Brandon Mull Quotes & Sayings

You heard what Declan said about you," Cole realized. Liam gave a little shrug. "At least when he talks behind my back, he sticks to the same things he says to my face. It's actually kind of admirable. — Brandon Mull

Your attempt was valiant, but the fight was unfair. He was a seasoned warrior, fully armored. You were a lad with a short sword. You have a brave heart. That can be more important than size or strength. — Brandon Mull

I don't know how you're standing here. Yet you haven't broken. Not where it matters. Having come this far, I'm not sure you can be broken. — Brandon Mull

If you have to travel," Coulter said, "I can't think of a better way than the Translocator." "I know, I'm getting spoiled," Warren replied. "I'm not sure I'll be able to do airports ever again." Tanu nodded. "No customs, no checked bags, no tiny seats for ten hours at a time." "What are you griping about?" Warren said. "You hibernate like a grizzly on those long flights." "I sleep to escape the torture," Tanu maintained. — Brandon Mull

Don't let the brownies bite. — Brandon Mull

We humans are conflicted beings. Our beliefs don't always harmonize with our instincts, and our behavior doesn't always reflect our beliefs ... We wage war between the person we are and the person we hope to become. — Brandon Mull

Any simpleton can speak with confidence. Sometimes the greatest fools have the most bravado. — Brandon Mull

Oh, Kendra, before I forget, Gavin asked me to give you this letter." He held out a gray, speckled envelope.
"Happy birthday to you!" Seth exclaimed, his voice full of implications.
Kendra tried not to blush as she tucked the envelope away.
"Dear Kendra," Seth improvised, "you're the only girl who really gets me, you know, and I think you're very mature for your age
"
"What about some cake?" Grandma interrupted, holding the first piece out to Kendra and glaring at Seth. — Brandon Mull

You can only play a certain amount of Yatzee games in a row before you become a lunatic. — Brandon Mull

The Sphinx extended a hand. Seth shook it. "One last thing, Seth. Are you aware that Midsummer Eve is scarcely a week away?" "Yeah." "Might I make a suggestion?" "Okay." "Don't open any windows. — Brandon Mull

Evil likes darkness." "Why is that?" Seth asked. Grandma thought about the question a moment before answering. "Because evil likes to hide. — Brandon Mull

The man unwilling to brave the test has already shown himself to be much more craven than the man who fails. — Brandon Mull

You sometimes act as if you think growing up means the rules don't apply anymore. On the contrary - a big part of growing up is learning self-control. You work on that, and then we can talk about expanding your privileges. — Brandon Mull

What's the dog called?"Jason asked. "Feraclestinius Androbrelium Pathershin the Seventh." "No, I meant his entire name. — Brandon Mull

Can you see the power emotion has to distort our outlook? Makes you wonder, did you have a bad day, or did you make it a bad day. — Brandon Mull

I'm the worst kind of criminal."
"And what kind is that?"
"The kind that got caught. — Brandon Mull

It's easy to make up weird stuff. It gets trickier when you want the weird stuff to be interesting and make sense. — Brandon Mull

I remain your pledged man," Tark avowed, touching a fist to his chest. "What are your orders?"
Jason turned to the stocky musician. "Do your best to help Galloran win this war."
"I swear it."
"And keep an eye on Rachel. See if you can get her to stop telling me she's going to see me again. I think she's jinxing us."
Rachel punched Jason's arm.
Tark eyed Rachel uncertainly. She saw a hint of disapproval in his gaze, along with a little wariness.
Jason smiled. "That's assault. Tark, take her out. — Brandon Mull

Everybody is busy trying to pretend boys and girls are exactly the same nowadays, but that isn't how I see it. If it makes you feel better, I'll share everything I know with — Brandon Mull

Even misplaced faith can help us gain knowledge. We try to be smart about where we put our faith and we adjust as we learn more. — Brandon Mull

