spencer hastings {books} • appreciation thread

“You're taking this too literally. You're not Spencer Hastings, good girl, straight-A student, teacher's pet.
You're Lady Macbeth. Sinister. Conniving. Ambitious. You convinced your husband to murder an innocent man.
If it hadn't been for you, he might not have gone off his rocker. What does it feel like to be responsible for so much damage?”

Spencer hadn't made the JV cut with Ali in the fall, and had to play on the seventh-grade team. She'd been on a year-long field hockey binge to perfect her game, and the girls knew she'd been practicing dribbling in the backyard before they arrived. Spencer hated when anyone was better at anything than she was. Especially Alison.
-- Pretty Little Liars

She was used to being everyone's favorite: her teachers', her hockey coaches', her yearbook editor's. Even her colorist, Uri, said she was his favorite client because her hair took color so nicely. She'd won tons of school awards and had 370 MySpace friends, not counting bands.
-- PLL: Flawless

"I heard she's a finalist in some big essay contest." Hanna pulled out her Chanel compact and began dabbing at her chin. "You know she gets manic when she's competing. She's probably going home to study."
-- PLL: Perfect

"You're just as conniving as Ali was, Spence. And you're prettier, smarter, and richer. You should've been the leader of the group, not her. I'm giving you the chance, now, to be the leader you're meant to be. Your life at home would be perfect. Your life at school would be perfect." Mona's lips spread into a smile. "And I know how badly you want to be perfect."
-- PLL: Unbelievable

Spencer stared at her picture from this year. It had been taken right before school started, before the Ali and A mess started. Her hair was combed perfectly off her face, and her navy blazer had been ironed to perfection. The self-satisfied gloat on her face said, I'm Spencer Hastings, and I'm the best. Ha, Spencer thought bitterly. How quickly things could change.
-- PLL: Wicked

Maybe she would've turned out differently. Maybe she wouldn't be so OCD about her grades or feel so inferior around other people, always desperate to prove that she was good enough, worthy enough, lovable enough.
-- PLL: Killer

"Stop," Spencer interrupted, shutting her eyes. If she even allowed herself to think about this, the remorse and paranoia would rush over her like a strong ocean current, pulling her under, choking her. "Someone is screwing with us, okay?" She grabbed the postcard from Hanna's grip and shoved it into the pocket of her duffel coat. "I'm not going to be jerked around again. We've been through enough already."
-- PLL: Twisted

Great. So this was going to be like any other family event Spencer had ever attended: Melissa was the shining star, the golden child, and Spencer was the second-rate freak no one quite knew how to handle.
-- PLL: Ruthless