In real life, coincidences happen all the time. In novels, they are leapt upon with fury.
Harlan CobenRead
Sure, on a larger scale, it was healthy to have people out there you cared about more than yourself. She knew that. But then there was the abject fear you would lose it. They say possessions own you. Not so. Loved ones own you. You are forever held hostage once you care so much.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Caring deeply for loved ones can bring both joy and fear of loss.
In this quote, Harlan Coben reflects on the duality of love and attachment. While having relationships that matter deeply can create a sense of fulfillment and health in one's life, it also comes with the fear of losing those individuals. The idea that loved ones have a grip on us reinforces the notion that emotional connections can create vulnerability, making us feel 'hostage' to the very bonds that enrich our lives.
Themes
LoveFearAttachmentRelationshipsLoss
In practice
Example use cases
A friend mourning the loss of a loved one might use this quote to express their feelings.
More from Harlan Coben
All quotes →The ugliest truth, in the end, was still better than the prettiest of lies.
Harlan CobenRead
When you like something and you're pretty good at it and you can make a living doing it, you don't ask why. You just count your blessings and go with it.
Harlan CobenRead
No, I don’t live in heartache. I don’t cry myself to sleep or any of that. I am, I tell myself, over it. But I do feel a void, icky as that sounds. And—like it or not—I still think about her every single day.
Harlan CobenRead
Life may not always fall into neat chapters, and you may not always get the satisfying ending you're looking for, but sometimes a good explanation is all the rewrite you need.
Harlan CobenRead
The most annoying and full- of- crap thing a writer says is, I write only for myself, I don't care if anyone reads it. A writer without a reader doesn't exist.
Harlan CobenRead
Similar quotes
Each organism, no matter how simple or complex, has around it a sacred bubble of space, a bit of mobile territoriality which only a few other organisms are allowed to penetrate and then only for short periods of time.
Edward HallRead
I've been lonely for so long. And I've been hurt so deeply. If only I could have met you again a long time ago, then I wouldn't have had to take all these detours to get here.' Tengo shook his head. 'I don't think so. This way is just fine. This is exactly the right time. For both of us. [...] We needed that much time.... to understand how lonely we really were.
Haruki MurakamiRead
It's round the world I've traveled; it's round the world I've roamed; but I've yet to see an outlaw drive a family from its home
Woody GuthrieRead
One of the things I have always said about the man-woman relationship is that I don't want anybody to walk ahead of me, and I don't want anybody to walk behind me. I want a man who will walk along beside me. And that's how I feel about equal rights.
Cicely TysonRead
When people rely on surface appearances and false racial stereotypes, rather than in-depth knowledge of others at the level of the heart, mind and spirit, their ability to assess and understand people accurately is compromised.
James A. ForbesRead
To memorize a scripture is to forge a new friendship.
Richard G. ScottRead