None of us start out strong ... And none of us have the exact same strengths. — Brandon Mull

For each of us destiny is a blend of potential, circumstances, and choices. — Brandon Mull

A crossbow?" Pigeon asked.
I left my battle-ax in my other jeans," the man said. — Brandon Mull

Excruciating agony makes me cranky. — Brandon Mull

This is my risk to take.Not yours. I can live with getting myself killed."
"Technically, you can't live if you get yourself killed. — Brandon Mull

Sharing a book with others becomes a public enterprise. There — Brandon Mull

What has three heads, six arms, and half a brain?" Three asked. One and Two answered in unison. "Nate Sutter. — Brandon Mull

Everything with a beginning has an ending. Any magic that can be done, can be undone. Anything you can make, can be unmade. — Brandon Mull

Everyone should get to clobber a princess at least once, Jason said. — Brandon Mull

Sometimes the most preposterous lies are the most believable. — Brandon Mull

The bear would have to be stopped," Grandma agreed. "Stan is just making the distinction that you wouldn't blame the bear the same way you would blame a responsible person. — Brandon Mull

The others were trying to spare you from pain. The truth can be devastating. We spend much of our lives protecting ourselves from it and shielding others as well. We use lies to take the edge off life. We dream of a better tomorrow. We hide from our regrets and inadequacies. We try to exaggerate the good and downplay the bad. We even mange to hide from the inescapable reality that sooner or later we and everyone we love is going to die. — Brandon Mull

Jason glanced at the creature. It remained the same distance away as before, still as a statue.
"What do you want?" Jason asked.
No answer.
"Are you the thing that followed Tark? You should keep following him. He's the real mastermind. Shoo. Go hide."
No response.
"Okay, how about you stand guard while I sleep. Keep the giants away. Sound good? All in favor, hold perfectly still. Fine, I guess we have a deal. — Brandon Mull

Seth wished he had kept the zombie hand. — Brandon Mull

In their youth, mortals behave more like nymphs. Adulthood seems impossibly distant, let alone the enfeeblement of old age. But ponderously, inevitably, it overtakes you. — Brandon Mull

Learn to recognize power in others. Become more conscious of your own power. It's there. — Brandon Mull

Hello," Newel said. "Look, Doren, we have visitors. Kendra, Seth, and ... Muriel's weirdo puppet." ... Newel grabbed Seth's hand and shook it vigorously. "Congratulations. You just found yourself a secret entrance."
"So seriously," Doren said. "What's with the puppet? — Brandon Mull

Luck has a way of evaporating when you lean on it. — Brandon Mull

Please don't assault me with that meat amalgam. It would surely cause infection — Brandon Mull

How do you kill something that's already dead?
Nobody knows enough about them. Ask Jason. He'll have an opinion.
Wait a moment. Rachel could see Corinne talking to Jason, but they were too far ahead to hear. He says you chop them up into little pieces.
But what if that infects you with the disease?
Jason leaned closer to answer Corinne quietly. She laughed. You let Nollin do it. — Brandon Mull

A bar of gold means much more to a pauper than to a king — Brandon Mull

A lie twice believed is self decieved — Brandon Mull

And you came back to Lyrian?" Galloran said in disbelief.
"Believe it or not, I came through the same hippopotamus that brought me here the first time. Jumped into the tank on purpose. I wanted to keep others from wasting their time pursuing the Word. And I couldn't ditch Rachel."
Galloran smiled. "Truly, you are possessed by that species of madness that begets heroism. — Brandon Mull

Considering the circumstances, Rollan figured being alive was the same thing as being okay. — Brandon Mull

You look tired," Rachel told Jason.
"I wish I could jog and sleep at the same time."
"Can't you?" Ferrin asked, joining them at the little cascade. "I always imagined that you could sleep rolling down a mountainside in a barrel."
"I probably could today," Jason conceded. — Brandon Mull

