Category: First Line Friday

First Line Friday

First Line Friday #298 | The Fault in Firelight by Emily Dana Botrous

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. I recently bought The Fault in Firelight by Emily Dana Botrous on sale based on the recommendation of one of my newsletter subscribers. I’m a trivia fan, so this first line has definitely got me hooked:

“Next question. What company makes Twinkies?”

Have you read any novels by Emily Dana Botrous? What did you think?

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

 

About The Fault in Firelight

He knows the pain of betrayal. She has a past that could ruin her future. What can heal their brokenness?

Tony Coniglio loves being single again and the freedom that comes with it. But when he’s pressured to ask out the next available woman, he agrees, just to get his family off his back—even though she’s the town’s all-too-serious cop.

Officer Stacy Kallisto is by the book. Maybe it’s because she once broke the rules and has regretted it ever since. When trouble around town leaves Stacy searching for the culprit, she keeps running into Tony, the one man who wants to know more about her than she wants to share.

As sparks fly and secrets are revealed, Stacy wonders if there’s room in her heart for a man so different from herself—and for the God she wrote off long ago.

Find The Fault in Firelight online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

Click here to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

Don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

First Line Friday

First Line Friday #297 | Hope for the Cowboy by Hannah Jo Abbott

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. I recently asked my newsletter subscribers for some book recommendations, and someone suggested Hannah Jo Abbott. I’ve downloaded Hope for the Cowboy, which is the first novel in her Whispering Oaks Ranch series, and here’s the first line:"Dad, I have to disagree." Sawyer Macklin pulled his cowboy hat off as he stood in front of his father's desk.

 

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

 

About Hope for the Cowboy

He’s committed to the ranch he loves, she’s just here for a job, but they just might find each other too.

Katie Wadford is devastated after being fired from her job as an account manager. When no other large firms in town will hire her, she’s desperate to find a place to prove herself. Reluctantly she returns to her hometown in hopes of working for a small business to boost her resume.

Sawyer Macklin is certain that his family ranch doesn’t need a business manager. When his father hires one anyway, Sawyer agrees to get along. But the woman who shows up in high heels isn’t anything like what he expected.

When Katie offers the ranch as the location for a church fundraiser, Sawyer volunteers to help, but only so he can tell her it’s a bad idea and put an end to it. He finds out Katie is a hard person to say no to.

As they learn to work together, will Sawyer’s fears of his past mistakes keep them apart, or will they both find a future they didn’t expect?

Find Hope for the Cowboy online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

Click here to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

Don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

First Line Friday

First Line Friday #296 | Where Our Hearts Lie by Jenny Glazebrook

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. The sixth book in the Trinity Lakes Romance series released this week, so that’s what I’m reading and sharing: Where Our Hearts Lie by Jenny Glazebrook. I think this is my favourite book of the series so far.

Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

Why couldn't she stop shaking? Hallie took a deep breath and blew it out slowly.

 

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

 

About Where Our Hearts Lie

Can two hurting hearts find where they belong?

Hallie Hollaway is the daughter of missionaries and a child prodigy who desperately wants to fit in. When her first meeting with an internet boyfriend goes horribly wrong, she escapes to her childhood home of Trinity Lakes. The only place she has ever felt safe and loved.

Josh Ladan is the pastor’s kid who once dreamed of following in his father’s footsteps. Until one tragic summer in Australia changed everything. Now Hallie, his clever childhood friend, is back in Trinity Lakes. Josh is closely guarding a secret that he fears will disappoint Hallie, but he is determined to prove himself to her.

Hallie is drawn to Josh, but holds herself back, believing she is unworthy of love. Can Hallie and Josh allow God to work in their hearts and lives to restore trust and hope for a future together?

Find Where Our Hearts Lie online at:

Amazon | Goodreads

Click here to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

Don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

First Line Friday

First Line Friday #295 | Until I Met You by Lara Van Hulzen

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. I’m reading (yet another) small-town contemporary Christian romance. I seem to have developed a real taste for the genre. I wonder why?

Anyway, here’s the first line from Until I Met You by Lara Van Hulzen, the third book in The Endicotts of Silver Bay series. Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

Rachel Anderson pedaled her bike toward downtown Silver Bay, feeling the caress of the breeze against her skin.

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

 

About Until I Met You

When his parents move to Silver Bay, California, Dominic Endicott, ever the dutiful son, packs up his life and heads to the small town. He sees it as temporary, appeasing his mother and making sure his dad’s health is stable while Dominic keeps the family business running. Dominic planned on keeping his head down, focused only on working and spending time with his family. Until a beautiful brunette forces him to look up.

