Michael Grant quote: "Delay of pain: that was the meaning of life, wasn’t it?<br />“I’ve made some bad decisions,” Caine said, not really meaning to say it out loud."

He’s a murdering chud,” Zil was yelling.
“What do you want to do? Lynch him?” Astrid de...
MICHAEL GRANT

Scared people did scary things sometimes,
MICHAEL GRANT

He didn't mind if she hated him. They were never going to be a cute romantic couple like Sam and Ast...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam was slow getting up. To Quinn he looked like an old man standing up after slipping on the ice. B...
MICHAEL GRANT

Did you throw a rock at my brother?” Astrid yelled, fearless in her outrage. She dropped to her kn...
MICHAEL GRANT

[Caine]
"Interesting. Me, I've always wanted to know who my real parents were."
[Sam]
MICHAEL GRANT

Brianna dropped the skateboard in front of Sam. "Don't worry: I won't let you fall off."
"Yeah...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam,” Astrid yelled. “Quick.”
Sam thought he was too far gone to respond, but he somehow ...
MICHAEL GRANT

Where was Sam?
It hit her full force then, the shocking realization. Was this how Sam felt? Was...
MICHAEL GRANT

Okay, look. I get it. You're one of those people who thinks they have to help screwed-up people. Or ...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sometimes I think He looks down and says, "Wow, look what those idiots are up to now. I guess I bett...
MICHAEL GRANT

So asking you to take a moonlit walk with me, that would totally not work?"
"What?" Again that ...
MICHAEL GRANT

No," Lana said, "I'm not going to heal your scratch."
"Good," Sanjit said.
"Good? Why good...
MICHAEL GRANT

You're staring," Lana said.
"Yes. I am. I'm a teenage boy. Beautiful girls in wet underwear hav...
MICHAEL GRANT

I like your boyfriend," Dahra said. "Not many guys volunteer to carry ten gallons of diarrhea and vo...
MICHAEL GRANT

No one vinces me, baby
MICHAEL GRANT

Caine met Diana's disbelieving gaze and laughed aloud.
"Why so gloomy? Doesn't every little gir...
MICHAEL GRANT

If God gives you a Quiznos, can I have a bite? No way. You have to pray for your own food.
MICHAEL GRANT

It's Sanjit. It's a Hindu name. It means 'invincible.'"
"That's great," Lana said.
"Invinc...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam, that's a great concept. And maybe you believe it. But I'm black and I'm a lesbian, so let me te...
MICHAEL GRANT

They said a lot of things to each other that night, but nothing that involved words.
MICHAEL GRANT

Astrid had gone to look at the burn zone. Doing the right thing.
Kids had yelled at her. Demand...
MICHAEL GRANT

Too bad we don't have marshmallows. This is an amazing fire." Howard emerged through the smoke behin...
MICHAEL GRANT

He didn’t mind Drake so much. Drake was a creep.
It was the girl who made Orc want to cry. MICHAEL GRANT

Fear was about possibilities. Not things that happened. Things that might.
MICHAEL GRANT

Guilt was a fascinating thing: it seemed not to weaken over time. If anything it grew stronger as th...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam’s probably out there somewhere being his usual heroic self,” Caine said. “I can’t let th...
MICHAEL GRANT

No, no, no, so not getting the point of fear. Because fear wasn't about what made sense. Fear was ab...
MICHAEL GRANT

Hey, thanks for stopping by," Howard said. "I'd offer you some tea and cookies, but all we have is b...
MICHAEL GRANT

Superpowers, don't always make you a superhero. - Duck
MICHAEL GRANT

Yeah. A feeling. Like the whole point of my life from the alleys in Bangkok to the yachts and privat...
MICHAEL GRANT

There’ll be guys who were in wars hearing what we did and thinking, ‘Whoa.’ You and me, we can...
MICHAEL GRANT

Why are we sneaking out in the night?” Jack repeated.
“I already explained,” Sam snapped....
MICHAEL GRANT

