"I will have you without armor, Kaz Brekker. Or I will not have you at all."
~ Leigh Bardugo
Read all great Leigh Bardugo quotes below ...
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Leigh Bardugo, a luminary in the world of fantasy fiction, seamlessly weaves together intricate worlds, complex characters, and spellbinding narratives that have captivated readers worldwide. Born on April 6, 1975, Bardugo spent her formative years in Jerusalem, Israel, before moving to Los Angeles, where she pursued her passion for storytelling and eventually established herself as a prominent figure in contemporary literature.
Bardugo's journey as an author is as enchanting as the worlds she creates. With a background in journalism and copywriting, she honed her craft before venturing into the realm of fiction. In 2012, Bardugo made her debut with "Shadow and Bone," the first installment in her critically acclaimed Grisha Trilogy. This trilogy, set in a fantastical world inspired by Tsarist Russia, introduced readers to the enigmatic Grisha, wielders of elemental magic, and their struggle against dark forces.
Following the success of the Grisha Trilogy, Bardugo continued to enthrall readers with her Six of Crows duology, set in the same universe but exploring new territories and characters. This duology, known for its intricate heists, morally gray protagonists, and rich world-building, further solidified Bardugo's status as a master storyteller.
What sets Bardugo apart is her distinctive writing style, characterized by lush prose, intricate plots, and morally complex characters. Her narratives are imbued with themes of identity, power, and redemption, inviting readers to delve into the depths of human nature and the forces that shape it.
Readers are drawn to Bardugo's ability to create immersive worlds populated by characters that feel both larger than life and deeply human. Her works resonate with readers of all ages, transcending the boundaries of genre and appealing to those seeking escapism, adventure, and thought-provoking storytelling.
Among Bardugo's most beloved works, the Six of Crows duology stands out for its intricate plotting, dynamic ensemble cast, and morally ambiguous themes. The duology has garnered widespread acclaim and has been praised for its diversity, representation, and engaging narrative.
In addition to her literary accomplishments, Bardugo has received numerous accolades, including the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction and the Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy. She has also been a New York Times bestselling author multiple times, further cementing her place in the literary landscape.
For those unfamiliar with Bardugo's work, her books offer a gateway to immersive worlds filled with magic, intrigue, and unforgettable characters. Whether delving into the shadowy streets of Ketterdam or navigating the treacherous politics of Ravka, readers are sure to be spellbound by Bardugo's storytelling prowess.
Looking ahead, fans eagerly anticipate Bardugo's upcoming release, "The Familiar," slated to debut in the coming months. This highly anticipated novel promises to transport readers to new realms and deliver another dose of Bardugo's trademark blend of magic and mystery.
Leigh Bardugo stands as a literary force to be reckoned with, enchanting readers with her captivating narratives, rich world-building, and memorable characters. With an impressive body of work and an upcoming release on the horizon, Bardugo continues to leave an indelible mark on the world of fantasy fiction, inviting readers to embark on unforgettable journeys into the realms of imagination.
Leigh Bardugo Best Quotes
“I would have come for you. And if I couldn't walk, I'd crawl to you, and no matter how broken we were, we'd fight our way out together-knives drawn, pistols blazing. Because that's what we do. We never stop fighting.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Many boys will bring you flowers. But someday you'll meet a boy who will learn your favorite flower, your favorite song, your favorite sweet. And even if he is too poor to give you any of them, it won't matter because he will have taken the time to know you as no one else does. Only that boy earns your heart.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Kaz leaned back. "What's the easiest way to steal a man's wallet?"Knife to the throat? asked Inej.Gun to the back? said Jesper.Poison in his cup? suggested Nina.You're all horrible, said Matthias.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “No mourners. No funerals. Among them, it passed for 'good luck.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “I will have you without armor, Kaz Brekker. Or I will not have you at all.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “She'd laughed, and if he could have bottled the sound and gotten drunk on it every night, he would have. It terrified him.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “The heart is an arrow. It demands aim to land true.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “It's not natural for women to fight.""It's not natural for someone to be as stupid as he is tall, and yet there you stand.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Jesper knocked his head against the hull and cast his eyes heavenward. “Fine. But if Pekka Rollins kills us all, I’m going to get Wylan’s ghost to teach my ghost how to play the flute just so that I can annoy the hell out of your ghost.”Brekker’s lips quirked. “I’ll just hire Matthias’ ghost to kick your ghost’s ass.”“My ghost won’t associate with your ghost,” Matthias said primly, and then wondered if the sea air was rotting his brain.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “When everyone knows you’re a monster, you needn’t waste time doing every monstrous thing.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “I'm a business man, he'd told her. ""No more, no less."""You're a thief, Kaz."Isn't that what I just said?” