The 24th Hour opening lines: I was late getting back from the men's jail in San Bruno. I braked the squad car in front of the Hall of Justice, where my good friend Assistant District Attorney Yuki Castellano was waiting at the curb. My blurb: Yuki has an impossible case. She knows her client was … Continue reading The 24th Hour, James Patterson

Lone Wolf opening line: Evan stood where the long dirt road gave over to the desolate heat-miraged loam, staring at the double-wide manufactured home where the man who was presumably his biological father lived, the man Evan had never laid eyes on, the man he had reason to believe was currently inside those four dilapidated … Continue reading Lone Wolf, Gregg Hurwitz

The Corsican Shadow opening lines: Marcel Demille rubbed his tired eyes for the hundredth time. Fatigue draped over him like a heavy cloak as his hands resumed their grip on the thick steering wheel. My blurb: Nothing is ever as simple as Pitt and Giordino would like it to be. They would prefer quiet NUMA … Continue reading The Corsican Shadow, Dirk Cussler

Island in the Sun opening lines: Cass had been travelling all day. There had been an early morning flight from Bristol to Glasgow, two long bus journeys, a largish ferry and now this tiny ferry that took a dozen card at best. My blurb: Cass has feels a lot of pressure on her to be something more. … Continue reading Island in the Sun, Katie Fforde

All The Broken Places opening line: If every man is guilty of all the good things he did not do, as Voltaire suggested, then I have spent a lifetime convincing myself that I am innocent of all the bad. My blurb: Gretel has lived a secluded life, out of choice. After trying so hard to … Continue reading All The Broken Places, John Boyne

The Ghost Orchid opening lines: Nearly getting killed can change your life in interesting ways. There's the physical healing, but that's tedious to think about. My blurb: Giovanni Aggiunta has been killed in his home, with his girlfriend, left naked, and dead, next to him. He is from a very wealthy family, and it appears … Continue reading The Ghost Orchid, Jonathan Kellerman

The Fury opening lines: Never open a book with the weather. Who was it who said that? I can't remember - some famous writer, I expect. My blurb: Elliot is so unsure of himself that he cannot declare his love for Lana. But he feels he can do what people think he is good at, … Continue reading The Fury, Alex Michaelides

Cross Hairs opening line: Adam Glossner had to work hard to conceal his smile, sitting on the edge of his three-year-old son's tiny bed. My blurb: Rob Trilling thrived in the Army, but he is not doing as well as part of the NYPD. He has been moved into another role, the third one and … Continue reading Cross Hairs, James Patterson

Holmes, Margaret and Poe opening line: The vacant industrial space that Realtor Gretchen Wik was trying to unload was located in a recently gentrified Brooklyn neighborhood called Bushwick. My blurb: Meet Brendan Holmes, Margaret Marple and Auguste Poe. Three new private investigators who have high demands. And garner high interest. Not only from their clients, … Continue reading Holmes, Margaret and Poe, James Patterson

The Year of the Locust opening lines: I once went to kill a man. At other times, in younger days, I had followed my work through the neon-lit alleys of Tokyo, watched the sun rise over the Mosque of the Nine Cupolos and waited on the waterfront in Old Istanbul as a woman's tears fell … Continue reading The Year of the Locust, Terry Hayes

Condor's Fury opening lines: An old Russian-made SUV sped through the tiny Cuban village of Arcos on a humid afternoon. My blurb: What should have been a simple training exercise, rescuing a dummy from falling overboard, turns into a genuine rescue scenario. Kurt and Joe are sent to assist a ship close to where they … Continue reading Condor’s Fury, Graham Brown

12 Months to Live opening lines: "For the last time," my client says to me. "I. Did. Not. Kill. Those. People." My blurb: Jane has been given a year to live, if she does not seek treatment for her cancer. Her Doctor, and best friend, is trying to get her to make the right decisions. But … Continue reading 12 Months to Live, James Patterson

The Spy Coast opening lines: She used to be the golden girl. How things have changed, she thought, staring in the mirror. My blurb: Maggie's whole life fell apart when she married Danny. She might have been doing it for love, but she was not sure it was because she loved him, or her country. And … Continue reading The Spy Coast, Tess Gerritsen

Happiness In A Mug Cake is all about simple pleasure ready in minutes. Mug cakes make for great desserts and serve as a perfect sweet snack. According to Kate Calder, happiness starts here! Happiness in a Mug Cake is exactly that - mug cakes built to satisfy your cake cravings, all ready in your microwave … Continue reading Happiness In A Mug Cake

The Burnout opening lines: It's not the emails that make me panic. It's not even the 'chasing' emails. (Just wondering if you got my last emails as I have had no reply?) My blurb: When joining a convent does not work to get Sasha out of her impossible work situation, her mother comes up with … Continue reading The Burnout, Sophie Kinsella

23 ½ Lies opening line: Over the last three months, the SFPD homicide squad had been swamped by nightmarish murders of all types. 23 ½ Lies in collaboration with Maxine Paetro When SFPD Sergeant Lindsay Boxer is called to investigate a crime scene, nothing can prepare her for what she finds: her estranged father gunned … Continue reading 23 ½ Lies, James Patterson

A Twisted Love Story opening lines: Wes can't get the song out of his head. It plays on a loop, over and over, until he finds himself humming it out loud. My blurb: There is a detective poking around in Ivy and Wes's relationship. Karen is basing her assumptions on how her own relationship worked … Continue reading A Twisted Love Story, Samantha Downing

The Girls of Summer opening lines: It's too hot to be outside for long. Sweat is starting to dampen my scalp, thickening in the roots of my hair and pooling in the crevices of my collar bone. My blurb: All Rachel can remember of that summer is how amazing it was. How much freedom she … Continue reading The Girls of Summer, Katie Bishop

Blackouts And Boerewors combines South Africans' love of cooking on fire, with our lives enduring load shedding. The key component is that this is distraction-free quality time. The motto we all need to say is "no power, no problem". Blackouts And Boerewors Load-shedding sucks! You know it. We know it. The whole country knows it. … Continue reading Blackouts And Boerewors

The Little French Village of Book Lovers opening line: Marie-Jeanne's cradle stood under a broad-canopied olive tree some people claimed was over eight hundred years old, something the tree would neither confirm nor deny (at its age, one did not comment on how old one was). My blurb: Marie-Jeanne is an orphan who is being … Continue reading The Little French Village of Book Lovers, Nina George