First Sentences

The first sentence in a book is very important. It can be short and to the point, or it can be long and convoluted. It can pull the reader in, igniting their interest, making them wonder what is coming next or it can leave the reader in a state of confusion and bewilderment. In short, this one sentence can make or break a book. On this page I have shared some of my favourite opening sentences. Let your imagination take you where it will.

♥

In the southern hill town of Gikongoro, the electricity had failed for the night; the Guest House bar was lit by a half dozen candles, and the eyes of the three soldiers who invited me to drink glowed the color of blood oranges.
We Wish To Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families
Philip Gourevitch

♥

Nezumi was in a tunnel
No. 6 (Volume 1)
Atsuko Asano

♥

Ten months had passed since I’d last seen the sun.
Ash Winter
Mike Mullin

♥

I was home alone on that Friday evening.
Ashfall
Mike Mullin

♥

On the night that I was born, my paternal grandfather, Josef Tock, made ten predictions that shaped my life.
Life Expectancy
Dean Koontz

♥

The mark burns upon him all the time now.
Fallen
David Maine

♥

Streeter only saw the sign because he had to pull over and puke.
Fair Extension
Stephen King

♥

She cycles the last part alone.
The Reunion
Simone Van der Vlugt

♥

Once a guy stood all day shaking bugs from his hair.
A Scanner Darkly
Philip K. Dick

♥

‘Are you a child of DNA?’
Incandescence
Greg Egan

♥

This book is dedicated to fathers.
Don’t Kiss Them Good-bye
Allison DuBois

♥

There are some men who enter a woman’s life and screw it up forever.
One for the Money
JanetEvanovitch