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Fear is a phoenix. You can watch it burn a thousand times and still it will return.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “He needed to tell her...what? That she was lovely and brave and better than anything he deserved. That he was twisted, crooked, wrong, but not so broken that he couldn't pull himself together into some semblance of a man for her. That without meaning to, he'd begun to lean on her, to look for her, to need her near. He needed to thank her for his new hat.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “No Mourners.No Funerals.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Maybe there were people who lived those lives. Maybe this girl was one of them. But what about the rest of us? What about the nobodies and the nothings, the invisible girls? We learn to hold our heads as if we wear crowns. We learn to wring magic from the ordinary. That was how you survived when you weren’t chosen, when there was no royal blood in your veins. When the world owed you nothing, you demanded something of it anyway.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “We are all someone's monster.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “The water hears and understands. The ice does not forgive.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “When people say impossible, they usually mean improbable.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Siege and Storm “The Darkling slumped back in his chair. “Fine,” he said with a weary shrug. “Make me your villain.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Shadow and Bone “Crows remember human faces. They remember the people who feed them, who are kind to them. And the people who wrong them too. They don’t forget. They tell each other who to look after and who to watch out for.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Please, my darling Inej, treasure of my heart, won’t you do me the honor of acquiring me a new hat?” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “I have been made to protect you. Only in death will I be kept from this oath.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “I missed you every hour. And you know what the worst part was? It caught me completely by surprise. I'd catch myself just walking around to find you, not for any reason, just out of habit, because I'd seen something that I wanted to tell you about or because I wanted to hear your voice. And then I'd realize that you weren't there anymore, and every time, every single time, it was like having the wind knocked out of me. I've risked my life for you. I've walked half the length of Ravka for you, and I'd do it again and again and again just to be with you, just to starve with you and freeze with you and hear you complain about hard cheese every day. So don't tell me why we don't belong together, he said fiercely.”" ― Leigh Bardugo, Shadow and Bone “She smiled then, her eyes red, her cheeks scattered with some kind of dust. It was a smile he thought he might die to earn again.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “The problem with wanting," he whispered, his mouth trailing along my jaw until it hovered over my lips, "is that it makes us weak.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Shadow and Bone “I can hear the change in Kaz's breathing when he looks at you."You... you can?"It catches every time, like he's never seen you before.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Na razrusha'ya. I am not ruined. E'ya razrushost. I am ruination.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Ruin and Rising “Has anyone noticed this whole city is looking for us, mad at us, or wants to kill us?"So? said Kaz."Well, usually it's just half the city.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “No mourners, no funerals. Another way of saying good luck. But it was something more. A dark wink to the fact that there would be no expensive burials for people like them, no marble markers to remember their names, no wreaths of myrtle and rose.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Stay,” she panted. Tears leaked from her eyes. “Stay till the end.”“And after,” he said. “And always.”“I want to feel safe again. I want to go home to Ravka.”“Then I’ll take you there. We’ll set fire to raisins or whatever you heathens do for fun.”“Zealot,” she said weakly.“Witch.”“Barbarian.”“Nina,” he whispered, “little red bird. Don’t go.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “I am grateful you're alive, he said. ""I am grateful that you're beside me. I am grateful that you're eating."""She rested her head on his shoulder.You're better that waffles, Matthias Helvar.A small smile curled the Fjerdan's lips."Let's not say things we don't mean, my love.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “The less you say, the more weight your words will carry.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Siege and Storm “What is infinite? The universe and the greed of men.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Siege and Storm “She wouldn't wish love on anyone. It was the guest you welcomed and then couldn't be rid of.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Men mock the gods until they need them, Kaz.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “What do you want then?"The old answers came easily to mind. Money. Vengeance. Jordie's voice in my head silenced forever. But a different reply roared to life inside him, loud, insistent, and unwelcome. You, Inej. You.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Have any of you wondered what I did with all the cash Pekka Rollins gave us?"Guns? asked Jesper.Ships? queried Inej.Bombs? suggested Wylan.Political bribes? offered Nina. They all looked at Matthias. "This is where you tell us how awful we are," she whispered.