Top 140 Karen M. McManus Quotes (2026 Update)
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101. “I smiled at her, but wished I were sitting on the other side of the table. I hate seeing Keely and me side by side. She’s so beautiful, all tawny skin and long eyelashes and Angelina Jolie lips. She’s the lead character in a movie and I’m the generic best friend whose name you forget before the credits even start rolling.”

— Karen M. McManus

102. “At this moment, I’ve never wanted to do anything as much as I want to grab his face and kiss every inch of it.”

— Karen M. McManus

103. “Oh, I have big plans. Netflix, ice cream, cutting Gabe out of all my pictures and burning his head. It’s gonna be a whole thing.”

— Karen M. McManus

104. “I’d rather live in Regina’s spare room for the rest of my life than hand thousands of dollars to the woman who abandoned me eight years ago and never looked back.”

— Karen M. McManus

105. “Ellery’s eyes are steady on mine, her lips curved in a small, questioning smile. I draw her face closer and before I can overthink it, I kiss her.”

— Karen M. McManus

106. “Which I realize is pretty uninspiring, but so is high school dating.”

— Karen M. McManus

107. “Well, they should make up their minds,” Charlotte says tightly. “Do they hate Mr. Larkin, or do they hate us? If we’re murderers, then you can’t have it both ways, right?”

— Karen M. McManus

108. “You’re not going to wither up and die from this, Addy,” Ashton lectures me as she shoves me toward the shower. “He doesn’t get to erase you from the world.”

— Karen M. McManus

109. “Shane can’t handle the pressure from all this renewed interest in Mr. Larkin, what the hell hope do Charlotte or I have?”

— Karen M. McManus

110. “What date was the car brought in, again?” “August thirty-first,” she says. “August thirty-first.” I repeat. My skin prickles, every nerve twitching. Ezra tilts his head. “Why do you look like you just swallowed a grenade?” “Because we came in from LA the night before that. August thirtieth, remember? The hailstorm. The night Mr. Bowman was killed in a hit-and-run.” Nobody says anything for a second, and I tap the paper Mia is holding. “Front of vehicle damage due to unknown impact?”

— Karen M. McManus

111. “Are you guys even real?”

— Karen M. McManus

112. “I used to think about that, sometimes, when I wondered what parts of her might still be alive.”

— Karen M. McManus

113. “That’s very toxic behavior,” Charlotte says, and I snort out a laugh. “If you ever meet my mother, Charlotte, you’ll realize what an understatement that is.”

— Karen M. McManus

114. “Your brother saved you.”

— Karen M. McManus

115. “Everybody’s got secrets.”

— Karen M. McManus

116. “Anders turned, his eyes glittering in the moonlight. “Taking care of a problem.”

— Karen M. McManus

117. “If I ever actively chose somebody instead of just letting myself get pulled into whatever orbit will have me.”

— Karen M. McManus

118. “Marriage is way harder than anyone tells you.”

— Karen M. McManus

119. “Wade claps his hands together, kind of like I just did. “So what’s the deal? You’re making a little garden for a dead guy and Google’s not your friend? It’s too much work for a couple of rich kids, so why not waste Wade’s time?” “Wow.” Brynn blinks a couple of times before turning back to me. “I didn’t think I’d have to admit this within the first thirty seconds of this meeting, but – you were right, Tripp.”

— Karen M. McManus

120. “Basically never, and look where it’s gotten me. Still living with him at the age of twenty-four. So – learn from my mistakes, okay?” He yawns and scratches his chin. “And get some sleep. I need to do the same.”

— Karen M. McManus

121. “A job promotion, I decide. That must be it. Which is excellent news, except for the part where she’s going to remind me that she got it through hard work and oh, by the way, why can’t I work harder at literally everything.”

— Karen M. McManus

122. “She’d never guess my sweet-faced sister just committed identity theft against her six-year-old.”

— Karen M. McManus

123. “My wunderkind brother, who skipped a grade and is currently outshining me in every aspect of our senior year, would have been the logical choice.”

— Karen M. McManus

124. “I hope so,” I say, chewing the inside of my cheek. “Ceramics class, my ass. That anonymous tip has to be about her. I never got anywhere near Boney.”

— Karen M. McManus

125. “Jake still won’t talk to me, and I miss him so much, it’s like I’ve been hollowed out by a nuclear blast and there’s nothing left but ashes fluttering inside brittle bones. I’ve sent him dozens of texts that aren’t only unanswered; they’re unread. He unfriended me on Facebook and unfollowed me on Instagram and Snapchat. He’s pretending I don’t exist and I’m starting to think he’s right. If I’m not Jake’s girlfriend, who am I?”

— Karen M. McManus

126. “She moves a little closer, brushing against my hip, and an electric charge runs through me.”

— Karen M. McManus

127. “It’s not nerdy to care about fonts!”

— Karen M. McManus

128. “Oh Christ. Does she have a new boyfriend? Does she want me to meet him? Even if he’s rich and generous, I’m not sure I can stomach that. “Okay,” I say.”

— Karen M. McManus

129. “You don’t think about what’s outside. Or who. Especially if she’s better off forgetting you exist.”

— Karen M. McManus

130. “If you could be anyhwere in five years, doing anything at all, what would you pick?”

— Karen M. McManus

131. “Chloe likes the happy hour game because, she says, high school boys are immature. Which is true. But sometimes I think we might be better off not knowing how much worse they can get.”

— Karen M. McManus

132. “And the way he made me laugh when i thought I‘d forgotten how.”

— Karen M. McManus

133. “He ran everything, and I let him.”

— Karen M. McManus

134. “Somehow, the fact that Nonny accepts my word without question makes me feel guilty.”

— Karen M. McManus

135. “Of all the things money can buy you, having every single meal look and taste this good without lifting a finger has to be one of the best.”

— Karen M. McManus

136. “Emma’s boyfriend pops into my head, and I can’t keep my eyes from widening reflexively. Phoebe bites her lip and looks away. “Although I realize I have zero credibility in that department at the moment, so I’ll let you get back to – whatever,” she says, pushing her chair away from the table.”

— Karen M. McManus

137. “Now, now.” She sits across from me with her toast and offers me a slice, but I push it back toward her. “Give it time. Do you remember what I told you in the hospital?” I shake my head. “Things’ll get worse before they get better. Well, they surely did get worse, and now there’s nowhere to go but up.” She takes a bite and I keep spinning the quarter until she swallows. “You should bring that boy of yours by sometime for dinner, Cooper. It’s about time we met him.”

— Karen M. McManus

138. “Plus, my parents have great insurance, and savings, and all those other things Henry talks about when he’s trying to convince me that I should get a business degree alongside an art degree. You need a safety net, he always says.”

— Karen M. McManus

139. “Sorry your mom drove her car into a jewelry store while she was high on opioids and had to go to rehab for four months.”

— Karen M. McManus

140. “This is such a disconcerting mode of communication. It’s weird trying to keep a conversation rolling without nonverbal cues or spell check.”

— Karen M. McManus