You let her get away?” Caine demanded, forgetting Sam for the moment.
“I didn’t let her g...
MICHAEL GRANT

About time,” Brianna said.
“Hey, sorry, we were kind of busy,” Quinn snapped. “And I di...
MICHAEL GRANT

Why do we have to do this in the middle of the night?” Taylor asked.
“Because we don’t wa...
MICHAEL GRANT

Yeah, let’s get John here. That way we can stall for a while longer. We can keep on doing nothing ...
MICHAEL GRANT

He was still furious at Quinn, but they were—literally—all in the same boat now.
MICHAEL GRANT

People are idiots, Choo. Always remember that: people are faithless, backstabbing, weak, creepy, stu...
MICHAEL GRANT

Cabeza de turco.
MICHAEL GRANT

He's one kind of person, you're another. When life is going along normally, you're sort of the same....
MICHAEL GRANT

The pain was her whole world now. Pain and fear.
MICHAEL GRANT

She placed her palm over his wound, pressing as hard as she dared.
She would stop the blood. MICHAEL GRANT

What’s happened so far? Coyotes evolved limited powers of speech. Worms developed teeth and became...
MICHAEL GRANT

I came up with myself. FAYZ. Spelled F-A-Y-Z. It stands for Fallout Alley Youth Zone. Fallout Alley,...
MICHAEL GRANT

He found a set of encyclopedias—like Wikipedia, but paper and very bulky.
MICHAEL GRANT

Man, don't ever be sorry you don't want to kill someone.
MICHAEL GRANT

The point is,” Caine continued, “you and I share something in common, Sam. We were born just thr...
MICHAEL GRANT

but I know you're the brightest shooting star in the sky - Astrid
MICHAEL GRANT

So many things I'm not, and so few things I am.
MICHAEL GRANT

You'll never have complete control, Caine. This world is changing all the time. Animals. People. Who...
MICHAEL GRANT

Ninth graders with machine guns: its hard to make that a happy story.
MICHAEL GRANT

Let me guess: you're secretly a wizard who was raised by muggles.
MICHAEL GRANT

welcome to the FAYZ. Wherever, whenever or whyever that is
MICHAEL GRANT

One minute the teacher was talking about the Civil War. And the next minute he was gone. There. Gone...
MICHAEL GRANT

It's not about who's got powers, morons. It's about who's not afraid. And who's going to do what has...
MICHAEL GRANT

I had a polynomial once. My doctor removed it.
MICHAEL GRANT

It's vital to keep a sense of humour when the world seems to have suddenly become a very strange pla...
MICHAEL GRANT

It couldn’t last. Everyone was just killing time. But if all they did was kill time, time would en...
MICHAEL GRANT

That's your solution? Have a cookie?' Astrid asked. 'No, my solution is to run down to the beach and...
MICHAEL GRANT

We didn't Make this World we're just the Poor Fools who are living in it.
MICHAEL GRANT

Welcome to Perdido beach, where our motto is: Radiation, what radiation?
MICHAEL GRANT

Astrid found the hem of his T-shirt and pulled it up over his head. She unbuckled his belt and shove...
MICHAEL GRANT

The food is ready,” Zil announced to loud cheers.
“But we have something more important to ...
MICHAEL GRANT

We’ve searched all of the homes and carried the food to Ralph’s,” Sam continued. “The proble...
MICHAEL GRANT

Diana can read power levels,” Astrid said. “Did she ever…”
Sam nodded. “She said the ...
MICHAEL GRANT

I’m mean? That’s the worst you can throw at me?”
“Mean and self-pitying. Does that make...
MICHAEL GRANT

It’s time,” Jack said.
“Breeze? Count the kids,” Sam said.
Brianna was back in twe...
MICHAEL GRANT

I don’t guess you can outrun an explosion, right?” Sam asked doubtfully.
Jack rolled his ey...
MICHAEL GRANT

The door exploded inward and a tangle of bug legs appeared.
“I can hold them, but I can’t k...
MICHAEL GRANT