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Greed is your god, Kaz."He almost laughed at that. "No, Inej. Greed bows to me. It is my servant and my lever.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Scheming face,” Inej murmured.Jesper nodded. “Definitely.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Greed may do your bidding, but death serves no man.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Saints, Kaz, you actually look happy."Don't be ridiculous, he snapped. But there was no mistaking it. Kaz Brekker was grinning like an idiot.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Watch yourself, Nikolai,” Mal said softly. “Princes bleed just like other men.”Nikolai plucked an invisible piece of dust from his sleeve. “Yes,” he said. “They just do it in better clothes.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Siege and Storm “Better terrible truths than kind lies.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “We meet fear. We greet the unexpected visitor and listen to what he has to tell us. When fear arrives, something is about to happen.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Besides, she was the Wraith – the only law that applied to her was gravity, and some days she defied that, too.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Of course not," said Sturmhond. "Anything worth doing always starts as a bad idea.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Siege and Storm “I don’t hold a grudge. I cradle it. I coddle it. I feed it fine cuts of meat and send it to the best schools. I nurture my grudges, Rollins.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “I took a breath. “Your highness—”“Nikolai,” he corrected. “But I’ve also been known to answer to ‘sweetheart’ or ‘handsome.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Siege and Storm “Meeting you was a disaster.”She raised a brow. “Thank you.”Djel, he was terrible at this. He stumbled on, trying to make her understand. “But I am grateful for that disaster. I needed a catastrophe to shake me from the life I knew. You were an earthquake, a landslide.”“I, ” she said, planting a hand on her hip, “am a delicate flower.”“You aren’t a flower, you’re every blossom in the wood blooming at once. You are a tidal wave. You’re a stampede. You are overwhelming.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Where do you think the money went?” he repeated.“Guns?” asked Jesper.“Ships?” queried Inej.“Bombs?” suggested Wylan.“Political bribes?” offered Nina. They all looked at Matthias. “This is where you tell us how awful we are, ” she whispered.He shrugged. “They all seem like practical choices.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “I don't care if you danced naked on the roof of the Little Palace with him. I love you, Alina, even the part of you that loved him.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Shadow and Bone “I have been made to protect you. Even in death, I will find a way.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “The easiest way to steal a man’s wallet is to tell him you’re going to steal his watch. You take his attention and direct it where you want it to go.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “A gambler, a convict, a wayward son, a lost Grisha, a Suli girl who had become a killer, a boy from the Barrel who had become something worse.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “I've seen what you truly are," said the Darkling, "and I've never turned away. I never will. Can he say the same?” ― Leigh Bardugo, Siege and Storm “I've been waiting for you a long time, Alina" He said. "You and I are going to change the world.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Shadow and Bone “Inej had once offered to teach him how to fall. "The trick is not getting knocked down," he'd told her with a laugh. "No, Kaz," she'd said, "the trick is in getting back up.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “This action will have no echo.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “I will strip away all that you know, all that you love, until you have no shelter but mine.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Ruin and Rising “You’re stupid about a lot of things, Wylan, but you are not stupid. And if I ever hear you call yourself a moron again, I’m going to tell Matthias you tried to kiss Nina. With tongue.”Wylan wiped his nose on his sleeve. “He’ll never believe it.”“Then I’ll tell Nina you tried to kiss Matthias. With tongue.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Oh, I see. I'm the wicked Grisha seductress. I have beguiled you with my Grisha wiles!"She poked him in the chest.Stop that."No. I'm beguiling you.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Beauty was your armor. Fragile stuff, all show. But what's inside you? That's steel. It's brave and unbreakable. And it doesn't need fixing.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Ruin and Rising “I’m going to get my money, Kaz vowed. And I’m going to get my girl.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “They had an ordinary life, full of ordinary things—if love can ever be called that.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Ruin and Rising “You don’t look like a monster.”“I’ll tell you a secret, Hanna. The really bad monsters never look like monsters.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Nina might not be able to put you back, you know. Not without another dose of parem. You could be stuck like this.”“Why does it matter?”“I don’t know!” Jesper said angrily. “Maybe I liked your stupid face.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “I hope you weren’t looking to me to be the voice of reason. I keep to a strict diet of ill-advised enthusiasm and heartfelt regret.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Ruin and Rising “Who’d deny a poor cripple his cane?”