“We are each the authors of our own lives, Emma. We live in what we have created. There is no way to shift the blame and no one else to accept the accolades.”

Even the most powerful woman needs a place to unwind.

When you are a strong woman, you will attract trouble. When a man feels threatened, there is always trouble.

The past was always there, lived inside of you, and it helped to make you who you were. But it had to be placed in perspective. The past could not dominate the future.

In my opinion, moderation is a vastly overrated virtue, particularly when applied to work

I will never stop writing. People often ask when I will retire, but I say it’s none of their business. Writing defines who I am. I love the feeling of holding a finished book in my hands, and then I can’t wait to start the great adventure of writing the next one.

Elizabeth lay face-down on the massage table, and allowed Marco to relieve the stress of the business day with firm and knowing fingers. Success, she decided, was often a matter of knowing when to relax.

He who ascends to mountaintops, shall find The loftiest peaks most wrapt in clouds and snow; He who surpasses or subdues mankind Must look down on the hate of those below

The value of life lies not in the length of days, but in the use we make to them; a man may live long, yet get little from life. Whether you find satisfaction in life depends not on your tale of years, but on your will – Montaigne, Essays

She put her hand in his, and he clasped it firmly, knowing he had been waiting for her all his life.

A person with taste is merely one who can recognize the greatest beauty in the simplest things.

Always present yourself as a woman who expects to succeed.

Life was life. It happened. You never knew what was going to come at you. Or how you could defend yourself.

At the age of fifty-six Eleanor Stoddard was still a beautiful woman. She owned three hotels in France and another two in England. From nothing at all, she had built an empire. Eleanor had it all. Her one weakness was the young man sleeping beside her.

Life always gets harder towards the summit – the cold increases, responsibility increases

If anyone asks me whether I like being a popular writer, I ask them whether they think I’d rather be an unpopular writer.

Never let stress shape your strategy. Most women think better after a brisk walk, a light meal, a massage and a nap.

When I wake up,” he said, “remind me that I’m going to marry her.

My love for rock kept me alive. It lit a fire in my soul reminding me of my strength to set the world on fire.

I really have paid my dues! When I get to stay in fancy hotel suites these days I remind myself of that.

In our world, where hundreds of things distract us from God, we have to intentionally and consistently remind ourselves of Him.

I love prints of skulls and bones and have some taxidermy – a crow and a rabbit – to remind me of home. I like art and have a big portrait of Bjork.

You remind me of a smoked cigarette.

We need to be reminded more than we need to be instructed.

Sometimes we need the salt of tears to remind us how to savor the sweetness of life.