General Favorite Quotes/Passages:
"'Cut the strings, Shazi. Fly.'" ~pg. 58
"Tariq deserved her honesty. For all those stolen kisses in shadowed corners. For all those years of unfailing love.
For starting a war to save her." ~pg. 64
"'Make no mistake--the next time I see Khalid Ibn al-Rashid, one of us will die.'" ~pg. 70
"'What was it you used to say in moments of poetic fancy? "We are as a rose unfurling, becoming more clearly ourselves?"' he jeered, his anger making him reckless. His anguish making him foolish." ~pg. 100
"These were not the words of a madman.
For the first time, Tariq saw what Shahrzad saw when she looked at Khalid Ibn al-Rashid.
He saw a boy. Who loved a girl. More than anything in the world.
And he hated him all the more for it." ~pg. 120
"Beauty fades. But a pain in the ass is forever." ~pg. 145
"It was because they were two parts of a whole. He did not belong to her. And she did not belong to him. It was never about belonging to someone.
It was about belonging together." ~pg. 166
"'What do you want?'
'To live...fiercely.'
'What else?'
'To taste every breath.'....
'What else?' Her voice shook.
'To fall asleep each night with you by my side.'
Shahrzad took his face between her palms.
'Then fight for it.'" ~pgs. 173-174
"All that would end tonight. Destiny was for fools. Shahrzad would not wait for her life to happen." ~pg. 186
"In that moment, everything about Khalid hearkened back to a time when Shahrzad had lived in fear of the dawn. When all she knew of him was a boy of ice and stone, who murdered his brides without cause or apology.
A time when all she had were stories fueled by hatred.
It pained her to see Khalid returning to this. A shell of what he was.
A shadow of what he could be." ~pgs. 200-201
"He was a confusing mixture of extremes, cloaked behind a black rida'." ~pg. 246
"Shahrzad would never return to Taleqan with him.
For she no longer belonged there.
She belonged in a palace of marble and stone. A queen, in her own right. With a boy-king who loved her, as she loved him." ~pg. 258
"'Jealousy is a childish, petty emotion....I don't feel jealousy. I feel rage.'" ~pg. 263
"'I'm my father's son--a monster by blood and by right....I do not make empty threats. You would do well to remember that.'" ~pg. 266
"Every ugly thought and every empty feeling coursing through him, as though the book had reached within him and grasped every doubt--every insecurity--and brought it to the surface.
Brought it there to tell Khalid he was not worthy.
Of anything.
Not worthy to be a king. Not worthy of his uncle's faith. Not worthy of Jalal's loyalty. Not worthy of Vikram's friendship.
Not worthy of Shahrzad's love." ~pg. 298
"All he'd wanted for so long was to disappear. To take all the ugliness with him--all the vicious memories of his mother's blood spilling across the blue-veined agate and silken cords at sunrise--
And vanish without a trace." ~pg. 298
"For a prisoner can never be a calipha.
But a calipha is only a prisoner if she chooses to be." ~pg. 309
"'You are a banyan tree because in you I see this story. The beginning and the end of all things. The hope for something to grow, even in shadow.'" ~pg. 339
"No. He was not here to wreak revenge.
For revenge was trifling and hollow.
No. He was not here to retrieve his wife.
For his wife was not a thing to be retrieved.
No. He was not here to negotiate a truce.
For a truce suggested he wished to compromise....
He was here to burn something to the ground." ~pg. 342
"Such was the way of war.
Wait to feel when there is nothing left. Wait to feel after you've won." ~pg. 393
"For here...here was the true power. The power Jahandar had wanted all along.
The power to speak without words.
The power to love." ~pg. 410
"'Then we begin with the first tale..."Haroun and the Magic Carpet."'" ~pg. 416
Favorite Khalid/Shahrzad Quotes & Moments:
"Because nothing hurt like missing her.
