For those who play #1lineWed on Twitter with RWA Kiss of Death Chapter, the prompt for today is First/Opening Lines. Here are a few of my favorite openings from other authors, and then some favorites that I wrote.

She woke in the dark. Through the slats on the window shades, the first murky hint of dawn slipped, slanting shadowy bars over the bed. It was like waking in a cell. ~J.D. Robb, NAKED IN DEATH (Eve Dallas/In Death series)

Y’all knew I’d start with that one because…favorite. Book. Ever! 😉 Here are three more, all much loved books from the first books in their series, all of which I’ll be rereading this year as new books in each series arrive.

Half blinded by the storm, she stumbled into the open area between two buildings. Hoping to hide from whomever was hunting for her as well as get some relief from the snow and wind, she followed an angled wall and ducked around the corner. Her socks and sneakers were soaked, and her feet were so cold she couldn’t feel them. She knew that wasn’t good, wasn’t safe, but she had taken the clothing available just as she had taken the opportunity to run. ~Anne Bishop, WRITTEN IN RED (The Others series)
****
I’d been having the same dream for the past month–the one where a dark stranger materialized out of smoke and shadows to play doctor with me. I was starting to wonder if repetitive exposure to nightly hallucinations resulting in earth-shattering climaxes could have any long-term side effects. Death via extreme pleasure was a serious concern. The prospect led to the following dilemma: Do I seek help or buy drinks all around? ~Darynda Jones, FIRST GRAVE ON THE RIGHT (Charley Davidson series)
****
Saturday: Day One of the Death Mark
The whispers were nothing new.
Darcy MacAlister followed behind her mother’s graceful white casket with the elegant raised scrolls as they left the MacAlister Funeral Home for the cemetery next door. Being the funeral director eased the knot of grief and sorrow in her throat. She was honored to oversee every detail of the service that celebrated Eileen MacAlister’s life, and show the community how well-loved her mother had been. She would not let the whispers affect her. ~Jennifer Lyon, BLOOD MAGIC (Wingslayer Hunters series)

Can’t wait to reread off of them! And now to mine. This is probably my all-time favorite opening:

This was only Day One of what was shaping up to be a bloody weird week and the gods had been drinking again. Too bad Sade Marquis didn’t have that option. She was on duty. Dammit. Not to mention it was only ten in the morning. However, if things got any stranger, she might change her mind. ~Silver James, THAT OL’ BLACK MAGIC (Penumbra Papers series)

And now, just some random opening lines from various WIPs, though I’m not naming titles or series. 😉

She found God at a minute to midnight though the coroner would place her time of death between eleven and one.
****
Shadows. Insubstantial as gossamer wings and not nearly so user friendly. They haunted. And hunted. The unwary, the profane, the innocent, and not-so-innocent all fell prey to them. They lurked, hunting in pairs, ready to pounce when chance provided them with a victim. Like the disenchanted urchins swarming around old Fagin, Shadows plagued humans and Fae alike.
****
Destinies are a dime a dozen and Fate is the biggest bitch of all. Roman shoved his hands deep into his pockets to keep from wrapping them around the human messenger who stood quaking in his boots before him.
****
Cordell Barron was always in control—of his life, Barron Oil and Gas Exploration, everything that made up his world. Except for now. At the moment, Cord’s world was crashing down around his ears and his life seemed to be spinning out of control.

That’s it for me. How about y’all? Who wants to share their favorite first line or opening from a book you love or one of your WIPs?