Hi-jacking 'a silly book game' from Book Talk - pt 5

How to play:

1. Grab the book you're currently reading.
2. Find a quote which answers the question in the post above yours.
3. Tell us what book you're quoting (include author's name).
4. Find another quote from the same book (a question this time) for the next poster to answer.

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Previously, from LynnB:

"Wendell, do you believe in magic?"

Current entry:

"Is that supposed to pique my curiosity?"

The Soldier's Scoundrel by Cat Sebastian

"Anything odd in the house?"

"We'll just have to wait and see, boss."

Wired Courage by Toby Neal

"What did Hamilton tell you?'"

"He's apparently quite mad..."

Mélusine by Sarah Monette

"Can I hire you?"

"I'm here to help you."

Full Disclosure by Beverley McLachlin

"So, what precisely do you need, Miss Truitt?"

"What was the reporter's name?"

Cliff Hanger; a Martha's Vineyard Mystery
by Philip Craig

"Good God! . . . You really are all right?"

"One of my best visits, that was"

The Night Watchmen by Helen Cresswell

"Why does anyone have green eyes?"

So I ask, "How you know da goddess?"

Murder at Volcano House by Chip Hughes

"On whose orders?"

"Oh, the doctors."

Personal Injuries by Scott Turow

"What do they know?"

"They work, see, and they've got wives and families, and watch football, and television and that, and they know very well there's no such things!"

The Winter of the Birds by Helen Cresswell

"And when've you ever known my imagination run away with me?"

Sure! . . . I'm with you!!

The Brawler by Neil Connelly

"How can you 'sort of pray'?"

"Well, that was a bit of a farce, wasn’t it?"

The Widow by Fiona Barton

"Any tall, dark strangers this week, Mum?"

"None of your business!"

X by Sue Grafton

He was born (in Burning Oaks)?"

"Certainly a poor place according to English ideas."

The Secret Diaries of Anne Lister by Anne Lister

"What has she thought of my kissing her when she was here on Thursday?"

'Chrissy thought her heart might stop.'

Dirty Little Secrets by Jo Spain

'Were you at home and if so, did you see or hear anything out of the ordinary?'

"My errand was...to desire the leech-woman to come this evening at 6 & bring a dozen leeches."

The Secret Diaries of Anne Lister by Anne Lister

"Ah, can you ever love anyone else?"

'It’s the best idea for getting easy cash every month that I’ve thought of, bar lottery winning, which cannot be factored in to financial planning.'

The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary

'Why didn’t you answer? Isn’t that rude?'

"I was near-sighted. I had passed my own father, who fancied it done on purpose."

The Secret Diaries of Anne Lister by Anne Lister

"Get her up regularly every morning at 9...where life & health are so at stake, ought it not to be done?"

'Right, of course. I’m such a mess I can hardly think straight.'

The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary

‘What kind of drunk are you?’

"I find myself thinking of the Royal Naval Barracks at Devonport..."

Collected Poems 1951-1975 by Charles Causley

"Why have you brought me
Children's toys?"

‘I thought I was helping!’

The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary

'Foxes are nice, though, aren’t they?'

"...Tasted like heaven."

The Bird Skinner by Alice Greenway

"Did you lose your leg in the war?"

'I don’t know where it has gone.'

Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney

‘What was he sorry for?’

"Having a well-developed 'internal mannequin.' "

Life Drawing in 15 minutes by Jake Spicer

"Your drawing...does anything need changing?"

'it was pure ugly. Grey and dark, its loneliness spilled out of every crevice.'

When All is Said by Anne Griffin

‘what do you need to get this thing off your sister-in-law?’

"His ice-axe."

Family Sayings by Natalia Ginzburg

-I always go home when it is time for religious instruction.
-And why?

‘Jesus, Merry! I don’t know!’

Snap by Belinda Bauer

-This is the house where we’re going to catch Goldilocks.
-How?

"You're going to need a towel, 4 very fine 1" long nails, a light hammer and a little bit of luck."

Dorgan Rushton's Collages by Dorgan Rushton

"How about a collage of a fish?"

‘I can’t do that!’

The Whisper Man by Alex North

- You’re the only one he’ll ever talk to.
- Yes.
- Why do you think that is?

"I studied Classics and history throughout my time at school."

The Map of Knowledge by Violet Moller

"If you could look down on the Mediterranean world in the year 500, what would you see?"

"...the taste for twilight that led to the closing of doors...the extinction of candles..."

The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells

"Who could agree with such goings on?"

