The Saucy Wenches Book Club

“Believe it or not,” he exclaimed, “you and I don’t even have to worry about being in shape.” That sounded odd. How could we pull off an expedition such as this without being in top physical condition? “Because,” Pete said, sensing my skepticism while warming to his revelation, “the hike itself is the thing that’s gonna get us in shape for the hike.” ~ Kevin Fedarko, A Walk in the Park: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon

“Fingers laced, we climb up to our bedroom in the home we’ve built together. A house full of books. A field full of flowers. Our own special island.” ~ Carley Fortune, This Summer Will Be Different

This, I knew, was Vincent telling me that he loved me. No one had ever said those words to me—at least, not that I could ever remember. But he communicated it a thousand ways over the years, most of them coated in death. I love you. Here’s how you stay alive. Here’s how you make sure that no one can hurt you. For vampires, that was the ultimate gift. ~ Carissa Broadbent, The Serpent & the Wings of Night

“Sometimes the thing we want most in the world is the thing we’re most afraid of. And the thing we’re most afraid of is often the thing we most want.” ~ Meg Shaffer, The Wishing Game

“Don’t underestimate my tongue, Freya. Especially in the dark.” ~ Danielle L. Jensen, A Fate Inked in Blood

Neel takes a sharp breath and I know exactly what it means. It means: I have waited my whole life to walk through a secret passage built into a bookshelf. ~ Robin Sloan, Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore

She couldn’t change who she was, and she no longer wanted to, even if she could. She knew that who you are is a stone set deep inside you. You can spend all your life trying to dig that stone out, or you can build around it. Your choice. ~ Sarah Addison Allen, First Frost

“So many regular people that you will never learn about in history books, all fighting together against impossible odds. Remember that. No matter how bad things get, there are always those who will risk personal comfort and freedom to help strangers. It’s our true nature. The destroying classes tried to convince us that we are competitive. They persuaded us to compete against one another. And for what? To make them richer while destroying our planet. Well, we saw how that turned out. And now we see the opposite. Mutual aid. Participatory budgeting. Cooperative enterprise.” ~ Nick Fuller Googins, The Great Transition

“The only beam of light I’ll ever need or want in this world, my love for her sitting like a moon in my chest. Only this moon will never fall, no matter how hard she tugs on it.” ~ Sarah A. Parker, When the Moon Hatched

“Memory is a wicked thing that warps and twists. But paper and ink receive the truth without emotion, and they read it back without partiality. That, I believe, is why so few women are taught to read and write. God only knows what they would do with the power of pen and ink at their disposal.” ~ Ariel Lawhon, The Frozen River

The wind passed, even as it is passing now, over all the people who find themselves so dulled by the concerns of their own bodies and their own hungers that they cannot stop for a moment to feel its goodness as it brushes against them. And feel it now, so soft, so eternal, this wind against your good and living skin. ~ Lauren Groff, The Vaster Wilds

The most persistent hauntings are the ghosts of lost futures. ~ Naomi Alderman, The Future

“We were born together, we died together. I cannot live without you.” ~ Katherine Arden, The Warm Hands of Ghosts

Years later, she realized that women can either curse freely or live on Park Avenue, but not both. Now in her life’s second act, swearing freely is one of the things she appreciates about being away from the strict rules of New York society. ~ Chris Pavone, Two Nights in Lisbon

“I want cold February nights with him reading me books. I want July mornings in a blossoming garden. Felix will be my home, and I will be a place for him to return to. He’ll be my oasis, and I’ll be his. He’ll save his best words for me, and I’ll save mine for him.” ~ Carley Fortune, This Summer Will Be Different

She was haunted by the possibility that she had missed her chance for happiness. But she had not missed her chance, she told herself, for her chance would not let her get away so easily. Each morning she was fortified by hope: the future loomed. ~ Amanda Coplin, The Orchardist