Tomi Adeyemi Quotes

I stare at the blade; the inscription gleams in the moonlight. Its words simplify my mission, creating space for my pain. A soldier. A great king. That’s all I’ve ever wanted to be. Duty over self. Orïsha over Zélie.

I’ve been a sheep. A sheep when my kingdom needed me to act like a king.

I begin to realise how far others will go to keep us down.

Those are Father’s words, Inan. His decisions. Not yours. We are our own people. We make our own choices.”

You have your duty and your heart. To chose one means the other must suffer.

Zélie’s memories don’t hold the villains Father always warned of. Only families he tore apart. Duty before self. His creed rings through my ears. My father. Her king. The harbinger of all this suffering.

I don’t know what disturbs me more: that I killed him, or that I could do it again. Strike, Amari. A thin whisper of father’s voice plays in my ears.

Love is too strong, too intense, for what I feel. For what I am allowed to feel.

Do you accept these people as your own?

Power is not the answer. It will only intensify the fight.

It doesn't matter how strong I get, how much power my magic wields. They will always hate me in this world.

All these years I thought Father was a monster, but what if ruling this kingdom forced him to act that way?

I thought things could be different. I wanted them to be different. But after what we just saw, we have no choice. We can't give people that kind of power.

After I perform the ritual and bring magic back, after Baba is safe and sound. I’ll rally a group of Grounders to sink this monstrosity into the sand. That announcer will pay for every wasted divîner life. Every noble will answer for their crimes.

For the first time since the torture, I feel a hint of the old fire that used to roar louder than my fear. But its flame is weak now; as soon as it flickers, it’s blown out by the wind.”