"Miss Woodley cried with fervour 'Heaven forbid!' "

A Simple Story by Elizabeth Inchbald

"Can I go to the ladies?"

"Indeed!"

The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells

"What d'yer mean by letting a man make a fool of himself like that for?"

"I don't pay much attention to hairstyles."

Quantico by Greg Bear

"Shall we concentrate?"

"I never thought of that."

The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells

"And you troubled no more about the hunchback?"

"I thought we agreed to keep politics out of this little holiday."

Five on Brexit Island by Bruno Vincent

"Wanna hotdog love?"

"Huh? I came to buy some bean buns..."

Natsume's Book of Friends, vol. 14 by Yuki Midorikawa

"An urn started chasing you?"

"At eighty, you find these sorts of things rather trivial."

The Unlikely Redemption of John Alexander MacNeil by Lesley Choyce

"Do you suppose it's the Alzheimer's catching up with me?"

"....He hooted and flew round and round the shop."

Little Hoo Tries to Help by Joyce Francis

"How ever did an owl get into that pram?"

"It was the Viagara."

The Unlikely Redemption of John Alexander MacNeil by Lesley Choyce

"You and Lauchie are talking again?

"I am hungry you see and I need a nice bed!"

Little Hoo Tries to Help by Joyce Francis

"You have seen all the dogs I have. You are very hard to please, aren't you?"

"

"You have no idea."

The Fireman by Joe Hill

"What were you doing with a sandbag?"

"...Popular in private and in informal public situations, as a form of casual 'undress' (as it was then called.)

White Mughals by William Dalrymple

"Why don't you send me on pilgrimage to Gpd's holy house at Mecca?"

"Because everything would be stiff, and cold, and uncomfortable."

Phineas Finn by Anthony Trollope

"Are we going to have a new iron fleet built? That's the question."

"Incur, on my account, any expense that may be requisite to secure (them) not only from damp but even from the sea air which would be apt to tarnish the silver trimmings."

White Mughals by William Dalrymple

"What is become of the chicknee, suparu and cardamoms I ordered for the Begum?"

“They all came to bad ends, and messy ones.”

‘The Adder’, in More Shapes Than One: A Book of Stories by Fred Chappell.

“Do you still crave lasagne?”

"Not for ever so long"

The Eustace Diamonds by Anthony Trollope

"Where do you suppose that Mr. Burke's speeches were made?"

"town council's new chambers on the second floor of the West Ward Market Building, Upper Town."

Chaudiere Falls by David Mulholland

"When do you want to meet?"

"Give me ten minutes to-morrow between breakfast and church"

The Eustace Diamonds by Anthony Trollope

"What is he going to say to me?"

"Where's the nearest all-night chemist?"

Serbo-Croatian for Travellers by Berlitz

"What are the facilities?"

"The men are still working on them."

Chaudiere Falls by David Mulholland

"Are you and Catherine ready for Christmas?"

"Oh dear, no. We are late, I tell you."

The Eustace Diamonds by Anthony Trollope

"What makes you unhappy, Lucy?"

"The same food is served at every breakfast..."

Chaudiere Falls by David Mulholland

"Why did you come here?"

'to take her to one of those experimental places that offer sausage-flavoured ice cream or deep-fried hedgehog.'

The Janus Stone by Elly Griffiths

'Surely she hasn’t come all this way to have a pub meal surrounded by braying Londoners?'

"I don't believe she'd care if she had nothing but a crust to eat."

The Eustace Diamonds by Anthony Trollope

"How could we make her welcome?"

‘I’ve made chocolate brownies.’

The Janus Stone by Elly Griffiths

‘Have you found any more skeletons?’

"Stop muttering creepy things!"

Loveless vol. 9 by Yun Kouga

"What do you think happens when your heart breaks?"

"Clinical insanity"

The Essential Nietzsche by Paul Strathern

"What was wrong with him?"

'The sensation was like a balloon, pricked of air, collapsing in on itself into a sad little pile of coloured rubber'

The Death of Mrs Westaway . By Ruth Ware

'What’s your tattoo?’

"A pipe."

The Henchmen of Zenda by KJ Charles

“What do you think of the scheme?”

'I think the consensus in Derry will be that the local brigade of the IRA is in your debt.'

Police at the Station and They Don't Look Friendly by Adrian McKinty

'Who fancies a trip to Derry?'

"I'd rather not."

The Only Story by Julien Barnes

"Do you need some money?"

"I might have known it would come to that."

Searching for Caleb by Anne Tyler

"Is it morning yet?"

