200+ Quotes & Sayings By George Rr Martin

George R.R. Martin was born in New York City on August 20, 1948, and was raised in Bayonne, New Jersey. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. As a writer, he is best known for his epic series of fantasy novels - A Song of Ice and Fire - which began with A Game of Thrones (1996) Read more

He has also written five short story collections, including Wild Cards (1987), Nightflyers (1990), The Stoneheart Trilogy (1993), A Feast for Crows (2005), and A Dance with Dragons (2011).

The things we love destroy us every time, lad. Remember...
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The things we love destroy us every time, lad. Remember that. George R.r. Martin
I crossed a thousand leagues to come to you, and...
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I crossed a thousand leagues to come to you, and lost the best part of me along the way. Don't tell me to leave. George R.r. Martin
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I take no joy in mead nor meat, and song and laughter have become suspicious strangers to me. I am a creature of grief and dust and bitter longings. There is an empty place within me where my heart was once. George R.r. Martin
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How can you still count yourself a knight, when you have forsaken every vow you ever swore?" Jaime reached for the flagon to refill his cup. "So many vows..they make you swear and swear. Defend the king. Obey the king. Keep his secrets. Do his bidding. Your life for his. But obey your father. Love your sister. Protect the innocent. Defend the weak. Respect the gods. Obey the laws. It's too much. No matter what you do, you're forsaking one vow or the other. George R.r. Martin
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I know I want you, " he heard himself say, all his vows and his honor all forgotten. She stood before him naked as her name day, and he was as hard as the rock around them. He had been in her half a hundred times by now, but always beneath furs, with others all around them. He had never seeen how beautiful she was. Her legs were skinny and well muscled, the hair at the juncture of her thighs a brighter red than that on her head. Does that make it even luckier? He pulled her close. "I love the smell of you, " he said. "I love your red hair. I love your mouth, and the way you kiss me. I love your smile. I love your teats." He kissed them, one and then the other. "I love your skinny legs, and what's between them." He knelt to kiss her there, lightly on her mound at first, but Ygritte moved her legs apart a little, and he saw the pink inside and kissed that as well, and tasted her. She gave a little gasp. "If you love me all so much, why are you still dressed?" she whispered. "You know nothing, Jon Snow. Noth---oh. Oh. OHHH."Afterward, she was almost shy, or as shy as Ygritte ever got. "The thing you did, " she said, when they lay together on their piled clothes. "With your..mouth." She hesistated. "Is that..is it what lordss do to their ladies, down in the south?"" I don't think so." No one had ever told Jon just what lords did with their ladies. "I only..wanted to kiss you there, that's all. You seemed to like it."" Aye. I..I liked it some. No one taught you such?"" There's been no one, " he confessed. "Only you. George R.r. Martin
Of all the bright cruel lies they tell you, the...
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Of all the bright cruel lies they tell you, the cruelest is the one called love. George R.r. Martin
Death is so terribly final, while life is full of...
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Death is so terribly final, while life is full of possibilities. George R.r. Martin
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A craven can be as brave as any man, when there is nothing to fear. And we all do our duty, when there is no cost to it. How easy it seems then, to walk the path of honor. Yet soon or late in every man's life comes a day when it is not easy, a day when he must choose. (Maester Aemon) George R.r. Martin
Every man should lose a battle in his youth, so...
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Every man should lose a battle in his youth, so he does not lose a war when he is old. George R.r. Martin
Men's lives have meaning, not their deaths.
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Men's lives have meaning, not their deaths. George R.r. Martin
We all need to be mocked from time to time,...
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We all need to be mocked from time to time, lest we take ourselves too seriously. George R.r. Martin
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You are your mother's trueborn son of Lannister.""Am I?" the dwarf replied, sardonic. "Do tell my lord father. My mother died birthing me, and he's never been sure."" I don't even know who my mother was, " Jon said. "Some woman, no doubt. Most of them are." He favored Jon with a rueful grin. "Remember this, boy. All dwarfs may be bastards, yet not all bastards need be dwarfs." And with that he turned and sauntered back into the feast, whistling a tune. When he opened the door, the light from within threw his shadow clear across the yard, and for just a moment Tyrion Lannister stood tall as a king. George R.r. Martin
If you need help bark like a dog.
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If you need help bark like a dog." - Gendry. "That's stupid. If I need help I'll shout help." - Arya George R.r. Martin
...How would you like to die, Tyrion son of Tywin?