Local Chaplain and community center employee Rachel Anderson loves her little town that she’s called home for the past year. Silver Bay is a far cry from her life growing up in LA, and that’s perfectly fine with her. When she mistakes newcomer Dominic for her friend, Chet, her simple, curated life becomes complicated.

Thrown together to work on raising money for the town’s community center, the sparks between Rachel and Dominic are too strong to ignore. But Dominic represents everything Rachel has been running from, while Rachel has Dominic rethinking his entire life plan. Can these two bridge the gap between their worlds and give love a chance?

Find Until I Met You online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

Click here to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

Don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

First Line Friday

First Line Friday #294 | The Christmas Box by Jessica Wakefield

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. I’ve just bought The Christmas Box by debut Australian author Jessica Wakefield. It’s three novellas featuring three of my favourite tropes: friends to more, forced proximity, and fake relationship. Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

Change was coming. Amy Franklin hated change.

I only have to read that much to know I’m going to love Amy 🙂

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

About The Christmas Box

Three Christmas Novellas: Can Christmas be saved by a mysterious box? Join three couples across three decades as they find love in places they least expected it.

1995: Braving Christmas

Amy Franklin is in love with her best friend. Years of family rejection have left her unable to tell Chris Lawrence how she feels for fear of history repeating itself. But as she becomes the key to saving his family’s Christmas tree farm, she realizes teaming up with Chris permanently might just be worth being brave after all.

2005: Risking Christmas

Holed up in a cabin in Connecticut during a blizzard, chef Josh Keller is looking to finish a proposal for his new restaurant. But he didn’t count on getting snowed in with Nicole Abbot, the very food critic who derailed his career faster than you can say master chef. As the days drift by, Josh and Nicole form a tentative truce that might just turn into more.

2015: Faking Christmas

Antonia Katsaros needs a fake boyfriend to attend her sister’s Christmas-themed engagement party, or she’ll never hear the end of it from her meddling family. In the mall, she meets Dylan Matthews, a guy more than ready to help the woman who helped his niece. Can their fake relationship turn real just in time for the holidays?

Find The Christmas Box online at:

Amazon | Goodreads

Click here to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

Don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

First Line Friday

First Line Friday #293 | Love You, Truly by Susan Tuttle

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. I’m reading Love You, Truly by Susan Tuttle a new-to-me author. Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

If Harlow Tucker had an ounce of self-preservation in her, she'd move to a state that at least pretended to cooperate with its seasons.

This is another one where the first line has me hooked!

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

Blake Carlton, the camera-shy son of Hollywood’s Darling, dodges the invasive limelight and scripted relationships that so often accompany fame. But when his mother’s popularity declines and she falls into a depression, he offers himself up as the next bachelor on a reality show, hoping to reignite interest in her career while creating a way for them to finally connect.

After her fiancé dumps her for her best friend, aspiring photographer Harlow Tucker is done with romance—until her beloved, disabled sister requests her aid to start a nonprofit. Harlow agrees to do whatever is needed to raise funds, even reluctantly costarring on a dating show with a notorious womanizer who distrusts anyone behind a lens.

As Blake and Harlow navigate the superficiality of a reality show, their preconceived notions of love are challenged. Deciding to trust each other feels like the ultimate risk, but taking that chance could lead to a love truly picture-perfect, worth both of their hearts.

Find Love You, Truly online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

Click here to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

Don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

First Line Friday

First Line Friday #292 | Dedicated to the One I Love by Beth K Vogt

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line.

Next on my list is Dedicated to the One I Love, a new contemporary romance from Beth K Vogt that I pre-ordered pretty much based on the cover, especially the typewriter and the rom-com vibe.

Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

Despite what some people thought—specifically her mother, her best friends, and her agent—Kylie was fine.

Well, that’s saying everything isn’t fine, right?

About Dedicated to the One I Love

She doesn’t believe in love anymore. He doesn’t either.

They’re perfect for each other.

Beloved romance novelist Kylie Franklin walked away from her pen-name career as bestselling and award-winning Veronica Hollins the day her husband died. Her loyal readers are eager for the final book in her sensational series. But Kylie’s given up on love, both fictional and in real life. Behind her back, Kylie’s agent contrives a way to get her writing again.

Joe Edwards has made a name for himself with his popular military suspense novels under the pen name Tate Merrick. Yet he can’t quite break onto the bestseller list. What his books need, his publisher suggests, is some romance. Joe flat refuses. However, his publisher is determined and hires Veronica Hollins to save the day—and his career.

