Lisa Gardner Quotes & Sayings

All I've really ever done is write since I was 17, so I don't know anything about anything. For me to do a novel, I have to talk to people who know things. And what keeps me in suspense is that I am a crime aficionado. — Lisa Gardner

It's so much easier to fall in love, and so much more complicated to fall out of it. — Lisa Gardner

I still read romance, and I read suspense. I read them both. And part of it is, I like stories with strong characters, and I like stories where there's closure at the end. And I like stories where there's hope. That's a kind of empowerment. I think romance novels are very empowering, and I think suspense novels are, too. — Lisa Gardner

I still like the relationship part of any story. You don't want your character to figure everything out and then at the end of the day, go home and eat soup from a can by herself. — Lisa Gardner

Dying for someone is easy." J.T. murmured now; as if reading my mind."Living for yourself, that's hard. — Lisa Gardner

I want to cry but I don't. I don't. There are pieces of yourself, so many pieces of yourself, that, once you give away, you cannot get back again. — Lisa Gardner

Humanity is a messy business, where knowing what is right doesn't necessarily preclude you from doing what is wrong. — Lisa Gardner

That brought D.D. up short. — Lisa Gardner

Youth is no excuse for sloppiness. — Lisa Gardner

Parents think the worst thing that can happen to their five-year-old is cancer. They're wrong; the worst thing that can happen to their five-year-old is mental illness. — Lisa Gardner

You know what the difference between a cardiac surgeon and God is? God doesn't think he's a cardiac surgeon. — Lisa Gardner

When you're on book tours, you definitely need chocolate. At all times. — Lisa Gardner

The past has a will of its own. It wants to be heard. — Lisa Gardner

You try as a parent. You love beyond reason. You fight beyond endurance. You hope beyond despair.
You never think, until the very last moment, that it still might not be enough. — Lisa Gardner

You can be the hunter, or you can be the hunted. — Lisa Gardner

Alex said, his voice subdued, tense. "So it would seem," D.D. — Lisa Gardner

Mental illness is a disease and organic mental illness of young kids is becoming more and more of a disease ... we do need to talk about it. — Lisa Gardner

I know you have a past, but personally, I'm vested in our future. — Lisa Gardner

What I learned is that it's arrogant to be certain of anything. The world is a complex place and only idiots or assholes think they know it all. — Lisa Gardner

We're all in this together - when one writer succeeds, all writers succeed. I love discovering new authors. I think we need to take care of each other and talk about craft and nurture talent. — Lisa Gardner

I don't know much about international policing and I would love to learn more. Especially in this day and age when the Internet is rapidly reducing borders and crime can happen on a larger scale than ever before. These things intrigue me. — Lisa Gardner

When I got my very first phone call that I'd hit the 'New York Times' list, I had a small rush of 'I've made it!' But the next morning, it occurred to me I didn't know what it was, so I called my agent and asked what being a 'New York Times' bestselling author really meant. He informed me that I was now a thousand pound gorilla. — Lisa Gardner

Before I became a suspense novelist, I wrote romantic suspense as Alicia Scott. — Lisa Gardner

Women cry. Men laugh. Whiners moan. Men laugh. Wimps complain. Men laugh. — Lisa Gardner

I'm not the most detailed writer. I have a tendency to be more action-oriented vs. descriptive. — Lisa Gardner

I like to believe my suspense novels marry the strong characters from my romance writing past, with the twisty, clever plots of my mystery writing present. — Lisa Gardner

You swim and you keep swimming without a thought in your head because that's what you have to do. And you do the push-ups and you jog and you do all the things beyond exhaustion because you have to. Then one day you'll discover you're in the zone and you don't feel your legs anymore, you don't feel your arms anymore. You exist just as motion. That's the zone. Then you can do anything. — Lisa Gardner

God give me the strength to change the things I can change, the courage to let go of the things I need to let go and the wisdom to know the difference. - Bobby Dodge — Lisa Gardner

Pain has a flavor. — Lisa Gardner

Everyone should say what they wanted. It saved time. — Lisa Gardner

Sure, they all have iPods, smartphones, whatever. Generally speaking, it's in our own best interest to keep some kind of electronic device in their hands. Otherwise they might talk to us. — Lisa Gardner

