Welcome to First Line Fridays! The day we grab the book closest to us and share the first line. Join the fun and discover your next read!
Can you believe it’s already the second First Line Friday of the year? I feel like this year is flying by – mostly from my writing cave. I may or may not have stayed up a little late writing! Not to fear, I still have time to share a great first line. This week from A Noble Masquerade by Kristi Ann Hunter.
Here is the first line:
Hertfordshire, England, 1880
It is never a happy day when an eight-year-old girl’s cheesecake lands in the dirt, and she certainly doesn’t take kindly to the laughing little boy who put it there.
Lady Miranda Hawthorne acts every inch the lady, but inside she longs to be bold and carefree. Entering her fourth Season and approaching spinsterhood in the eyes of society, she pours her innermost feelings out not in a diary but in letters to her brother’s old school friend, a duke–with no intention of ever sending these private thoughts to a man she’s heard stories about but never met. Meanwhile, she also finds herself intrigued by Marlow, her brother’s new valet, and although she may wish to break free of the strictures that bind her, falling in love with a servant is more of a rebellion than she planned.
When Marlow accidentally discovers and mails one of the letters to her unwitting confidant, Miranda is beyond mortified. And even more shocked when the duke returns her note with one of his own that initiates a courtship-by-mail. Insecurity about her lack of suitors shifts into confusion at her growing feelings for two men–one she’s never met but whose words deeply resonate with her heart, and one she has come to depend on but whose behavior is more and more suspicious. When it becomes apparent state secrets are at risk and Marlow is right in the thick of the conflict, one thing is certain: Miranda’s heart is far from all that’s at risk for the Hawthornes and those they love.
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Now it’s your turn to grab the book nearest you and leave a comment with the first (or your favorite) line!
Then head over to Hoarding Books to see who else is participating:
That is my favorite book by Kristi! Love Marlowe!
My first line is from The Gray Chamber by Grace Hitchcock:
New York City, Fall 1887
Edyth Foster’s limbs burned as she pedaled down Fifth Avenue, her white skirts whipping in the wind while she wove around pedestrians and carriages, ignoring their shouts of protest.
Yes! I love all of Kristi’s books, but this was definitely one of my favorites. So much fun!
That’s a great first line! Thanks for sharing!
Pilgrims Progress. by John Button. This is one of my favorite travels.