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c88f3fe I stood still, vision blurring, and in that moment, I heard my heart break. It was a small, clean sound, like the snapping of a flower's stem. romance scotland time-travel historical-fiction Diana Gabaldon
0754222 If you can walk with the crowd and keep your virtue, or walk with Kings-nor lose the common touch; If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you; If all men count with you, but none too much; If you can fill the unforgiving minute with 60 seconds worth of distance run- Yours is the earth and everything that's in it, And-which is more-you'll be a man my son. war wwi historical-fiction Rudyard Kipling
8b01844 But just then, for that fraction of time, it seems as though all things are possible. You can look across the limitations of your own life, and see that they are really nothing. In that moment when time stops, it is as though you know you could undertake any venture, complete it and come back to yourself, to find the world unchanged, and everything just as you left it a moment before. And it's as though knowing that everything is possible, suddenly nothing is necessary. historical-fiction Diana Gabaldon
442e19d They watch on, evil, incredibly stupid, enjoying my destruction. 'Poor Grendel's had an accident,' I whisper. 'So may you all. literature last-lines retelling historical-fiction John Champlin Gardner
73c7653 A book is a wonderful present. Though it may grow worn, it will never grow old. present marjorie-bruce robert-the-bruce worn cage historical-fiction old girl young-adult-fiction Jane Yolen
baba5ba I was born to be your rival,' she [Anne] said simply. 'And you mine. We're sisters, aren't we? henry-viii mary-boleyn historical-fiction Philippa Gregory
a4520ed You can only chase a butterfly for so long. young-adult culloden jane-yolen stuart butterfly scottish historical-fiction chase Jane Yolen
572c57f Before anything else I was a woman who was capable of passion and who had a great need and a great desire for love. henry-viii historical-fiction Philippa Gregory
c0dbda8 Historical novels are, without question, the best way of teaching history, for they offer the human stories behind the events and leave the reader with a desire to know more. history reading historical-fiction Louis L'Amour
f226cf5 Like the magnolia tree, She bends with the wind, Trials and tribulation may weather her, Yet, after the storm her beauty blooms, See her standing there, like steel, With her roots forever buried, Deep in her Southern soil. carolina-rain civil-war-romance-novella nancy-b-brewer civil-war historical-romance historical-fiction france Nancy B. Brewer
97d180d Katherine of Aragon was speaking out for the women of the country, for the good wives who should not be put aside just because their husbands had taken a fancy to another, for the women who walked the hard road between kitchen, bedroom, church and childbirth. For the women who deserved more than their husband's whim. fiction katherine henry-viii historical-fiction Philippa Gregory
576d1ac Mankind in the aggregate I have found to be brutish, ignorant and unkind, whether those qualities were covered by the coarse tunic of the peasant of the white and purple toga of a senator. And yet in the weakest of men, in moments when they are alone and themselves, I have found veins of strength like gold in decaying rock; in the cruelest of men, flashes of tenderness and compassion; and in the vainest of men, moments of simplicity and grace. morality politics john-edward-williams roman-empire caesar historical-fiction ethics rome John Williams
595c0bc ...it has always been my temperament to prefer a tiny amount of the excellent to a plenitude of the mediocre... military historical-fiction france Robert Harris
b2396b8 In the forest you may find yourself lost, without companions. You may come to a river which is not on a map. You may lose sight of your quarry, and forget why you are there. You may meet a dwarf, or the living Christ, or an old enemy of yours; or a new enemy, one you do not know until you see his face appear between the rustling leaves, and see the glint of his dagger. You may find a woman asleep in a bower of leaves. For a moment, before you don't recognise her, you will think she is someone you know. fiction the-tudors wolf-hall thomas-cromwell historical-fiction england Hilary Mantel
d4e105e ...Prophecy is like a treacherous woman. She takes your member in her mouth, and you moan with the pleasure of it and think, how sweet, how fine, how good this is... and then her teeth snap shut and your moans turn to screams... Prophecy will bite your prick off everytime, war politics fantasy political-fiction a-game-of-thrones a-song-of-ice-and-fire george-rr-martin grimdark middle-ages epic-fantasy historical-fiction George R.R. Martin
6c9ed76 I intend to marry Michael, and squander all his money and run his life, and make sure he never again consorts with wicked women or gambles with licentious men. I promise I will henpeck him until he has no life beyond what I allow him, and when we die, I will lie in his arms through all eternity. romance duke governess-brides historical-adventure christina-dodd historical-romance historical-fiction Christina Dodd
2bb1861 The Emperor Napoleon Buonaparte had been banished to the island of Elba. However His Imperial Majesty had some doubts wheter a quiet island life would suit him - he was, after all, accustomed to governing a large proportion of the known world. humor historical-fiction Susanna Clarke
