Quotessence
Home / Authors / Rick Riordan
Rick Riordan

Rick Riordan Quotes

Author

Filter quotes by topic

AllPercy JacksonSaidIfsHumorAnnabethAnnabeth ChasePercy Jackson And The OlympiansApolloKnowsThinkingRick RiordanNico Di AngeloWellsLeo ValdezWayEyeJason GraceLooksSadieFrank

Famous Rick Riordan Quotes

“You have to read a lot so you know what good writing looks like and you get inspired. You have to write a lot because it's like a sport - you have to practice. And, also, you have to persevere. Don't give up. I got rejected on my first book, like, 14 times, but I just kept going. So believe in yourself and don't give up.”

KnowsGivingWritingFirstsBelieveLooksBookSportsPracticeGiving UpInspiredBelieve In YourselfRejectedBelieve In YouPersevereDon't Give UpGood Writing
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“He'd changed since the last summer. Instead of Bermuda shorts and a T-shirt, he wore a button-down shirt, khaki pants, and leather loafers. His sandy hair, which used to be so unruly, was now clipped short. He look like an evil male model, showing off what the fashionable college-age villain was wearing to Harvard this year.”

YearsLooksAgeLastsUsedEvilChangedCollegeHairSummerModelsMalesUsed To BeShirtsVillainPantsButtonsT ShirtHarvardFashionableLeatherShowing OffShortsSandyUnrulyLast SummerLoafersBermuda
Book:The Sea of Monsters
Create image

“I'm calm," Rachel insisted. "Every time I'm around you, some monsters attack us. What's to be nervous about?" "Look," I said. "I'm sorry about the band room. I hope they didn't kick you our or anything." "Nah. They asked me a lot of questions about you. I played dumb." "Was it hard?" Annabeth asked.”

LooksSaidHardRoomsBandSorryCalmMonstersNervousDumbKicksI'm SorryAnnabethAnnabeth Chase
Book:Percy Jackson and the Battle of the Labyrinth
Create image

“And, whoa!" He turned to Mr.D. "Your the wine dude? No way!" Mr.D turned hi eyes away from me and gave Nico a look of loathing. "The wine dude?" "Dionysus, right? Oh, wow! I've got your figurine!" "My figurine." "In my game, Mythomagic. And holofoil card, too! And even though you've only got like five hundred attack points and everybody thinks your the lamest god card, I totally think your powers are sweet!" "Ah." Mr.D seemed truly perplexed, which probably saved my life. "Well, that's...gratifying.”

ThinkingWayWellsLooksEyeGamesFiveSweetHundredWineSavedCardsWowLoathingPerplexedDionysus
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“Purple light passed over the paper, but nothing happened. "Next!" Amy said. She was sure the man in black was going to burst in on them any second. "Whoa!" Dan said. Amy gripped his arm. "You found it?" "No, but look! This whole essay - 'To the Royal Academy.' He wrote a whole essay on farts!" Dan grinned with delight. "He's proposing a scientific study on different fart smells. You're right, Amy. This guy was a genius!”

MenLooksSaidDifferentWholeLightGuyNextFoundBlackStudyHappenedArmsGeniusPaperDelightSmellRoyalEssaysThis GuyPurpleAcademyAmyFart
Book:The 39 Clues 1: The 39 Clues: The Maze of Bones
Create image

“I looked at Thalia. "You're afraid of heights." Now that we were safely down the mountain, her eyes had their usual angry look. "Don't be stupid." That explains why you freaked out on Apollo's bus. Why you didn't want to talk about it." She took a deep breath. Then she brushed the pine needles out of her hair. "If you tell anyone, I swear—" No, no," I said. "That's cool. It's just… the daughter of Zeus, the Lord of the Sky, afraid of heights?”

IfsWantLooksSaidEyeLordSkyStupidHairMountainDaughterBreathsAngryHeightBusUsualSwearHer EyesApolloNeedlesDeep BreathZeusThalia Grace
Book:The Titan's curse
Create image

“Tell you what," I said. "After the testing after the Demon Days, when things settle down -" "Things won't settle down." "- I'm going to take you to the mall." She blinked. "The mall? For what reason?" "To hang out," I said. "We'll get some hamburgers. See a movie." Zia hesitated. "Is this what you'd call a 'date'?" My expression must have been priceless, because Zia actually cracked a smile. "You look like a cow hit with a shovel.”

LooksHas BeensSaidReasonExpressionSettlingDemonHanging OutCowsTestingPricelessCrackedMallsSettling DownHamburgersShovels
Book:The Kane Chronicles, The, Book One: Red Pyramid
Create image

“She blinked. "Hmm? Oh, don't care. What did Anubis look like to you?" "What did... he looked like a guy. So?" "A good-looking guy, or a slobbering dog-headed guy?" "I guess... Not the dog-headed guy." "I knew it!" Sadie pointed at me as if she'd won an argument. "Good-looking. I knew it!" And with a ridiculous grin, she spun around and skipped into the house. My sister, as I may have mentioned, is a little strange.”

