First Line Fridays is a feature hosted by Hoarding Books.
TGIF, everyone!
Today my first lines are from a book I recently finished reading:
I grip her hand. Dirt clings to her small palm and makes caked half-moons under her nails. I squeeze her against my side, a shield against the drizzle. Her red bow bobs as we move faster down the road. Even here, I can’t escape the rain.
Don’t stop moving.
A little scoop…I read this with a group of friends, and we loved it. We’ll all be posting our reviews on Tuesday!
Synopsis from Goodreads:
Emma Grace Townsend. Five years old. Gray eyes. Brown hair. Missing since June.
Emma Townsend is lonely. Living with her cruel mother and clueless father, Emma retreats into her own world of quiet and solitude.Sarah Walker. Successful entrepreneur. Broken-hearted. Abandoned by her mother. Kidnapper.
Sarah has never seen a girl so precious as the gray-eyed child in a crowded airport terminal—and when a second-chance encounter with Emma presents itself, Sarah takes her, far away from home. But if it’s to rescue a little girl from her damaging mother, is kidnapping wrong?Amy Townsend. Unhappy wife. Unfit mother. Unsure she wants her daughter back.
Amy’s life is a string of disappointments, but her biggest issue is her inability to connect with her daughter. And now she’s gone without a trace.As Sarah and Emma avoid the nationwide hunt, they form an unshakeable bond. But her real mother is at home, waiting for her to return—and the longer the search for Emma continues, Amy is forced to question if she really wants her back.
Emotionally powerful and wire-taut, Not Her Daughter raises the question of what it means to be a mother—and how far someone will go to keep a child safe.
Please share with me the first line(s) of the book you are currently reading! I would love to read it! Have you read Not Her Daughter, or do you plan to? Happy Friday reading! ~ Jennifer THR
I want to read it, as soon as I get it…. 📖
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Glad to hear that you and your friends enjoyed this one. I hope to read it next week. Looking forward to your review. Thanks for sharing Jen
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Thanks, Diana! I cannot wait for you to read this one. I think you are going to love it. It’s so different from the typical missing child story. I look forward to your review as well! Happy weekend, Diana!
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I was hoping to get to this one this month but it’s not looking good. Really looking forward to your review!
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Thanks, Jonetta! I think you’ll enjoy it whenever you are able to work it in. It’s a good one!
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Happy Friday! 😎 Don’t forget to link up on Hoarding Books so others can find your post!😊
My first lines come from a book I will be reading soon, Through the Autumn Air by Kelly Irvin…….
At what point did a person realize that the special moments in life streak by in a flash, distilled into memories before they could be truly lived? Mary Katherine Ropp stood motionless in the middle of her kitchen, a platter holding a two-layer German chocolate cake covered in whipped cream cheese frosting nestled in her hands.
Have an awesome weekend and happy reading!😊📚💖
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Thanks for the reminder, Sus! I had this post scheduled, and I hadn’t gotten online yet this morning, but then again, sometimes in the rush I forget, or post it late, so thank you again! ♥️
I love your share and I really want to try that cake! Whipped cream cheese frosting? Yes, please! Happy Friday and happy reading to you! 💗
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I am reading A River of Stars and enjoying it.
When Boss Yeung first told her about Perfume Bay, she’d tossed the brochure onto the dashboard and reached for a slice of dried mango.
I have not read NHD but plan to read this one.
TGIF , happy weekend reading and relaxing.📚❤️
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Oh, wow, Virginia! That’s a great book! I hope you enjoy it and enjoy your weekend too! 💕
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Wow looks like an amazing read! Adding it to my TBR!
The book I am sharing on my blog today is A Season to Dance by Patricia Beal but the book I’m currently reading is The Reckoning at Gossamer Pond by Jaime Jo Wright. Since it was my FLF last week I’ll share the first line from chapter 20 where I am now: “‘You know you live in a creepy old house, don’t you?’ Christen stood from her chair at the kitchen table and retrieved the bag of mint Oreos from the counter.” Hope you have a great weekend with plenty of reading time! 🙂
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Thanks, Becca! I hope you enjoy it, too, if you read it! It’s a tense read with great characters. I love your share! A creepy house and a fantastic choice of Oreo flavor? I’ll make sure to check out your review of that one and will be over to see your FLF soon! I hope your weekend is wonderful too! ♥️
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This looks like a great book. My TBR seems to grow every Friday! Happy reading!
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Mine, too, Ellie! Thanks for coming to see me and I loved your share on your blog too! ♥️ Happy Friday!
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It sounds like quite the heart-wrenching story!! Thank you for sharing it today! Have a great weekend!
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It is- so many emotions and really makes you quesiton what is right and wrong. Thank you for stopping by, and I hope you have a great weekend too!
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P.s. I came by your blog to post, but it may have gone to spam! 😊
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I found your comment. For some reason I had to approve it… and of course I did!! Maybe the length triggered a filter. But I enjoyed reading your comment. Thank you for visiting!! 💕
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No worries at all, and I’m glad you found it! It did something weird when I posted (it just disappeared, instead of saying “pending”). You are so welcome, and thanks again for visiting me! ♥️
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I have not heard of it or read it, but will check it out now. Happy Friday! My first line (actually first 2 and the little poem before) is from “A Little Ray of Sunshine” by Kimberly Rae Jordan.
“(Shadows around me, shadows above me
Never conceal my Savior and Guide:
He is the light, in Him is no darkness,
Ever I’m walking close to His side.)
Ryan McFadden looked at each of the men gathered around the large boardroom table. He searched the familiar faces for any sign of the unease that sat so heavy in his gut.”
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Lovely share, Becky! And I hope you enjoy your weekend! 💕
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This book sounds like an emotional one, wow! I am hoping to read some of Scythe this weekend after wrapping up The Wicked Deep….
