# A Dance with Dragons

- Author: [George RR Martin](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin.md)
- Quotes: 105
- Book page: https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons

## Quotes

> She wants fire, and Dorne sent her mud.
>
> You could make a poultice out of mud to cool a fever. You could plant seeds in mud and grow a crop to feed your children. Mud would nourish you, where fire would only consume you, but fools and children and young girls would choose fire every time.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/she-wants-fire.md)

> Sunset found her squatting in the grass, groaning. Every stool was looser than the one before, and smelled fouler. By the time the moon came up, she was shitting brown water. The more she drank the more she shat, but the more she shat, the thirstier she grew.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/sunset-found-her.md)

> Women were always the cruelest where other women were concerned.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/women-were-always.md)

> “You are not wrong.” Jon said. “I do not know. And if the gods are good, I never will.”
>
> “The gods are seldom good, Jon Snow.”

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/you-are-not.md)

> Parchments had been signed, but wars were not fought on parchments.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/parchments-had-been.md)

> When you bugger a man you expect a squeal or two.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/when-you-bugger.md)

> He did his duty. Some nights, Ser Barristan wondered if he had not done that duty too well.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/he-did-his.md)

> The most insidious thing about bondage was how easy it was to grow accustomed to it.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-most-insidious.md)

> Pain is the price of power.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/pain-is-the.md)

> The Drowned God did not answer. He seldom did. That was the trouble with gods.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-drowned-god.md)

> No dragon chair can replace a dragon no matter how elaborately it's carved.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/no-dragon-chair.md)

> Men may be fond of maidens, but women like a man who knows what he's about in the bedchamber.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/men-may-be-fond.md)

> The eunuch had looked death in the face, so near he might have kissed her on the lips.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-eunuch-had.md)

> Blood games were poor training for protecting kings.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/blood-games-were.md)

> When men are dying every hour, no one looks too hard at one more dead man.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/when-men-are.md)

> The girl had hoped for fog, but the gods ignored her prayers as gods so often did.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-girl-had.md)

> You kill men for the wrongs they have done, not the wrongs that they may do someday.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/you-kill-men.md)

> That is how it is when a man grows as old as Pycelle. Everything see or hear reminds you of something yo saw or heard when you were younger.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/that-is-how.md)

> At night Tyrion would oft hear her praying. A waste of words. If there are gods to listen, they are monstrous gods who torment us for their sport. Who else would make a world like this, so full of bondage, blood, and pain?

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/at-night-tyrion.md)

> The time to speak of the cold is not when we are standing in it.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-time-to-speak.md)

> “Men are mad and gods are madder,” she told the grass, and the grass murmured its agreement.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/men-are-mad.md)

> Only a fool deserts the winning side.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/only-a-fool.md)

> The gods are blind. And men see only what they wish.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-gods-are.md)

> A fair bargain leaves both sides unhappy, I've heard it said.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/a-fair-bargain.md)

> The sky turned from black to white and seemed no brighter.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-sky-turned.md)

> It is an easy thing for a prince to call the spears, but in the end it is the children who pay the price.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/it-is-an-easy.md)

> Jon Snow had dreamed of leading men to glory just as King Daeron had, of growing up to be a conqueror. Now he was a man grown and the Wall was his, yet all he had were doubts. He could not even seem to conquer those.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/jon-snow-had.md)

> A warrior who cannot sleep soon has no strength to fight.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/a-warrior-who.md)

> Some men say there is wisdom in wine. Such men are fools.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/some-men-say.md)

> It is hard to look a hero when mounted on a pig.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/it-is-hard.md)

> “Men are men, vows are words, and words are wind. You should put guards around the women.”
>
> “And who will guard the guards?”

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/men-are-men.md)

> A man grows tired of having no lovers but his fingers.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/a-man-grows.md)

> Some had been heroes, some weaklings, knaves, or cravens. Most were only men—quicker and stronger than most, more skilled with sword and shield, but still prey to pride, ambition, lust, love, anger, jealousy, greed for gold, hunger for power, and all the other failings that afflicted lesser mortals. The best of them overcame their flaws, did their duty, and died with their swords in their hands. The worst...
>
> The worst were those who played the game of thrones.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/some-had-been.md)

> They chanted in the tongue of Old Volantis, but Tyrion had heard the prayers enough to grasp the essence. Light our fire and protect us from the dark, blah blah, light our way and keep us toasty warm, the night is dark and full of terrors, save us from the scary things, and blah blah blah some more.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/they-chanted-in-the.md)

> Is an oxcart an oxcart without an ox?

