It’s First Lines Friday, but let’s have fun with this one. It’s a mix-and-match game. Get a pencil and paper. Below you’ll find a list of first lines from dystopian ya books on Amazon’s bestseller list. You’ll also find a list of author names and a list of titles. Match the bestseller to its first line and author. No cheating!
Ready? Set. Go!
First Lines
If you think you know which book the line is from, scroll down and match the bestseller to the first line. Write your answers down in the order of LINE (single letter)-TITLE (double letter)-AUTHOR (number).
A “When we got the letter in the post, my mother was ecstatic.”
B “The blizzard brought with it driving winds, but Farmer-883-PR8 wasn’t giving up.”
C “Raine Caldwell was startled by the slamming of a car door.”
D “Coriolanus released the fistful of cabbage into the pot of boiling water and swore that one day it would never pass his lips again.”
E “The asteroid that will destroy the earth is named Pandora.”
F “Don’t touch me! I want Nova! Where’s Nova?”
G “When you have something to hide, it feels like everyone is looking at you.”
H “There is one mirror in my house.”
I “My sweating palms slipped against the handles of my bike as I cycled at a pace I hoped would not look suspicious.”
J “I slammed on my overburn and boosted my starship through the middle of a chaotic mess of destructor blasts and explosions.”
K “The monster loomed over Hannah Sheridan, red eyes boring into hers as he reached for her with razor-sharp claws.”
L “When the revolution comes, border guards won’t get away with harassing Harvester girls.”
M “I’ve been locked up for 264 days.”
N “When Ryder Shaw glanced at the television, he knew he messed up—big time.”
O “My name is Rockland Barkclay.”
Titles
AA The Gender Game
BB Rising: After the Thaw
CC Divergent
DD The Selection
EE The Princess Trials
FF Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
GG City of the Dead
HH Starsight
II Shadow Fall
JJ Edge of Darkness
KK Seeking Safety
LL Earthdom
MM Dark Days of the After
NN Shatter Me
Authors
Bonus points if you can match the bestseller and first line AND the author.
- Audrey Grey
- Brandon Sanderson
- Veronica Roth
- Ryan De Bruyn
- Heidi Catherine
- Vasily Mahanenko
- Kyla Stone
- Ryan Schow
- Kiera Cass
- Cordelia Castel
- T.L. Payne
- Bella Forest
- Suzanne Collins
- Tahereh Mafi
- Michael Evans
All Together
(Keep reading for the answer key) I get no compensation of any kind for the links to these books.
When we got the letter in the post, my mother was ecstatic.
The Selection (The Selection Book Book 1) by Kiera Cass
“The blizzard brought with it driving winds, but Farmer-883-PR8 wasn’t giving up.”
City of the Dead (The Alchemist Book #1): LitRPG Series by Vasily Mahanenko
Raine Caldwell was startled by the slamming of a car door.
Seeking Safety: A Post Apocalyptic EMP Survival Thriller (Gateway to Chaos Book One) by T.L. Payne
Coriolanus released the fistful of cabbage into the pot of boiling water and swore that one day it would never pass his lips again.
A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (A Hunger Games novel) by Suzanne Collins
The asteroid that will destroy the earth is named Pandora.
Shadow Fall by Audrey Grey
Don’t touch me! I want Nova! Where’s Nova?
Rising: After the Thaw (The Thaw Chronicles Book 1) by Heidi Catherine
When you have something to hide, it feels like everyone is looking at you.
Dark Days of the After: A Post-Apocalyptic EMP Survival Thriller by Ryan Schow
There is one mirror in my house.
Divergent (Divergent Trilogy, Book 1) by Veronica Roth
My sweating palms slipped against the handles of my bike as I cycled at a pace I hoped would not look suspicious.
The Gender Game by Bella Forrest
I slammed on my overburn and boosted my starship through the middle of a chaotic mess of destructor blasts and explosions.
Starsight (Skyward Book 2) by Brandon Sanderson
The monster loomed over Hannah Sheridan, red eyes boring into hers as he reached for her with razor-sharp claws.
Edge of Darkness: A Post-Apocalyptic EMP Survival Thriller (Edge of Collapse Book 3) by Kyla Stone
When the revolution comes, border guards won’t get away with harassing Harvester girls.
The Princess Trials: A young adult dystopian romance by Cordelia Castel
I’ve been locked up for 264 days.
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
When Ryder Shaw glanced at the television, he knew he messed up—big time.
Mad World: A Post-Apocalyptic EMP Survival Thriller (World Gone Mad Book 1) by Michael Evans
My name is Rockland Barkclay.
Earthdom: A Post-Apocalyptic LitRPG (Ether Collapse Book 3) by Ryan DeBruyn
Answers
In the order of LINE (single letter)-TITLE (double letter)-AUTHOR (number).
A-DD-8
B-GG-5
C-KK-10
D-FF-13
E-II-1
F-BB-4
G-MM-7
H-CC-11
I-AA-15
J-HH-2
K-JJ-6
L-EE-9
M-NN-12
N-FF-13
O-LL-3
The End
I hope you found the game fun and could identify a few of these. I’m pretty sure I would have had a big fat zero percent right.
First lines can make a big difference, even in bestsellers. How many times did you correctly match the bestseller to its first line, title, and author? Did you find any first lines that made you want to buy the book? Keep Reading! Stay healthy! And check in here from time-to-time and let me know how you’re doing.