Top Ten Tuesday: “It was love at first line.”

Dear reader,

As I am new in the bookish blogosphere, I only heard recently of the Top Ten Tuesday topics (I know, I’m living on another planet) and since I only live thanks to lists, I had to keep it somewhere to finally join someday – and now is the time.

If (like me) you don’t know what Top Ten Tuesday is, it was created by The Broke and the Bookish in 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. A list of topics is up on that blog and every Tuesday you can create your own list, following the topic announced for the day, or just go with your imagination.

For the 13th of February, the topic was “Love Freebie” and after doing many researches to get exactly what it meant, here is what I have guessed from it: you basically have to choose any topic linked to “love” (favourite romances, favourite book boyfriends/girlfriends, favourite kiss scenes etc) and work on it.

For mine, I decided to switch the subject a little bit: I do not read a lot of romance books anymore and while I was doing a list of all my favourite love speeches, I realised I only listed heterosexual couples and I didn’t want that. I also felt frustrated because for me, “love” means so much more than just a couple – it includes friends, family, hobbies etc. So after thinking for a very very very long time, I remembered this quote from the last book I read, which is Tash Hearts Tolstoy, and it was: “It was love at first line.”

This is why today I am presenting you the top ten books I fell in love with at first line.

Those books got me hooked from the very first words and I knew I would love them just because of it. I organised this list from my least favourites of the ten to my ultimate favourite one.

---

• Number ten: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J. K. Rowling

If this quote made it to this list, it’s only because I am emotionally attached to it. Those few words introduced me to the books which changed my entire life and which made my childhood so much better. I know this quote by heart and it will always be special to me.

• Number nine: The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater

This quote is so simple that I was immediately interrested in the story. I could have chose the first line of the first book but decided to go with the second one because it was started from this one that I got obsessed with the series. I still remember reading the prologue for the first time and falling completely in love with it. It was so mysterious but also gave us many explanations… I simply adored it, and still do.

• Number eight: The Secret History by Donna Tartt

When I started this book, I was scared. I didn’t know what it was about and everyone around me seemed to love it. So when I finally opened it and read those few words… I knew this book was something else. Those words somehow made me feel better and let me entered in the story easier.

• Number seven: The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli

I started this book while I was in what may be the biggest book hangover of my life. I finished reading Lord of Shadows for the first time and felt empty. It’s my friend Lucie who told me to start this one, as she knew I would love it. As soon as I read those first words, I knew I would indeed adore this book.

I adore weird and short first lines, those which allow you to have an idea of what’s the main character like without even knowing them – and that’s what this book gave me. It was easy, funny and simply perfect.

• Number six: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Okay, this one is special: I added the title of the first chapter. But honestly, that is what made me sure, while I was reading it for the first time, that I would love it. In six words, Rick Riordan managed to make me laugh. And those first words… I love how Percy was already talking to us, without even knowing us. It was like being rushed into the story, but in the most amazing way possible. I still quote this title to everyone who asks me if they would love the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series and every time they agree to say that it is a very intriguing one.

• Number five: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Again, here is a short and weird sentence. However, it is different from the Upside of Unrequited one because it isn’t about any of the main characters, but it still sets the tone of the story. I love how intrigued I immediately was when I read those words, how excited I was to read the entire prologue. It’s funny to see how we started with those very simple words and ended up with a very much complex world.

• Number four: The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

It’s long, mysterious, somehow simple – and it worked for me. Those words introduced me to one of the most important books in my life, the one who made me feel better when I was a teenager and didn’t know how to cope with all my feelings and emotions. We don’t know who is “she”, “that person” or “I” but we still somehow become interrested in the story that is starting in front of our eyes – at least I was.

• Number three: A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Ah, this quote. There are so many words, it is incredibly long – but how much I love it. Ever since I read it, it got stuck in my mind. I remember how we fangirl with my friend Lucie when we went to visit his house in London and saw those words on a wall. It is so poetic, so complex yet simple and beautiful. I never get tired of reading this very first line.

• Number two: Renegades by Marissa Meyer

Anyone who has been around me while I was reading this book knows how much those first words (and the entire introduction) means to me. I was in awe ever since I started reading it and those words, this sentence… It stayed with me. I cried reading the very beggining of this book, mostly because it was beautiful. I don’t know why it did this to me – in the end, it is very simple. Yet, it worked for me and I am so glad it did.

• Number one: A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab

By now, all of my friends know that this first line is my favourite of all time. Victoria Schwab introduces us to her world by describing an object, a simple one you could say, but also the most interresting and mysterious one of the series. She is the one who inspired me for my first line as well, as I am writing a book, and I believe that those six words may be the most amazing first line ever.

---

And… We have them all!

I hope that you enjoyed going through those first lines with me and that you enjoyed some of them (maybe we share some favourites? maybe one of them made you want to start a book?).

Tell me what is your favourite first line ever in the comments and why!

Love always,

Clara