The only crime, if any, that may have been committed in these circumstances is the perpetration of a...
MICHAEL GRANT

Tino really battled inside. He battled against [Joe] Reitz, which was a really good battle all night...
MICHAEL GRANT

We can't afford to give away games by not executing and not knocking down our free throws.
MICHAEL GRANT

With five minutes left in the game and it's a seven point game, we had our chances to get back into ...
MICHAEL GRANT

We didn't take care of the basketball and we didn't concentrate on knocking down our free throws. I ...
MICHAEL GRANT

The question I have is what alternative does either the county or the state have? ... Does anybody h...
MICHAEL GRANT

I think it's going to be fairly difficult.
MICHAEL GRANT

The Tao of Natural Breathing by Dennis Lewis is filled with drawings, insights and guidance from an ...
MICHAEL GRANT

An enormous failure of the system has clearly been exposed, but this system failure is associated wi...
MICHAEL GRANT

You look okay,” Sam said with a certain desperate edge in his voice. “I mean good. You look good...
MICHAEL GRANT

Where’s Sam?” Brianna asked.
“He’s out. So is Edilio,” Dekka said. “You going to te...
MICHAEL GRANT

He never should have left the island. He’d been there with Diana and Penny. He could have tossed P...
MICHAEL GRANT

Lunch had been at a McDonald’s in Santa Barbara. It had been so clean. It had smelled like food. I...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam, I know you’re upset over what happened with you and Drake,” Astrid began.
“Upset?”...
MICHAEL GRANT

If you do bad stuff and don't repent, you go to hell," Orc said, like he was begging for a refutatio...
MICHAEL GRANT

What do you think that fish is?' Sam asked Astrid.
She peered closely at the alleged fish. 'I t...
MICHAEL GRANT

I want my mom,” a little boy cried out suddenly.
Every voice fell silent. The boy had said wh...
MICHAEL GRANT

Hi, Albert,” Quinn called back. He seemed distracted. And Albert was sure that he’d seen Quinn m...
MICHAEL GRANT

We’re here to execute a murderer,” Zil said, pointing at Hunter. “We are bringing justice in t...
MICHAEL GRANT

I’ll tell you all about it, but let’s eat first. I’ve had nothing to eat. Although I was offer...
MICHAEL GRANT

God knew our lives would be really bad sometimes. Like maybe we'd be turned into a monster and then ...
MICHAEL GRANT

More than two dozen kids lined a low railing around the gazebo. They were all tied to it by a rope l...
MICHAEL GRANT

We were disturbed the president moved too slowly, that FEMA looked too disorganized.
MICHAEL GRANT

How has he moved so quickly from childlike naïvité to existential panic?
MICHAEL GRANT

Drake's whip hand spun Diana like a top.
She cried out. That sound, her cry, pierced Caine like...
MICHAEL GRANT

Don’t want no more rock,” Orc repeated.
The bleeding stopped almost immediately.
“Do...
MICHAEL GRANT

Mr. Albert? Mr. Albert?” Harley said.
“Just Albert’s fine,” Albert said tersely.
�...
MICHAEL GRANT

The intruders spoke no words as they rushed in. Five boys carrying baseball bats and tire irons. The...
MICHAEL GRANT

Caine’s a guy who needs to win. He needs to win before he poofs. Or he needs to win before I poof....
MICHAEL GRANT

Lana leveled the gun at Penny. “Stop,” Lana said.
Penny’s reddened face grew pale. Whatev...
MICHAEL GRANT

You can't let him get away with this!" Penny shrieked.
Caine wasn’t having it. “You stupid...
MICHAEL GRANT

Penny rolled over, got to her feet, trying to get control of her scattered mind, but Quinn was behin...
MICHAEL GRANT

Hello, freak,” Drake said.
Lana backed away, but too late. Drake leveled his gun at her.
MICHAEL GRANT

