David Gemmell - The King Beyond the Gate (1985)

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... love is in the eyes, and one woman knows when another woman is in love.

David Gemmell
"I had a teacher... He said there were three kinds of people in life: winners, losers and fighters. Winners made him sick with their arrogance, losers made him sick with their whining, and fighters made him sick with their stupidity." "In which category did he put himself?" "He said he had tried all three and nothing suited him." "Well, at least he tried. That's all a man can do, Lake. And we shall try."

David Gemmell
Look around you: see the people as they touch and show their love. But don't watch coldly, like an observer. Don't hover outside life—take part in it. There are people waiting to love you. It is not something you should turn down lightly.

David Gemmell
"I underestimated you, woman."... "The cry of men down the ages."

David Gemmell
But from now on act the part. You will be amazed at the number of people you fool. Don't share your doubts! Life is a game, Scaler. Play it like that.

David Gemmell
I think maybe it is better to believe than not to believe. But I couldn't tell you why.

David Gemmell
When responsibility is thrust upon you, can you run from it? No—you have never and you never will. That is what makes you as you are. That is why men follow you, though they hate your blood. They trust you.

David Gemmell
It is easier with strangers, for they touch your life but for an instant. You will not disappoint them, for you owe them nothing; neither do they expect anything. Friends you can hurt, for they expect everything.

David Gemmell
Foolish: It's all foolish. Life is a farce— a stupid, sickening farce played out by fools.

David Gemmell
Life is sad enough, Magir. Laughter is a thing to be treasured.

David Gemmell
All things in the world are created for man, yet all have two purposes. The waters run that we might drink of them, but they are also symbols of the futility of man. They reflect our lives in rushing beauty, birthed in the purity of the mountains. As babes they babble and run, gushing and growing as they mature into strong young rivers. Then they widen and slow until at least they meander, like old men, to join with the sea.

David Gemmell
One hundred only, Lord Earl. But judge us not by our number. Rather, watch the numbers of dead we leave behind.

David Gemmell
"I am not going to kill a man because he won't let us rob him." "Then go back to your mother and send for a man who wants to win."

David Gemmell
A man makes mistakes, but he lives by them. Foolish it may be on occassion. But in the main it is the only way to live. We are what we say only so long as our words are iron.

David Gemmell
Nothing in life is easy, Arvan. But it's what I'm trained for. To lead an army. To bring death and destruction on my enemies [...] A man must stand against evil wherever he finds it and he must use all his talents.

David Gemmell
We all have scars [...] Better by far for them to be worn on the outside.

David Gemmell
Evil lives in a pit. If you want to fight it, you must climb down into the slime to do so. White cloaks show the dirt more thank black, and silver tarnishes.

David Gemmell
Nothing in life is sure, my son. Except the promise of death.

David Gemmell
All things are possible,... Except the passing of regret.

David Gemmell
Most of the heroes we remember—we remember only because they won. To win you must be ruthless. Single-minded... which was why he had no friends—just admirers.

David Gemmell
Rubbish!... No man fights for dirt and grass. No, nor mountains. Those mountains were here before the fall and they will be here when the world topples again.

David Gemmell
I never worshipped anything but my sword and my wits; now I suffer for it. But I can take it, for am I not a man?... It is not hard to be a legend, Tenaka. It is what follows when you have to live like one.

David Gemmell
Most wars are fought for greed, but we are luckier here—we fight for our lives and the lives of the people we love.

David Gemmell
Evil is never truly strong, for it is born of fear. Why did he fall so easily? Because he tested your strength and saw the possibility of death [...] had he possessed true courage, he would have fought back. Instead he froze — and died.

David Gemmell
"... But men don't come in just two groups, one of gold and the other of lead. They are a mix of both." "And what about women?" "Pure gold, my girl," Rayvan answered with a chuckle.

David Gemmell
No matter how impossible this war, I shall fight to win. Whatever I have to do, I will do.

David Gemmell
"I don't think I would be too comfortable with many of his compliments... He's a butcher!" "More than that, my friend... he is a warmaster. And that makes him a master butcher."

David Gemmell
There are times, Sember, when I could believe your mother had a secret lover. Looking at you makes me wonder if it was one of my goats.

David Gemmell
Come back and stand with us, lad. We will all go down together—that's what makes us who we are.

David Gemmell
What is life if a man cannot count on his friends when he has gone mad?

David Gemmell