IfsLooksMayLittlesCareGuyHouseDogStrangeArgumentDon't CareRidiculousMy SisterLooking GoodSpunHmmSadieGood Looking GuysAnubis
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“Zia turned toward us, her expression grim. “I will show you to your quarters. In the morning, your testing begins. We will see what magic you know, and how you know it.” I wasn’t sure what she meant by that, but I exchanged an uneasy look with Sadie. “Sounds fun,” Sadie ventured. “And it we fail this test?” Zia regarded her coldly. “This is not the sort of test you fail, Sadie Kane. You pass or you die.”

KnowsLooksShowsDiesFunSoundMorningFailingMagicExpressionTestsQuartersTestingGrimUneasySadieSadie Kane
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“You wrote this right?” he said. “It tells how to defeat Set.” Thoth unfolded the papyrus pages. “Oh, dear. I hate reading my old work. Look at this sentence. I’d never write it that way now.” He patted his lab coat pockets. “Red pen—does anyone have one?” Isis chafed against my willpower, insisting that we blast some sense into Thoth. One fireball, she pleaded. Just one enormous magical fireball? I couldn’t say I was tempted, but I kept her under control. “Since when does drool make you powerful?”

WayWritingLooksDoeSaidHateReadingPowerfulPagesRedI HateDefeatDearSentencesEnormousJust OnePocketsPensCoatsWillpowerTemptedIsisBlastLabsInsistingPapyrus
Book:The Kane Chronicles, The, Book One: Red Pyramid
Create image

“I want a room decorated with bones!" Dan said. "Where'd they come from?" "Cemeteries," Amy said. "Back in the 1700s, the cemeteries were getting overcrowded, so they decided to dig up tons of old bodies–all their bones–and move them into the Catacombs. The thing is...look at the dates. See when they started moving bones into the Catacombs?" Dan squinted at the screen. He didn't see what she was talking about. "Is it my birthday?”

WantLooksSaidBodyMovingRoomsTalkingDecidedBonesScreensCemeteryAmyMy Birthday
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“In the center stood a marble alter, where a kid in a toga was doing some sort of ritual in front of a massive golden statue of the big dude himself:Jupiter the sky god, dressed in a silk XXXL purple toga, holding a lightning bolt. "It doesn't look like that," Percy muttered. "What?" Hazel asked. "The master bolt," Percy said. "What are you talking about?" "I-" Percy frowned. For a second, he'd thought he remembered something. Now it was gone. "Nothing, I guess.”

LooksSaidBigsKidsTalkingGoneSkyFrontsMastersGoldenRememberedMassiveRitualLightningPurpleStatuesMarbleSilkBoltsJupiterLightning BoltsTogas
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“His left eyebrow crept higher and higher as I told him the strange bits like the glowing letters and serpent staff. "Well, Sadie," Inspector Williams said. "You've got quite an imagination." "I'm not lying, Inspector. And I think your eyebrow is trying to escape." He tried to look at his own eyebrows, then scowled.”

ThinkingTryingWellsLooksSaidLyingLeftBitsImaginationStrangeHigherLettersStaffEyebrowsGlowingSerpentSadieInspectors
Book:The Kane Chronicles, The, Book One: Red Pyramid
Create image

“And yes,Percy,of course they are now in our United States. Look at your symbol,the eagle of Zeus. Look at the statue of Prometheus in Rockefeller Center,the Greek facades of our government builidings in Washington. I defy you to find any American city where the Olympians are not proeminently displayed, in multiple places. Like it or not-and believe me,plenty of people weren't very found of Rome,either-America is now the heart of the flame. It is the great power of the West.And so Olympus is here.And we are here.”

PeopleBelieveLooksHeartStatesGovernmentAmericaCoursesFoundUnitedCitiesUnited StatesWestSymbolsPlentyGreekFlamesRomeBelieve In MeMultipleStatuesEaglesGreat PowerFacadeZeusOlympianAmerican CitiesOlympusPrometheusRockefeller Center
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“glancing back I got my first clear look at the monster. He was seven feet tall, easy, his arms and legs like something from the cover of Muscle Man magazine-bulging biceps and triceps and a bunch of other 'ceps, all stuffed like baseballs under vein-webbed skin. He wore no clothes except underwear-I mean, bright white fruit of the Looms.”

MenFirstsLooksMeanEasyWhiteClearFeetArmsClothesSkinsBaseballFruitSevenLegsMonstersBunchMagazinesMusclesTallVeinsUnderwearLike SomethingArms And LegsBicepsTriceps
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“And do you know what a full-fledged war would look like, Percy?" "Bad?" I guessed. "Imagine the world in chaos. Nature at war with itself. Olympians forced to choose sides between Zeus amd Poseidon. Destruction. Carnage. Millions dead. Western civilization turned into a battleground so big it will make the Trojan War look like a water-balloon fight." "Bad," I repeated.”