He suspected nothing ever would." ~pg. 28
"'I do love you, Tariq....But...he's where I live.'" ~pg. 67
"Despite all his attempts to avoid his destiny, it had found its way to him. Had slashed its way across his city. Set fire to all he held dear.
And he could not watch Shahrzad burn with him.
He would burn alone--again and again--before he would ever watch such a thing." ~pgs. 81-82
"Her strong, proud king. Her beautiful, broken monster.
The boy she loved beyond words--" ~ pg.112
"He was everywhere. Even if no else saw this simple truth, Shahrzad did." ~pg. 165
"He pulled her in to his chest, a hand tangling through her hair. The beat of his heart rang loud and true against her cheek. The only measure of time that mattered.
She exhaled fast only to inhale deep. To breathe in his scent. The scent of sandalwood and sunshine. Her fingers moved across his skin, making memories of their own. The hands of a master swordsman. The lips of her greatest love. The heart of a king.
'Khalid.'" ~pg. 167
"'Do not make me beg you. Because I won't. I'll merely lose my temper or cry. And I have always secretly despised those who cry to wheedle their objectives. But if you force me to do it, Khalid Ibn al-Rashid, I will. And I cry beautifully.' She crossed her arms and pursed her lips.
A corner of his mouth twitched. 'You do not cry beautifully.'" ~pg. 171
"'When I was in the desert, I woke each day and carried on with my life, but it wasn't living; it was merely existing. I want to live. You are where I live.'" ~pg. 173
"'I've missed the silence of you listening to me.' Shahrzad attempted a weak smile. 'No one listens to me as you do.'
His expression turned quizzical.
'You don't wait to speak,' she clarified. 'You truly listen.'
'Only to you,' Khalid replied gently." ~pg. 173
"'Since you can't say it, will you at least tell me how much you love me?'
Khalid ran the tip of his nose beside her ear, a grateful smile upon his lips.
'From the stars, to the stars.'" ~pg. 183
"'Never forget, Tariq Imran al-Ziyad--I gave you this chance. Today you fired upon me...and in turn struck that which matters more than life itself. The next time you attempt such a thing in her presence, I will flay you alive and leave the rest for the dogs.'" ~pg. 266
"But she was warm. Warmer than she could ever remember being.
For the first time in her life, she woke wrapped in someone else's arms.
Khalid was asleep beneath her." ~pg. 271
Favorite Shahrzad Quotes:
"'That's quite gallant of you. After you've ignored me for the better part of a week, like a boy half your age with twice your charm.'" ~pg. 60
"'Yes.' Irsa smothered a grin, despite her unease. 'You probably will be--though how Shahrzad can manage to reprimand anyone for possessing a bad temper, I will never understand.'" ~pgs. 250-251
Favorite Tariq Quotes & Moments:
"'You--are awful, Shazi. Just awful.'....
'I know I'm awful. So it begs the question: Why are you here?'
'I've asked myself that same question, several times...especially as I lay in the cold sand, keeping watch over an awful girl. One with little sense of gratitude and no sense of loyalty.'" ~pg. 60
"'I denied myself what I wanted once out of principle, and not a day goes by that I don't regret that decision with every fiber of my being!'" ~pg. 63
"'Because I know that, had I given us both what we wanted that night, you would be my wife now, instead of his.'" ~pg. 65
"'You continue to wound me, you awful girl. Because I know. Had I spent a single night with you, I would never have wished for us to be parted from that day forward.'
Shahrzad wanted to stop him for speaking further. From saying anything he might regret.
What can I do to spare him any more pain?
But Tariq took her by the chin, resolute in his course, tipping her gaze to his.
'Ever since the afternoon I watched you fall from the battlements at Taleqan, you've felt inevitable to me. That's how much I love you....But you can no longer say the same about me, can you?'" ~pgs. 66-67
"Tariq knew then--as he'd known when he'd read the letter Shahrzad kept tucked in her cloak--that this was not an ordinary love born of a passing fancy.