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/is-an-oxcart.md)

> Fire is a fickle thing. No one knows which way a flame will go.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/fire-is-a-fickle.md)

> The sun and moon and stars had been gone so long that Asha was starting to wonder

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-sun-and.md)

> The dead should not eat better than the living.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-dead-should.md)

> You are fighting shadows when you should be fighting the men who cast them.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/you-are-fighting.md)

> Past a certain point, all the dates grow hazy and confused, and the clarity of history becomes the fog of legend.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/past-a-certain.md)

> "Aye, men are dying. More will die before we see Winterfell. What of it? This is war. Men die in war. That is as it should be. As it has always been."
>
> Ser Corliss Penny gave the clan chief an incredulous look. "Do you want to die, Wull?"
>
> That seemed to amuse the northman. "I want to live forever in a land where summer lasts a thousand years. I want a castle in the clouds where I can look down over the world. I want to be six-and-twenty again. When I was six-and-twenty I could fight all day and fuck all night. What men want does not matter."

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/aye-men-are.md)

> A horse has an honest smell.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/a-horse-has.md)

> I am running to and you are running from, and there's a world of difference there.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/i-am-running.md)

> A gentle heart may be worth more than pride or valor.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/a-gentle-heart.md)

> The past remains the past. We can learn from it, but we cannot change it.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-past-remains.md)

> Men do not give up their gods so easily.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/men-do-not.md)

> "This is going to end badly."
>
> "You say that of everything."
>
> "Aye, m'lord. Usually I'm right."

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/this-is-going.md)

> A little brother may live to be a hundred, but he will always be a little brother.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/a-little-brother.md)

> We live closer to the green in our bogs and crannogs, and we remember Earth and water, soil and stone, oaks and elms and willows, they were here before us all and will still remain when we are gone.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/we-live-closer.md)

> Most days, she spent more time with the dead than the living.'

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/most-days-she.md)

> Men live their lives trapped in an eternal present, between the mists of memory and the sea of shadow that is all we know of the days to come.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/men-live-their.md)

> Yes and no ... can go a long way once you find the right questions.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/yes-and-no-can.md)

> No man has ever died from bending his knee ... He who kneels may rise again, blade in hand. He who will not kneel stays dead. He who will not kneel stays dead, stiff legs and all.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/no-man-has.md)

> A man must know how to look before he can hope to see.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/a-man-must.md)

> "You have to be careful around big people. Be jolly and playful with them, keep them smiling, make them laugh, that's what my father always said. Didn't your father ever tell you how to act with big people?"
>
> "My father called them smallfolk," said Tyrion, "and he was not what you'd call a jolly man."

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/you-have-to-be-careful.md)

> Up in the hills we say that autumn kisses you, but winter fucks you.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/up-in-the.md)

> Silver's sweet and gold's our mother, but once you're dead they're worth less than that last shit you take as you're dying.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/silvers-sweet-and.md)

> What good is peace if it must be purchased with the blood of little children?

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/what-good-is-peace.md)

> When the choice is debt or death, best to borrow.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/when-the-choice.md)

> So long as men remember the wrongs done to their forebears, no peace will ever exist.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/so-long-as-men.md)

> You can buy a man with gold, but only blood and steel will keep him true.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/you-can-buy.md)

> A living man can find the sea more easily than a dead one.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/a-living-man.md)

> Three kings is two too many.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/three-kings-is-two.md)

> Ask yourself, if all men must grub in the dirt for food, how shall any man lift his eyes to contemplate the stars? If each of us must break his back to build a hovel, who shall raise the temples to glorify the gods? For some men to be great, others must be enslaved.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/ask-yourself-if-all.md)

> Kings and corpses always draw attendants.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/kings-and-corpses.md)

> Things can change quickly in the game of thrones.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/things-can-change.md)

> What kind of mother has no milk to feed her children?

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/what-kind-of-mother.md)

> Stopping proved simple, rest came hard.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/stopping-proved-simple.md)

> The man who does nothing also takes a risk.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-man-who.md)

> With whores, the young ones smell better, but the old ones know more tricks.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/with-whores-the.md)

> If you would savor the sweet taste of the fruit, you must water the tree,

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/if-you-would.md)

> Weddings went more quickly in the north. It came of not having priests.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/weddings-went-more.md)

> Prophecy is like a half-trained mule ... It looks as though it might be useful, but the moment you trust in it, it kicks you in the head.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/prophecy-is-like.md)

> “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies,” said Jojen. “The man who never reads lives only one.”

