Released in 2020, The Awakening is the first book in the Dragon Heart Legacy, a captivating trilogy by New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts. A saga of self-discovery and a contemporary romance graced with elements of fantasy, the novel transports listeners from Philadelphia to the mystical land of Talamh and The Valley of Fey. It revolves around Breen Kelly, a young woman burdened by student loans and a mundane job, who discovers that her mother has been hiding a significant inheritance from her. Liberated by her newfound wealth, Breen travels to Ireland with her best friend, Marco. There, she stumbles on a portal to a magical world. In Talamh, she meets Keegan, the leader of the realm, and learns of her own extraordinary lineage and powers.

In this novel and the next two installments, The Becoming and The Choice, we follow Breen's transformation from a timid woman into a powerful being who embraces her destiny. These 30+ quotes from The Awakening just might inspire you to follow your dreams and unleash your own potential.

The Best Quotes From The Awakening on Self-Discovery and Identity

• “A certain light was beginning to dawn dimly within her—the light which, showing the way, forbids it.”

• “Whatever came, she had resolved never again to belong to another than herself.”

• “Even as a child she had lived her own small life within herself. At a very early period she had apprehended instinctively the dual life–that outward existence which conforms, the inward life which questions.”

• “For the first time, she recognized the symptoms of infatuation which she had felt incipiently as a child, as a girl in her early teens, and later as a young woman.”

• “He could see plainly that she was not herself. That is, he could not see that she was becoming herself and daily casting aside that fictitious self which we assume like a garment with which to appear before the world.”

• “She’s got some sort of notion in her head concerning the eternal rights of women.”

• “She felt as if a mist had been lifted from her eyes, enabling her to look upon and comprehend the significance of life.”

“Whatever came, she had resolved never again to belong to another than herself.”

The Best Quotes From The Awakening on Life’s Promises and Realities

• “It was not despair, but it seemed to her as if life were passing by, leaving its promises broken and unfulfilled.”

• “She had all her life long been accustomed to harbor thoughts and emotions which never voiced themselves.”

• “She was moved by a kind of commiseration... a pity for that colorless existence which never uplifted its possessor beyond the region of blind contentment.”

• “Perhaps it is better to wake up after all, even to suffer, rather than to remain a dupe to illusions all one’s life.”

• “The beginning of things, of a world especially, is necessarily vague, chaotic, and exceedingly disturbing.”

• “She began to perceive that her most intimate relationships were purely accidental.”

• “There are some people who leave impressions not so lasting as the imprint of an oar upon the water.”

“It was not despair, but it seemed to her as if life were passing by, leaving its promises broken and unfulfilled.”

The Best Quotes From The Awakening on Love and Relationships

• “No, I only think you cruel, as I said the other day. Maybe not intentionally cruel; but you seem to be forcing me into disclosures which can result in nothing.”

• “She was still under the spell of her infatuation. She had tried to forget him, realizing the inutility of remembering.”

• “‘Why?’ asked her companion. ‘Why do you love him when you ought not to?’”

• “I love you, only you; no one but you. It was you who awoke me last summer out of a life-long, stupid dream.”

• “Friendship’s the bread of life, isn’t it now?”

• “His being there, silent, was more than she could endure.”

• “She had never sent for him before. She had never asked for him.”

“Friendship’s the bread of life, isn’t it now?”

The Best Quotes From The Awakening on Nature and Escape

• “She turned her face seaward to gather in an impression of space and solitude, which the vast expanse of water, meeting and melting with the moonlit sky, conveyed to her excited fancy.”

• “The voice of the sea is seductive, never ceasing, whispering, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander in abysses of solitude.”

• “The voice of the sea speaks to the soul. The touch of the sea is sensuous, enfolding the body in its soft, close embrace.”

• “The morning was full of sunlight and hope.”

• “She reminded him of some beautiful, sleek animal waking up in the sun.”

• “Sometimes I feel this summer as if I were walking through the green meadow again, idly, aimlessly, unthinking and unguided.”

• “The flowers were like new acquaintances; she approached them in a familiar spirit, and made herself at home among them.”

“The morning was full of sunlight and hope.”

The Best Quotes From The Awakening on Human Emotions

• “There was a dull pang of regret because it was not the kiss of love which had inflamed her.”

• “There were days when she was very happy without knowing why.”

• “Nerves aren’t shameful. Not acting because of them is.”

• “She was happy to be alive and breathing, when her whole being seemed to be one with the sunlight, the color, the odors, the luxuriant warmth of some perfect Southern day.”

• “The tears came so fast to her eyes that the damp sleeve of her peignoir no longer served to dry them.”

• “An indescribable oppression, which seemed to generate in some unfamiliar part of her consciousness, filled her whole being with a vague anguish.”

• “There were days when life appeared to her like a grotesque pandemonium and humanity like worms struggling blindly toward inevitable annihilation.”

“Nerves aren’t shameful. Not acting because of them is.”

The Best Quotes From The Awakening on Freedom, Defiance, and Isolation

• “I would give up the unessential; I would give up my money, I would give up my life for my children; but I wouldn’t give myself.”

• “I don’t wish to go in, and I don’t intend to. Don’t speak to me like that again; I shall not answer you.”

• “She had resolved never again to belong to another than herself.”

• “She was beginning to realize her position in the universe as a human being, and to recognize her relations as an individual to the world within and about her.”

• “Her marriage to Léonce Pontellier was purely an accident, in this respect resembling many other marriages which masquerade as the decrees of Fate.”

• “She began to realize her power as an individual.”

• “The bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings.”

“She began to realize her power as an individual.”