242 Quotes by David Gemmell

What do all men seek? I want to be happy. I would like a wife and sons one day. But I want them to grow in a land where there is hope for the future, where men do not take to the road. If that is a hopeless dream – and maybe it is – then I will sire no sons. I will wander, and play my harp, and weave my magick until the end.

Who do you think you are?′ Asiron asked, with a dry humourless laugh. ‘I’ll tell you who I am,’ answered Parmenion, the words of Tamis echoing in his mind. ‘I am Parmenion, the Death of Nations.

A man needs many things in his life to make it bearable. A good woman. Sons and daughters. Comradeship. Warmth. Food and shelter. But above all these things, he needs to be able to know that he is a man.

Only a fool loves war,” said Calvar, “or a man who has never seen it. The trouble is that the survivors forget about the horrors and remember only the battle lust. They pass on that memory, and other men hunger for it.

Hatred is like a plague. It is all-consuming, and it springs from man to man.

If you look at any ancient civilization, they’ve all used fantasy stories to train the young.

Love was what mattered. Love of one for one. The touching of hands, the touching of hearts. The warmth of belonging, the joy of sharing. There would always be tyrants. Man seemed incapable of existing without them. For without tyrants there would be no heroes. And man could not live without heroes. Renya.

Foolish: It’s all foolish. Life is a farce a stupid, sickening farce played out by fools.

Love requires a different kind of courage, Andromache.