Astrid and Taylor didn’t like each other much. But Taylor was an extremely valuable person to have...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam, there comes a time when the world no longer needs heroes. And then the true hero knows to walk ...
MICHAEL GRANT

But when reality was hopeless, fantasy became more and more necessary.
MICHAEL GRANT

And yes, we do have some food. Maybe you'd like to join us? Unless you want to stick with your sheep...
MICHAEL GRANT

Hey, Sam,” Drake shouted. “I thought you’d like to know this isn’t my whole army.”
Sa...
MICHAEL GRANT

Why, so we can look for some little kid who probably doesn’t even know he’s missing?”
Aga...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam, Edilio’s a good guy,” Albert said, breaking in on Sam’s gloomy thoughts. “But like I sa...
MICHAEL GRANT

You know what, Sam? We created the council to take pressure off of you. Because you were falling apa...
MICHAEL GRANT

Which was how Britteny ended up nestled next to Mickey, under the shelter of a painter's drop cloth....
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam sent me to give you a message, Edilio. He said, ‘Tell Edilio I couldn’t kill the bugs.’”...
MICHAEL GRANT

ot everyone liked Albert. Not everyone was happy that he had become the most important person around...
MICHAEL GRANT

Leslie-Ann set down her own bucket and watched, marveling, as a quarter of an inch of water covered ...
MICHAEL GRANT

Stay in your boats,” Dahra said. “We’re still going to need food. Throw your fish onto the doc...
MICHAEL GRANT

Brianna’s looking for Drake,” Edilio said, thinking out loud.
“You sent her out against D...
MICHAEL GRANT

Have either of you seen Sam? Brianna can’t find him.”
Albert sighed. “He’s out of town....
MICHAEL GRANT

Hey! One of Edilio’s soldiers just came staggering in from the gas station. He says someone attack...
MICHAEL GRANT

Albert, I don’t know how long we can keep Sam involved at all,” she said.
“You’re upset...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam always felt like a fool in this room. He sat in a too-big chair at one end of the table. Astrid ...
MICHAEL GRANT

Albert had created a currency based on gold bullets and McDonald’s game pieces. He’d wanted to c...
MICHAEL GRANT

I’m trying to make a profit. I’m using batteries, toilet paper, and paper towels as currency. Ea...
MICHAEL GRANT

Hey, brah,” Quinn said.
“What is going on, do you know?” Sam asked.
“It’s a club...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sorry, folks, but the maximum occupancy is seventy-five,” Albert said. Then he spotted Jack. “Ja...
MICHAEL GRANT

I’m trying to help,” Albert said.
“By paying him with beer?”
“I paid him what he...
MICHAEL GRANT

What’s up, Albert?”
“Well, I’ve done inventory at Ralph’s, and I think if I had a lot...
MICHAEL GRANT

Um, people.”
It wasn’t hard to get their attention. They gathered around. Even the littlest...
MICHAEL GRANT

What happened?” Albert asked.
Taylor looked at Sam. Sam said nothing. He stared. First at his...
MICHAEL GRANT

Female say Pack Leader stop,” Pack Leader said angrily.
“What?” Caine could make no sense...
MICHAEL GRANT

The light of day showed you the limits of possibility. But walk through the dark, the absolute, tota...
MICHAEL GRANT

What’s Albert going to do?” a boy named Jim demanded. “Where’s Albert?”
Albert steppe...
MICHAEL GRANT

He pictured himself at the lake, on a houseboat. Dekka would be there, and Brianna and Jack. He woul...
MICHAEL GRANT

Hand me my pants,
MICHAEL GRANT

Hunter’s dead,” Taylor said without preamble. “It was these . . . these things. They came craw...
MICHAEL GRANT

She’s stronger than you are, Sam. It’s like fighting yourself and Caine and Jack and Dekka, all ...
MICHAEL GRANT

promise me, Sam: whatever it takes to win, whatever it takes to survive.”
“Astrid—”
MICHAEL GRANT

He overheard the director talking to one of the cameramen. The cameraman was explaining that he coul...
MICHAEL GRANT