“The Scythe arrived late on a cold November afternoon. Citrus was at the dining room table, slaving over a particularly difficult algebra problem, shuffling variables, unable to solve for X or Y, when this new and far more pernicious variable entered her life’s equation.”
❤️
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That’s a great share, Lana, and I cannot wait to hear what you think of Scythe! This one is emotional but not “scary” if that makes sense. A safe read. I hope you have a lovely weekend! ♥️
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Glad you enjoyed it – I’ll look forward to your review. 🙂
My first line this week is wonderful…
“Naked as on the day she was born, save for a double-looped string of amber beads and a pair of harlequin-framed spectacles, Mrs Flora Pentatuke, of 33 Partney Avenue, Flaxborough, leaped nimbly over the embers of the fire.!”
Now doesn’t that just leave you wanting to read on…?? 😂 It’s from Broomsticks Over Flaxborough by Colin Watson.
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Thank you, FF! And, yes, I have to know more about that book! 😂 I’m on the edge of my seat here wondering just what you are reading! Happy weekend!
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Loved reading this with you! Such a fabulous book!!!💕
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Me, too! It was a wonderful experience!
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Happy Friday! My first line comes from Long Way Gone by Charles Martin.
I’d seen him before.
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That’s a fun start! I am definitely intrigued! I love that author and need to see if I have that book! Thanks for stopping by to see me, Caryl!
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Happy Friday, Jen!
Today I shared the first line of one of my next reads In Another Time by Caroline Leech. It’s a YA historical romance set during WWII in the Scottish Highlands. Here, though, I’ll share something from the book I am currently reading, See All the Stars by Kit Frick. I’m on chapter 31 now so I’m going to share the first line of that chapter.
MARCH, JUNIOR YEAR
(THEN)
I grabbed Jenni before fourth, on our way into the sky dome.
Enjoy your weekend. May it be filled with great books 📚📚📚
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I love the character’s name and spelling of it, too! 😊 I hope you have a wonderful weekend, too, Rachel! ♥️
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Happy Friday! I’m featuring lines from Julia Wolf’s Cut Free on my blog today.
Here, I’m sharing lines from Susan Stoker’s Defending Allye.
“So I’ll see you back at the rendezvous point, right?” Black asked.
“Absolutely,” Gray told his friend and partner as he readied himself to slip over the side of the fiberglass boat into the Pacific Ocean.
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I am so sorry I missed your comment last week, but I’m grateful we are following each other now. ♥️ WordPress had directed your comment to spam, but hopefully I will remember to check the box more often. I’m intrigued by your lines and thanks for sharing them with me! I hope you are having a great weekend!
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Love the excerpt you chose Jenn💕
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Thanks, Holls! ♥️
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How fun that you’re all posting your reviews on the same day!
I’m about to start Hiding in Plain Sight by Mary Ellis, so I’ll share that first line here:
It wouldn’t have taken much to turn a lousy day into something left of atrocious.
Happy Friday!
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Thank you! It’s going to be fun! I love your FL! I hope you’ve had a wonderful Friday and thank you for stopping by!
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I’m just a bit in and hoping to finish Not Her Daughter this weekend! I’m sharing from True Grit by Charles Portis today, here is a line from the ebook at 7%:
“If Papa had a failing it was his kindly disposition. People would use him. I did not get my mean streak from him.”
Happy Friday!
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I love that line, too, Yvette! Thanks for sharing it with me! I definitely need to read True Grit. I hope you enjoy Not Her Daughter! I’ll be watching for your review! Happy weekend to you!
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I finished this one the other day. Lots of moral and ethical questions abound in this one.
First line of Lisa Jackson’s Liar Liar….”No! No! No!
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What a way to start that Lisa Jackson! Can’t wait for your thoughts, Marialyce! I agree about the ethics. Great for discussion.
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Whoa! This book sounds captivating. I will definitely have to check this out.
On my blog, I’ve shared the first line from Kim Vogel Sawyer’s upcoming novel Ours For a Season. Right now, I’m just finishing up As the Tide Comes In by Cindy and Erin Woodsmall. I’m going to share the first line from chapter 36 here:
“Luella drove toward church as Tara fidgeted with notes to her speech.”
Hope you have a great weekend filled with relaxing reading time! 😃📚
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Thank you, and thanks for sharing yours! I am definitely intrigued! Coming over to visit you now! Happy weekend to you too!
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Oooh that’s super atmospheric, I love it! The first lines (or more like a paragraph :P) for one of the books I’m reading (The Dust Feast by Gregory Ashe–it’s like X-Men crossed with a murder mystery!):
“I went running. Every day began with running now. So today, like every day, I ran as hard as I could, and as fast as I could, and the sweat that soaked my shirt threatened to freeze in the stiff, Wyoming wind. I’d started running when I moved here, only two months ago, because running was the next best thing to running away. For two months, I’d run alone. I always ran alone. Alone, I was pretty sure, was the natural state of everything in the universe.”
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Oh, wow, Kathy, that sounds really good! I want to know what he is running from. I will keep an eye out for your review of that one. I always put more than one first line, too! It’s just not enough! ♥️
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The book (and the series as a whole) is one of the best things I’ve read this year and I’m trying to find a way to GUSH about it somewhat coherently 😀
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When you gush, I follow, Kathy! ♥️
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Intriguing! Thanks for sharing.
I’m sharing from Know You More by Jan Thompson on my blog – it’s the latest addition to my never-ending to-read pile. And it’s currently free on Kindle (for around another 24 hours).
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Thanks for stopping by and sharing! I shared mine on your blog too! 😊
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Sounds good! Will watch out for the review 🙂
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Yeah, this is your genre of read, Norrie! I started it today, and so far, so good! ♥️
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