"That owlish observation caused cackling laughter."

The Last Train to Zona Verde by Paul Theroux

"Do you want to be a priest?"

"Well, not on purpose, no...."

Searching for Caleb by Anne Tyler

"Want a nose ring?"

'Aye. Look, it’s not a bad thing.'

Falling Glass by Adrian McKinty

'What do you do for Mr Forsythe exactly?'

"Measure one of the large earth-worms...he was eleven inches and three-quarter."

The Congo & the Cameroons by Mary Kingsley

"Now in the world is anyone going to take a bath in a house with no doors?"

"I have a washerman, a very nice person, and he scrubs behind, whilst I scrub in front."

Charles Darwin's Letters: A Selection 1825 - 1859 edited by Frederick Burkhardt

"Are castrated deer larger than ordinary bucks?"

"You'll have to work that out for yourself."

Iron & Velvet by Alexis Hall

- "It is a portrait of the most beautiful woman in Venice, painted by a great master."
- "And you have it ... why?"

'Uncle G traded it for a couple of horses'

Falling Glass by Adrian Mckinty

'And what do the Chinese like to do more than anything?'

"Gracious me, how direct ... I've been moving primarily in academic circles these past thirty years, where circumlocution is an art form."

Shadows & Dreams by Alexis Hall

"My collection houses items of real power."
"What kind of real power?"

"Punishments which humiliate the offender, embitter him and contribute to his moral degradation."

A Journey to the End of the Russian Empire by Anton Chekhov

"Are the radishes ripe yet?"

"Sure, you ain't done nothing wrong."

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

"What you want me to read that for?"

"Baudelaire was my hero."

Motherland by Paul Theroux

"Can you describe the key tactical decision of Pickett's Charge that determined the Battle of Gettysburg?"

Hide in the brush and wait for George

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

Then if you know, why you want to ast us where Curley is at?

'... Asked out of politeness.'

Falling Glass by Adrian McKinty

'So I hear you’re going to be the first Irishman in space?'

It can be very unpleasant and is often asssociated with nausea and vomiting"

Complete Family Health Guide

"Have you had an injury in the genital area within the past 48 hours?"

"...this is minor. A sideshow fracture."

Soar, Adam, Soar by Rick Prashaw

"The meds?"

"Cornflakes- as an energy-depleting anti-mastubatory tool."

Breakfast is a Dangerous Meal by Terence Kealey

"What happened to breakfast after the fall of the Roman Empire?"

"I thought it was some sort of morning ritual you have here."

Silver Diamond 2 by Shiho Sugiura

"This is a dictionary. Do you know how to use it?"

'Aye. But I’m missing the point. What is it that you’re not telling me?'

Falling Glass by Adrian Mckinty

'Why am I not front page news now?'

"You're precious, so we need to protect you."

Silver Diamond 2 by Shiho Sugiura

"Why are there so few good-looking people in this world?"

"There was considerable intermarriage...many who had remarkably similar facial features and expression."

Aylesbury by WR Mead

"What is a friarage?"

"...the cemetery of criminals, guarded by the ringing bells."

Silver Diamond vol. 9 by Shiho Sugiura

"Can I do some gardening over there?"

'I don’t know where you get the energy from'

Hidden River by Adrian Mckinty

'And where DO you bury a Jewish atheist-humanist in Belfast?'

"I definitely don't want to die anymore."

Silver Diamond vol. 18 by Sugiura Shiho

"Do you think that just because you're a god, you're allowed to do whatever you want?"

"Damned right, and there will be an inquiry starting today."

The Hope by Herman Wouk

"Why is the officer screaming like a maniac?"

"Sleep deprivation leads to stress."

The Clever Guts Diet by Michael Mosley

"Sleep quality...what can we do about it?"

"They swarmed to the bar, demanding cognac..."

The Hope by Herman Wouk

"They're killing the chickens now?"

"If you stand on your toes, I reckon you should be able to see them."

A Book of Bones by John Connolly

"When was this new wall put up?"

"Once I had seen and filmed the young tapeworms in my gut."

The Clever Guts Diet by Michael Mopsley

"Were you spooked by the idea of having a parasite inside you?"

"Her scream was shrill and shocking..."

The Dark Half by Stephen King

"Are we talking about in utero cannibalism here?"

"You'll understand when you meet him."

Master of Restless Shadows by Ginn Hale

"You wouldn't happen to know of a discreet physician, would you?"

"You just tell Dr. Schuamburg you can't discuss my case without the authorization, and I'll think of something."

