Dedication: This book is dedicated to all the people whose job it is to rush into danger when everybody else is running in the other direction. - Ben Aaronovitch

She had the startled rabbit look that civilians get after five minutes of helping the police with their inquiries. If they stay calm for too long it’s a sign that they’re professional villains or foreign or just plain stupid. All of which can get you locked up if you’re not careful. If you find yourself talking to the police, my advice is to stay calm but look guilty; it’s your safest bet.

Inside he had the soul of an accountant, but alas none of the facility with numbers.

The world was different before the war," he said. "We didn't have this instantaneous access to information that your generation has. The world was a bigger, more mysterious place—we still dreamed of secret caves in the Mountains of the Moon, and tiger hunting in the Punjab.