“For a terrifying moment I thought he was going to hug me, but fortunately we both remembered we were English just in time. Still, it was a close call.”
―
Ben Aaronovitch,
Moon Over Soho
“In the winter she curls up around a good book and dreams away the cold.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Broken Homes
“I gave the prescribed Metropolitan Police "first greeting"."Oi!" I said "What do you think you're doing?” ― Ben Aaronovitch
“The clever people at CERN are smashing particles together in the hope that Doctor Who will turn up and tell them to stop” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Moon Over Soho
“My Dad says that being a Londoner has nothing to do with where you're born. He says that there are people who get off a jumbo jet at Heathrow, go through immigration waving any kind of passport, hop on the tube and by the time the train's pulled into Piccadilly Circus they've become a Londoner.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Moon Over Soho
“You put a spell on the dog," I said as we left the house."Just a small one," said Nightingale."So magic is real," I said. "Which makes you a...what?""A wizard.""Like Harry Potter?"Nightingale sighed. "No," he said. "Not like Harry Potter.""In what way?""I'm not a fictional character," said Nightingale.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Rivers of London
“Carved above the lintel were the words SCIENTIA POTESTAS EST. Science points east, I wondered? Science is portentous, yes? Science protests too much. Scientific potatoes rule. Had I stumbled on the lair of dangerous plant geneticists?” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“Being a seasoned Londoner, Martin gave the body the "London once-over" - a quick glance to determine whether this was a drunk, a crazy or a human being in distress. The fact that it was entirely possible for someone to be all three simultaneously is why good-Samaritanism in London is considered an extreme sport - like BASE jumping or crocodile wrestling.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“Could it have been anyone, or was it destiny? When I'm considering this I find it helpful to quote the wisdom of my father, who once told me, "Who knows why the fuck anything happens?” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“Conflict resolution,' said Nightingale. 'Is this what they teach at Hendon these days?''Yes, sir,' I said. 'But don't worry, they also teach us how to beat people with phone books and the ten best ways to plant evidence.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“This is why magic is worse even than quantum physics. Because, while both spit in the eye of common sense, I've never yet had a Higgs bosun turn up and try to have a conversation with me.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Whispers Under Ground
“Questions would be asked. Answers would be ignored.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“Fuck me, I thought. I can do magic.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“Holy paranormal activity, Nightingale - to the Jag mobile.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Whispers Under Ground
“When you're a boy your life can be measured out as a series of uncomfortable conversations reluctantly initiated by adults in an effort to tell you things that you either already know or really don't want to know.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Moon Over Soho
“The motto of West African cooking is that if the food doesn't set fire to the tablecloth the cook is being stingy with the pepper.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“If you just warn people, they often simply ignore you. But if you ask them a question, then they have to think about it. And once they start to think about the consequences, they almost always calm down. Unless they're drunk, of course. Or stoned. Or aged between fourteen and twenty-one. Or Glaswegian.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Moon Over Soho
“Actually I'd always thought he sat in the library with a slim volume of metaphysical poetry until the commissioner called him on the bat phone and summoned him into action. Holy paranormal activity, Nightingale - to the Jag mobile.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Whispers Under Ground
“He called it potentia because there's nothing quite like Latin for disguising the fact you're making it up as you go along.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Foxglove Summer
“In the winter she curls up around a good book and dreams away the cold.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Broken Homes
“I gave the prescribed Metropolitan Police "first greeting"."Oi!" I said "What do you think you're doing?” ― Ben Aaronovitch
“The clever people at CERN are smashing particles together in the hope that Doctor Who will turn up and tell them to stop” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Moon Over Soho
“My Dad says that being a Londoner has nothing to do with where you're born. He says that there are people who get off a jumbo jet at Heathrow, go through immigration waving any kind of passport, hop on the tube and by the time the train's pulled into Piccadilly Circus they've become a Londoner.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Moon Over Soho
“You put a spell on the dog," I said as we left the house."Just a small one," said Nightingale."So magic is real," I said. "Which makes you a...what?""A wizard.""Like Harry Potter?"Nightingale sighed. "No," he said. "Not like Harry Potter.""In what way?""I'm not a fictional character," said Nightingale.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Rivers of London
“Carved above the lintel were the words SCIENTIA POTESTAS EST. Science points east, I wondered? Science is portentous, yes? Science protests too much. Scientific potatoes rule. Had I stumbled on the lair of dangerous plant geneticists?” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“Being a seasoned Londoner, Martin gave the body the "London once-over" - a quick glance to determine whether this was a drunk, a crazy or a human being in distress. The fact that it was entirely possible for someone to be all three simultaneously is why good-Samaritanism in London is considered an extreme sport - like BASE jumping or crocodile wrestling.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“Could it have been anyone, or was it destiny? When I'm considering this I find it helpful to quote the wisdom of my father, who once told me, "Who knows why the fuck anything happens?” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“Conflict resolution,' said Nightingale. 'Is this what they teach at Hendon these days?''Yes, sir,' I said. 'But don't worry, they also teach us how to beat people with phone books and the ten best ways to plant evidence.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“This is why magic is worse even than quantum physics. Because, while both spit in the eye of common sense, I've never yet had a Higgs bosun turn up and try to have a conversation with me.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Whispers Under Ground
“Questions would be asked. Answers would be ignored.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“Fuck me, I thought. I can do magic.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“Holy paranormal activity, Nightingale - to the Jag mobile.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Whispers Under Ground
“When you're a boy your life can be measured out as a series of uncomfortable conversations reluctantly initiated by adults in an effort to tell you things that you either already know or really don't want to know.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Moon Over Soho
“The motto of West African cooking is that if the food doesn't set fire to the tablecloth the cook is being stingy with the pepper.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Midnight Riot
“If you just warn people, they often simply ignore you. But if you ask them a question, then they have to think about it. And once they start to think about the consequences, they almost always calm down. Unless they're drunk, of course. Or stoned. Or aged between fourteen and twenty-one. Or Glaswegian.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Moon Over Soho
“Actually I'd always thought he sat in the library with a slim volume of metaphysical poetry until the commissioner called him on the bat phone and summoned him into action. Holy paranormal activity, Nightingale - to the Jag mobile.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Whispers Under Ground
“He called it potentia because there's nothing quite like Latin for disguising the fact you're making it up as you go along.” ― Ben Aaronovitch, Foxglove Summer
