" You are sweet and docile and dumb.”

I recoil. “Excuse me?”

She smirks. “Another role to play. You’re very good at playing roles.”

I’m tempted to look at Søren, who’s too busy rowing to talk but can certainly hear every word.

“Let them believe you are dim,” Artemisia continues. “The King, his court, your suitors. If they believe you to be an idiot, they will underestimate you. Let them. "

― Laura Sebastian , Lady Smoke (Ash Princess Trilogy, #2)