In truth, Tariq had known even then that he could not win. That this was not a battle to be won.
Only a fool would have continued to think otherwise.
Yet Tariq had chosen to be a fool." ~pg. 258
"As only she had, from the day Tariq realized there was--and would be--only one girl in the world for him.
Only one. Always.
Even though Tariq knew it was wrong, he brushed a thumb across her forefinger. He knew he would never again have a chance to touch her like this. But he wanted to.
One last time.
'I'm so sorry, Shazi-jan,' he murmured. 'God, if I could change that moment, I would not have done it, not for the world. I would take a thousand arrows for you.' Tariq bent his head closer to hers. 'When I thought you were dead, there was nothing I wanted more than to take it back. I'm so sorry, my love. I can't swallow my hatred as you can. I'm not like you. But I can swear I will listen to you next time. No matter how distasteful your words to be. I will listen, Shazi....
'I swear on my life, you will never be hurt by me again.'" ~pgs. 261-262
"'She matters to me, too. I will never love anyone or anything as much as I love Shahrzad.'
At that, the caliph's smile returned, mocking in its bent. 'I disagree. You love yourself more.'
Resentment simmered through Tariq's chest, roiling to a slow burn. 'Do not--'
'Until you can learn to let go of your hatred, you will always love yourself more.'....
'Can you honestly claim not to hate me?'
The caliph paused. 'No. I do not hate you. But I deeply resent your past, more than I can put to words....Do you know how many times I could have killed you, Tariq Imran al-Ziyad? How many times I've wished, in the blackest reaches of my soul, that you were no more? I've known who you are--who your family was--for a long time. My father would have killed you simply for looking at Shahrzad the way you do. For myself, I would have killed you. But for her, I didn't.'" ~pg. 267
Favorite Irsa/Rahim Quotes & Moments:
"'What you said earlier? You have nothing to worry about.'
'What do you mean?'
'You're better than beautiful....You're interesting. Never forget that.'" ~pg. 90
"'What's wrong, Irsa-jan?'
'She keeps leaving me behind....Everyone keeps leaving me. And I'm worried about her. But--mostly--I'm alone.'....
'You're not alone now.'
Smiling, Irsa rested her cheek against his shoulder.
And it was enough." ~pgs. 161-162
"And Rahim?
It was becoming abundantly clear Rahim would follow Irsa al-Khayzuran anywhere." ~pg. 232
"'Khalid Ibn al-Rashid!' Irsa roared. All eyes whipped back in her direction. 'Stop this immediately. For if you do not, I promise Shahrzad will never forgive you!'
Her chest heaved as her gaze fell on the boy lying in the sand.
The boy who always asked the right questions. The boy who made her feel beautiful. The boy who gave her the strength to be a lion.
'And if you hurt Rahim, I will never, ever forgive you.'" ~pg. 242
"'May I kiss you?'
'Why are you asking permission?....Doesn't that--ruin the moment?'
'No.' He smiled, but its edges wavered with a deeper meaning. 'Because it's not just a kiss.'
'Why is that?'
'Because when I kiss you, I want yours to be the first...and the last lips I ever kiss....
'So....may I kiss you, Irsa al-Khayzuran?'" ~pg. 256
"Because at that moment, with the press of Rahim's lips to hers, with the touch of his tongue sending wildfire through her veins, she knew she would always be home here.
With this boy. In this moment. In this time.
And that her heart would never be lonely again." ~pg. 257
"'Oh.' It was a quiet sob. Something tore behind her heart. Though Irsa wanted to fight back the sudden burn, she let it wash through her. She would not be weak. This was not a time to be weak. And fighting herself--fighting how she felt in this moment--would be weak.
Would be denying who she truly was....
'I have felt alone for most of my life. Until you....But I promise I won't feel alone anymore. I will never forget....I will always remember.
'I love you, Rahim al-Din Walad. Thank you for loving me in return.'" ~pg. 366
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