But if it was always a point of speculation, where one person insisted it was a certain way and another denied it, how would anyone ever hold on to the truth?

— Kiera Cass

But I guessed she would never stop wanting more for me, more from me. Maybe that’s what mothers did.

— Kiera Cass

Castes never meant that much to me.

— Kiera Cass

Cinderella never asked for a prince. She asked for a night off and a dress.

— Kiera Cass

Close your eyes, Mason." What?"" Close your eyes. Somewhere in this palace, there is a woman who will be your wife. This girl? Imagine that she depends on you. She needs you to cherish her and make her feel like the Selection didn't even happen. Like if you were dropped in your own out in the middle of the country to wander around door to door, she's still the one you would have found. She was always the one you would have picked. She needs you to provide for her and protect her. And if it came to a point where there was absolutely nothing to eat, and you couldn't even fall asleep at night because the sound of her stomach growling kept you awake—""Stop it!"" Sorry."" Is that really what it's like? Out there... does that happen? Are people hungry like that a lot?"" Maxon, I..."" Tell me the truth."" Yes. That happens. I know of families where people give up their share for their children or siblings. I know of a boy who was whipped in the town square for stealing food. Sometimes you do crazy things when you are desperate."" A boy? How old?"" Nine."" Have you ever been like that? Starving?... How bad?"" Maxon, it will only upset you more."" Probably, but I'm only starting to realize how much I don't know about my own country. Please."" We've been pretty bad. Most time if it gets to where we have to choose, we keep the food and lose electricity. The worst was when it happened near Christmas one year. May didn't understand why we couldn't exchange gifts. As a general rule, there are never any leftovers at my house. Someone always wants more. I know the checks we've gotten over the last few weeks have really helped, and my family is really smart about money. I'm sure they have already tucked it away so it will stretch out for a long time. You've done so much for us, Mason."" Good God. When you said that you were only here for the food, you weren't kidding, were you?"" Really, Mason, we've been doing pretty well lately. I—""I'll see you at dinner.

— Kiera Cass

Could it be that simple? Tell one story to one generation and repeat it until it was accepted as fact?

— Kiera Cass

December 27, 11:00 p.m. My Dear America, I’ve never written a love letter, so forgive me if I fail now. . . . The simple thing would be to say that I love you. But, in truth, it’s so much more than that. I want you, America. I need you. I’ve held back so much from you out of fear. Furthermore, I’m afraid that if I show you everything at once, it will overwhelm you, and you’ll run away. Furthermore, I’m afraid that somewhere in the back of your heart is a love for someone else that will never die. Furthermore, I’m afraid that I will make a mistake again, something so huge that you retreat into that silent world of yours. No scolding from a tutor, no lashing from my father, no isolation in my youth has ever hurt me so much as you're separating yourself from me. I keep thinking that it’s there, waiting to come back and strike me. So I’ve held on to all my options, fearing that the moment I wipe them away, you will be standing there with your arms closed, happy to be my friend but unable to be my equal, my queen, my wife. And for you to be my wife is all I want in the world. I love you. I was afraid to admit it for a long time, but I know it now. I would never rejoice in the loss of your father, the sadness you’ve felt since he passed, or the emptiness I’ve experienced since you left. But I’m so grateful that you had to go. I’m not sure how long it would have taken for me to figure this out if I hadn’t had to start trying to imagine a life without you. I know now, with absolute certainty, that is nothing I want. I wish I was as true an artist as you so that I could find a way to tell you what you’ve become to me. America, my love, you are sunlight falling through trees. You are laughter that breaks through sadness. You are the breeze on a too-warm day. Furthermore, you are clarity in the midst of confusion. You are not the world, but you are everything that makes the world good. Without you, my life would still exist, but that’s all it would manage to do. You said that to get things right one of us would have to take a leap of faith. I think I’ve discovered the canyon that must be leaped, and I hope to find you waiting for me on the other side. I love you, America. Yours forever, Maxon

— Kiera Cass

Elizabeth nodded, looking too dejected to do much more. “Can she just go back to him?” she pleaded. “He’s dying. She’s dying. They can’t have a life together, but at least they could have the

— Kiera Cass

Eventually you will find something to put that energy into and you will be unstoppable. Even now with something you take no joy in, you do your task dutiful, because it's all you can do. There's something beautiful in that, Collin.

— Kiera Cass

Every day you say something or do something that challenges me, changes me.

— Kiera Cass