The Saucy Wenches Book Club

“ Ruth,” a thin, raspy voice calls from another room in the house, “who’s at the door?”  Did he miss the part where we broke into their home?  Ruth’s gaze stays on Pestilence for a long time, moving from his bow and quiver to his crown, before settling on his face. “I believe it’s one of the Four Horsemen, dear.” Her eyes flick to me. “And he’s brought with him a lady friend.”  Laura Thalassa, Pestilence

Since reluctantly stepping into public life, I've been held up as the most powerful woman in the world and taken down as an "angry black woman." I've wanted to ask my detractors which part of that phrase matters to them the most — is it "angry" or "black" or "woman"? Becoming ~~Michelle Obama

The night I met him, I sat spellbound at a reading my friend had dragged me to, his words softening the ground of me, so that when he looked up, those brown eyes could tunnel all the way through. ~ Lauren Groff, Florida

“There are many Beths in the world, shy and quiet, sitting in corners till needed, and living for others so cheerfully that no one sees the sacrifices till the little cricket on the hearth stops chirping, and the sweet, sunshiny presence vanishes, leaving silence and shadow behind.” ― Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

When Jada tossed her the spear, Barrons watched it fly end over end through the air, measured Jada a long moment and nodded. "So it's ours again," Enyo said, catching and sheathing it in her waistband in a fluid movement. "Does that mean we've lost Mac?" "No," Barrons said, dangerously soft. "I've lost many things. Mac will never be one of them." Feversong ~~Karen Marie Moning

Words are a weapon stronger than he knows. And songs are even greater. The words wake the mind. The melody wakes the heart. ~Pierce Brown, Red Rising

“You got to the BAU because they didn’t want you anywhere else. So get over the size of your penis or your bed-wetting issue or whatever it is you’re compensating for, and man up. If you want me to back you up, you’ll have to keep up with me. And I move fast.” A Killer's Mind by Mike Omer

“For instance, on the planet Earth, man had always assumed that he was more intelligent than dolphins because he had achieved so much — the wheel, New York, wars and so on — whilst all the dolphins had ever done was muck about in the water having a good time. But conversely, the dolphins had always believed that they were far more intelligent than man — for precisely the same reasons.” ― Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I thought once that gods are the opposite of death, but I see now they are more dead than anything, for they are unchanging, and can hold nothing in their hands. ~ Madeline Miller, Circe,

If Cadogan was Gryffindor, all bravery and guts, Dumas was Ravenclaw, all intellect and cleverness. I liked being clever, and I liked clever people, so we were a good fit. Wild Hunger ~~Chloe Neill

With reluctance, I leave behind the stuffed animals from my bed. I leave slippers and books and favorite baubles. I step out of my second life the same way I stepped out of my first, holding too few things and with great uncertainty about what will happen next. Holly Black, The Cruel Prince

“Don’t look at me like that,” said Ruza. “Like what?” “Like I’m a beautiful book you’re about to open and plunder with your greedy mad eyes.” ~ Laini Taylor, Strange the Dreamer

What no one tells you is that when someone you love dies, you lose them twice. Once to death, the second time to acceptance, and you don't walk that long, dark passage between the two alone. Grief takes every shuffling, unwilling step with you, offering a seductive bouquet of memories that can only blossom south of sanity. You can stay there, nose buried in the petals of the past. Spend enough time with ghosts, you become one.  Burned ~~Karen Marie Moning 

It follows there are two ways for the nature and use of human power to change. One is that an order might issue from the palace, a command unto the people saying “It is thus.” But the other, the more certain, the more inevitable, is that those thousand thousand points of light should each send a new message. When the people change, the palace cannot hold. ~ Naomi Alderman, The Power

The dream chooses the dreamer, not the other way around. Strange the Dreamer tells the story of Lazlo Strange, a young orphan boy in a faraway land who dreams of magic. Lazlo is obsessed with Weep, a mythical, Unseen city that has become “lost” because everyone has forgotten it. He remembers the exact moment when the city’s real name and history disappeared from the minds of everyone around him, so he knows what others no longer believe – that magic exists, because only magic could erase Weep from the world. Lazlo also knows that fairy tales are real. And his dreams are magic. What he never foresees is how much the life he dreams for himself will become a magical fairy tale.

Pestilence clicks his tongue, and his horse is off. I’m riding with one of the horsemen of the apocalypse. Holy shit. I’ve now got front row seats to the end of the world. Laura Thalassa, Pestilence

...suddenly Simon is standing next to me. "Stop smelling good," I snap at him. Just look at him, standing there smelling all good and stuff like he owns the place. Easy Kisses ~~Kristen Proby