You definitely have read about regency nobles dancing, but how would a vagabond dance? Marie E. Pearson describes the ritual, but in this duology, it gets a new dimension. Dance of Thieves is a tango—a vengeful, dangerous dance, but passionate and alluring. A young adult, slow-burn romance; a battle of wits and blades. Betrayal, love, trust, and survival are a few points that Mary E. Pearson explores with her special writing style filled with riddles, notes, and a dual POV.
Kazi can be as deadly as Aelin, as resourceful as Violet, and as irresistible as Isla Crown. Jase Ballenger has no choice but to fall madly in love with her. Here is our TOG and Onyx Storm summary and a Lightlark character guide to refresh your memories.
Here are some of the most beloved quotes from our main characters. Be ready for vulnerable moments, snoopworthy confessions, and empowering words.
Quotes About Love and Vulnerability
“‘Who made you afraid of an open world? An open sky? Was it Venda? Your parents?’ ‘No one did anything,’ I answered quietly. ‘Then hold on to me,’ he said. ‘Let me show you the stars.’”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“I do want tomorrows with you, Jase. I want a lifetime of tomorrows.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“I want to kiss you because I want you, every part of you, even the parts that infuriate me beyond telling, because you’ve infected me with a poison that I don’t want to flush out, because you’re a mad viper twisting around my middle, cutting off my breath, yet I want you more than I want to breathe.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“I wrinkled my nose. ‘Oh, how obsessed you are with your pretty neck.’ His hands tightened on my wrists. He pulled me close, his teeth nipping at my neck and between kisses, he whispered, ‘It is not my neck I am obsessed with, Kazi of Brightmist.’”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“Love didn’t even seem like the right word to explain how I felt about her. The word seemed too small, too used, too simple, and everything I felt about her seemed complicated and rare and as wide as the world.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“It was our story. It didn’t have to have a happy beginning or a happy ending, but the middle was a feast at a banquet, a rich soapy bath, a night’s rest at an inn and full stomach, a warm chest nestled up against my back, the soft heat of lips at my nape, stories whispered in my ear.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“My breaths shuddered, still hot in my chest. I knew I had made a big mistake, but it was a glorious one, and I wanted to make it over and over again. But there was something in his eyes, something genuine and earnest and true that made me pause. This was more than just making the best of it, this was something taking root, a seed being planted. But it was a seed that couldn't be planted.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“Tell me a riddle, Kazi.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“My head spun, but in a way that wanted to sink into, to drown in the warmth of it. I was falling into a vast, dark sky, and I didn’t care. I wanted to disappear into it. I wanted more. Our tongues explored, soft, warm, and then he pulled away, his eyes searching mine, wondering, asking. Should he stop? No, I thought. No. Don’t stop. His gaze held, waiting, as if he needed to hear me say it aloud.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“‘It’s awkward, isn’t it?’ he said. ‘What’s that?” I replied, my voice far too breathy. ‘These moments when we’re not hating each other.’”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“He could silence the devil with a whisper.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“‘I want to kiss you, Kazi,’ he finally said, his voice a whisper. ‘And I want you to kiss me back. But this time I don’t want it to be because we’re only making the best of it. And I don’t want a kiss that’s for show or has any conditions. I want you to kiss me just because you want to. Because you deeply want to. No one’s watching now. You can walk away, and I won’t say a thing.’”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“‘Last time we danced we were knee-deep in grass,’ I said. ‘And now there’s not even a chain between us,’ Jase whispered. ‘Maybe we don’t need one anymore.’”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“But everything about us didn't just feel right, it felt like something rare, something delicate that I was afraid of breaking. Something that only comes along once in a lifetime.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
Quotes About Inner Strength and Freedom