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...How would you like to die, Tyrion son of Tywin?""In my own bed, with a belly full of wine and a maiden's mouth around my cock, at the age of eighty, " he replied. George R.r. Martin
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Noseless and Handless, the Lannister Boys. George R.r. Martin
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Tyrion let the eunuch help him mount. "Lord Varys, " he said from the saddle, "sometimes I feel as though you are the best friend I have in King's Landing and sometimes I feel you are my worst enemy." "How odd. I think quite the same of you. George R.r. Martin
Nothing' isn't better or worse than anything. Nothing is just......
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Nothing' isn't better or worse than anything. Nothing is just... nothing." Arya Stark George R.r. Martin
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Most men would rather deny a hard truth than face it. George R.r. Martin
People often claim to hunger for truth, but seldom like...
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People often claim to hunger for truth, but seldom like the taste when it's served up. George R.r. Martin
It was queer how sometimes a child's innocent eyes can...
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It was queer how sometimes a child's innocent eyes can see things that grown men are blind to. George R.r. Martin
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He drew the dagger and laid it on the table between them; a length of dragonbone and Valyrian steel, as sharp as the difference between right and wrong, between true and false, between life and death. George R.r. Martin
Half-truths are worth more than outright lies.
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Half-truths are worth more than outright lies. George R.r. Martin
Fat men take a cushion with them wherever they go.
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Fat men take a cushion with them wherever they go. George R.r. Martin
The hard truths are the ones to hold tight.- The...
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The hard truths are the ones to hold tight.- The Old Bear, A Game of Thrones George R.r. Martin
It is one thing to be clever and another to...
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It is one thing to be clever and another to be wise. George R.r. Martin
Is it so far from madness to wisdom?
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Is it so far from madness to wisdom?" - Daenerys Targaryen George R.r. Martin
Laughter is poison to fear.
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Laughter is poison to fear. George R.r. Martin
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You ought to be blowing me kisses, wench. George R.r. Martin
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Dream anything hard enough, and it can be yours. George R.r. Martin
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Jon Snow, is this a proper castle now? Not just a tower?”“ It is.” Jon took her hand.“ Good, ” she whispered. “I wanted t’ see one proper castle, before … before I …”“You’ll see hundred castles. The battle’s done. Maester Aemon will see to you. You’re kissed by fire, remember? Lucky. It will take more than an arrow to kill you. Aemon will draw it out and patch you up, and we’ll get milk of the poppy for the pain.” She just smiled at that. “D’you remember that cave? We should have stayed in that cave. I told you so.”“ We’ll go back to the cave, ” he said.” You’re not going to die, Ygritte. You’re not.”“ Oh.” Ygritte cupped his cheek with her hand. “You know nothing, Jon Snow, ” she sighed, dying. George R.r. Martin
Was there ever a war where only one side bled?
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Was there ever a war where only one side bled? George R.r. Martin
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She had no time for sleep, with the weight of the world upon her shoulders. And she feared to dream. Sleep is a little death, dreams the whisperings of the Other, who would drag us all into his eternal night. George R.r. Martin
Why won't they let me be? I just need to...
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Why won't they let me be? I just need to rest, that's all, to rest and sleep some, and maybe die a little. George R.r. Martin
The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword.
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The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword. George R.r. Martin
This was how an enemy should be dealt with: with...
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This was how an enemy should be dealt with: with a dagger, not a declaration. George R.r. Martin
I prefer my history dead. Dead history is writ in...
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I prefer my history dead. Dead history is writ in ink, the living sort in blood."" Do you want to die old and craven in your bed?"" How else? Though not till I'm done reading. George R.r. Martin
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What are you doing to me?” he asked the crow, tearful. Teaching you how to fly. “I can’t fly! ” You’re flying right now. “I’m falling! ” Every flight begins with a fall, the crow said. George R.r. Martin
There are worse ways to die than warm and drunk.
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There are worse ways to die than warm and drunk. George R.r. Martin
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I think there are two types of writers, the architects and the gardeners. The architects plan everything ahead of time, like an architect building a house. They know how many rooms are going to be in the house, what kind of roof they're going to have, where the wires are going to run, what kind of plumbing there's going to be. They have the whole thing designed and blueprinted out before they even nail the first board up. The gardeners dig a hole, drop in a seed and water it. They kind of know what seed it is, they know if planted a fantasy seed or mystery seed or whatever. But as the plant comes up and they water it, they don't know how many branches it's going to have, they find out as it grows. And I'm much more a gardener than an architect. George R.r. Martin
Some writers enjoy writing, I am told. Not me. I...
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Some writers enjoy writing, I am told. Not me. I enjoy having written. George R.r. Martin
A bruise is a lesson... and each lesson makes us...
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A bruise is a lesson... and each lesson makes us better. George R.r. Martin
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The glass candle is meant to represent truth and learning, rare and beautiful and fragile things. It is made in the shape of a candle to remind us that a maester must cast light wherever he serve, and it is a sharp to remind us that knowledge can be dangerous. George R.r. Martin
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They hate you because you act like you're better than they are...." "[they are] Four that you humiliated in the yard. Four who are probably afraid of you. I’ve watched you fight. It’s not training with you. Put a good edge on your sword, and they’d be dead meat; you know it, I know it, they know it. You leave them nothing. You shame them. Does that make you proud? George R.r. Martin
Men live their lives trapped in an eternal present, between...
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Men live their lives trapped in an eternal present, between the mists of memory and the sea of shadow that is all we know of the days to come. George R.r. Martin
Be careful you don't cut yourself. The edges are sharp...
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Be careful you don't cut yourself. The edges are sharp enough to shave with.'' Girls don't shave', Arya said.' Maybe they should. Have you ever seen the septa's legs? George R.r. Martin
Small men oft feel a need to prove their courage...
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Small men oft feel a need to prove their courage with unseemly boasts, " he declared. "I doubt if he could kill a duck." Tyrion shrugged. "Fetch the duck. George R.r. Martin
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We were talking about the prince, ' Sansa said, her voice soft as a kiss. Arya knew which prince she meant: Joffrey, of course. The tall, handsome one. Sansa got to sit with him at the feast. Arya had to sit with the little fat one. Naturally. George R.r. Martin
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We'll never find that one, and I'll be blamed, " announced Edd Tollett, the dour grey-haired squire everyone called Dolorous Edd. "Nothing ever goes missing that they don't look at me, ever since that time I lost my horse. As if that could be helped. He was white and it was snowing, what did they expected George R.r. Martin
Shaga: How would you like to die, little man? Tyrion:...
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Shaga: How would you like to die, little man? Tyrion: In my bed, at the age of eighty with a belly full of wine and a woman's mouth around my cock. George R.r. Martin
The world the Citadel is building has no place in...
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The world the Citadel is building has no place in it for sorcery or prophecy or glass candles, much less for dragons. George R.r. Martin
I have lived a thousand lives and I’ve loved a...
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I have lived a thousand lives and I’ve loved a thousand loves. I’ve walked on distant worlds and seen the end of time. Because I read. George R.r. Martin
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I have a realistic grasp of my own strengths and weaknesses. My mind is my weapon. My brother has his sword, King Robert has his warhammer, and I have my mind… and a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone, if it is to keep its edge. That’s why I read so much, Jon Snow. George R.r. Martin
He'll be down with the books. My old septon used...
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He'll be down with the books. My old septon used to say books are dead men talking. Dead men should keep quiet is what I say. No one wants to hear a dead man's yabber. George R.r. Martin
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Before he had lost his sight, the maester had loved books as much as Samwell Tarly did. He understood the way that you could sometimes fall right into them, as if each page was a hole into another world. George R.r. Martin
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Fantasy is silver and scarlet, indigo and azure, obsidian veined with gold and lapis lazuli. Reality is plywood and plastic, done up in mud brown and olive drab. Fantasy tastes of habaneros and honey, cinnamon and cloves, rare red meat and wines as sweet as summer. Reality is beans and tofu, and ashes at the end. George R.r. Martin
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I sailed up to the cold stars but they were cold no longer, and I grew bigger and bigger until I was the stars and they were me, and I was Union, and for a single solitary glittering instant I was the universe. George R.r. Martin
Bran thought about it. 'Can a man still be brave...
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Bran thought about it. 'Can a man still be brave if he's afraid?'' That is the only time a man can be brave, ' his father told him. George R.r. Martin
Fear cuts deeper than swords.