“If the cripple is you, then any man with sense.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “You love trickery.""I love puzzles. Trickery is just my native tongue.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “I don't like this.""To be fair, Matthias, you don't like much.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “He'd told her they would fight their way out. Knives drawn, pistols blazing. Because that's what we do. She would fight for him, but she could not heal him. She would not waste her life trying.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Stop punishing yourself for being someone with a heart. You cannot protect yourself from suffering. To live is to grieve. You are not protecting yourself by shutting yourself off from the world. You are limiting yourself.” ― Leigh Bardugo, King of Scars “I want you to stay. I want you to … I want you.” “You want me.” She turned the words over. Gently, she squeezed his hand. “And how will you have me, Kaz?” He looked at her then, eyes fierce, mouth set. It was the face he wore when he was fighting. “How will you have me?” she repeated. “Fully clothed, gloves on, your head turned away so our lips can never touch?”“I will have you without armour, Kaz Brekker. Or I will not have you at all.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “And there's nothing wrong with being a lizard either. Unless you were born to be a hawk.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Shadow and Bone “Her heart was a river that carried her to the sea.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Why do you guys say that, anyway? No mourners, no funerals? Why not just say good luck or be safe?”“We like to keep our expectations low.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “You'll get what's coming to you some day, Brekker."I will, said Kaz, "if there's any justice in the world. And we all know how likely that is.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Don’t worry, Da. People point guns at each other all the time in Ketterdam. It’s basically a handshake.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “They were twin souls, soldiers destined to fight for different sides, to find each other and lose each other too quickly. She would not keep him here. Not like this.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Until this moment, Wylan hadn't quite understood how much they meant to him. His father would have sneered at these thugs and thieves, a disgraced soldier, a gambler who couldn't keep out of the red. But they were his first friends, his only friends, and Wylan knew that even if he'd had his pick of a thousand companions, these would have been the people he chose.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Why won’t you leave me alone?” I whispered one night as he hovered behind me while I tried to work at my desk. Long minutes passed. I didn’t think he would answer. I even had time to hope he might have gone, until I felt his hand on my shoulder. “Then I’d be alone, too," he said, and he stayed the whole night through, till the lamps burned down to nothing.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Siege and Storm “I'm sorry it took me so long to see you, Alina. But I see you now.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Shadow and Bone “Our hopes rest with you, Mister Brekker. If you fail, all the world will suffer for it.""Oh, it's worse than that, Van Eck. If I fail, I don't get paid.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “It was because she was listening so closely that she knew the exact moment when Kaz Brekker, Dirtyhands, the bastard of the Barrel and deadliest boy in Ketterdam, fainted.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “In this moment he was just a boy -brilliant, blessed with too much power, burdened by eternity.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Ruin and Rising “Everything is a negotiation with you, Brekker. You probably bartered your way out of the womb.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “Always hit where the mark isn't looking" Who's Mark? asked Wylan.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows “Jesper couldn’t quite believe he was having a conversation with the Sturmhond. The privateer was a legend. He’d broken countless blockades on behalf of the Ravkans and there were rumors that… “Do you really have a flying ship? blurted Jesper.“No.”“Oh.”“I have several.”“Take me with you.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “He was going to break my legs,” she said, her chin held high, the barest quaver in her voice. “Would you have come for me then, Kaz? When I couldn’t scale a wall or walk a tightrope? When I wasn’t the Wraith anymore?” Dirtyhands would not. The boy who could get them through this, get their money, keep them alive, would do her the courtesy of putting her out of her misery, then cut his losses and move on. “I would come for you,” he said, and when he saw the wary look she shot him, he said it again. “I would come for you. And if I couldn’t walk, I’d crawl to you, and no matter how broken we were, we’d fight our way out together—knives drawn, pistols blazing. Because that’s what we do. We never stop fighting.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom “He thumbed quickly through the ledger and said, “When people see a cripple walking down the street, leaning on his cane, what do they feel?” Wylan looked away. People always did when Kaz talked about his limp, as if he didn’t know what he was or how the world saw him. “They feel pity. Now, what do they think when they see me coming?”Wylan’s mouth quirked up at the corner. “They think they’d better cross the street.”Kaz tossed the ledger back in the safe. “You’re not weak because you can’t read. You’re weak because you’re afraid of people seeing your weakness. You’re letting shame decide who you are.” ― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom