48 Red Queen Quotes: Delve into Victoria Aveyard’s World of Poverty, Royalty, and the Supernatural

Written by Victoria Aveyard, the YA fantasy novel "Red Queen" has become highly popular with its winding tale of supernatural forces, rebellion, and love. Read the 48 quotes below to discover more about this beloved book.

In a book about power and poverty, a teenage girl Mare Barrow finds herself living a life of impoverishment simply because she is a "Red" girl, meaning someone without superhuman abilities and, therefore, not part of the elite. The elite are known as the Silvers. They are served by the lower class in the "Red Queen" universe.

However, this order finds itself on the brink of destruction when the Silvers discover that Barrow, a Red, has powers. As a solution, they sell her to the public as a long-lost Silver Princess to be married to the Silver Prince.

Barrow plays her part as a Silver Princess well. However, behind the scenes, she is working with a resistance group of Reds who are hellbent on bringing down the current power structure—a life-threatening decision. Read the 48 quotes below to get a taste of this young-adult fantasy novel.

Victoria Aveyard’s quote in “Red Queen”: "Words can lie. See beyond them." | Image: AmoDays

Wise Quotes from "Red Queen"

"The truth doesn't matter. It only matters what the people believe." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"Flame and shadow. One can not exist without the other." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"This world is Silver, but it is also gray. There is no black-and-white." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"Words can lie. See beyond them." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"There's nothing wrong with being different." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Victoria Aveyard’s quote in “Red Queen”: "The truth doesn't matter. It only matters what the people believe." | Image: AmoDays

"I am finally learning my lesson. Anyone can betray anyone." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"It's our nature. We destroy. It's the constant of our kind. No matter what color of the blood, man will always fall." —Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"If you know someone's fear, you know them." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"Make no mistake, my girl. You are playing this game as someone's pawn." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"I see a world on the edge of a blade. Without balance, it will fall." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Victoria Aveyard’s quote in “Red Queen”: "There's nothing wrong with being different." | Image: AmoDays

"To look powerful is to be powerful." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

‘Red Queen’ Quotes about Love

"I didn't understand that lesson a few days ago, but now, with Cal's hands in mine, guiding me with the lightest touch, I'm beginning to see what he meant. I can feel myself falling." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"I told you to hide your heart once. You should have listened." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"Slowly, he starts to hum. I recognize the tune as the sad song, the one we kissed to in a room full of moonlight." ― Victoria Aveyard, Red Queen

"I will never make the mistake of loving you again." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Victoria Aveyard’s quote in “Red Queen”: "I told you to hide your heart once. You should have listened." | Image: AmoDays

"His lips are on mine, hard and warm and pressing. The touch is electrifying, but not like I'm used to. This isn't a spark of destruction but a spark of life. As much as I want to pull away, I just can't do it. Cal is a cliff, and I throw myself over the edge, not bothering to think of what it could do to us both. One day he'll realize I'm his enemy, and all this will be a far-gone memory. But not yet." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"You want me to pin my entire operation, the entire revolution, on some teenaged love story? I can't believe this." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Self-Reflective 'Red Queen' Quotes

"I'm an accident. I'm a lie. And my life depends on maintaining the illusion." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"What I need and what I want are two very different things." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"I'm a Red in a sea of Silvers, and I can't feel sorry for anyone, least of all the son's snake." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Victoria Aveyard’s quote in “Red Queen”: "I'm an accident. I'm a lie. And my life depends on maintaining the illusion." | Image: AmoDays

"The truth is what I make it. I could set this world on fire and call it rain." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Emotional 'Red Queen' Quotes

"I have lived that life already, in the mud, in the shadows, in a cell, in a silk dress. I will never submit again. I will never stop fighting." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"No one notices, no one even cares, when I fade away again. I'm a shadow, and no one remembers shadows." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"You wouldn't know hardship if it kicked you in the teeth, and believe me, it does that a lot. So excuse me if I don't feel sorry for either of you." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"I am only human, and humans are not supposed to deal with days like today." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Victoria Aveyard’s quote in “Red Queen”: "I have lived that life already, in the mud, in the shadows, in a cell, in a silk dress. I will never submit again. I will never stop fighting." | Image: AmoDays