Repo Madness: A Novel by W. Bruce Cameron

"Hey, so, after you've been to the Shantytown festival, are you coming to the Bear?"

"I have to memorize a psalm"

Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood

-I like it that women like my work.
-Do men like your work?

"I'm a virgin."

The Hope by Herman Wouk

"Are all the bullets supposed to miss me?"

"Don't push your luck!"

Master of Restless Shadows by Ginn Hale

“They wouldn’t fight a war over this incident, would they?”

"Whatever happens, it's a political opportunity for us..."

The Hope by Herman Wouk

"Suppose I walked out there naked with her handkerchief?"

“That sounds reasonable. Let us all three get a little sun and fresh air then.”

Master of Restless Shadows by Ginn Hale

“Have my botanicals arrived already?"

"Nobody wants to admit they're really fertility symbols"

The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood

-This girl...just stopped washing.
-So, what happened then?

"The flies were horrendous here."

The Hope by Herman Wouk

"...I know that, but what is all this about omelettes?"

"Egg...is duck"

Master of Restless Shadows by Ginn Hale

"...what do I possess that could possibly benefit either of you?”

"All the straight dope on hermaphrodites."

The Hope by Herman Wouk

"...when and how did you learn how to do the highland fling?"

"Right by the Ferry Bar."

Repo Madness: A Novel by W. Bruce Cameron

"You got those tickets with you?"

"In large wads"

The Secret World of Farm Animals by Jeffrey Masson

"Cows...what do you see when you look at them?"

"This is the crucial implication of drunkenness as myopia"

Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell

"Well, how on earth can we decide what 'really drunk' means?"

"We tend to go on benders where we can't remember what we did."

The Bitterroots: A Novel by C. J. Box

"So again, why did you come back?"

'...to see to the chickens.'

The children of Old Leech: A Tribute to the Carnivorous Cosmos of Laird Barron by Ross E. Lockhart and Justin Steele

'He was out—how? Parole?'

"Sometimes, they're not guilty."

The Bitterroots: A Novel by C. J. Box

"Is the sheriff hostile to all women or just me?"

'He is. I gather he was as gifted as the rest of the family, but chose a career in law enforcement, instead. Presumably, to allow him a safe vantage point from which to pursue his less-wholesome activities.'

The children of Old Leech: A Tribute to the Carnivorous Cosmos of Laird Barron by Ross E. Lockhart and Justin Steele

'It's not a scroll, and it’s damn sure not a genealogy, so what is it?'

"I'm working on a comic-book project,..."

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

"What did you tell the boy by the road?"

"I seen a rider on the captain's house up in the country from here"

Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy

"You dont know me, do ye?"

'I know that you know that I know what creeps deep inside of you.'

The children of Old Leech: A Tribute to the Carnivorous Cosmos of Laird Barron by Ross E. Lockhart and Justin Steele

'You sick?'

"I feel too good, talk all you want; I feel fine!"

The Cat's Pajamas: Stories by Ray Bradbury

"What was I supposed to notice?"

"The night sky was brighter than it had been."

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

"You want to scrape drunks off the sidewalk for a living?"

"Nothing you haven't done to a dozen others over the years."

The Cat's Pajamas: Stories by Ray Bradbury

"Will you help me?"

'You brought this on yourself, Wah, and for your father’s sake I hope you put an end to it before it grows worse.'

The children of Old Leech: A Tribute to the Carnivorous Cosmos of Laird Barron by Ross E. Lockhart and Justin Steele

'What did it smell like?'

"Banana pudding, mostly."

Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife by Mary Roach

"Does your wife understand your project?"

"... looking for another bride."

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

"Does anyone have a cigarette?"

"It can actually cause harm."

It Could Be Worse, You Could Be Me by Ariel Leve

"Why can't you be more like your clone?"

"I'm not very submissive."

Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife by Mary Roach

"Wouldn't it be funny if it turned out that all along, it was the scarf?"

"Don't ask where she got it."

It Could Be Worse, You Could Be Me by Ariel Leve

"Does it smell weird?"

“Wow… It smells like… like… My grandmother’s farm.”

The children of Old Leech: A Tribute to the Carnivorous Cosmos of Laird Barron by Ross E. Lockhart and Justin Steele

'You didn’t give this to the Constabulary?'

"They'd be useless."

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood

"Are you a cop?"

'I'm the poor man's James Bond.'

Procession of the Black Sloth by Laird Barron

'"What's the worst predicament you've ever been in?'

"An eruptive malady and also a bronchitic cough"

Wild Wales by George Borrow

"And who is this young lady?"