There were dozens of theories about what it was, that dome. Every scientist in the world, it seemed,...
MICHAEL GRANT

He’s becoming useless. Worse than useless,” Sam said. Then, relenting, he said, “We’ll get p...
MICHAEL GRANT

Man, sometimes you are clueless. You don’t even see what’s happening.” He perched himself on t...
MICHAEL GRANT

Human Crew had been a group formed to defend the rights of normals against freaks. At least that was...
MICHAEL GRANT

You’re supposed to be the big boss.”
Sam said nothing. The crowd hushed, ready to watch thi...
MICHAEL GRANT

First there was Caine’s patently false “confession.” Then there was the fact that the FAYZ Leg...
MICHAEL GRANT

A man without pleasure is a man without any idea what life is about
MICHAEL GRANT

I’ve helped you when I could, Caine. I’ve done all of it. I kept you alive and changed your filt...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam woke to a feeling of utter, profound, incredible relief.
He closed his eyes as soon as he o...
MICHAEL GRANT

We’re not going to give in. We’re going to fight.”
“Got that right,” a voice cried ou...
MICHAEL GRANT

Tell me something, Noah. Which is more important: freedom or happiness?'

What was this, a...
MICHAEL GRANT

And death is better because death is the end of fear, isnt it? -Dekka
MICHAEL GRANT

(...) But Gaia had absorbed the new information. "I won't need to kill billions, Diana. When Nemesis...
MICHAEL GRANT

Still Caine hesitated. A big, warm bed. A beautiful girl to share it with. Food. Water. Everything h...
MICHAEL GRANT

No, I'm not a jerk, Astrid. You know what I am? I'm the guy getting people killed," Sam said quietly...
MICHAEL GRANT

Brittney, it was wrong to murder even before Moses brought down the commandments. Right and wrong do...
MICHAEL GRANT

Beautiful songs could sometimes take a person out of themselves and carry them away to a place of ma...
MICHAEL GRANT

It's over, Sam. Finally."
"Yeah," he said. "I guess it is."
"Turn out the light, Sam."
MICHAEL GRANT

Hello, Darkness," Caine said.
Gaia's face fell. Her bloody, feral grin faded to be replaced by ...
MICHAEL GRANT

It takes me a while to figure things out, doesn't it?" Edilio grinned. "Do me a favor. When you find...
MICHAEL GRANT

Caine tried to roll to his feet, but something was jabbing him in the crouch. He shook off the stars...
MICHAEL GRANT

You're a big, lovable teddy bear.
MICHAEL GRANT

Come live with us, Diana. Don't argue. Just say yes."
Diana looked at the ground to hide her em...
MICHAEL GRANT

Say it. But..."
"But what?" he asked.
She whispered it, sounding too vulnerable. "But only...
MICHAEL GRANT

It took Caine a few beats to get it. “No. Go kill yourself. Eat your own gun. No. No no no.”
MICHAEL GRANT

Find Sam Temple. Tell him you escaped.”
Jack gulped and bobbed his head.
“Better yet, ...
MICHAEL GRANT

Has Orc shown up here?” But neither Caine nor Diana answered. Both were staring at Drake, who saun...
MICHAEL GRANT

My little man,” she said.
“No.”
She stretched out her hand to him. “Come.”
...
MICHAEL GRANT

You saw the way everyone looked at him? And when I asked for nominations, his was the first name men...
MICHAEL GRANT

Now, who else speaks for Perdido Beach?”
Bouncing Bette said, “Sam Temple here went into a ...
MICHAEL GRANT

A white van drove slowly—as slowly as only an inexperienced and frightened driver could go—
MICHAEL GRANT

But then had come the voice that said, "Come on, you little freak, wherever the hell you are,
w...
MICHAEL GRANT

It’s not about the powers, man; it’s that we aren’t kids anymore. Look what we’ve been throu...
MICHAEL GRANT

Endgame,” Sam muttered, not really expecting Caine to hear.
“Yep,” Caine said. “That’...
MICHAEL GRANT

