the same time."

""I will always love you." Then plunged the stake into his chest. It wasn's as precise as I would have liked, not with the skilled way he was dodging. I struggled to get the stake deep enough to his heart, unsure if I could do it from this angle. Then, his struggles stopped. His eyes stared at me, stunned, and his lips parted, almost like a smile, albeit a grisly and pained one. "That's what I was supposed to say.." He gasped out. Those were his last words."

""Why?" I asked softly. The word was carried away on the wind, but he heard. "Because I want you." I gave him a sad smile, wondering if we'd meet again in the land of dead. "Wrong answer." I told him. I let go."

"And it was memories like that that made it so hard to comprehend this quest to kill him, even if he was a Strigoi. Yet.. At the same time, it was exactly because of memories like that that I had to destroy him. I needed to remember him as the man who’d loved me and held me in bed. I needed to remember that that man would not want to stay a monster."

"I set off, off to kill the man I loved."

"“It's not about you, okay? This time, it's about me. Not you. All my life, Lissa... all my life, it's been the same. They come first. I've lived my life for you. I've trained to be your shadow, but you know what? I want to come first. I need to take care of myself for once. I'm tired of looking out for everyone else and having to put aside what I want. Dimitri and I did that, and look what happened. He's gone. I will never hold him again. Now I owe it to him to do this. I'm sorry if it hurts you, but it's my choice!”"

"My heart shattered. My world shattered. You will lose what you value most It hadn't been me Rhonda was talking about. It hadn't even been Dimitri's life. What you value most It had been his soul."

"“Even I make mistakes." I put on my brash, overconfident face. "I know it's hard to believe—kind of surprises me myself—but I guess it has to happen. It's probably some kind of karmic way to balance out the universe. Otherwise, it wouldn't be fair to have one person so full of awesomeness.”"

""You will lose what you value most, so treasure it while you can.”"

"My mother slapped me, the pain snapping me out of my daze. “Run!”, she yelled at me. “He’s dead! You are not going to join him!” I saw the panic on her own face, panic over me- her daughter- getting killed. I remembered Dimitri saying he’d rather die than see me dead. And if I stood there stupidly, letting the Strigoi get me, I’d fail both of them. “Run!”, she cried again. Tears streaming down my face, I ran."

"Good God, Men everywhere."

"The other problem in my life is Dimitri. He's the one who killed Natalie, and he's a total badass. He's also pretty good-looking. Okay—more than good-looking. He's hot—like, the kind of hot that makes you stop walking on the street and get hit by traffic."

"By the way, my name's Rose Hathaway. I'm seventeen years old, training to protect and kill vampires, in love with a completely unsuitable guy, and have a best friend whose weird magic could drive her crazy. Hey, no one said high school was easy."

"You can't force love, I realized. It's there or it isn't. If it's not there, you've got to be able to admit it. If it is there, you've got to do whatever it takes to protect the ones you love."

"I couldn’t be Mason’s girlfriend because when I imagined someone holding me and whispering dirty things in my ear, he had a Russian accent."

"“Go find your pacifier, and shut the hell up.”"

"Are you lost, little girl? The elementary school's over on west campus."

"(Rose)"Hey Mason, wipe the drool off your face. If you're going to think about me naked, do it on your own time." (Mason Ashford)"This is my time, Hathaway. I'm leading today's session." (Rose)"Oh yeah? Huh. Well, I guess this is a good time to think about me naked, then."(Eddie Castile)"It's always a good time to think about you naked.""