Currently Reading First Lines

[Sarah]

'Daddy, I'm tired,' the little girl in the red pants and the green blouse said fretfully. 'Can't we stop?'

Firestarter

[Rusalka, Moderator]

"The North is a dark place.
It is not safe to be buried on the north side of the church and the North Door is the way of the Dead.
The north of England is untamed. It can be subdued but it cannot be tamed. Lancashire is the wild part of the untamed."

The Daylight Gate
This hits me in so many right places. The Northerner in me loves it.

[Janice, Moderator]

Sarah's book would pull me right in, not even looking at the fact that Stephen King is the author.

Rusalka's sounds very intriguing. It's all ready on my wishlist.

[Lisa]

I like the sound of your book, Rusalka. I have added it to my wishlist.

[Rusalka, Moderator]

It's a good opening. The book doesn't dodge around life in 1600 though.

Funny, I didn't know Sarah's book was a King. I didn't like that line at all without context. Weird.

[Sarah]

Whilst I love King and I'm enjoying this book, I didn't think the first line was all that great. As you say Rusalka, it needed a bit more.

[Lilisa]

"A girl always remembers the first corpse she shaves. It is the only event in her life more awkward than her first kiss or the loss of her virginity."

[Margo]

Hahaha! Very good - what's the book?

[Lilisa]

Margo wrote: "Hahaha! Very good - what's the book?"

Oh forgot to add - Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory

[Margo]

Ooh, sounds interesting :-)

[Janice, Moderator]

The Star Beast by Robert A. Heinlein

"Lummox was bored and hungry. The latter was a normal state; creature's of Lummox's breed were always ready for a little snack, even after a full meal."

[Cherie]

Janice wrote: "The Star Beast by Robert A. Heinlein

"Lummox was bored and hungry. The latter was a normal state; creature's of Lummox's breed were always ready for a little snack, even..."

I might have to re-read this again. It has been too long ago to remember the story, but I loved Heinlein's stories like this one.

[Janice, Moderator]

I'm enjoying it so far, Cherie.

[Sarah]

Nice one Janice for commenting here. I keep forgetting about this thread even though I created it.

[Janice, Moderator]

I keep forgetting about it to. Goodreads had a meme on Twitter asking what was the first line of the book you were reading, and that reminded me.

[~Annaki~]

I just picked up Band of Angels by Julia Gregson

"When I say 'Charge,' " said Deio, "Charge!"
She hesitated for a moment. The sea was high and her pony already excited. She leaned forward.
"Wait! Wait! Wait!" he bellowed against the wind. "Not till I say."
The flounces on her pantaloons were streaked with mud and the dark stains from her stirrup leathers would not wash out. Mair would be so angry.

[Janice, Moderator]

"When I says 'Whoa', I MEANS 'Whoa'" - Yosemite Sam.

Sorry, I couldn't help myself. I immediately associated the first sentence with Yosemite Sam.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYiCP...


That sounds like a great start to your books, Annaki. I hope you enjoy it.

[~Annaki~]

Janice wrote: ""When I says 'Whoa', I MEANS 'Whoa'" - Yosemite Sam.

Sorry, I couldn't help myself. I immediately associated the first sentence with Yosemite Sam.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYiCP...


T..."
He he he :D

[Cherie]

I had to add that one to my TBR list, Annaki. Sounds good and I love the beginning!

[Sandra, Moderator]

Annaki wrote: "When I say 'Charge,' " said Deio, "Charge!"
She hesitated for a moment. The sea ..."

Great beginning. I had to added it too. :)

[Peggy]

Janice wrote: ""When I says 'Whoa', I MEANS 'Whoa'" - Yosemite Sam.

Sorry, I couldn't help myself. I immediately associated the first sentence with Yosemite Sam.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYiCP...


T..."

Hahaha! Those old cartoons are so much better than the new ones. I had to watch 1.5 hours of Peppa Pig last week. I don't think I've ever seen something so annoying.

[~Annaki~]

:D

[Rusalka, Moderator]

Peggy wrote: "Hahaha! Those old cartoons are so much better than the new ones. I had to watch 1.5 hours of Peppa Pig last week. I don't think I've ever seen something so annoying."

Uh huh. They are terrible.

We have a couple of dvds of Danger Mouse, Count Duckula, and Trap Door to occupy any niecelings or nephlings we have in our house, and so we don't go crazy.

[Peggy]

Great idea! My nephew is too young right now to actually watch and understand cartoons, but I'm going to make sure I have stuff at home I can bear to watch too for when he gets older.

[Rusalka, Moderator]

Peggy wrote: "Great idea! My nephew is too young right now to actually watch and understand cartoons, but I'm going to make sure I have stuff at home I can bear to watch too for when he gets older."

I highly recommend. Also if you get something different (ie. 80s for us that we have fond memories of) they really want to watch it when the are in your house. Hour+ of entertainment sorted.

[Janice, Moderator]

Heartburn

"The first day I did not think it was funny. I didn't think it was funny the third day either, but I managed to make a little joke about it."