“Oh, then this is a social call? I would’ve fixed my hair, naughty boy.”

Hand of Glory by Laird Barron

“Hey, now city feller. My name’s Candy. How’n ya like our burg?"

"I love it here."

Broken Man on a Halifax Pier by Lesley Choyce

"Any real estate available?"

The tiny wing apartment in the infirmary annex

The world according to Garp by John Irving

Haven't you ever been here before?

"I promised myself never to tell you."

A Broken Man on a Halifax Pier by Lesley Choyce

"Why were you speaking to my mother?"

“Oh, yes, I did: why not?”

‘The Cat’, in Night Terrors: The Ghost Stories of E. F. Benson.

“But is it possible you don’t see what a terrible risk you run?”

"I never thought about it. But probably."

Broken Man on a Halifax Pier by Lesley Choyce

"What'd you do with the money?"

"Oh, I have to call your mother. "

The world according to Garp by John Irving

"At what basis can the pension Grillparzer hope to get a B?"

"Evidence of a positive but somewhat vulgar personality, sofas and armchairs covered in virulent magenta chintz with huge medallions."

The Quest for Queen Mary by James Pope-Hennessy

"Is Lady Susan still as big as ever?"

"The poor thing has a terribly hard thing in eating."

The world according to Garp by John Irving

" 'They' married your sister?"

"...They were always fighting and squabbling among themselves"

The Quest for Queen Maryby James Pope-Hennessy

"Will you be taking a bath this morning, Sir?"

"Twice in Sgezed."

The world according to Garp by John Irving

"Oh Duna, practicing again?"

"Superintending the installation of a new sundial"

The Quest for Queen Mary by James Pope-Hennessy

"What did (Queen Mary) like having read to her?"

The first truly feminist autobiography that is as full of celebrating one kind of life as it is full of putting down another.

The world according to Garp by John Irving

"Is there something the matter with that woman's tongue?"

"She has an incredible mouth, there's no doubt about that."

Why I Killed My Best Friend by Amanda Michalopoulou

"What do you mean?"

"...a slightly virulent jade-green, stained here and there by the yellow marks of dog's mess..."

The Quest for Queen Mary by James Pope-Hennessy *

"Do you know what makes the Beaverbrook press so hostile? Can you guess?"

* a book that was DESIGNED for this game!

"We've gone over this a thousand times."

Why I Killed My Best Friend by Amanda Michalopoulou

"Aren't they just doing their jobs?"

"It's a long story"

The world according to Garp by John Irving

"You wrote a good book, now you will write another one. Isn't it just what you always have wanted?"

"Wealth, power and status"

How to Read Gardens by Lorraine Harrison

"What is this garden for?"

"The strains of a species that produced more rather than less psilocybin and psilocin would tend to be favored and so gradually become more widespread."

How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence by Michael Pollan

"Did you know that 23 primates (including humans) consume mushrooms and know how to distinguish 'good' from 'bad'?"

"It was one of Kostya's few demonstrable skills."

Immigrant City by David Bezmozgis

"Why don't you introduce us?"

"Ties bind both ways"

Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone

"Don't the odds trouble you?"

"We could literally have a bake sale and we could get started."

American Catch: The Fight for Our Local Seafood by Paul Greenberg

"Do I have to take the knife?"

"Your kid's safe with me," .. "don't worry, I 'm quite harmless - with children" , she added. "And I don't smoke in bed. "

The world according to Garp by John Irving

"Why did you stop me?"

"BLACK MOLD!"

Priestdaddy by Patricia Lockwood

"Can you recommend something?"

"A profusion of pink ribbons"

Wild Wales by George Borrow

"Do you take me for a pig-jobber?"

"What we've got is a bad perception problem."

American Catch: The Fight for Our Local Seafood by Paul Greenberg

"Did you hear … alarms on the evening of April 20?"

'I heard a noise. When I returned, Jean Sibelius was on the floor. His chest and head was in many little pieces. There was a tennis ball near.'

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell

- A psychiatrist.
- Oh? Why does your sister need one of them?

"She brings home half-price loo rolls and stale cough sweets"

The Suitcase Kid by Jacqueline Wilson

"Who's that great gawky child with enormous feet?"

‘She’s Canadian.'

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell

‘Why kill the two sunbathing youths?'

"I think they look like grey slimy worms. They always give me the shudders."

Sleepovers by Jacqueline Wilson

"What are you going to put on your pizza?"

"Apple cider, lemon juice, honey, soy sauce."

Back Roads by Tawni O'Dell

"You want a beer?"

