Fourteen Compelling Opening Lines from Books

Hello friends! In my experience, a lot of the times it takes a few pages – or even a few chapters – for a book to truly catch my attention and make me fully engaged in its story. It’s much rarer, as well as special, when a book immediately piques my interest with its very first sentence. I love when it happens and so books that manage to do that have a very special place in my heart. Which is why I decided to share some of my favorite opening lines with you today.

Unlike I’d normally do in a recommendation post, I decided against describing these books, because I would like their opening lines to speak for themselves. That being said, as per usual, I’ve linked the covers to goodreads, so you can easily look into these titles if you too are impressed by their opening lines. So, without further ado, let’s jump into the post.

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Fourteen Compelling Opening Lines from Literature

Last Seen Leaving
by Caleb Roehrig

“There was a corpse in my neighbor’s front yard.”

Rebecca
by Daphne du Maurier

“Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.”

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Howl’s Moving Castle
by Diana Wynne Jones

“In the land of Ingary where such things as seven-league boots and cloaks of invisibility really exist, it is quite a misfortune to be born the eldest of the three.”

Have a Little Faith in Me
by Sonia Hartl

“If I hadn’t made such a big deal about my virginity, I might not have spent a valuable portion of my summer checking nosebleed tissues for images of Jesus.”

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Miracle Creek
by Angie Kim

“My husband asked me to lie.”

Not Even Bones
by Rebecca Schaeffer

“Nita stared at the dead body lying on the kitchen table.”

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Silent in the Grave
by Deanna Raybourn

“To say that I met Nicholas Brisbane over my husband’s dead body is not entirely accurate. Edward, it should be noted, was still twitching upon the floor.”

Only Mostly Devastated
by Sophie Gonzales

“It was late afternoon, on the very last Wednesday of August, when I realized Disney had been lying to me for quite some time about Happily Ever Afters.”

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The Summoning
by Kelley Armstrong

“Mommy forgot to warn the new babysitter about the basement.”

Strange the Dreamer
by Laini Taylor

“On the second Sabbat of Twelfthmoon, in the city of Weep, a girl fell from the sky.”

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Cemetery Boys
by Aiden Thomas

“Yadriel wasn’t technically trespassing because he’d lived in the cemetery his whole life.”

Tweet Cute
by Emma Lord

“To be fair, when the alarm goes off, there’s barely even any smoke rising out of the oven.”

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Jane Steele
by Lyndsay Faye

“Of all my murders, committed for love and for better reasons, the first was the most important.”

The Widow of Rose House
by Diana Biller

“Alva Penrose Rensselaer Webster had been inside Delmonico’s for nine seconds before Mrs. Henry Biddington asked the maître d’hôtel to throw her out.”

Let’s chat!

Has your attention ever been caught by an excellent opening line? What are your favorite opening lines? Have you read any of my recommendations?

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