A gunshot rang out, blasting a hole in the door. A crossbow quarrel zinged through the hole and stuck quivering into the opposite wall. Seth heard the rocking horse clattering down the staircase, the twang of bowstrings, and the overlapping beat of several other projectiles thudding against the door.
"That was awesome," Seth told Kendra.
"You're psychotic," Kendra replied. — Brandon Mull

Any of the nearby volumes might hold information about hippopotamus portals or contain hints about how he might get home. — Brandon Mull

Was the anticipation worse than the event itself? At — Brandon Mull

You don't get it? He poisonded me! He poisonded me, and you're next. I'm going to die. We're all going to die.
-Seth — Brandon Mull

Your mind was seizing on something to try to make sense of the emotion. Can you see the power emotion has to distort our outlook? Makes u wonder, did you have a bad day, or did you make it a bad day? ... We can exert a lot of control over our emotions. But sometimes they run away with us. These bottled-up emotions hit you with a lot of force ... If you drink straight courage, you can beome reckless and foolhardy. For a good result, you have to temper the courage with a little fear, a little calm. Tanu, p109-110 — Brandon Mull

Let's worry about fixing the problem instead of the blame. — Brandon Mull

An unread book does nobody any good — Brandon Mull

Mira admitted. "This is my risk to take. Not yours. I can live with getting myself killed." "Technically, you can't live if you get killed," Jace pointed out. — Brandon Mull

She had seen a huge hunchback ogre with meaty forearms and a pruned face crossing a courtyard with an anvil under one arm. — Brandon Mull

Choices determine character. — Brandon Mull

13. Who is the coolest author ever? Is it the guy who wrote Fablehaven? If not, what's the matter with you? — Brandon Mull

Your courage in the grove surprised me. Surprise is a reaction I had all but forgotten. I have seen enough that I alway know what to expect. I assess the odds of various outcomes, and me predictions are never thwarted. before you were finished confronting the revenant, the potion failed. I saw the artificial bravado leave you. Your demise was certain. Yet, despite my certainty, you removed the nail. Had you been full-grown, a seasoned hero of legendary renown, well-trained, armed with charms and talismans, I would have been deeply impressed. But for a mere boy to preform such a feat? I was truly surprised. — Brandon Mull

Seth trotted over to Kendra. Bringing good luck as usual
It was a weak pass okay — Brandon Mull

Nobody can accept the truth while hiding from it. When a decision matters, we have to stare at the truth unflinchingly. Only then do we find peace in our choices. — Brandon Mull

A hero sacrifices for the greater good. A hero is true to his or her conscience. In short, heroism means doing the right thing regardless of the consequences. Although any person could fit that description, very few do. Choose this day to be one of them. — Brandon Mull

Seth put his ear against the door. "I can't hear anything."
"There are probably ten of them patiently waiting on the far side, ready to pounce."
Brownies are shrimps. All I'd need are some heavy boots, a pair of shin guards, and a weed whacker."
The image made Kendra giggle. — Brandon Mull

If we might be able to save this world, how can we walk away? Too many people around here have given up! Galloran said heroes sacrifice for causes; they do things that others hide from. I may not be some great hero, but I won't hide from this. I would never live with myself. — Brandon Mull

Early to bed, early to rise," Ziggy said. "Early or late, — Brandon Mull

Agreements. Specifically, a treaty ratified by all the orders of whimsical like forms who dwell here that affords a measure of security for mortal caretakers. In a world where mortal man has become the dominant force, most creatures of enchantment have fled to refuges like this one. — Brandon Mull

Being butchered by monkeys is pretty low on my list of ways to go. — Brandon Mull

The good stupid is the brave kind. When there's a real reason behind. Bad stupid is everything else. — Brandon Mull

Ew, sicko. I was practicing Edomic."
"Sure you were," Jason said. "You're just too embarrassed to admit you were playing hide-and-seek all alone. Rachel hiding, nobody seeking. — Brandon Mull