"They didnt just have little paper umbrellas...they had tiny Mickey Mouse stirrers and cherries on sticks and icecubes in the shape of stars!"

Sleepovers by Jacqueline Wilson

"Can I try your shoes on?"

'You can smell them, I think?'

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell

'of what do they dream?'

"What it was like to live with a snooker player"

The Post-Birthday World by Lionel Shriver

"Is it alright if I turn out the light?"

'And then see what happens?'

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

'This afternoon … in the maze, did you see something!!?’

'An underwater stillness, no wind or rain, not even a small owl, just a thick blanket of silence.'

All The Birds Singing by Evie Wyld

'Well that's not trespassing, is it?'

"They had to run into the neighbor's yard to retrieve the ball.

Stories that Bind Us by Susie Finkbeiner

"Are you ready for our little adventure?"

"Better yet, here is a way of getting around "the mule problem."

Complexity: The Evolution of Earth's Biodiversity and the Future of Humanity
by William C. Burger

"How could this have happened after five years of careful trials?"

"I hope you don't mind".

All The Birds, Singing by Evie Wyld

"Why's he doing that?"

"He's shut in the suitcase. With his legs bent back and his nose squashed sideways."

Buried Alive by Jacqueline Wilson

"Here's a little rockpool. What's this blobby red thing?!

"Some mongrel watered down the gene pool."

River Dogs: Stories by Robert Olmstead

"Hard day at the office there, Chief?"

"I told you. We saw a film. It was a film about ants."

The Demon Headmaster by Gillian Cross

-She looked at the sums.
-Aren't they imposssible?

"Maybe they can bargain her down to five."

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

"Unless you've got a better idea?"

"I keep meaning to buy a pumice stone for my feet"

Duet by Carol Shields

Mr Mario pulls (my hair) straight out and regards my image in the mirror.
What did you have in mind?

"You must have time for your art."

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

"You spent all that time and just pfft - like that?"

"We got a lot of work to do."

River Dogs by Robert Olmstead

"If you love me, then why do we have to take chances?"

"But we don't want anyone else to get hurt."

The Last Widow by Karin Slaughter

"What do all of these men have in common?"

"It is like a malady. Everyone one of them is infected."

English Passengers by Matthew Kneale

"Then what do you propose?"

"I have an improvement to suggest."

The Mangle Street Murders by M.R.C. Kasian

'But what did you notice about her?"

"She drove them away."

The Last Widow by Karin Slaughter

"We don't want to be using any of your devices, do we?"

"Unless one managed to make a photograph of it."

The Mangle Street Murders by M.R.C. Kasasian

"May I ask when you last saw this good-hearted gentleman?"

"Everything started a few months ago: I was working in my office with an engineer, Mr. Albert Calaora, when we suddenly fell seriously ill."

Extremely Loud: Sound As a Weapon by Juliette Volcler

"What determines the intensity or 'energy' of a gathering?"

"I have not the slightest idea."

English Passengers by Matthew Kneale

"What is distressing you?"

The head fell off right away..."

Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strut

"Still bleeding?"

" Of Course it isn't."

Blue Diary by Alice Hoffman

'"Are you Smoking?"

"Well, you get dry after a hysterectomy, you know."

Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout

"How's your dog these days?"

"It's a bit more serious than locking a goat in the science lab."

Fool's Puzzle by Earlene Fowler

"Isn't psychological intimidation a form of police harassment?"

"Most of you would have noticed that Mr Ford isn't here today."

Blue Diary by Alice Hoffman.

" How many times have you been in love?"

‘Why, what did you hear?’

The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan

'...what did she and Danny have to argue about?'

"I don't know if you know this - she had a little drinking problem."

Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout

"What things do you shut up about?"

"Pretty much anything that goes in a jar."

The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

"Do you ever think about going to see a psychiatrist?"

"Well, I do, but this is something different."

Blue Diary by Alice Hoffman

"Do you think we have a chance of winning?"

"Oh, of course."

Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout

"What do you think?"

"He just needs something to occupy him."

River Dogs by Robert Olsmtead

"What are you doing?"

"Libraries were a solace in the Great Depression."

The Library Book by Susan Orlean

"If he wasn't guilty, how was he accused?

meant to apply to post number 189, but superseded by
post 190.

"He was going to blow up a coal mine in eastern Kentucky."

American Subversive by David Goodwillie

"But tell me, why blow up a mine that's already been blown up?"

" I don't know. Let me think."

The House On Half Moon Street by Alex Reeve

"So you're saying that he just fell in?"