Men should spend less time with guns and more time in childbirth. — Lisa Gardner

Survivors make it because they learn to adapt. Adaptation is coping. Coping is strength. — Lisa Gardner

I'd clawed my way back to the land of the living. Because of Vero. She needed me. — Lisa Gardner

Post-apocalyptic novels tell you that in the future there is some great war. I would tell you that most cops say that it's going on right now. — Lisa Gardner

the front doors. Flashbulbs flashed. A roar rose up from the crowd at the sign of fresh activity. Then Rainie caught a new sound - the faint beating of helicopters bearing down upon them. The medevac choppers had finally arrived to carry the wounded away. And Rainie couldn't help thinking that it would be much later before the ME's office came for the bodies. Officer Luke Hayes was thirty-six years old, balding, and shorter than most women. His trim build, however, was a compact one hundred fifty pounds that turned many ladies' heads and became useful in a fight. In Rainie's opinion, however, Luke's biggest asset was his steely blue eyes. She — Lisa Gardner

it, Shep does his ordering for the department and for himself all from the same manufacturer. — Lisa Gardner

Pain has a flavor. The question is ... what does it taste like to you? — Lisa Gardner

Dual-income families have turned out a batch of superpredators who have no sympathy or remorse. Blast 'em up on Nintendo; blast 'em up on the streets. — Lisa Gardner

What I loved about romances was the character, and I think I still bring that to my novels. What romance taught me was that the 'who' will always matter more than the 'what.' It's fun to come up with plots, but I want to make sure the reader cares about who it's happening to. — Lisa Gardner

IN A DETECTIVE'S WORLD there was one true blight on society, and it wasn't the master criminal; after all, superpredators were few and far between. It was the media. Sunday — Lisa Gardner

Because sometimes pain is knowing, and sometimes pain is sharing that knowledge with someone who loves you but can't do anything to help. — Lisa Gardner

It wasn't that strangers couldn't hurt you. It was simply that the people you loved could do it so much better. — Lisa Gardner

There are things that once done can't be undone, things that once said can't be unsaid. — Lisa Gardner

The only time you're calm, you're centered, you're at peace, is when someone's trying to kill you. And that's just plain twisted. — Lisa Gardner

Oh, for the love of God. There is no agent more agent than you. I swear you have pin-striped ties encrypted into your DNA. When you die, the coffin is going to read Property of the FBI. — Lisa Gardner

They died, leaving behind the kind of void that is never filled, a relentless ache that follows an abandoned child throughout her entire life. And — Lisa Gardner

Because it's one thing to survive. It is much, much harder to truly live. — Lisa Gardner

Special Agent Quincy had earned his stripes as one of the Bureau's finest profilers. — Lisa Gardner

It's human nature, Rainie. We're all looking for something to believe in, and someone to blame. — Lisa Gardner

My secret vice is Sudoku puzzles. Can't stop playing them. My parents are accountants. I blame them entirely. — Lisa Gardner

And a man and woman should fight. Frankly, they should have a good head-to-head battle about every six months, then make love until they break the box springs. — Lisa Gardner

I'm very intrigued by e-books, the topic du jour in the industry today. As a number one bestselling Kindle author, I love the way e-books make an author's backlist accessible to new readers. Of course, price point remains a source of concern. Personally, I don't have any of the answers, but I'm intrigued by the questions. — Lisa Gardner

Mothers hold close, fathers let go. Maybe that's the way of the world. — Lisa Gardner

Start fresh." "And Maryanne?" "She's devastated about what James put us through. I think she'd like a fresh start, too, and more time with Nathan. On the other hand ... you know, she really loves James. Even after everything, I don't think she can bring herself to leave him." James was in a coma. Between the blood loss and damage to his internal organs, his system had shut down. Doctors didn't think he'd ever regain consciousness. Mostly, they were surprised the man was still alive. "Maybe someday," Bobby said. Catherine nodded. "Maryanne likes Arizona. She mentioned they'd always talked about buying a home out there. So maybe, afterwards ... " His turn to nod. Now they both watched Nathan. The boy's cheeks were flushed, his breath coming in frosty pants. Trickster nipped at his — Lisa Gardner

