James S. A. Corey

"“I’m getting a medal for falling into a pressure hatch, sacrificing an arm and a leg to keep seven sailors from being trapped in a compromised part of the ship. I was unconscious at the time, but that doesn’t seem to matter. Heroism is a label most people get for doing shit they’d never do if they were really thinking about it.”"

"Human brains needed an answer, even if they had to make up something they knew was bullshit."

"“‘The predictable limits of a conceptual framework,’” Bobbie said. A phrase from her classroom on Olympus Mons. “It’s always where to hit the enemy. Whoever they turn out to be. When I learned how to do things like this, we were thinking about Earthers and pirates.” Katria laughed. “When I taught myself how to do this, I was thinking of people like you. Strange how the wheel turns.”"

"Time healed all wounds, but it didn’t erase the scars so much as decorate them."

"The enlisted guys will be okay, but the officers get the sense of humor trained out of ’em."

"Writing science fiction is a race between the authors imagination and the progress of science and history. Fiction is always on the losing end; the question is only how fast."

"Time was supposed to heal all wounds. To Drummer, that was just a nice way of saying that if she waited long enough, none of the things that seemed important to her would turn out to matter. Or at least not the way she’d thought they did."

"“This isnt fair.” “We dont deal with fair here. We deal with the law.”"

"Say what you will about organized crime, at least it’s organized."

"If Miller had ever been called upon to describe her, the phrase deceptive coloration would have figured in."

"“Can’t I sue them for that?” “Anyone can sue anybody at any time for anything,” the lawyer said. “The question is, can you win?”"

"Politics is the art of the possible, Captain Pa. When you play at our level, grudges cost lives."