The first thing you are drawn to when you begin a story is the opening line. Often that line can make or break weather you want to read a book or not. I wanted to share opening lines from books on my shelves I haven’t read yet to see if they actually make me want to read that book as of right now.
Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore
When he grabs Mama’s wrist and yanks her toward the wall hanging like that, it must hurt.
Freeks by Amanda Hocking
Behind me, the branches and trees crunched and snapped as the creature tore through them.
And I Darken by Kiersten White
Vlad Dracul’s heavy brow descended like a storm when the doctor informed him that his wife had given birth to a girl.
Replica by Lauren Oliver
On very still nights sometimes we can hear them chanting, calling for us to die.
Gemma : Chapter 1
Escape: that was what Gemma dreamed of, especially on nights like this one, when the moon was so big and bright it looked like it was a set piece in a movie, hooked outside her window on a curtain of dark sky.
The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong
Mommy forgot to warn the new babysitter about the basement.
Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye
Of all my many murders, committed for love and for better reasons, the first was the most important.
Jane by April Lindner
The chairs in the lobby of Discriminating Nannies, inc., were less comfortable then they looked.
Frozen by Melissa De La Cruz and Michael Johnston
They were coming for her.
Made For You by Melissa Marr
Eva
“Did you see her?” Piper whispers, lifting the same plastic cup of wine she’s been holding the past two hours as of it hides her.
Free to Fall by Lauren Miller
It came in a plain white envelope, which made both more and less of its significance.
Alive by Scott Sigler
A stabbing pain jolts me awake.
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
April 9th, 1995
The Oregon Coast
If I have learned anything in this long life of mine, it is this: In love we find out who we want to be; in war we find out who we are.
For so many reasons I want to read all these books and for quite a few I had to stop myself from wanting to dive in past the first line cough cough *Jane Steele* cough cough. In truth I’m excited for all of these and I can’t wait to dive into these books on my shelves!
Thanks for reading! I hope you liked this post. Which of these lines stood out to you the most? If you have read any of these books, what did you think of them? I hope to speak with you all down in the comments.
-Till Next time!
That Jayne Steele one definitely pops out for me! How can you resist an opening line like that? I also never really realized how violent that first line of Bitterblue comes off. I’ve read the book a dozen times and so much of the story can be tied back to that line. Interesting.
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Hmmm… this comment makes me really want to read Bitterblue, not just for my love of the previous two books, but simply for the intrigue of having so much of the story tie back to it.
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Great post! This is one way to get excited to read a book lol! 😀
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Definitely! I mean I see post where people say what their favorite opening lines are. So I thought, why not show opening lines of books I haven’t yet read to see how interesting they are.
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Haha, love this! My favorites are Bitterblue. And Replica. And the other ones that talk of death and murder. >:)
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I’m glad you liked this post! I love the ones that talk about death and murder! Bitterblue and replica do have some awesome opening lines!
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The first lines of The Summoning and And I Darken are really great!
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So true! For some reason And I Darkens opening line made me want to laugh cause the fathers all like how dare I be weak enough to bear a daughter after having so many sons (or well let’s just say I read the whole paragraph instead of just the opening line.
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Lol!! I hope to get this one soon so I will be able to read the whole paragraph. I love how either the mother or father always feels weak for having a girl… makes no sense!
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I really want to read Bitterblue! I’m hoping it’s as wonderful as Graceling. And I Darken and Jane Steele had the most intriguing lines, in my opinion. I don’t know what Made for You is about but I’ve been wanting to read more Melissa Marr for the longest time!
Great post, Tiana, and great choices! 😉
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Thank you! I’m glad you liked this post! I couldn’t resist starting Bitterblue today after creating this post yesterday. And I Darken and Jane Steele also have really awesome first lines!
Also here is the synopsis for Made for you, in case you were interested: Bestselling author of the Wicked Lovely books Melissa Marr’s first contemporary YA novel is a twisted southern gothic tale of obsession, romance, and murder. A killer is obsessed with Eva Tilling. Can she stop him, or will he claim her?
When Eva Tilling wakes up in the hospital, she’s confused—who in her sleepy little North Carolina town could have hit her with their car? And why? But before she can consider the question, she finds that she’s awoken with a strange new skill: the ability to foresee people’s deaths when they touch her. While she is recovering from the hit-and-run, Nate, an old flame, reappears, and the two must traverse their rocky past as they figure out how to use Eva’s power to keep her friends—and themselves—alive. But while Eva and Nate grow closer, the killer grows increasingly frantic in his attempt to get to Eva.
For the first time, New York Times bestselling author Melissa Marr has applied her extraordinary talent to contemporary realism. Chilling twists, unrequited obsession, and high-stakes romance drive this Gothic, racy thriller—a story of small-town oppression and salvation. Melissa’s fans, and every YA reader, will find its wild ride enthralling.
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Great idea for a post! I tend to not pay much attention to first lines specifically, so it’s nice to actually be kinda forced to sit and pay attention to them since some of them are so interesting. The one for The Summoning is so intriguing!
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Yeah same here! I often don’t think about first lines too much and I thought why not share some from books I have yet to read and see if they are interesting or not.
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The Summoning was a pretty good book! I hope you like it 😀 I love the first line to The Nightingale!
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I look forward to read The Summoning sometime soon then!
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I’ve read some of these! I love the Bitterblue opening line. Sounds so ominous. Seeing as your a huge fan of Graceling, I really hope you end up loving Bitterblue! 😀
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I’m currently reading Bitterblue and so far I’m loving it! It’s just so good to be back in the Graceling world once more!❤️
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Yay!! So glad you love it so far 😊
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I loved the first line of Replica when I first read it. I got to read the first five chapters around its publication date from Epic Reads.
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That’s awesome! Was it the first 5 of both Gemma and Lyra or was it just the first 5 of one or the other?
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It was just Lyra’s chapters.
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Ohh ok, good to know
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This was a neat idea for a post. I like it. 🙂
The Nightingale is SUCH a good book! It’s so well-written. I’ll openly admit to balling my eyes out while reading part of it. I remember staying up really late to read the last quarter of it because I refused to put it down. lol
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Sounds like it is lovely! I can’t wait to read it!
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