[Cherie]

The opening lines pulled me in, Janice. Keep that in mind and see of you feel that way at the end though. Meryl Streep's narration saved me from abandoning the book. That and I needed a pink cover. ;o)

[Janice, Moderator]

I really enjoyed the book, Cherie. Once I started listening, I couldn't stop. The thing that stopped me from giving it 5 stars was the endless listing of recipes. I didn't mind some but in some sections, it was a bit much. Mind you, if she had cut back on them, the book wouldn't have met the page length. LOL!

[Janice, Moderator]

Age of War Oops, wrong book. These first lines are from the first book in the series, Age of Myth,


"Raithe's first impulse was to pray. Curse, cry, scream, pray - people did such things in their last minutes of life."

[Janice, Moderator]

I started listening to Age of War and realized the lines I had written this morning weren't the lines I was hearing. So here are the correct lines:

"Suri the mystic talked to trees, danced to the sound of wind chimes, hated bathing, howled at the moon, and had recently leveled a mountain, wiping out centuries of dwarven culture in an instant."

[Sandra, Moderator]

Both are good, actually.

[Lilisa]

"The torture room was ready for use. There were harnesses for hanging the prisoners upside down, rows of sharp-edged batons, and smelling salts, used syringes filled with dark liquids and worn leather straps, tourniquets, clamps, pliers, and equipment for smashing the feet."

In Arabian Nights: A Caravan of Moroccan Dreams

[Janice, Moderator]

It sounds ominous!

[Cherie]

Yikes! That sounds awful.

[Lilisa]

Not to worry, that's not Morocco - the author is in Pakistan - although he has been detained, blindfolded and locked in a cell being interrogated. He is in prison and is coping through his memories of Morocco, where he's made his home for the past three years.

[Fiona]

I'm currently reading The Bloodline Cipher by Stephen Cole (Thieves like us #3) and I love it!

Feels like the end of the world’s coming, thought Jonah Wish. He hurried sweatily along the West Hollywood sidewalk, eyeing a sky both black and brilliant. Massive banks of charcoal cloud loomed over the lowrise tenements, backlit by the early-evening sun. The air felt charged, as if this whole beat-up neighbourhood was waiting for something to happen. As if a storm was itching to break. It was all screaming Bad Omen at Jonah.

[Janice, Moderator]

Sounds intriguing, Fiona. I like the descriptive language he uses.

[Lisa]

I'm currently reading Call of the Curlew by Elizabeth Brooks
"Virginia Wrathmell knows she will walk on to the marsh one New Year's Eve, and meet her end there. She's known it for years."

[Janice, Moderator]

It sounds interesting, Lisa. I like the cover.

[Sandra, Moderator]

Strong first words, Lisa.

[Lisa]

Janice wrote: "It sounds interesting, Lisa. I like the cover."

The cover is even nicer up close. It's a shiny, naked hardback.

[Margo]

Ooh, I like it!

[Cherie]

Every time I look at this link, my mind reads Currently Reading First Lies. I don't know why, but it makes me laugh.

[Lisa]

I'm reading The Corset by Laura Purcell
"My sainted mother taught me the seven acts of corporeal mercy: to feed the hungry; refresh the thirsty; clothe the naked; shelter the traveller; comfort the sick; visit those imprisoned; and bury the dead. Most of these we undertook together, while she lived. Then Papa and I buried her, so that was another one checked off the list".

[Sandra, Moderator]

Wow. Cold comment on the death of your own mother! I would keep reading for sure.

[Debra]

Rusalka wrote: ""The North is a dark place.
It is not safe to be buried on the north side of the church and the North Door is the way of the Dead.
The north of England is untamed. It can be subdued but it cannot b..."

The Daylight Gate

This one caught my attention, Rusalka, so I added it my TBR. It doesn't get a very high rating here in GR, but it's short and would be a perfect Toppler book. Based on the first sentences, it's a go for me!

[Debra]

Sandra wrote: "Wow. Cold comment on the death of your own mother! I would keep reading for sure."

Ditto! I'm intrigued, so I added it!

The Corset

[Debra]

Sarah wrote: "'Daddy, I'm tired,' the little girl in the red pants and the green blouse said fretfully. 'Can't we stop?'

Firestarter"

Yep... good hooker! That's what Stephen says about good first lines. "Great hookers I have known."

[Debra]

Janice wrote: "I started listening to Age of War and realized the lines I had written this morning weren't the lines I was hearing. So here are the correct lines:

"Suri the mystic talked to trees..."

Works for me! Another one I added! This thread is dangerous. I just discovered it. Hmmmm... maybe I need to "unsee" (a term from The City & the City this discussion! lol

[Debra]

Speaking of The City & the City, here are it's first lines. Are you intrigued?

"I could not see the street or much of the estate. We were enclosed by dirt-coloured blocks, from windows out of which leaned vested men and women with morning hair and mugs of drink, eating breakfast and watching us."