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Fear cuts deeper than swords. George R.r. Martin
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Oh, my sweet summer child, " Old Nan said quietly, "what do you know of fear? Fear is for the winter, my little lord, when the snows fall a hundred feetdeep and the ice wind comes howling out of the north. Fear is for the longnight, when the sun hides its face for years at a time, and little childrenare born and live and die all in darkness while the direwolves grow gaunt andhungry, and the white walkers move through the woods . George R.r. Martin
There's no shame in fear, my father told me, what...
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There's no shame in fear, my father told me, what matters is how we face it. George R.r. Martin
The man who fears losing has already lost.
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The man who fears losing has already lost. George R.r. Martin
A cold wind was blowing from the north, and it...
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A cold wind was blowing from the north, and it made the trees rustle like living things. George R.r. Martin
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Robb says the man died bravely, but Jon says he was afraid."" What do you think?" his father asked. Bran thought about it. "can a man still be brave if he's afraid?"" That is the only time a man can be brave, " his father told him. George R.r. Martin
His cloak was his crowning glory; sable, thick and black...
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His cloak was his crowning glory; sable, thick and black and soft as sin. George R.r. Martin
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And if I'm guilty of having gratuitous sex, then I'm also guilty of having gratuitous violence, and gratuitous feasting, and gratuitous description of clothes, and gratuitous heraldry, because very little of this is necessary to advance the plot. But my philosophy is that plot advancement is not what the experience of reading fiction is about. If all we care about is advancing the plot, why read novels? We can just read Cliffs Notes.A novel for me is an immersive experience where I feel as if I have lived it and that I've tasted the food and experienced the sex and experienced the terror of battle. So I want all of the detail, all of the sensory things–whether it's a good experience, or a bad experience, I want to put the reader through it. To that mind, detail is necessary, showing not telling is necessary, and nothing is gratuitous. George R.r. Martin
When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the...
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When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies but the pack survives. George R.r. Martin
My old grandmother always used to say, Summer friends will...
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My old grandmother always used to say, Summer friends will melt away like summer snows, but winter friends are friends forever. George R.r. Martin
Perhaps I cannot make my people good, she told herself,...
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Perhaps I cannot make my people good, she told herself, but I should at least try to make them a little less bad. George R.r. Martin
There is a savage beast in every man, and when...
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There is a savage beast in every man, and when you hand that man a sword or spear and send him forth to war, the beast stirs. George R.r. Martin
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War seems like a fine adventure, the greatest most of them will ever know. Then they get a taste of battle. For some, that one taste is enough to break them. Others go on for years, until they lose count of all the battles they have fought in, but even a man who has survived a hundred fights can break in his hundred-and-first. Brothers watch their brothers die, fathers lose their sons, friends see their friends trying to hold their entrails in after they’ve been gutted by an axe. They see the lord who led them there cut down, and some other lord shouts that they are his now, They take the wound, and when that’s still half-healed they take another. There is never enough to eat, their shoes fall to pieces from marching, their clothes are torn and rotting, and half of them are shitting in their breeches from drinking bad water. If they want new boots or a warmer cloak or maybe a rusted iron half helm, they need to take them from a corpse, and before long they are stealing from the living too, from the small folk whose land they’re fighting in, men very like the men they used to be. They slaughter their sheep and steal their chickens, and from there it’s just a short step to carrying off their daughters too. And one day they look around and realize all their friends and kin are gone, that they are fighting beside strangers beneath a banner that they hardly recognize. They don’t know where they are or how to get back home and the lord they’re fighting for does not know their names, yet here he comes, shouting for them to form up, to make a line with their spears and scythes and sharpened hoes, to stand their ground. And the knights come down on them, faceless men clad in all steel, and the iron thunder of their charge seems to fill the world. And the man breaks. . George R.r. Martin
The storms come and go, the waves crash overhead, the...
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The storms come and go, the waves crash overhead, the big fish eat the little fish, and I keep on paddling. (Varys) George R.r. Martin
On armageddon day, ' Sandy said, 'both armies will think...
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On armageddon day, ' Sandy said, 'both armies will think they fight for good. And both of them will be wrong. George R.r. Martin
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Armageddon, ' Sandy said. 'The final battle. The ultimate confrontation between good and evil. That's what armageddon is supposed to be. Right?'Hobbins lifted a pale white eyebrow, said nothing.' Which side are we?' Sandy demanded. 'Which side are we?'' That's one you got to work out yourself, friend. This ain't like in Tolkien, is it? George R.r. Martin
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...Prophecy is like a treacherous woman. She takes your member in her mouth, and you moan with the pleasure of it and think, how sweet, how fine, how good this is... and then her teeth snap shut and your moans turn to screams... Prophecy will bite your prick off everytime, George R.r. Martin
Gold has its uses, but war is won with iron.