It's kind of the yin and yang that fascinate me. That for all the evil men do, there are also people who work obnoxiously long hours and sacrifice their personal lives because it is a calling - if they don't keep our streets safe, if they aren't there to advocate for and save beaten women and children and murder victims, who will? — Lisa Gardner

I have a huge author crush on Stephen King. Have never met him. Would probably embarrass myself. But it would be worth it. — Lisa Gardner

Pain is not what you see and not what you feel. Pain is what you can only hear, alone in the dark. — Lisa Gardner

When you buried your child, was it like imparting your greatest treasure into the sanctity of nature?
Love You More — Lisa Gardner

Who do you love?
It's a question anyone should be able to answer. A question that defines a life, creates a future, guides most minutes of one's days. Simple, elegant encompassing.
Who do you love? — Lisa Gardner

Winners never quit, quitters never win — Lisa Gardner

Asked Thomas; it's just him and me and has been for a very long time. We tell each other we are — Lisa Gardner

Chances are that he's experiencing a great deal of guilt and self-loathing. Someone needs to help him come to terms with that. Otherwise, there is the danger that he will simply shut down that part of himself. He will start actively considering himself to be a remorseless killer. And he will become one. — Lisa Gardner

My mother would like me to start all interviews by stating that she and my father are perfectly normal. They are proud of me, and as perplexed as anyone by my novels. — Lisa Gardner

Men may be violent, Officer Dodge, but let's face it-women are cruel ... — Lisa Gardner

They [Cops] were living in the media age, and in the media age, cops didn't get to fire their weapons. Cops were honored if they got themselves killed in the line of duty, but they were never suppose to draw their guns, not even in self-defense. — Lisa Gardner

I'm unique for a suspense author in that I don't have a specialty background. A lot of suspense writers used to be lawyers or crime beat reporters. I didn't even know a cop when I started out. I finally figured out that I could visit prisons - I just had to be willing to make the phone calls. — Lisa Gardner

Why worry about the monster beneath the bed when a very real bogeyman sleeps on top of it? — Lisa Gardner

Whomever speaks first gives up some power. — Lisa Gardner

Most people don't need the help of strangers to screw up their lives; most of them are quite capable of doing it themselves! — Lisa Gardner

It's not the flying that's the hard part; it's the landing. — Lisa Gardner

It is difficult to get men to pick up a female author. Women will read men, but men won't read women. — Lisa Gardner

Pain is very useful. It warns you of danger, teaches you of hazards and provides consequences for your actions. — Lisa Gardner

Once, I was my mother's daughter. Now I am my daughter's mother. — Lisa Gardner

Expect nothing and life will be velvet. — Lisa Gardner

Look at him. But I can't. Too many things are exploding in my head, and the memories are both simpler and more horrible — Lisa Gardner

I think one of the appeals of suspense is to safely explore our innermost fears. — Lisa Gardner

What's the last thing you remember?" I ask instead. "Dancing." "You were at a bar, a nightclub? In Boston?" It takes her a bit, but finally, "Y-y-yes." "Did you drink too much?" A small hiccup I take to be yes. Kids, I think. We're all so young and fearless once. Nightclubs are nothing but a source of adventure. And a fourth, fifth, sixth rum runner the best idea in the world. I hated myself for my own stupidity, waking up in a coffin-size box. Minute after minute, day after day, so much time to do nothing but repent. And — Lisa Gardner

God was in the details. — Lisa Gardner

I loved ghost stories, creaky staircases, stormy nights. If it guaranteed nightmares I read it by flashlight, after midnight. — Lisa Gardner

Life may not be perfect, at least it offered moments that were perfect enough. — Lisa Gardner

When it comes to locations, I'm one of those crazy authors who has to see it, touch it, taste it, before I trust myself to recreate it for my readers. Having said that, visiting a locked-down pediatric psych ward was the most intimidating research I've ever done - and I've visited maximum security prisons, shooting galleries, bone collections, etc. — Lisa Gardner

There is a breed of men out there, you know, who are attracted to strong women. They just don't know what to do once they win us over. — Lisa Gardner

His job already had him lying and manipulating me. My past had me lying and manipulating him. Both of us thought we were right. — Lisa Gardner