First Line Fridays

I really need to get back into my blog, it’s been too long since I wrote a post! Here’s a First Line Fridays, a weekly feature hosted by Wandering Words, on judging a book by its opening lines rather than its cover or author.

Listen. Three miles deep in the forest just below Arnott’s Ridge, and you’re in silence so dense it’s like you’re wading through it.

Would you read on?

The lines are from JoJo Moyes’ latest novel, The Giver of Stars.

Alice Wright doesn’t love her new American husband. Nor her domineering father-in-law or the judgmental townsfolk of Baileyville, Kentucky. Stifled and misunderstood, she yearns for escape and finds it in defiant Margery O’Hare and the sisterhood bringing books to the isolated and vulnerable. But when her father-in-law and the town turn against them, Alice fears the freedom, friendship and the new love she’s found will be lost . . .

Have you read this book? What were your impressions?

What books are you reading at the moment?

Thanks for stopping by, Christine x

First Line Fridays

It’s been such a long time since I wrote a First Line Fridays, a weekly feature hosted by Wandering Words, on judging a book by its opening lines rather than its cover or author.

Joel, I’m so sorry. To see you again like that… Why did I get on the train? I should have waited for the next one. It wouldn’t have mattered. I missed my stop anyway, and we were late for the wedding.

The Sight of You – Holly Miller

Would you read on?

The lines are from the debut novel The Sight of You by Holly Miller. Joel is haunted by premonitions about the ones he loves.When Joel meets Callie it feels like a new start for them both, until Joel has a dream about Callie. The novel isn’t a laugh a minute, but I’m enjoying the narrative and wondering how it will end. It makes you question that if you knew when your life would end, would you live it differently?

Have you read this book? What were your impressions?

What books are you reading at the moment?

Thanks for stopping by, Christine x

First Line Fridays

First Line Fridays, a weekly feature hosted by Wandering Words, on judging a book by its opening lines rather than its cover or author.

It was widely accepted by the residents of Duneen that, should a crime be committed and Sergeant Collins managed to apprehend the culprit, it would be very unlikely that the arrest had involved a pursuit on foot.

Graham Norton: Holding

Would you read on?

The lines are from the 2016 debut novel, Holding, from TV and radio presenter Graham Norton. I’ve not read any Norton but I am finding though his prose is easy to read, that the story is rather sedate. It reads more of an exercise in characterisation than a crime novel.

Have you read this book? What were your impressions?

What books are you reading at the moment?

Thanks for stopping by,

Christine x

First Line Fridays

First Line Fridays, a weekly feature hosted by Wandering Words, on judging a book by its opening lines rather than its cover or author.

Dear Jason, I’ve done a lot of things in my life but I definitely think writing a letter without knowing if it’ll ever get read has to be one of the maddest!

Half a World Away

Would you want to read on?

The line comes from the 2019 Richard and Judy book club selection, Half a World Away by Mike Gayle. This is the first novel I have read of his. The story of siblings separated by the care system and then finally meeting after 30 years reads true. I’m halfway through and think the narrative is building to a poignant ending.

What books are you reading at the moment?

Thanks for stopping by,

Christine x

First Line Fridays

First Line Fridays, a weekly feature hosted by Wandering Words, on judging a book by its opening lines rather than its cover or author.

After a few months of waiting, I’ve finally got my hands on a book I have been looking forward to reading.

‘ARE YOU READY, MAX? If anyone’s going to help me do this, it’s you.’

Would you want to read on?

Max the Wonder Dog

The line is from the Sunday Times bestseller Max, the Miracle Dog by Kerry Irving. If you are a follower of Max in the Lake District on Facebook you will know all about this joyous springer spaniel and now his two other brothers Paddy and Harry. I’ve not started reading the book yet, but I have high hopes!

What books are you reading at the moment?

Thanks for stopping by,

Christine x

 

First Line Fridays

First Line Fridays, a weekly feature hosted by Wandering Words, on judging a book by its opening lines rather than its cover or author.

This week’s First Line Fridays comes from Currer Bell.

There was no possibility of taking a walk that day. 

Jane Eyre

A rather understated start to the wild, gothic novel we have all come to know, written by the famed Charlotte Brontë.

Have you read Jane Eyre? What did you think? Do you prefer any of the other novels by Charlotte or that of her younger sisters, Emily and Anne?

I personally prefer Charlotte’s novel Villette, full of dark foreboding and passionate love, with an ending that is left unfulfilled.

What books are you reading at the moment?

Thanks for stopping by and stay safe! Christine x

First Line Fridays

First Line Fridays, a weekly feature hosted by Wandering Words, on judging a book by its opening lines rather than its cover or author.

This week’s First Line Fridays comes from an English romance writer.

My name is Kathleen Whittier Mostyn, and when I was seventeen I became famous for catching the biggest shark New South Wales had ever seen: a grey nurse with an eye so mean it still looked like it wanted to rip me in two several days after we’d laid it out.

Silver Bay – JoJo Moyes

Would you want to read on?

These first words come from JoJo Moyes’s novel Silver Bay. I am four chapters into reading the book and the narrative is introducing the characters one by one, setting them out like a game of chess. So far the writing is keeping my interest.

What books are you reading at the moment?

Thanks for stopping by and stay safe!

Christine x

First Line Fridays

First Line Fridays, a weekly feature hosted by Wandering Words, on judging a book by its opening lines rather than its cover or author.

This week’s First Line Fridays comes from the pen of one of America’s most prolific writers.

It was an unmarked car, just some nondescript American sedan a few years old, but the blackwall tires and the three men inside gave it away for what it was.’  

The Outsider

Would you want to read on?

I’ve not read any Stephen King novels so not sure what to expect. Do you have a favourite Stephen King book?

What books are you reading at the moment?

Thanks for stopping by and stay safe!

Christine x

First Line Fridays

First Line Fridays, a weekly feature hosted by Wandering Words, on judging a book by its opening lines rather than its cover or author.

The below sentence I feel needs no introduction.

When Mr. Bilbo Baggins of Bag End announced that he would shortly be celebrating his eleventy-first birthday with a party of special magnificence, there was much talk and excitement in Hobbiton.

The Fellowship of the Ring

Of course the line comes from the beginning of J R R Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring part of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. It seems such a gentle, unassuming beginning to a book that has a thread of threat and violence throughout its pages. If you have read this book, did you enjoy or dislike it?

What books are you reading at the moment?

Thanks for stopping by,

Christine x

First Line Fridays

First Line Fridays, a weekly feature hosted by Wandering Words, on judging a book by its opening lines rather than its cover or author.

This week’s First Line Fridays comes from an international best seller and shortlisted for the Woman’s Prize for Fiction.

When I was born, the name for what I was did not exist.

Would you want to read on?

Madeline Miller’s book is a modern adaption of Homer’s The Odyssey but from the point of view of sorceress Circe. I’m four chapters into the novel and enjoying the narration of Circe’s unhappy youth and growth into her powers. I’ll let you know how it goes.

What books are you reading at the moment?

Thanks for stopping by,

Christine x