I sound the same to myself — Brandon Mull

Naiads who liked to drown people, which meant she needed a sturdy — Brandon Mull

This was a great book! It follows how Jason Walker is transported back to earth after spending months in Lyrian. He knows that he has things that he still must do in Lyrian. He decides to try and find a way back. The problem is that if he doesn't travel through the portal correctly, he will die. What happens next? You'll have to read the book to find out. — Brandon Mull

You can't fully prepare. You do your best to acquire diverse skills. You try to learn from your successes and mistakes over the years. You try to assemble a team with varied talents and expertise. Mostly, you strive to stay calm enough to think clearly even under extreme pressure. You try to use the adrenaline for focus rather than panic. You stay on your toes, ready to improvise. And you hope for the best. — Brandon Mull

Fantasy leaves imaginations larger than it finds them. — Brandon Mull

This surpassed the fear of death. Death would be a mercy if it would make the feeling stop, the uncontrollable panic mingling with the mind-scrambling certainty of something sinister approaching, something with no need to hurry, something that would not be so kind as to let him die. The fear was palpable, suffocating, irresistible. — Brandon Mull

The last thing we need is a giant magical cow running around loose. It could be total mayhem. — Brandon Mull

What'll you do if you can't find a way to cure him?" Seth asked.
Dale paused. "I'll never know that day has come, because I'll never stop trying. — Brandon Mull

You have been spying all along," Conrad said, unconvinced. "The manhunt for you was a ruse."
"Check with the emperor," Ferrin replied coolly.
... "That will not take long," said a man in the corner, studiously picking at a fingernail with a small knife. He raised his head, wavy gray hair framing his pallid face. He wore a long coat of brown leather.
"Torvic!" Ferrin called, the exuberance hollow. "I hadn't seen you over there. Still in touch directly with Felrook? You know, to come clean, I haven't brought Maldor in on my plan yet, so it might be of little use to bother him at this juncture. — Brandon Mull

Vannessa wasn't wrong. — Brandon Mull

Forgive my brother," Camira apologized. "We don't normally let him out of his cage when guests are present. — Brandon Mull

Say no to death pies. Another good motto. — Brandon Mull

Smart people learn from their mistakes. But the real sharp ones learn from the mistakes of others. — Brandon Mull

What if a pair of us head off on our own?" Nollin proposed, panting. "A small detachment might avoid detection."
"It's a gamble," Ferrin said. "If the duo gets noticed, they'll be defenseless. Who'd you have in mind?"
"Some key delegates," Nollin said. "Perhaps myself and Aram."
Rachel shook her head. Evidently, Nollin had noticed the critical role Aram had played during the escape.
Ferrin laughed openly. "Aram, you've been promoted to essential!"
"I'm generally more appreciated at night," the big man grumbled. "I'm going to the table, Nollin."
"Maybe we should all remain together," Nollin repented. — Brandon Mull

Adamant," Doren said proudly, handing over the shield. "We fished it out of the tar pit where we found the shirt of mail."
"Probably all belonged to the same careless adventurer," Newel speculated. "Too much money, not enough talent. — Brandon Mull

Kendra stared out the side window of the SUV, watching foliage blur past. When the flurry of motion became too much, she looked up ahead and fixed her gaze on a particular tree, following it as it slowly approached, streaked past, and then gradually receded behind her. Was life like that? You could look ahead to the future or back at the past, but the present moved too quickly to absorb. Maybe sometimes. Not today. Today they were driving along an endless two-lane highway through the forested hills of Connecticut. — Brandon Mull

She pictured herself running from a hoard of ravenous zombies on a hot day eventually collapsing from heatstroke and getting devoured. Then she imagined Hal giving a rousing eulogy at her funeral explaining how Kendra's death was a beautiful sacrifice allowing the noble zombies to live on delighting future generations by mindlessly trying to eat them. With her luck it could totally happen. — Brandon Mull

