First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author, or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?
- Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
- Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
- Finally… reveal the book!
First Lines:
“My mother taught me many skills to ensure I’d make a good wife to my husband. How to cook and clean. How to weave and sew. Where to hunt and gather. She’d have been better off teaching me the restraint needed not to stab said husband when he proved himself a short-witted drunkard with an acid tongue… ”
Do you recognize the lines?
Here’s a hint:
It’s a new romantasy!
Still not sure? Here’s another hint:
It’s written by Danielle L. Jensen.
The First Lines Friday book is:
A Fate Inked in Blood
About the Book:
Title: A Fate Inked in Blood
Author: Danielle L. Jensen
Series: Saga of the Unfated #1
Page Length: 400
Publication Date: Feb. 27, 2024
Publisher: Del Rey
Synopsis: A shield maiden blessed by the gods battles to unite a nation under a power-hungry king—while also fighting her growing desire for his fiery son—in this Norse-inspired fantasy romance from the bestselling author of The Bridge Kingdom series.
Bound in an unwanted marriage, Freya spends her days gutting fish, but dreams of becoming a warrior. And of putting an axe in her boorish husband’s back.
Freya’s dreams abruptly become reality when her husband betrays her to the region’s jarl, landing her in a fight to the death against his son, Bjorn. To survive, Freya is forced to reveal her deepest secret: She possesses a drop of a goddess’s blood, which makes her a shield maiden with magic capable of repelling any attack. It was foretold such a magic would unite the fractured nation of Skaland beneath the one who controls the shield maiden’s fate.
Believing he’s destined to rule Skaland as king, the fanatical jarl binds Freya with a blood oath and orders Bjorn to protect her from their enemies. Desperate to prove her strength, Freya must train to fight and learn to control her magic, all while facing perilous tests set by the gods. The greatest test of all, however, may be resisting her forbidden attraction to Bjorn. If Freya succumbs to her lust for the charming and fierce warrior, she risks not only her own destiny but the fate of all the people she swore to protect.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Review
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I did get this one! I really enjoyed this book.
That first line caught my attention!
Ha! I haven’t read this one yet, but after seeing the title, I wasn’t surprised to find that Jensen had written these lines.
She definitely has a distinct style. Love her! lol
I’ve been hearing a lot about this book recently, I’ll have to check it out!
It’s such a good romantasy! I hope you enjoy it if you get a chance to read it. 🙂
I’ve not read this one, but what a great beginning to a book. I love it.