First lines Bookish beasts 8 Golden girls 9 Recipes for readers 10 Book ahead 11
Tey finally stopped me at Dover as I was trying to get back into the country. I was half-expecting it, but it still came as
kind of a shock when the barrier stayed down. Gavin Extence, The Universe Versus Alex Woods (Hodder, out now)
When Jack died I was real young, younger than I am now, and I said, in temper, that I would never let it happen again. Jack was our cat.
Kevin Maher, The Fields (Little, Brown, out March)
It’s the singing that wakes him. He does not move, he cannot move, there’s a body pressed heavy against his leſt side. He
won’t be opening his eyes neither, his head hurts so. Kate Worsley, She Rises (Bloomsbury, out March)
It was only May, but the streets flared golden like they do in high summer, and all around me the neighbourhood sighed with so much privilege that I felt shut out – a stranger on the
block where my childhood took place. Bianca Zander, The Girl Below (Alma Books, out February)
These are a handful of opening lines from a raft of debut books we’re excited about this season. For more on new writers see our feature on p25, and visit our website to find out about more books to watch for in the coming months.