What are the best opening lines you've ever read in a novel and why?

The opening line of George Orwell's "1984":

"It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen."

Normal + Weird. Clocks strike 12, not 13! A typo? Or there is something wrong woth thhis world?

I do not want to spoil and explain why that opening is great, but those who seen this book will understand why I selected this sentence.

“Mr. and Mrs. Dursley of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much”

no guesses as to where this quote is from, but to those who don’t know, this is the opening line for the first book of the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the philosopher stone by JK Rowling.

The opening line itself is iconic as you assume the narrator might be related to or are the Dursleys themselves. It opens a conversation as to who is saying this line to begin with.

But if we’re looking at this Line with the context of knowing all the rest of the books, it might seem random to start the series talking about the durselys when the series is all about the wizarding world but that’s why I think it’s soo brilliant. The sentance already sets a tone about the dursleys characters and starting from that foundation, it helps the reader understand Harry’s life and how different he Truly is.

It had started with a hole. A hole that, for no logical reason, opened right in front of her.

After Appearing out of nowhere, it quite resembled a nonreflective, full-length mirror.

There had been nobody else around. No other humans could've taken her place.

Whenever she thought back on it, she found herself helpless to do anything but scratch her head in confusion

Why in the world had that wormhole linking two worlds chosen her of all people?

Babel, Vol. 1: A Girl Embarks on a Journey of Words

I think that, these specific lines, would later show just how absurd the situation for the girl is

"Hari Seldon... born in the 11,988th year of the Galactic Era; died 12069."

Isaac Asimov, novel "Foundation"

These 13 words were enough to teleport me to a fantasy world. They sparked so many questions: Who is Hari Seldon? Why is he important? What significance do these dates hold? What era is this, and were there others before it? How far is this future from today?

At the same time, they provided answers: this story is set so far in the future that Hari has already died, and I know that right from the start.

“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.” - J R R Tolkien in ‘The Hobbit’

This line will always be so nostalgic for me to read, it’s so simple and yet it starts one of the most magical books I have read in my life and one I will never be sick of