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Alexandra Monir QUOTES

Alexandra Monir QUOTES

1 " There is nothing in this life that can destroy you but yourself. Bad things happen to everyone, but when they do, you can't just fall apart and die. You have to fight back. If you don't, you're the one who loses in the end. But if you do keep going and fight back, you win. "

― Alexandra Monir , Timeless (Timeless, #1)

2 " Keeping my eyes trained on the green leaves of the tree opposite me, I raise my arms in their direction. One of the leaves abruptly falls from its branch and, instead of blowing to the ground, drifts across the sky toward me. I gasp as a second leaf follows, and then a third, until a flurry of green is flying through my window, encircling me.
I drop my arms, and the leaves fall to my feet. Exhilaration floods through me. That was... amazing. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

3 " You are lyricist, me a composer - you and I make a complete song. "

― Alexandra Monir , Timeless (Timeless, #1)

4 " But my parents who died in the fire, they...they were part of a noble family in England. The family has always owned the Rockford Manor in Oxfordshire, which is a mansion that includes acres of land, plus a local village where people live and farm---"
"Wait, noble? Do you mean like royalty?" Zoey interrupts, her eyes wide.
"No, no. But in England there's a system called the peerage---dukes and duchesses, earls and countesses---and they're ranked just below royalty. My dad was the younger son of the Duke of Wickersham, which made him a lord and my mom a lady."
Carole and Keith sit frozen, listening to me with a look of dread in their eyes.
"So what does that make you?" Zoey asks breathlessly.
"Well, when my parents were alive, it meant that I was treated a certain way just because I was part of this family of dukes and duchesses. But then after the fire, the line of succession changed---everything changed. My first cousin, Lucia, became next in line to inherit Rockford Manor and the title. So she would have been the Duchess of Wickersham." I swallow hard. "But she died in an accident last year---which I didn't even know about until today." My hands shake as I speak, and I can't look at Keith and Carole, unable to grasp how they could have kept this from me.
"That's awful! But what does it mean for you?" Zoey presses.
"Her death left me next in line after my grandfather. And he passed away last month---which I was also unaware of." This time I'm able to look at Carole and Keith, shooting them a withering glare.
Zoey's mouth hangs open.
"That means you're...you're a...?"
"Yeah. You're looking at the new Duchess of Wickersham and owner of Rockford Manor. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

5 " As we pass the rack of votive prayer candles on the way to our pew, an unlit candle suddenly bursts aflame. I gasp, and Mum and Dad exchange a glance. But by the time we're in our seats, the incident is nearly forgotten. Surely it must have been my imagination. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

6 " The late duchess wore around one finger a diamond icicle band, known as a water-stone in Elemental mythology. There is no definite word on where Lady Beatrice procured the water-stone, but legend has it that the stone appears to those who belong to it--those who are Elemental. My studies of Elementalism suggest that wearing the ring is a form of communicating with nature.
Aristotle noted long ago that "with the water-stone on your skin and your hands on the land, you will have the answer to all you seek." The water-stone is said to work with the hand of an Elemental to use the four elements to his or her advantage. And seeing as the elements are the truth of our world, so the water-stone reveals the truth. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

7 " There's something hidden in the Maze," he says quietly.
"Really?" My eyes widen. "Like buried treasure?"
"Something like that. But you'll have to be my good little girl and wait," he cautions. "We can't go get it, not for a while."
I frown, unaccustomed to waiting. Sensing my displeasure, Dad takes my hand.
"It's there for you when you really need it. You'll know when that day comes." He looks at me intently. "If I'm not here to show you... just remember the hydrangeas. When you see them, that means you're close. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

8 " What does it feel like when you do that?" Sebastian asks, watching me curiously.
"You can see for yourself if you want." I take his hand as casually as I can manage and place it over mine. Together, we reach for one of the hedge walls. I hear his breathing grow heavier; I feel my own breath stop as our fingers interlace against the evergreen. And then the electric sensation sizzles through my fingertips, through my whole body, stronger than I've ever felt it. I hear Sebastian whoop in amazement, and I whirl around. The hedge walls have transformed from green to a vibrant violet. It is the most beautiful color I've ever seen.
Sebastian and I turn to face each other at the same time, and nearly collide in our swift movement. His hand reaches for my hip to steady me. Heat fills my cheeks. His touch awakens something in me, something even stronger than my Elemental power. I glance up at him and find his eyes locked on mine. We inch closer, and it feels like anything can happen "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

9 " For more than a century now, Lady Beatrice Rockford (1811-1850) has been known as "that wicked American" and her husband, the fifth Duke of Wickersham, the victim forced to send her to the gallows. But these roles are ludicrously reversed. The real ugly stain in my family history is my ancestor, the duke who murdered his wife simply because she was capable of something he had never seen. He feared what he didn't understand, and let his fear drive him to evil.
Is there anything inherently wrong in having a paranormal talent? More than likely, Lady Beatrice didn't wish for her gift, and with the exception of the burned garden, which she instantly restored, there are no accounts of her ever using her skill to cause any harm.
If we misconstrue that which we don't understand as frightening or criminal, then we are lost. But if we recognize differences in others as something beautiful or miraculous---even, or especially, differences as astounding as Lady Beatrice's---then we all win in the end. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

10 " It's like we're in Hogwarts for space, but instead of teaching us magic, they're preparing us to get kicked off the planet. "

― Alexandra Monir , The Final Six (The Final Six, #1)

11 " I slowly turn to face the Maze, which towers high beside the Shadow Garden. Bordered on all sides by ten-foot-tall pine hedges, the Maze is rumored to be a marvel of a puzzle, filled with treacherous plants and surprises that make it suitable only for "mature children" and adults. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