KnowsWorldLooksWarBigsFightingSidesWaterMillionsImagineCivilizationDestructionWesternChaosDo You KnowBalloonsWestern CivilizationZeusOlympianCarnagePoseidonBattlegroundTrojansTrojan War
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“Suddenly his expression turned to alarm. He sprinted toward us. For a moment I had an absurd vision of myself on the cover of one of Gran’s old romance novels, where the damsel wilts into the arms of one half-dressed beefy guy while another stands by,casting her longing looks. Oh, the horrible choices a girl must make! I wished I’d had a moment to clean up. I was still covered in dried river muck, twine, and grass, like I’d been tarred and feathered. Then Anubis pushed past me and gripped Walt’s shoulders. Well…that was unexpected.”

WellsLooksStillsMomentsPastRomanceGuyChoicesGirlHalfVisionNovelExpressionArmsRiversLongingCleanShouldersHorribleAbsurdGrassUnexpectedCoveredCastingAlarmsRomance NovelWaltOne HalfGransAnubisOld Romance
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“Let me explain: there are dragons, and then there are drakons. Drakons are several millennia older than dragons, andmuch larger. They look like giant serpents. Most don't have wings. Most don't breathe fire (though some do). All are poisonous. All are immensely strong, with scales harder than titanium. Their eyes can paralyze you; not the turn-you~to-stone Medusa-type paralysis, buttheoh~my~gods-that~big~snake~is~going~to~eat~me type of paralysis, which is just as bad.”

LooksEyeTurnsStrongFireTypeStonesLet MeHarderWingsBreatheScalesGiantsDragonsSerpentPoisonousParalysisMedusa
Book:Percy Jackson: The Complete Series
Create image

“The afterlife looks different to every soul," he said, "depending on whatthey believe. For that guy, Egypt must've made a strong impression when he was young , maybe." "And if someone doesn't believe in any afterlife?" i asked. Walt gave me a sad look. "Then that's what they experience.”

IfsBelieveLooksMadeSaidDifferentSoulYoungGuyStrongImpressionAfterlifeEgyptThat GuyWalt
Book:The Kane Chronicles: The Complete Series
Create image

“While Leo fussed over his helm controls, Hazel and Frank relayed the story of the fish-centaurs and their training camp. 'Incredible,' Jason said. 'These are really good brownies.' 'That's your only comment?' Piper demanded. He looked surprised. 'What? I heard the story. Fish-centaurs. Merpeople. Letter of intro to the Tiber River god. Got it. But these brownies--' 'I know,' Frank said, his mouth full. 'Try them with Ester's peach preserves.' 'That,' Hazel said, 'is incredibly disgusting.' 'Pass me the jar, man,' Jason said. Hazel and Piper exchanged a look of total exasperation. Boys.”

KnowsMenTryingLooksSaidStoriesBoysHeardTrainingMouthsRiversLettersIncrediblesFishesPreservesCommentCampsFrankDisgustingJarsJasonPeachesPipersHelmBrowniesExasperationMark Of AthenaCentaursTraining Camp
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“You both passed out,” Percy said. “I don’t know why, but Ella told me not to worry about it. She said you were…sharing?” “Sharing,” Ella agreed. She crouched in the stern, preening her wing feathers with her teeth, which didn’t look like a very effective form of personal hygiene. She spit out some red fluff. “Sharing is good. No more blackouts. Biggest American blackout, August 14, 2003. Hazel shared. No more blackouts.” Percy scratched his head. “Yeah…we’ve been having conversations like that all night. I still don’t know what she’s talking about.”

KnowsLooksSaidStillsFormNightTalkingWorryConversationRedYeahWingsTeethFeathersAll NightSpitAugustHygieneFluffBlackoutsPersonal Hygiene
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image

“They would find this House of Hades. They'd take the Doors of Death. And by the gods, if Leo had to design a grabber arm long enough to snatch Percy and Annabeth out of Tartarus, then that's what he would do. Nemesis wanted him to wreak vengeance on Gaea? Leo would be happy to oblige. He was going to make Gaea sorry she had ever messed with Leo Valdez. "Yeah." He took one last look at the cityscape of Rome, turning bloodred in the sunset. "Festus, raise the sails. We've got some friends to save.”

IfsLooksLongEnoughWould BeWantedLastsHouseDoorsDesignArmsRaisesYeahSorrySunsetRomeSailVengeanceHadesAnnabethLeo ValdezNemesisHouse Of HadesTartarusCityscapesGaea
Author:Rick Riordan
Create image