First Lines Friday 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:
“The Blood Tree rose before me, tall and impossibly ancient.”
Do you recognize the lines?
Here’s a hint:
It’s a fantasy.
Still not sure? Here’s another hint:
It’s written by Sarah Hawley.
The First Lines Friday book is:
Princess of Blood
Title: Princess of Blood
Author: Sarah Hawley
Series: The Shards of Magic #2
Page Length: 512
Pub. Date: Sept. 30, 2025
Publisher: Ace
Synopsis: Once a servant, now a princess, a young woman thrust into power challenges everything about the underground Fae realm in the next installment of Sarah Hawley’s new romantasy series.
Kenna Heron is still reeling from her lover’s betrayal and the threat of an impending war. With only her two closest–and most powerless–friends by her side, she must navigate the treacherous politics of Mistei while coming to terms with her new identity as not just Fae, but princess of her own house.
With the king dead, three candidates are vying for the right to wear the crown next. A princess who claims the throne as her birthright and two rebel princes, both of whom are depending on the support of Blood House to break the stalemate between them. Old loyalties fray as new, dangerous alliances form, and Kenna finds herself caught in a web of violence, deceit, and unexpected passion.
Kenna has the power to shape Mistei’s future… but someone’s willing to kill to make sure she never gets the chance.
LINKS: Amazon | Goodreads | Review
Have you read Princess of Blood? What do you think of the first lines? Comment below!
