Quotes from Harlan Coben

The slurred voice came from down at the end of the bar. Manderson had his hands around his drink as though it were a baby bird that had fallen out of a nest and needed protection. His eyes were rheumy. He had one of those spider veins on his nose, though it looked as if someone had stepped on the spider and squashed it.

Or maybe she was being uncharitable. Maybe they were just trying to make the best out of their disappointment. The

I have to drive." "Two beers? Come on, you're not that big a girl." But he was. Ingrid could drink hard liquor for hours and show no signs of it. Simon had two beers and tried to French-kiss a light socket.

He does not meet my eye. This is good. He fears Zorra. He fears me. As he said before, he does not want to spend the rest of his life looking over his shoulder. This is why I believe in massive and disproportional retaliation. It makes your next enemy think twice. "Where

On the news, the neighbors are always like, 'Gee, I didn't know that nice man was chopping up little kids—he always seemed so polite.' But you go back, you ask their schoolteachers, you ask their childhood friends, they almost always tell a different story. They're never surprised.

Junior year of high school. Ask Mom and Dad what they did yesterday, they won't remember. Ask them about anything from his youth, and it's like they studied replays at night. He held up his hands in mock surrender. "Got me.

Spend money to make money.

Stay down!" I shouted to the passing crowd, and then because you think of weird things even at times like this, I wondered how you'd say that in French or if they would be able to translate or if, hey, the machine-gun fire would clue them in. Keeping

Do we really want to protect our children by giving guns to two underpaid cop wannabes and then mixing them in with a bunch of wiseass teens? Seemed a recipe for disaster. Wilde

He said he'd see you soon . . .

Yvonne turned to leave, when a tall black man in a sleek gray suit suddenly blocked the doorway. "Mr. Greene?" Yep, right out of GQ. The suit didn't look so much tailored as birthed, created, cultivated for him and only him. It fit like some tight superhero suit or like a second skin. His build was rock solid. He sported a shaved head and perfectly trimmed facial hair and big hands and everything about the guy just screamed "cooler than you.

Enid snorted. "I like you, Mr. Greene. And ah, what the hell. I can't see how it will help you and yet…I've seen some strange shit. And bad stays. Bad doesn't go away. You bury bad, it digs itself out. You throw bad in the middle of the ocean, it comes back at you like a tidal wave.

It's Chateau Haut-Bailly 2009. Retails for about two hundred

Esme Fong glanced at her watch and rose. "I only stopped by to say hello," she explained. "I really must be going." All three men stood. Norm bussed her cheek. "Take care, Esme, okay? I'll see you tomorrow morning.

Gavin said, "I don't like it." "In another lifetime," Hester said, "I'll care, really. I'll shed tears. But for now, shush and depart.

It comforts us to think that we have control when we don't.

Adult suburbia can be a lot like high school.

Myron didn't know what he hoped to find here, but stumbling around blind was a big part of his so-called investigations. You don't so much painstakingly search for the needle in the haystack as haphazardly leap into various haystacks, barefoot and naked, and then flail wildly and hope that hey, ouch, there's a needle. Myron

I still love libraries. I love the hybrid quality, the new computer sections and the books yellowing with age. Libraries for me have always had a cathedral-like ambiance, a hushed sanctuary where learning is revered, where we the people elevate books and education to the level of the religious.

Terese still had that incredible walk, head held high, shoulders back, perfect posture. One more thing I just realized about all the women in my life: They all have great walks. I find confident walks sexy, the near prowl-like way certain women enter a room as if they already own it. You can tell a lot by the way a woman walks. We

have learned over the years to control my emotions and, more important, my reactions during stressful, volatile situations. I may strike quickly and violently, but I do nothing without a certain level of deliberation and purpose. These

Ian Cornwell tries too hard to look professorial—unruly hair, unkempt beard, tweed jacket, mustard-hued corduroy pants.

How about 'We're Northeastern Airlines, doing what we do best'?" "Sorry." " 'I'm Candy, fly me'?" "Might work if you show some cleavage." "No problem," Cassandra said. "I majored in cleavage in college." "I bet." He found a red tie crumpled into his loafer. "I probably won't be back here until the day after tomorrow.

Win did not glance in Myron's direction. He looked out as though posing for a park statue. "I was just thinking," Win said. "What?" "If you clone yourself, and then have sex with yourself, is it incest or masturbation?" Win. "Good to see you're not wasting your time," Myron said. Win looked at him. "If we were still at Duke," he said, "we'd probably discuss the dilemma for hours.