I figure the world is basically a machine. I don't know who made it, if it was the Fates, or the gods, or the capital-G god or whatever. But it chugs along the way it's supposed to most of the time. Sure, little pieces break off and stuff goes haywire once in a while, but mostly... things happen for a reason.

Hope survives best at the hearth.

When in doubt, start from the top. -Jason Grace

Then there were the shabti, magical figurines that were supposed to come to life when summoned. A few months ago, I’d fallen for a girl named Zia Rashid, who’d turned out to be a shabti. Falling in love for the first time had been hard enough. But when the girl you like turns out to be ceramic and cracks to pieces before your eyes—well, it gives “breaking your heart” a new meaning.

If you're heading downtown from Centeral Park, my advice is to take the subway. Flying pigs are faster but way more dangerous

We'd just released a zebra in Las Vegas.

Writing is like a sport. If you don't practice, you don't get any better.