“Choose your words carefully, even the words you think, because they become seeds, and seeds become history.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“Truth that came too late was as useful as a meal to a dead man.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“Hear the language that isn’t spoken, for everyone can hear spoken words, but only a few can hear the heart that beats behind it.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“The ghosts, they never go away. They call to you in unexpected moments, their hands lacing with yours and pulling you down paths that lead nowhere.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“ Make a wish, Kazi, one for tomorrow, for the next day, and the next. One will always come true. Because if I could believe in tomorrow or the next day, maybe that would give the magic time to come true. Or better, maybe by then I wouldn’t need the magic at all.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“Sometimes you can’t begin to know everything you’ve lost until someone shows you what you might have had”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“Seconds could change everything. Seconds could erase one path and send you reeling down another.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“It had always been the laughter that needled through me, a repeated stitch that surfaced over and over again. Laughter reveals in the same way a sigh or a glance does. It’s an unintentional language. Worry, fear, deceit—they hide in the things unsaid.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“Because if I could believe in tomorrow or the next day, maybe that would give the magic time to come true. Or better, maybe by then I wouldn’t need the magic at all.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“The wind, time, They circle, repeat, Teaching us to be every watchful, For freedoms are never won, Once and for all, But must be won over and over again. Song of Jezelia”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“Gold pleases men, but blood serves the gods, because in the end, your life is all you have to give.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“The magic of the wishes, of course, was simply in making them, fishing deep for a hidden desire, molding it into words to make it real, and tossing it into a mysterious unknown that you believed was maybe, just maybe, listening.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“He was a man, not a monster, as you imagine. He died the way all men die, one breath at a time.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“I perfected my craft, playing the quarterlords and merchants against one another as if I was a musician and they were crude drums rumbling beneath my hands, making one boast to another that I had never pulled anything over on him, making them all feel so very smart, even as I relieved them of items I could put to better use elsewhere.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“I hated how easily innocence could be robbed—how quickly a child could go from plucking wish stalks at a pond’s edge to clutching stolen bread beneath a coat.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“Even justice couldn’t erase scars—it only delivered on a promise to the living that evil would not go unpunished.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“Because power, I had learned, could be just as seductive as a warm loaf of bread.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“… but one thing was constant in all the versions I heard, the gods and angels destroyed the world when men aspired to be gods and mercy had fled their hearts.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“The world was so much safer when you only had yourself to lose.”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
“Write it down, he had told me. Write down every word once you get there. Before the truth is forgotten. And now we do, at least the parts we remember. Greyson Ballenger, 14”
― Mary E. Pearson, Dance of Thieves
Final Thoughts
After taking your dose of romantic and inspirational quotes, all that’s left is to add Dance of Thieves to your TBR. Log into your Goodreads or any other alternative, download the ebook or purchase the audiobook, and enjoy one of BookTok’s favorite fantasy romance books!
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Who are the main characters in Dance of Thieves?
The main characters in Mary E. Pearson’s Dance of Thieves are Kazimyrah of Brightmist and Jase Ballenger. Kazi is a former infamous thief and presently a member of Rahtan—the Queen of Venda’s close circle of soldiers. Jase is the Patrei of a powerful family who have control over the economy in Tor’s Watch.
2. Is Dance of Thieves part of a series?
Yes, Dance of Thieves is the first installment in the duology, followed by Vow of Thieves. It’s also set in the same world as The Remnant Chronicles.
Nikki Sheryee insists that she’s “up to no good” whenever she’s in the company of books. Armed with a degree in English Language and Literature, she wields the power of words like a mischievous wizard. Her lifelong dream? To be the editor who sprinkles magic dust on manuscripts! To Nikki, a book is more alive than a caffeinated squirrel on roller skates. Readers nurture it, cuddle it, scold it, and occasionally challenge it to a duel! But in the end, a book does its own thing, pulling at our heartstrings and revealing our inner human-ness. Nikki’s favorite pastime? Well, it’s none other than the noble art of daydreaming! And she wears her daydreamer’s badge with pride, sharing this delightful delusion with the crème de la crème of her friends.
