Goddamn you," Jacob said. "There's no damnation, Jacob. No Heaven but the forest and no God but the hive.

We spent a lot of time discussing cosmology first. I think that was your father's unique way of evaluating people. You can tell a lot about a person, he once said, by the way they look at the stars.

Do you want to tell the truth, or do you want to tell a story?

Since Deacon Hollingshead's arrival in town last July the Dominion had been hard at work, cleansing New York City of moral corruption. "Corruption" is a popular word with the enthusiasts of the Dominion, usually uttered as a prelude to the knife, the docket, or the noose.

I suppose the pursuit of fashion has always carried a price, monetary or otherwise.

An honest book is almost as good as a friend.

I don't believe money is evil, but it can be terribly corrosive.