‘I think that was it, but I’m such a very old lady, detective. I really can’t be sure of anything.’

The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan

‘Why are you by yourself?’

"The first thing is something that the old man told me when he as dying".

The River Dogs by Robert Olmstead

"Why are you telling me this?"

'I think accuracy is important, don’t you?'

The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan

- She was a terrible mother.
- In what way?

'' She ran out of margarine. She ran out of goddamn margarine".

The River Dogs by Robert Olmstead

"Did I ever show you my room?"

'No You don't, but if you have a reason I just want to hear it'

The world according to Garp by John Irving

'Just how did you drop Maggie Tallworth?'

"Divorce does that."

Trans-Sister Radio by Chris Bohjalian

"How do you know you're falling in love?"

'I felt a peculiar energy pass between us'

Magpie Lane by Lucy Atkins

'So, what were you doing all the way down there, last July, so early in the morning?'

"...An effort to become the first person to reach the South Pole."

Roald Dahl's Fantabulous Facts by Roald Dahl

"Why do we play April Fool jokes?"

"A profound human desire."

Trans-Sister Radio by Chris Bohjalian

"Are you worried?"

'It’s terrifying when you think about the number of sociopaths out there with Oxford matriculation photos hanging in their downstairs loos.’

Magpie Lane by Lucy Atkins

Anything strike you as a bit off?

More dust, rat droppings, straw, ropes, stirrups, a small cracked saddle, a plastic bucket, a five-litre fuel can, empty grain sacks.

Peace by Garry Disher

" Now what can I do for you?"

‘Maybe you could have a look round for that cat in a minute?’

Magpie Lane by Lucy Atkins

‘What does Mrs Diles see in the attic?’

Stacked at the bottom, their labels faded and chewed by silverfish, were three old film canisters.

Peace by Garry Fisher

" Have you lived there very long?"

"For a day, yes."

American Subversive by David Goodwillie

"How often do you come up here?"

" iv'e got a few days, holiday due to me so I might take it next week and go up then."

The House Across The Street by Lesley Pearse

"Well how about you act a little more welcoming?"

"All successful candidates are named Bob."

You Look Like a Thing and I Love You: How Artificial Intelligence Works and Why It's Making the World a Weirder Place
by Janelle Shane

"Hey baby, you're to be a key?"

"You want to come ? I can get you in for free."

Spirits of the Ghan by Judy Nun

"Well, well, what do we have here?"

"Bird is staring at giraffe asking about leaf thievery."

You Look Like a Thing and I Love You: How Artificial Intelligence Works and Why It's Making the World a Weirder Place
by Janelle Shane

"Anybody want to let me in?"

‘If you don’t go away right now, I’m going to call the police.’

Magpie Lane by Lucy Atkins

'How will I know if I do the wrong thing here?'

"When in doubt, do nothing."

You Look Like a Thing and I Love You: How Artificial Intelligence Works and Why It's Making the World a Weirder Place
by Janelle Shane

"Why jump when you can cancan?"

"It's a risk one must take."

Racists by Kunal Basu

"But what would happen next?"

" About time we got going."

River Dogs by Robert Olmstead

"How can you be so sure?"

‘I’ve asked myself that a lot.'

The Other Child by Lucy Atkins

- It's a sign!
- Of what?

"Watch the storm, it could get worse."

The Winter Sea by Di Morrissey

'But I can still boil the kettle. Tea or Coffee?"

‘An Earl Grey would be lovely.'

The Other Child by Lucy Atkins

‘What are you a professor of?’

"The Newport Historical Society."

River Dogs by Robert Olmstead

I like that, George, but it is a little rich, don't you think?"

‘You have high standards, don’t you?’

The Burning by Jane Casey

‘When you got here, what did you find?’

"Well, Mr Mandl has quite a reputation with women."

The Only Woman In The Room by Marie Benedict

"What do you know of him?"

'He plans, he prepares, he is confident and he will not stop unless we stop him.’

The Burning by Jane Casey

- They obviously didn’t see what I saw.
- And what was that?

It had not not been what he expected, what he thought anyone, even a grieving widower, had a right to expect.

Rose's Garden by Carrie Brown

"They won't be too cold out there?"

"They are tried and true."

The Death and Life of the Great Lakes by Dan Egan

"We said in our enthusiasm, who did this?"

Bridger started to speak, but searched in vain for the words to express the depth of his shame and regret.

The Revenant by Michael Punke

'Do you want to stay an find out?'

‘Well, you stay if you want... But I’m not. There’s no reason for me to stay here.’