12 " Lady Beatrice's left eye stares boldly at me through the opening of a mask that she holds up to her face. Her light hair is piled half onto the top of her head, the other half arrayed around her shoulders. An unusual ring adorns her right hand, and I zoom in on the portrait to see it more clearly. The ring is a diamond in the shape of an icicle.
I return to the Wikipedia article and click on the next image--a painting of Beatrice on the night of her hanging. She is older in this painting, but her blond hair is styled the same as in the earlier, youthful portrait. The painting depicts screaming townspeople snatching at the skirts of her heavy gown as she attempts to flee. Leaves and flowers are woven through her hair, and a long garland drapes across her dress, giving her the appearance of nature itself.
I look closer. There is no doubt that I resemble her; our blue eyes, high cheekbones, and ivory skin are all a match. We could be sisters from different eras. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

13 " Just then, I notice Mrs. Mulgrave giving the younger woman beside her a slight push in my direction.
"This is my daughter, Maisie. She will be your maid."
"Maisie?" I can't help blurting out in astonishment.
I hardly recognize her. The past seven years have transformed Maisie from a plain preteen into a beautiful young adult. I didn't expect her to be so... pretty. She wears a black tee with black pants, but the simple clothing and lack of makeup only enhances her looks. She has heavy-lidded deep brown eyes, clear skin with the hint of a tan, the kind of plush pink lips that housewives in my New York hometown would pay good money for, and long brown hair highlighted with strands of gold. Her only adornments are a thick wristwatch and a rectangular pendant hanging on a chain around her neck.
I feel a pang of sympathy as I look from mother to daughter. If Maisie's luck had been different---if she'd been born to parents like the Marinos---she could have had the world at her feet, instead of being shut up in a house working as a maid. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

14 " If Lady Beatrice left the ring for her descendant... she would need proof, a way of knowing for certain who that person is.
I reach my arms out to my sides and brush my hands against the hedge walls, just as I did two weeks ago with Sebastian. The hedges once again change color, my hands painting them a vivid periwinkle. But this time the dirt path beneath my feet also begins to glow with an ethereal yellow light. I gasp as the light beneath my feet winds forward... leading me.
I pick up speed, keeping my hands on either side of the hedge walls as I run, following the twists and turns of the glowing path before me. And at last I am in a place I've never been---a curving corner of the Maze highlighted by a bed of hydrangeas, the only flowers I've encountered within. Dad's words from years ago return to me.
"...remember the hydrangeas. When you see them, that means you're close."
My breath catches. This must be the Maze's center. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

15 " The rear doors of the Marble Hall open onto the sprawling Fountain Terrace, decorated with statues and topiary. A promenade curves southward from it, lined with yew trees that resemble giant gumdrops, and banks of daffodils and bluebells. Multiple gated gardens snake outward from the grassy lane.
"This is the first of the gardens that we allow visitors to tour," Max says, leading me through a gate with a plaque above it reading THE FRENCH GARDEN. "We just planted new pink roses for the summer season."
"They're beautiful."
I can feel Max watching me intently as I wander the perimeter, taking in the blooming flowers and lush orange trees. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

16 " You won't miss me anyway," I tell Sebastian, my voice breaking on the last word. "You have each other."
I turn on my heels, leaving Carole and Keith to reason with a still-arguing Lucia. I keep my head down as I descend the hill toward Rockford Manor, not noticing that I'm being followed until I feel a hand on my shoulder.
"It's not true, what you said."
I turn around at Sebastian's voice, feeling a strange swooping in my stomach as I face him.
"What isn't true?"
"That I won't miss you. Because I will. I'll miss you every summer and every holiday if you don't come back," he says, looking at me earnestly. "I'll miss you every time I see a bellflower or anything else that reminds me of my friend Ginny Rockford."
Tears prick at the back of my eyelids as he speaks. He can't know how much his words mean to me; how they make everything simultaneously better and worse. But before I can answer, Sebastian bends down and brushes his lips against my cheek. I gasp, reaching up to touch my face in awe. Nothing should be able to make me feel happy after all I've just lost--- but this kiss, platonic though it may be, gives me a moment of pure joy.
"Goodbye, Ginny," he says softly. "Till we meet again."
"Goodbye," I echo, still touching my cheek as he walks back to rejoin Lucia. When he's no longer within earshot, I whisper, "I'll never forget you. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

17 " I follow him into a high-ceilinged room upholstered in crimson damask and decorated with bronze sculptures and potted palms. A massive crystal-and-gold chandelier sparkles from the ceiling, sending a glittery ray of light over the matching red chairs, ottomans, and---finally!---a couch, although it looks far more formal than comfy.
The Red Drawing Room is just as rich in art as the Blue, and Oscar proudly points out portraits of my ancestors painted by John Singer Sargent and Giovanni Boldini---names I know from my junior year art history class. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

18 " I'll find a way back to you. No matter what. I promise. "

― Alexandra Monir

19 " I lie splayed out on the bed, staring numbly at the world's most beautiful bedroom. I've been given the Duchess Suite, a relic from the days when husbands and wives slept in separate rooms.
The bedroom's damask walls are painted robin's-egg blue, the same shade as Tiffany's famous little boxes, with matching curtains framing the French windows. The ceiling above my bed is gilded in a mosaic pattern, and impressionist paintings grace the walls. Delicate white-and-gold furniture softens the room's edges, and the freshly cut peonies in a vase on my bedside table lend the air a sweet smell. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion

20 " A petal-strewn gravel path divides the garden into two symmetrical sections, with lush meadows on either side, flanked by cherry blossom trees. The tree branches stretch out to meet each other, forming a canopy of evergreen leaves and pink blossoms overhead and creating the dancing shadows on the grass that give the garden its name. "

― Alexandra Monir , Suspicion