"With my newly pale skin and darkened eyes and lips, I look cold, cruel, a living razor. I look silver. I look beautiful. And I hate it." ― Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"He's already given up. I will not." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"The sparks are gone, replaced by fierce, ugly tears that track down my face. Thunder rumbles somewhere far off, and the air is warm. But the humid temperature is gone. The heat has broken, and summer will soon be over. Time is passing. My life is moving on, no matter how much I want it to stay the same." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"A lie will raise me up, and one day another lie will bring me down." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"The power is in me, and I don't want to let go. It feels better than pain." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Victoria Aveyard’s quote in “Red Queen”: "With my newly pale skin and darkened eyes and lips, I look cold, cruel, a living razor. I look silver. I look beautiful. And I hate it." | Image: AmoDays

‘Red Queen’ Quotes on Royalty and Gods

"In the fairy tales, the poor girl smiles when she becomes a princess. Right now, I don't know if I'll ever smile again." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"I am the king, and you could've been my Red Queen. Now you are nothing." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"I'm not a prince; my life has not been charming. I know to expect the worst out of everything and everyone." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"A king should know his people. That's why I sneak out,' he murmurs. 'I do it in the capital too, and at the war front. I like to see how things really are in the kingdom instead of being told by advisers and diplomats. That's what a good king would do." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"We can bomb and burn every inch of this country down, but that will never do the damage you two can do. A Silver prince turning against his crown, a Red girl with abilities. What will people say when they see you standing with us?" — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Victoria Aveyard’s quote in “Red Queen”: "In the fairy tales, the poor girl smiles when she becomes a princess. Right now, I don't know if I'll ever smile again." | Image: AmoDays

"They've spent so long at the top, protected and isolated, that they've forgotten they can fall. Their strength has become their weakness." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"You should know the difference between secrets and lies." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"You believe you are the masters of the world, but your reign as kings and gods is at an end. Until you recognize us as human, as equal, the fight will be at your door. Not on a battlefield but in your cities. In your streets. In your homes. You don't see us, and so we are everywhere. ... And we will rise up, Red as the dawn." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"You will be scrutinized. From now on, you will live on the edge of a knife. One false step, one wrong word, and you will suffer for it." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"The gods rule us still. They have come down from the stars. And they are no longer kind." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Victoria Aveyard’s quote in "Red Queen”: "You should know the difference between secrets and lies." | Image: AmoDays

"In school, we learned about the world before ours, about the angels and gods that lived in the sky, ruling the earth with kind and loving hands. Some say those are just stories, but I don't believe that." — Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"Red Queen" Quotes from a Land of Division and Rebellion

"Silvers don't mind pain, but we are proud. Pride, dignity, honor; those are things no ability can replace." ― Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"We're thieves; we're rats. We know when to fight and when to run." ― Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Victoria Aveyard’s quote in "Red Queen”: "There are worse lives to live. Don't feel sorry for me." | Image: AmoDays

"I'll miss you, little lightning girl." ― Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"That's all this was. Jealousy. Rivalry. All so shadow could defeat the flame." ― Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"You are not Silver. Your parents are Red, you are Red, and your blood is red. You are a miracle, Mare Barrow, an impossibility. Something even I can't understand, and I have seen all of you." ― Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

"There are worse lives to live. Don't feel sorry for me." ― Victoria Aveyard, "Red Queen"

Victoria Aveyard’s quote in "Red Queen”: "If you know someone's fear, you know them." | Image: AmoDays

The author Aveyard has written 68 books, including multiple best-sellers apart from the subsequent novels in the "Red Queen" series: namely "Glass Sword: Red Queen Book 2"; "King's Cage: Red Queen Book 3," and "War Storm: Red Queen Book 4."

Some of her novels that aren't directly part of the "Red Queen" narrative are still connected to the universe. These include "Queen Song," "Steel Scars," and "Cruel Crown."

To explore another beloved young adult novel, read these quotes from the book "Six of Crows."