The Lying Game by Ruth Ware

'What happened in that pub?’

For five years he made his living in and around the taverns of Memphis.

The Revenant by Michael Punke

" Is this what it is like to die?'

“Nobody ever guessed that there were material ghosts in the spirit world”

‘Spinach’, in Night Terrors: The Ghost Stories of E. F. Benson

“Why did young Spinach refer to his uncle as ‘it’?”

'Perhaps he was psychologically abusive.'

Someone We Know by Shari Lapena

‘A bit drastic, isn’t it, murder?’

"Others have done it."

Shadow of the Silk Road by Colin Thubron

-I'd wanted to be a monk since I was 10.
-Why?

“‘By the power of God!’ he shouted. ‘By the power of God!’”

‘Bagnell Terrace’, in Night Terrors: The Ghost Stories of E. F. Benson.

“What was it you smelt this afternoon in the big room?”

"A makeshift lavatory."

Shadow of the Silk Road by Colin Thubron

"My face is pale, did you notice?"

“That’s a good example of how ghost stories arise.”

‘Naboth’s Vineyard’, in Night Terrors: The Ghost Stories of E. F. Benson.

“Well, pleasant rubbers?”

"Uncouth manhood!"

Shadow of the Silk Road by Colin Thubron

"Do you have these in London?" He whacked the donkey's rump.

"I do. You might call me the district horse vet."

Peace By Gary Disher

"Did Bob tell you that I had reported a fire?"

"He was wringing his hands, saying 'I don't want to do the wrong thing'."

Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know
by Malcolm Gladwell

"What time of day was it?"

It was eleven thirty on a Friday, the night her father got paid, the worst day of the week

The Private Patient by P. D. James

" Is the wound likely to be painful, after the operation I mean?"

"I believe so, yes, ma'am."

Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know
by Malcolm Gladwell

"You want to talk of another fraud?"

The thought was too irrational, even superstitious, to be seriously examined an he thrust it aside.

The Private Patient by P. D. James

'When is she leaving?"

“But what his wife had seen that drove her from the house, and why, seeing us, she had whisked back into it again I had no notion.”

‘The Corner House’, in Night Terrors: The Ghost Stories of E. F. Benson.

“What did we see or feel? And what did she see or feel?”

"It was an experience of much the same quality as... careening down a dangerous snow slope without properly knowing how to ski."

Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know
by Malcolm Gladwell

"What was going to be the purpose of pulling her out?"

"Very bad. I'm going to get off this road the first chance chance I have."

Mr Splitfoot by Helen McLoy

"Is it so important to be graceful?"

"Once you have clothes and ornaments, you will be a welcome sight for a bridegroom"

The Mirror and the Light by Hilary Mantel

-I wish you had painted my wife.
-Why? She was pretty?

As she came into the sunlight he realized she was not that sort of person, at least, though what sort she was he could not tell.

The Falconer by Elaine Clarke McCarthy

And what was a ghost, anyway, but another sort of person?

"I never should have believed it."

Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo

"What are you going to do with that chain?"

"Research. I'm doing a dissertation on Manifestations of Erotic Deviancy"

The Liar by Stephen Fry

-The W Indies are playing England at Old Trafford today.
-Playing what?

"Synchronized team zigging."

Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo

"You know how to work a circular saw?"

"William's sisters, Margaret and Mona, stepped in and took over."

Billy by Pamela Stephenson

"Why didnt they weant my father on the voyage?"

"There's something going on there you don't want to mess with. Maybe there'd be some plague let loose on the Arctic".

Prodigal Summer Summer by Barbara Kingsolver

"And what rule of the world says it's a sin to kill a predator?"

"Some people were extraordinarily offended"

Billy by Pamela Stephenson

"Should I pee in Williy's milk?"

‘Number five, “Sparkling Water”’

Just William by Richmal Crompton

“He must be regular, mustn’t he, laddies dear?”

"Wholemeal bread and flour give increased roughage."

Readers Digest Family Medical Adviser

"When to consult the doctor?"

His heart was beating harder than seemed entirely necessary.

Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver

"What's wrong? Are you attached to that cherry?"

"Eventually she added English gooseberries"

A Midwife's Tale by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

"Had he administered the wrong medicine?"

"I don't have any proof one way or the other, not yet."

No Fixed Line by Dana Stabenow

"How'd you find out so fast?'

"The telegraph would apprise him."

Danesbury House by Mrs Henry Wood

"Oh, nurse, what have you done? Here's the baby's medicine...What have you given to him?"