First Line Friday — Mothers Day Edition

11 May

Happy Mothers Day to all of our wonderful mothers. Being a mother (or a mother-figure) is hard work, so take the weekend to put up your feet and read! This weekend I hope to finish Bright As Heaven by Susan Meissner. This novel is told from the first person perspective of 4 women of the Bright family. The first line of the book is from wife and mother, Pauline. It is a bittersweet line that sets the tone for the book.

How about you? What is your first line today? Please share in the comments. Then head over to Hoarding Books to discover more books and authors.

 

In 1918, Philadelphia was a city teeming with promise. Even as its young men went off to fight in the Great War, there were opportunities for a fresh start on its cobblestone streets. Into this bustling town, came Pauline Bright and her husband, filled with hope that they could now give their three daughters–Evelyn, Maggie, and Willa–a chance at a better life.

But just months after they arrive, the Spanish Flu reaches the shores of America. As the pandemic claims more than twelve thousand victims in their adopted city, they find their lives left with a world that looks nothing like the one they knew. But even as they lose loved ones, they take in a baby orphaned by the disease who becomes their single source of hope. Amidst the tragedy and challenges, they learn what they cannot live without–and what they are willing to do about it.

As Bright as Heaven is the compelling story of a mother and her daughters who find themselves in a harsh world not of their making, which will either crush their resolve to survive or purify it.

Susan Meissner is a multi-published author, speaker and writing workshop leader with a background in community journalism. Her novels include As Bright as Heaven, starred review in Library Journal; A Bridge Across the Ocean; Secrets of  Charmed Life, a Goodreads finalist for Best Historical Fiction 2015; and A Fall of Marigolds, named to Booklist’s Top Ten Women’s Fiction titles for 2014. A California native, she attended Point Loma Nazarene University. Susan is a pastor’s wife and a mother of four young adults. Visit Susan at her website: http://susanlmeissner.com ,on Twitter at @SusanMeissner or at www.facebook.com/susan.meissner

 

17 Responses to “First Line Friday — Mothers Day Edition”

  1. susandyer1962 May 11, 2018 at 8:35 am #

    Happy Friday! I can’t wait to read this one!😊

    My first lines come from a book I will be reading later this month, The Christmas Sisters by Sarah Morgan.

    There are good anniversaries, and bad anniversaries . This was a bad one and Suzanne chose to mark the moment with a nightmare.

    Have a great weekend and Happy Reading!😊📚💖

    • rbclibrary May 11, 2018 at 9:23 am #

      Ooh! What a GREAT line! Happy Friday!

  2. Carrie May 11, 2018 at 10:56 am #

    i really want to read this book soon!

    • rbclibrary May 11, 2018 at 2:38 pm #

      I think it’s very true to life, making it a bittersweet read.

  3. Anneliese Dalaba May 11, 2018 at 11:35 am #

    Such a sad first line. 🙁 On my blog today, I am featuring a book by Georgette Heyer, “A Civil Contract.” Here, I will share the first line of chapter 10 in that same novel. “Few invitations conferred so great a distinction on the social aspirant as one to Nassington House.” Enjoy your weekend!

    • rbclibrary May 11, 2018 at 2:37 pm #

      Thanks for sharing. Enjoy your weekend!

  4. bettylouise31 May 11, 2018 at 1:27 pm #

    Thanks for sharing Have joyful week and lots of time to read. On my blog I am featuring a paranormal, A FAILIAR MEANS

    • rbclibrary May 11, 2018 at 2:36 pm #

      Happy weekend!

  5. thebeccafiles May 11, 2018 at 3:16 pm #

    I have this one on my TBR list!
    The book I’m sharing on my blog is Unblemished by Sara Ella but I’m currently reading called The Road Home by Beverly Lewis. I shared the first line last week so I’ll share the first line of chapter 22 where I am right now: ” The next morning, after the four o’clock milking and a nice hot breakfast, Mimi suggested Harley take a lemon pound cake over to Abram Mast’s for his birthday.” Cake anyone? 😛 (I actually don’t like lemon pound cake though lol).

    • rbclibrary May 11, 2018 at 3:47 pm #

      Ooh, I do! Yum.

  6. Courtney @ The Green Mockingbird Blog May 11, 2018 at 6:52 pm #

    That’s quite the opening line! Here are the first lines from the book I’m currently reading: ” ‘It is a truth universally acknowledged , that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.’ Madelynne DeBloom looked up from reading aloud from her cherished copy of Pride and Prejudice” – First Impressions by Debra White Smith

    • rbclibrary May 11, 2018 at 7:07 pm #

      Good book! Thanks so much for sharing, Courtney. Have a great weekend!

  7. Iola May 11, 2018 at 10:29 pm #

    This one sounds like a tearjerker 🙁

    I’m sharing the very long first line from A Defense of Honor from the new Haven Manor series by Kristi Ann Hunter on my blog today. It was one of those read-in-a-day books 🙂

    I’m currently reading Just Let Go by Courtney Walsh, a romance about a woman wanting to reconnect with the mother who abandoned her years ago. But the first line is from the viewpoint of the hero:

    He shouldn’t be here.
    A diner in some little tourist town in Michigan was no place for Grady Benson, but here he was.

    Have a great weekend!

    • rbclibrary May 12, 2018 at 7:39 am #

      Just Let Go is in my TBR pile. About As Bright As Heaven — I have some mixed feelings about this book. It is going to be a difficult review to write. Lots of emotion.

      Have a wonderful weekend!

  8. Heather May 14, 2018 at 11:48 am #

    Oh my goodness…that’s so sad. I cannot even begin to imagine how painful that must be. I hope you have a happy Monday. 🙂

    • rbclibrary May 14, 2018 at 12:10 pm #

      It was at times a difficult read.

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