This is my question for you: if you blog, how do you tag your posts? This is starting to be the tricky part of blogging. I thought of using AI to help with this, but I don’t want anyone to feel that I’m faking it, so if you have any tips or thoughts on how it can make me a better blogger, please do. Now on to the only cosy mystery on my TBR that I don’t think I’ve shown you. First Lines Friday is a weekly feature for book lovers, formerly 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!
Note: The original host blog does not appear to be active any longer, but if anyone knows of a new host, please
First Lines:
The sizzle of seared duck fills the kitchen, blending with the sharp tang of citrus and the earthy richness of truffle oil. My hands move on instinct, plating the main course with practiced precision, the whole team humming in quiet coordination. Beyond the kitchen, the murmur of the supper club dinner swells—laughter, clinking glasses, the occasional exaggerated drawl of Dallas high society. Business as usual.
Then, a man speaks, and the entire dining room goes silent. “Honestly, I expected better,” he drawls, his voice cutting through the restaurant like a knife through overcooked steak. “This is what passes for haute cuisine these days?”
I freeze, tongs clutched in one hand, sauce spoon in the other. The waitstaff stills. Even my sous chef, Jamie, mid-slice on a delicate charred fennel garnish, stops cold.
Goodreads Blurb:
Kat Calloway, the rising star chef at Larkspur, is living her dream—until the unthinkable happens. Harrison Vaughn, a cruel, self-important food critic, drops dead after devouring her perfectly plated meal. What was supposed to be a night of culinary perfection crumbles into a hellish disaster.
With Vaughn’s death pinned on her, Kat becomes the main suspect in the murder investigation. The problem? Everyone ate the same meal, but only Vaughn is dead. Someone served up poison —but who? And how?
Ben, her loyal maitre d’ who has a knack for dark humor, also falls under suspicion with his flippant remark of wishing Vaughn a “final course.” Together, they dig into the chaos, sifting through half-baked lies and undercooked truths from staff and guests, uncovering a deadlier plot than they ever imagined.
As the pressure rises like a soufflé, Kat must crack open the case before she’s locked up—or worse, becomes the next to bite the bullet.
Goodreads Link Here
The StoryGraph Link Here