I struggled with this book. The plot was interesting but I find the writing style tiresome. Also there was a lot of redundant descriptions and repeating chunks of monologue. There were many unexpected twists and turns and moments of high intrigue but I think this particular genre isn't for me.
"Their conversation was not heated but I could tell there were mixed emotions banging back and forth. Impatience has a certain tinge to it."
"God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason."
"Like any good idea, it was easy to understand."
"I know what it feels like to be in prison. ...the feelings of a person who has lost the capacity to dream of escape, of freedom regained. No hope at all of escape to freedom, no escape from the toil of another dreamless day where your every move is analyzed, scrutinized, and your daily routine determined by others."
"And men go about to wonder at the heights of the mountains, and the mighty waves of the sea, and the wide sweep of the rivers, and the circuit of the ocean, and the revolution of the stars, but themselves they consider not." - Saint Augustine
"The key to happiness and a fulfilled life was to have as strong and peaceful and just a soul as possible."
"Such fools men were, especially when it came to women who would never love them back."
"She cut him like a stiletto made out of glacial ice when she spoke."
"Ignore them until they disturb your own sense of peace and harmony or until you discover that they are more than [curse/swear] words but a true representation of one's philosophy of life at a bitter moment. Then either turn the speaker around to a truer path or throw them out."
"Glaring at him with more contempt than any mere man could summon from the deepest, darkest part of his soul."
"People of no honor, no morals, and they Re drawn to you like flies to a dead body and you think this validates your existence and your worth."
"You chose your path and you can't allow yourself to get upset with how it has turned out because you can't unwind the spool of time and go backwards to fix it."
"No one argued with her much anymore because as far as she knew, she hadn't been wrong about anything, ever. She could convince you that two plus two equaled five just by wearing you down."
"Seek knowledge from the cradle to the grave." -Prophet Muhammad
"The arguments were profound and loud as they tore the family apart."
"Nothing, absolutely not a fucking thing remains the same, even when it's perfect."
"I think I know you except of course for the well of information that every woman keeps hidden from a man."
"They said good-bye to their love affair, a sad moment for most, but not for them as the memories of their excitement and the purity of their days together would in the future help them overcome any negative wave that came their way."
"Those are the most dangerous kind [of women], those lonely ones."
"He truly only wanted to have a perfectly nice day out on the town with Laura so they would always have just that...in case their friendship would remain forever what it had been for the past ten years. Let her take the subway home. At least tomorrow, he would give her a first date that her next ten lovers would never match."
"He turned on his heel and walked away, never turning back to her for any kind of final look. And she knew that if they turn around to look, they are truly interested in you."
"Chance favors the prepared mind." - Louis Pasteur
"Michael knew he was a successful man by most standards, but he also carried with him the burden of believing that somewhere, somehow, greatness awaited him. And he hungered for it, an escape from the ordinary."
"A bored girl is a dangerous girl."
"Show me a good woman and I'll show you a man who's tired of sleeping with her."
"Most people have as much brains as God gives a goose."
"I always believed that there are only solutions in life. There aren't any problems worth worrying about. If it's cancer, then you have to worry. But not all the rest of the shit that clogs our minds every day, thwarting our progress, our pursuit of happiness. Things you did in the past, things you didn't do. Decisions you wish you could have another chance to make differently, what a waste of time. You didn't take that job because you didn't have the nerve to try. You didn't marry that young man or young lady because you didn't love him or her enough. You didn't leave them sooner than you should have because you didn't want to take charge of your own life."