If a starving bear ate my family, even though he may have had no wicked intentions, even though he was just being a bear, his nature has made him a menace, — Brandon Mull

For Frito-Lay!" - Newel and Doren — Brandon Mull

Rumors. I'll not say more on the subject. Cheese in your eggs?" "Yes, please." * * * With Kendra gone, Seth got out the equipment he had bundled in his towel, including his emergency kit and the jar he had smuggled from the pantry. The jar was now empty, washed clean in the bathroom sink. Taking out his pocket knife, Seth used the awl to punch holes in the lid. Unscrewing the top, he gathered bits of grass, flower petals, a twig, and a pebble, and placed them in the jar. Then he wandered across the garden from the pool, leaving the skimmer behind. If skill failed, he would resort to cunning. He found a good spot not far from a fountain, then took the small mirror from his — Brandon Mull

Did you design the door?'
'No.'
'Who did? The Unknown Designer? — Brandon Mull

My father once admonished me to master the laws that govern fine writing until I could weave my words into worlds. If ever I accomplish that feat, I will sign my name to the tale. — Brandon Mull

Yes, we have different viewpoints represented among us," she continued. "Yes, we have a displacer in our number, and a half giant, and a seedman who publicly disgraced us."
"She's talking about you," Drake muttered to Nollin, loud enough to draw a laugh.
"No, Drake, I'm talking about you," Farfalee corrected. — Brandon Mull

Making mistakes is part of learning to choose well. No way around it. Choices are thrust upon us, and we don't always get things right. Even postponing or avoiding a decision can become a choice that carries heavy consequences. Mistakes can be painful-sometimes they cause irrevocable harm-but welcome to Earth. Poor choices are part of growing up, and part of life. You will make bad choices, and you will be affected by the poor choices of others. We must rise above such things. — Brandon Mull

You should have Hugo throw you in the pool."
The golem turned his head toward Seth, who shrugged.
"Sure, that would be fun."
Hugo nodded, grabbed Seth, and, with a motion like a hook shot, flung him skyward. Kendra gasped. They were still thirty or forty feet away from the edge of the pool. She had pictured the golem carrying Seth much closer before tossing him. Her brother sailed nearly as high as the roof of the house before plummeting down and landing in the center of the deep end with an impressive splash.
Kendra ran to the side of the pool. By the time she arrived, Seth was boosting himself out of the waster, hair and clothes dripping. "That was the freakiest, awesomest moment in my life!" Seth declared. "But next time, let me take off my shoes. — Brandon Mull

In some ways, it's easier to recognize your power when you're calm and untroubled than when you're distressed. Search out your talent in quiet moments. Don't push too hard. You've done it once. You can do it again. — Brandon Mull

Was life like that? You could look ahead to the future or back to the past, but the present moved too quickly to absorb. — Brandon Mull

Only two towers remained standing, one of which was so crooked and damaged it looked ready to topple at a cough from a butterfly. — Brandon Mull

In his writings, Patton was shameless about his ambition to woo Lena to be his bride. He detailed the gradual progress he made, playing music for her on his violin, writing her poems, beguiling her with stories, engaging her in conversation. It was clear that he obsessed over her. He knew what he wanted and never relented until she was his. — Brandon Mull

No matter how hard I try, there's a cynical corner of my mind where everything is an act. People are game pieces. Information is currency. — Brandon Mull

For anything worth accomplishing, we can always find reasons to doubt, just as we can also find reasons to proceed ... I have chosen to side with faith and hope over doubt and despair. — Brandon Mull

You and I move through time like a flame on a string. The ashes behind are the past, consumed, unreachable. The string ahead is the future. But the only moment we inhabit, the only moment where we can act, is the present, the point where the flame burns, the point where time touches eternity. — Brandon Mull

We all posses different gifts and abilities. How we use those gifts determines who we are. — Brandon Mull