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Gold has its uses, but war is won with iron. George R.r. Martin
Even in dreams, you could not fall forever.
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Even in dreams, you could not fall forever. George R.r. Martin
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One voyage to the East and a man could live as rich as a lord until the end of his days. When he'd been younger, Davos had dreamed of making such voyages himself. But the years went dancing by like moths around a flame, and somehow the time had never been quite right. George R.r. Martin
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The ground was so far below him, he could barely make it out through the grey mists that whirled around him, but he could feel how fast he was falling, and he knew what was waiting for him down there. Even in dreams, you could not fall forever. He would wake up in the instant before he hit the ground, he knew. You always woke in the instant before you hit the ground. George R.r. Martin
Every boy dreams of serving in the Kingsguard.
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Every boy dreams of serving in the Kingsguard. George R.r. Martin
Dreams can lie, your Grace.
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Dreams can lie, your Grace. George R.r. Martin
Sleep is a little death, dreams the whisperings of the...
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Sleep is a little death, dreams the whisperings of the other who would drag us all into the eternal light George R.r. Martin
Dreams turn to dust in light of day.
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Dreams turn to dust in light of day. George R.r. Martin
My sister has mistaken me for a mushroom. She keeps...
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My sister has mistaken me for a mushroom. She keeps me in the dark and feeds me shit. George R.r. Martin
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Go Ahead, call me all the names you want, " Sansa said airily. "You won't dare when I'm married to Joffrey. You'll have to bow and call me Your Grace." She shrieked as Arya flung the orange across the table. It caught her in the middle of the forehead with a wet squish and plopped down into her lap." You have juice on your face, Your Grace , " Arya said. George R.r. Martin
And what lesson can we draw from Volantene history?”“ If...
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And what lesson can we draw from Volantene history?”“ If you want to conquer the world, you best have dragons. George R.r. Martin
I learned long ago that it is considered rude to...
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I learned long ago that it is considered rude to vomit on your brother George R.r. Martin
Well, the drums gave me headaches, the sunlight flashing on...
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Well, the drums gave me headaches, the sunlight flashing on my armor cooked me up like harvest day, and those magnificent destriers shit everywhere. George R.r. Martin
A sword needs a sheath, heh, and a wedding needs...
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A sword needs a sheath, heh, and a wedding needs a bedding. George R.r. Martin
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No". Tyrion's voice was hoarse. "Sansa is no longer yours to torment. Understand that, monster." Joffrey sneered. "You're the monster, Uncle" "Am I?" Tyrion cocked his head. "Perhaps you should speak more softly to me, then. Monsters are dangerous beasts, and just now kinds seem to be dying like flies. George R.r. Martin
Wolves and women wed for life.
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Wolves and women wed for life. George R.r. Martin
All men are fools, and all men are knights where...
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All men are fools, and all men are knights where women are concerned. George R.r. Martin
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The years pass in their hundreds and their thousands, and what does any man see of life but a few summers, a few winters? We look at mountains and call them eternal, and so they seem... but in the course of time, mountains rise and fall, rivers change their courses, stars fall from the sky, and great cities sink beneath the sea. Even gods die, we think. Everything changes. George R.r. Martin
She is not truly beautiful but something about her draws...
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She is not truly beautiful but something about her draws the eye. George R.r. Martin
Still, beauty can mask deadly danger.
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Still, beauty can mask deadly danger. George R.r. Martin
Beauty can be treacherous.
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Beauty can be treacherous. George R.r. Martin
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Man wants to be the king o’ the rabbits, he best wear a pair o’ floppy ears. George R.r. Martin
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A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies, said Jojen. The man who never reads lives only one. George R.r. Martin
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Do you want to die old and craven in your bed?- How else? Though not till I'm done reading. George R.r. Martin
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History is a wheel, for the nature of man is fundamentally unchanging. What has happened before will perforce happen again. George R.r. Martin
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She should be on a hill somewhere, under a fruit tree, with the sun and clouds above her and the rain to wash her clean. George R.r. Martin