Welcome to First Line Friday! Each Friday I pick a book and share the first line with you. In return, I hope you’ll share with me a first line from whatever book you have at hand!
This week I am sharing the first line from a book by one of my favorite authors, Full Steam Ahead by Karen Witemeyer.
Here’s the first line:
Galveston, Texas
April 1851Nicole Renard gripped her mother’s letter in her gloved hand as the carriage rattled down Bath Street, away from the docks.
Here’s the description:
Nicole Renard returns home to Galveston and finds her father deathly ill. Though she loves him, he’s only ever focused on what she’s not. Not male. Not married. Not able to run Renard Shipping.
Vowing to secure a suitable husband to give her father the heir he desires before it’s too late, Nicole sets out with the Renard family’s greatest treasure as her dowry: the highly coveted Lafitte Dagger. But when her father’s rivals come after the dagger, she’s forced to change her destination.
Darius Thornton has been a man obsessed since the fatal boiler explosion aboard the Louisiana that nearly took his life. He will do anything to stop such disasters. Even hire a female secretary. Sure he can ignore the distraction of her pretty face, he’s not sure how to proceed when drawn to her clever mind.
Nicole is determined not to let her odd employer scare her off with his explosive experiments, yet when respect and mutual attraction grows between them, a new fear arises. How can she acquire an heir for her father when her heart belongs to an unsuitable candidate? And worse, when her father’s rivals discover her hiding place, she will have to choose between that love and her family’s legacy.
Now it’s your turn! Grab the book nearest to you and leave a comment with the first (or your favorite) line!
Then head over to Hoarding Books to see who else is participating:
I like Karen Witemeyer’s books, too!
I’m sharing the first line from Christmas at Harrington’s by Melody Carlson on my blog today. In keeping with my Christmas theme, I’ll share the first line from another Christmas book inching its way up my TBR list: A Husband for Holly by Marion Uechermann. “OH NO. Hurry, Heather, before she spots us.”
I hope you have a nice weekend!
That’s a great first line. I have an entire list of Christmas themed books I’m hoping to get through between Thanksgiving and the New Year, but it’s getting so long, it may stretch into January!
I hope you have a nice weekend as well. I’m planning a visit to a working farm with a pumpkin patch, a harvest festival, and possibly a block dance party in support of autism this weekend with my family. I’ll probably pass out come Monday. LOL
I love, love, love Karen’s books! Take me back to 1851!
LOL Karen’s books are fun, but I don’t know how well I’d enjoy life in 1851. Now, time travel tourism? Sign me up!
That would be cool
Love the cover! Sometimes I wish we still wore dresses like this. 🙂 Happy Friday Kathleen!
Oh my! I know what you mean. They are beautiful, but then I remember all the layers underneath that are required for them to hold their shape. We’re just coming out of a heat wave where I was dying in a shirt and loose skirt! I think it’s often more fun to imagine living in the past than it would be to actually live there.
I loved that book!! I’m featuring The Maid of Fairbourne Hall by Julie Klassen on my blog. But I will share the first line of Jody Hedlund’s Love Unexpected here. “The blast of a gunshot awoke Emma Chambers.”
I recently finished reading Love Unexpected and loved it! Julie Klassen is a great author. If I’m in the mood for regency, I’ll look for one of hers. Thanks for taking the time to comment!
Full Steam Ahead was a fun book, but Karen’s always are.
I shared a line from Seeking Mansfield by Kate Watson on my blog today but the first line of what I’m reading is…
Is Daddy down there? (from Christmas at Cade Ranch by Karen Rock).
Enjoy your weekend.
How funny! I was just looking at the cover for Christmas at Cade Ranch. You’ll have to let me know how you like it. 🙂 Happy weekend!
I love Karen’s books!
My current first line is from A MOTHER IN THE MAKING by Gabrielle Meyer: “John Orton stared at Anna’s portrait, his grief nothing compared to his pulsing guilt.”
That’s a powerful first line. Thanks for sharing!
Ooh, I want to read this! Why can’t dresses like these still be the fashion? hehe.
I’m featuring Hometown Girl by Courtney Walsh on my blog, but I’m currently reading a non-fiction book called She’s Got The Wrong Guy: Why Smart Women Settle by Deepak Reju so I’ll use that today.
Part 1:
From Problems to Faith
When it comes to dating and marriage, what problems do you face as a single woman?
Happy Reading!! 🙂
A beautiful dress is a great choice for a cover. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
I was recently introduced to Karen Whitmeyer and have this one on my TBR list.
I am currently reading A Season to Dance by Patricia Beal. First Line is: “This is for them.”
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your first line! 🙂