573a9bc Sea and land may lie between us, but my heart is always there with you. southern historical-romance historical-fiction france Nancy B. Brewer
8bb235a Over time, this unspoken attration continued to blossom, refusing to dwindle or fade, though they had little opportunity to foster or nourish it. Slowly and patiently, Robert's sheer persistence in the chase had revealed his heart, and Charlotte came to realize the nameless thing between them was love. historical-adventure historical-romance historical-fiction Emery Lee
c9681af "Where have they gone?" "Wherever magicians used to go. Behind the sky. On the other side of the rain." historical-fiction Susanna Clarke
ee9302e The word began to filter down the lines, and the grumbling stopped, there was something new about this march, something these men had never been a part of before. If the fight in the Wilderness had not gone their way--the most optimistic called it a draw--they were not doing what this army had always done before, they were not going back above the river. If they had never said much about Grant, had never thought him any different from the ones who had come before, if they had become so used to the steady parade of failure, this time there was a difference. Some wanted to cheer, but were hushed by nervous officers. So along the dusty roads hats went up and muskets were held high, a silent salute to this new commander. This time, they were marching south. overland-campaign army-of-the-potomac civil-war-eastern-theater historical-fiction Jeff Shaara
8017b5a I said to my mother, Henry VII is interesting. No he's not, my mother said. history mother-and-daughter historical-fiction Hilary Mantel
9ac17e2 "At the edge of the still, dark pool that was the sea, at the brimming edge of freedom where no boat was to be seen, she spoke the first words of the few they were to exchange. 'I cannot swim. You know it?" In the dark she saw the flash of his smile. 'Trust me.' And he drew her with a strong hand until the green phosphorescence beaded her ankles, and deeper, and deeper, until the thick milk-warm water, almost unfelt, was up to her waist. She heard him swear feelingly to himself as the salt water searched out, discovered his burns. Then with a rustle she saw his pale head sink back into the quiet sea and at the same moment she was gripped and drawn after him, her face to the stars, drawn through the tides with the sea lapping like her lost hair at her cheeks, the drive of his body beneath her pulling them both from the shore. They were launched on the long journey towards the slim shape, black against glossy black, which was the brigantine, with Thompson on board." historical-fiction Dorothy Dunnett
6d91ce4 Bad luck doesn't have any chinks in it. I was born a son of a bitch and I'm going to die a son of a bitch. - Captain Roque Carnicero war latin-america gabriel-garcía-márquez political-fiction historical-fiction Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez
8da532c Amy wondered if Bonaparte could declare war on Miss Gwen alone without breaking his peace with England lauren-willig historical-fiction spy Lauren Willig
fbb848a Forget the threat of Hell's infernal flames. The true torture would condemn a man to wait and wait and wait - for an eternity historical-fiction hell Sharon Kay Penman
7c0be01 "This regiment was formed last fall, back in Maine. There were a thousand of us then. There's not three hundred of us now." He glanced up briefly. "But what is left is choice." He was embarrassed. He spoke very slowly, staring at the ground. "Some of us volunteered to fight for Union. Some came in mainly because we were bored at home and this looked like it might be fun. Some came because we were ashamed not to. Many of us came ... because it was the right thing to do. All of us have seen men die. Most of us never saw a black man back home. We think on that, too. But freedom ... is not just a word." He looked up into the sky, over silent faces. "This is a different kind of army. If you look at history you'll see men fight for pay, or women, or some other kind of loot. They fight for land, or because a king makes them, or just because they like killing. But we're here for something new. I don't ... this hasn't happened much in the history of the world. We're an army going out to set other men free." He bent down, scratched the black dirt into his fingers. He was beginning to warm to it; the words were beginning to flow. No one in front of him was moving. He said, "This is free ground. All the way from here to the Pacific Ocean. No man has to bow. No man born to royalty. Here we judge you by what you do, not by what your father was. Here you can be something. Here's a place to build a home. It isn't the land--there's always more land. It's the idea that we all have value, you and me, we're worth something more than the dirt. I never saw dirt I'd die for, but I'm not asking you to come join us and fight for dirt. What we're all fighting for, in the end, is each other." historical-fiction-history-war historical-fiction Jeff Shaara