Veronica and Tate quickly realize they’re Kylie and Joe, good friends who connected online via a popular word game and their mutual love of trivia. Surely they can wrangle their alter egos into this literary collaboration. But as the deadline looms, their differences threaten the romance developing off the page.

Find Dedicated to the One I Love online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

First Line Friday

First Line Friday #291 | Lavender and Lace by Tara Grace Ericson

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. I’ve heard lots of good things about Tara Grace Ericson’s books, but I think this is the first I’ve bought, so I’m looking forward to it … especially the opposites-attract You’ve Got Mail part!

Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

Lavender's bedroom at Bloom's Farm tripled as an office, film and photography studio, and occasionally--a place to sleep.

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

About Lavender and Lace

In their online writer chatroom, they are getting serious.
In the real world; He thinks she’s shallow, and she thinks he’s out of touch.
When their worlds collide, will their hearts survive?

Lavender Bloom is a social marketing expert and influential fashion blogger. Always focused on the perfect image, she shows the world a flawless version of herself, except to her family and her nameless online best friend. Her broody new client certainly doesn’t understand her or why she prefers to hide behind her computer.

Reclusive author Emmett Drake spends his days writing his award-winning fantasy saga and his nights chatting online with the woman of his dreams. When he is forced to hire an image consultant to please his publisher, he despises everything the woman stands for, even if he sees hidden depths beneath her polished façade.

Lavender is determined to help Emmett embrace the power of social media, convinced he has the platform to make a difference. Meanwhile, he is determined to uncover the woman hiding behind the carefully scripted marketing lingo. Their struggle to find authenticity in a world centered on likes, comments, and shares will challenge them both to embrace God’s purpose for their lives – together.

Return to Bloom’s Farm in Lavender and Lace and embrace the joy of family, faith, and true love in this nostalgic modern nod to the romantic classic, You’ve Got Mail.

Find Lavender and Lace online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

Click here to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

Don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

First Line Friday

First Line Friday #290 | Love Somebody Like You by Carolyn Miller

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. Today I’m (re)reading the next book in the Trinity Lakes Romance series, Love Somebody Like You by Carolyn Miller.

Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

There were ways to make a good first impression, and ways to not. Lexi Franklin sighed as she picked herself up from the muddied ground outside Trinity Life Church.

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

 

About Love Somebody Like You

For Lexi Franklin, returning to Trinity Lakes feels a little like running home with her tail between her legs.

But what’s a girl to do, when her life has been turned upside down on the other side of the world? She needs a place to regain hope and healing – just didn’t count on meeting a cowboy whose own battered heart might need nursing back to health too.

Jackson Reilly has his own set of troubles, between caring for his ranch, his mom, and the black hole of finances. So when a pretty redhead with a sassy tongue offers some distraction – and a potential solution to one of his most pressing concerns – he’s not going to say no.

But as they spend time together, questions soon rise about their future, and whether faith can truly win over fears. Will Jackson be able to save his ranch, and his hopes and heart, before Lexi returns to Australia?

An opposites attract, small town contemporary Christian romance. Book five of the Trinity Lakes Romance series (can be read as a standalone). Visit Trinity Lakes and meet the fun and quirky characters who value family, faith, and happily-ever-after.

Find Love Somebody Like You online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

Click here to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

Don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!

First Line Friday

First Line Friday #289 | Uncharted Grace by Keely Brooke Keith

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. Today I’m sharing from the twelfth book in Keely Brooke Keith’s  Uncharted series, which is a great mashup of historical and speculative Christian romance.

Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

The azure sky spread above the thriving orchard like an unending wealth of promises only Caroline could see.

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

 

About Uncharted Grace

Can two newcomers with shattered pasts and buried secrets find love in the village of Good Springs?

An inherited orchard offers a fresh start in a new village for social butterfly Caroline Vestal. She believes Good Springs is where she will finally find a soulmate, but building a genuine relationship means being honest—even with the family secret that could ruin her new life before it begins.

With his relaxed manner, professional expertise, and dapper appearance, physician Jedidiah Cotter makes a good first impression in his new village. Once the Good Springs elder council officially titles him, he can establish his career and be safe from the obligation to return to his crooked family’s business back home. But when the council unexpectedly stalls the process, Jedidiah must discover the cause and quickly find a cure.

Though Caroline is smitten with the dashing new physician who lives across the road from the orchard house, his attraction to her drives him to ask questions she isn’t prepared to answer. If she trusts the wrong person with the shocking truth about her family’s past, she could lose the inheritance and the man she loves.

Find Uncharted Grace online at:

Amazon | BookBub | Goodreads

Click here to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

Don’t forget to click here to check out my Amazon shop for my top picks in Christian fiction!