But hey this was the FAYZ, where all you could really hope was to delay the pain.
MICHAEL GRANT

And now, at last, gaiaphage and Nemesis stood facing each other.
“Why didn’t you just . . ....
MICHAEL GRANT

I’m sorry for hurting you. I know I did. I’m most likely dead now, and I guess if there’s any ...
MICHAEL GRANT

You need to think about all that, Sam,” Dekka said. “You’re the leader, after all.”
“...
MICHAEL GRANT

Do you love me?” Diana asked.
Caine’s eyes widened. She could actually see him twitch. Like...
MICHAEL GRANT

Hunter woke suddenly. A noise.
It was a noise unlike anything he’d ever heard before. Close! ...
MICHAEL GRANT

He reached over and took Taylor’s hand. She did not pull her hand away.
He moved his hand up ...
MICHAEL GRANT

Little Pete. He’s not exactly just Astrid’s autistic brother.” He explained briefly while Toto...
MICHAEL GRANT

Quinn came forward and Sam pulled him aside. His old friend looked tortured and sad.
“What’...
MICHAEL GRANT

Have a seat with me,” Caine said, hopping down from the wall. “How have you been, Taylor?”
MICHAEL GRANT

And he thought of the two people who had held his job before him: Sam and Astrid. Both beaten into d...
MICHAEL GRANT

Today, each of you will make a decision,” Caine said. “To go with Sam, or to stay here. I won’...
MICHAEL GRANT

He’s not the first to say that.
MICHAEL GRANT

Like a bullet out of a gun. His big paws had caught the dog before the dog could even flinch.
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam was starting to feel anxious. Nutella and noodles were fine. Great in fact. Miraculous. But he'd...
MICHAEL GRANT

The gaiaphage. That's the other word they use. 'Gaia,' as in world. 'Phage,' as in a worm or somethi...
MICHAEL GRANT

Mother Mary wants to draft two more kids,” Astrid told Sam.
“Okay. Approved.”
“Dah...
MICHAEL GRANT

First off,” he said, “I want to say I’m sorry about E.Z. He was a good kid. He didn’t deserv...
MICHAEL GRANT

Its the fate of all creators: They fall in love with their creations.
MICHAEL GRANT

Have you seen Sam?” Mary asked.
“What do you want with Sam?”
“I can’t take care ...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam Temple kept a lower profile. He stuck to jeans and understated T-shirts, nothing that drew atten...
MICHAEL GRANT

Sam walked cautiously around Pack Leader to see the other side. There were the insect jaws protrudin...
MICHAEL GRANT

Astrid felt a towering wave of disgust. She was furious with Sam. Furious with Little Pete. Mad at t...
MICHAEL GRANT

At night we cry sometimes, and if you think that just applies to the females then you have never bee...
MICHAEL GRANT

The Tao of Natural Breathing by Dennis Lewis is filled with drawings, insights and guidance from an ...
MICHAEL GRANT

Why are we doing this?" Caine asked him. "You know damned well why we're doing this. Because it's a ...
MICHAEL GRANT

I’m getting my stuff,” he said, and bolted for the steps.
“You don’t have to move out,�...
MICHAEL GRANT

The warrior who had gone out from the lake to save his people by slaying the evil one was now just a...
MICHAEL GRANT

Delay of pain: that was the meaning of life, wasn’t it?
“I’ve made some bad decisions,” Caine said, not really meaning to say it out loud.

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Michael Grant

Delay of pain: that was the meaning of life, wasn’t it?
“I’ve made some bad decisions,” Caine said, not really meaning to say it out loud.

Michael Grant

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Delay of pain: that was the meaning of life, wasn’t it?“I’ve made some bad decisions,” Caine said, not really meaning to say it out loud.

Michael Grant

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More Michael Grant

Delay of pain: that was the meaning of life, wasn’t it?
“I’ve made some bad decisions,” Caine said, not really meaning to say it out loud.