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/a-reader-lives.md)

> Get the keys and remove those chains from him, before you make me rue the day I raped your mother.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/get-the-keys.md)

> "Give me priests who are fat and corrupt and cynical," he told Haldon, "the sort who like to sit on soft satin cushions, nibble sweetmeats, and diddle little boys. It's the ones who believe in gods who make the trouble."

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/give-me-priests.md)

> A wall is only as good as the men defending it.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/a-wall-is-only.md)

> Oberyn was ever the viper. Deadly, dangerous, unpredictable. No man dared tread on him. I was the grass. Pleasant, complaisant, sweet-smelling, swaying with every breeze. Who fears to walk upon the grass? But it is the grass that hides the viper from his enemies and shelters him until he strikes.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/oberyn-was-ever.md)

> "How long must I be blind?"
>
> "Until darkness is as sweet to you as light"

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/how-long-must.md)

> You need not trust a man to use him.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/you-need-not.md)

> Perhaps I cannot make my people good, but I should at least try to make them a little less bad.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/perhaps-i-cannot.md)

> What one king does, another may undo.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/what-one-king.md)

> The more you give a king, the more he wants.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-more-you.md)

> There is no valor in running for your life.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/there-is-no-valor.md)

> Not to say that the wildlings mean us harm. Aye, we hacked their gods apart and made them burn the pieces, but we gave them onion soup. What’s a god compared to a nice bowl of onion soup?

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/not-to-say.md)

> Never trust a cook, my lord. They'll prune you when you least expect it.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/never-trust-a-cook.md)

> Gods and wonders always appear, to attend the birth of kings.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/gods-and-wonders.md)

> The strength of the Wall was its height; the length of the Wall was its weakness.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-strength-of-the.md)

> It did not seem fair to drown the cabin boy and the captain and all the rest for something he had done, but when had the gods ever been fair?

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/it-did-not.md)

> Making mock of another man's prayer is fool's work.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/making-mock-of-another.md)

> Age makes ruins of us all.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/age-makes-ruins.md)

> The world is one great web, and a man dare not touch a single strand lest all the others tremble.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-world-is-one.md)

> No man is free. Only children and fools think elsewise.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/no-man-is-free.md)

> It was better to go hungry than to feast upon a friend.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/it-was-better.md)

> “What could a eunuch hope to find in a brothel?” “Even those who lack a man’s parts may still have a man’s heart, Your Grace,” said Grey Worm. “This one has been told that your servant Stalwart Shield sometimes gave coin to the women of the brothels to lie with him and hold him.”

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/what-could-a-eunuch.md)

> Man wants to be king of the rabbits, he best wear a pair o' floppy ears.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/man-wants-to-be-king.md)

> Gold has its uses, but wars are won with iron.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/gold-has-its.md)

> No. Hear me, Daenerys Targaryen. The glass candles are burning. Soon comes the pale mare, and after her the others. Kraken and dark flame, lion and griffin, the sun's son and the mummer's dragon. Trust none of them. Remember the Undying. Beware the perfumed seneschal.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/no-hear-me-daenerys.md)

> Burning dead children had ceased to trouble Jon Snow; live ones were another matter.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/burning-dead-children.md)

> Tart fruit and tart women give life its savor.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/tart-fruit-and.md)

> The fisherman drowned, but his daughter got Stark to the Sisters before the boat went down. They say he left her with a bag of silver and a bastard in her belly. Jon Snow, she named him, after Arryn.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/the-fisherman-drowned.md)

> A book can be as dangerous as a sword in the right hands.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/a-book-can.md)

> Better a mushroom than a sword through your neck, is it not so? Why die with the taste of blood in your mouth when it could be butter and garlic?

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/better-a-mushroom.md)

> Men love to complain about their wives and lords ... Those without wives complain twice as much about their lords.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/men-love-to-complain.md)

> Some skins you never want to wear, boy. You won't like what you'd become ... Men were not meant to leave the earth. Spend too much time in the clouds and you never want to come back down again.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/george-rr-martin/a-dance-with-dragons/some-skins-you.md)