The weak are cruel. The strong have no need to be.

My mother's blood that would last forever after. The blood of my brother, my grandfather, my father.

That is the joy of reading fiction: when all is said and done, the novel belongs to the reader and his or her imagination.

I was beginning to understand.My grandmother's love was cold because she was afraid of things;that was why everything had to be perfect.

I could hardly get a boy to look at me. All right, they'd look, they'd even take me out, but no one asked for a second date. I was too nasty, a real wise guy, and all the boys could tell what my rotten disposition was. Deep down, I wanted a commitment with a capital C. To get anywhere with me, a boy would have to sign his undying loyalty with his own blood.

I never plot out my novels in terms of the tone of the book. Hopefully, once a story is begun it reveals itself

Sometimes words drew blood, they cut your tongue, they made you know things you couldn't unknow.