How do you play Opening Lines?

Read the opening sentence and choose the novel it belongs to. Look for the narrator, setting and tone as clues. A remembered first sentence can help, but a line can also be a starting point for finding a new book to read.

When do the daily book games change?

New puzzles arrive at midnight UTC. That may be morning, afternoon or evening in your time zone. The date on the game identifies the puzzle everyone is playing.

Can I play without an account?

You can play the daily games as a guest. Sign in if you want to keep your streaks across devices, and use the archive links when you want an earlier puzzle. Avoid posting an answer where people who have not played will see it.

Secondhand · Well-read · Much loved

Creasy Spines

“Every crease is a story.”

Vol. I · No. 292Monday, 19 October 2026Today’s edition

Opening Lines #60 · Tuesday, 29 September 2026

Opening Lines

Five first sentences from public-domain classics. Which book does each one open?

Replaying an archived puzzle. Play today’s

Line 1

“No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy would have supposed her born to be an heroine.”

The Portrait of a LadyHenry JamesNorthanger AbbeyJane AustenThe Count of Monte CristoAlexandre DumasStrange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr HydeRobert Louis Stevenson

Line 2

“All children, except one, grow up.”

The Adventures of Tom SawyerMark TwainThe Age of InnocenceEdith WhartonPeter and WendyJ. M. BarrieAdventures of Huckleberry FinnMark Twain

Line 3

“3 May. Bistritz.—Left Munich at 8:35 P.M., on 1st May, arriving at Vienna early next morning; should have arrived at 6:46, but train was an hour late.”

A Christmas CarolCharles DickensTess of the d'UrbervillesThomas HardyDraculaBram StokerHeart of DarknessJoseph Conrad

Line 4

“‘Well, Prince, so Genoa and Lucca are now just family estates of the Buonapartes.’”

The Wind in the WillowsKenneth GrahameWar and PeaceLeo TolstoyAnne of Green GablesL. M. MontgomeryWuthering HeightsEmily Brontë

Line 5

“Except for the Marabar Caves—and they are twenty miles off—the city of Chandrapore presents nothing extraordinary.”

A Room of One's OwnVirginia WoolfA Passage to IndiaE. M. ForsterThe Picture of Dorian GrayOscar WildeMiddlemarchGeorge Eliot

Archive · Your stats · First lines are from works published before 1930.

A few playing notes

How do you play Opening Lines?: Read the opening sentence and choose the novel it belongs to. Look for the narrator, setting and tone as clues. A remembered first sentence can help, but a line can also be a starting point for finding a new book to read.
When do the daily book games change?: New puzzles arrive at midnight UTC. That may be morning, afternoon or evening in your time zone. The date on the game identifies the puzzle everyone is playing.
Can I play without an account?: You can play the daily games as a guest. Sign in if you want to keep your streaks across devices, and use the archive links when you want an earlier puzzle. Avoid posting an answer where people who have not played will see it.