993401b "The formula for this brand of "historical" writing is to put the public on the inside; to let them feel the palpitations of royal and imperial lovers and to overhear their lispings and cooings. It can be argued that a man has to live somewhere, and that if his own time is so cut up by rapid change that he can't find a cranny big enough to relax in, then he must betake himself to the past. That is certainly one motive in the production of historical romance, from Sir Walter Scott to Thornton Wilder. But mainly this formula works as a means of flattery. The public is not only invited inside but encouraged to believe that there is nothing inside that differs from its own thoughts and feelings. This reassurance is provided by endowing historical figures with the sloppiest possible minds. The great are "humanized" by being trivial. The debunking school began by making the great appear as corrupt, or mean and egotistical. The "humanizers" have merely carried on to make them idiotic. "Democratic" vanity has reached such proportions that it cannot accept as human anything above the level of cretinous confusion of mind of the type popularized by Hemingway's heroes. Just as the new star must be made to appear successful by reason of some freak of fortune, so the great, past or present, must be made to seem so because of the most ordinary qualities, to which fortune adds an unearned trick or idea." -- time fiction past truth relaxation past-and-present rapid-change historical-fiction nostalgia Marshall McLuhan
5dff2d5 That is not the Dryad. It has three masts.' 'There is no concealing anything from the Doctor,' said Jack, and turning directly to him he went on, 'Give you joy of our prize: we took her in the night.' 'Breakfast is disgracefully late,' said Stephen. royal-navy patrick-o-brian maturin naval historical-fiction Patrick O'Brian
2f127ac What you are Vivian is a type of person. To be more specific,you are a type of woman. A tediously common type of woman. Do you think I've not encountered your type before? Your sort will always be slinking around, playing your boring and vulgar little games, causing your boring and vulgar little problems. You are the type of woman, Vivian, because you will always be playing with toys that are not your own. A woman of your type often believes she is a person of significance because she can make trouble and spoil things for others. But she is neither important nor interesting love inspirational elizabethgilbert historical-fiction Elizabeth Gilbert
dc2d45d Hagnon fixes a value to everything. It occurs to Alexander that the man would probably sell his mother for an obol and consider it a deal. historical-fiction Eleanor Herman
f833b88 Nothing in the world matters more than life. You have a long road to walk and a lot of lessons to learn if you don't know that. historical-fiction Philippa Gregory
ef08431 "Cease, daughter!" said the priest at last in a trembling voice. "I cannot grant absolution, no priest could..." religion historical-fiction Anya Seton
b11a55e Even the most egregious captive state, bound and gagged on her damp bunk, felt eerily familiar to her. With nothing to do but lie there and think of things, she reflected that captivity took many different forms. A woman under the domination of her father or husband was as much a prisoner as a hostage on a boat. She had merely traded one form of servitude for another. historical-romance historical-fiction Susan Wiggs
a42c9b3 The giant beech next door intends to shiver off every hair of its pelt. kingsolver lacuna historical-fiction méxico Barbara Kingsolver
19874c7 En ese momento se dio la vuelta, como movida por una rafaga de viento. historical-fiction Penelope Fitzgerald
86d4b43 "Franchement vu la facon dont j'ai ete traitee par les gens dits "civilises", il me tarde finalement d'aller vivre chez les sauvages." amerique historical-fiction Jim Fergus
d26e5cd "My nation, as all nations, is becoming a land without peace, without thought, without mind, Madam Abbess. We are suffocating our spirits in commercial and material things. This is not envy," said Mr. Konishi earnestly. "I am a rich man, with much business, so I have succeeded in all these things, but I know that they are empty." fiction monasticism historical-fiction Rumer Godden
89c7b35 Be proud. Be proud you are a soldier. Be proud you are a woman. historical-fiction Kathryn Lasky
2a72981 Sie denkt: Sie sagen einfach nur Worte und was sind Worte anderes als Gerausche, die diese Manner aus Atem formen, gewichtslose Dampfe, die sie in die Kuchenluft schicken, wo sie sich auflosen und sterben. romance historical-fiction suspense Anthony Doerr
57a6c06 The human heart Is unknowable. But in my birthplace The flowers still smell The same as always. fiction monasticism historical-fiction Rumer Godden
6a07c1a Llevar una oficina no es tan dificil, le dijo Just. Basicamente consiste en saber, en primer lugar, que entra; en segundo lugar, que queda pendiente; en tercer lugar, que asuntos han sido gestionados y estan listos para salir; y en cuarto lugar, que es lo que ya ha salido. Todos los asuntos deben encontrarse en una de estas cuatro etapas, y de este modo no se puede poner la excusa de que se ha traspapelado algun documento. Para cada transaccion debe haber un registro, y de ese registro tienes que poder obtener inmediatamente una copia escrita. El mundo civilizado no podria existir sin su cohorte de escribientes, y estos a su vez no podrian existir si la civilizacion no requiriese tanto papeleo. - Yo no resistiria la vida si tuviera que que trabajar de escribiente, le dijo Fritz. - No deberia existir ese tipo de trabajo. - Ni una revolucion acabaria con el, le dijo Coelestin Just. - Habria escribientes al pie de la guillotina. historical-fiction Penelope Fitzgerald
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