10 Best Last Lines

Much has been made of opening lines in fiction, but what about closing ones? Do last lines matter as much? Should aspiring authors learn to perfect them? Below are 10 best last lines (in no particular order) that showcase a mixture of poetic, chilling and moving book closures that leave a memorable impression on the reader.

I. “Live, then, and be happy, beloved children of my heart, and never forget, that until the day God will deign to reveal the future to man, all human wisdom is contained in these two words, ‘Wait and Hope’.” …”Who knows if we shall ever see them again?’ Morrel said, wiping away a tear. ‘My dearest,’ said Valentine, ‘has the count not just told us that all human wisdom was contained in these two words – “wait” and “hope”?’ – The Count of Monte Cristo

II. “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” – The Great Gatsby

III. “After all, tomorrow is another day.” – Gone With the Wind

IV. “He loved Big Brother.” – 1984

V. “But wherever they go, and whatever happens to them on the way, in that enchanted place on the top of the Forest a little boy and his Bear will always be playing.” – The House At Pooh Corner

VI. “But the hands of one of the partners were already at K’s throat, while the other thrust the knife into his heart and turned it there twice. With failing eyes K. could still see the two of them, cheek leaning against cheek, immediately before his face, watching the final act. ‘Like a dog!’ he said: it was as if he meant the shame of it to outlive him.” – The Trial

VII. “The offing was barred by a black bank of clouds, and the tranquil waterway leading to the uttermost ends of the earth flowed sombre under an overcast sky—seemed to lead into the heart of an immense darkness.” – Heart of Darkness

VIII. “CHICAGO WILL BE OURS!” – The Jungle

IX. “He had fallen forward and lay on the earth as though sleeping. Turning him over one saw that he could not have suffered long; his face had an expression of calm, as though almost glad the end had come.” – All Quiet on the Western Front

X. “Before reaching the final line, however, he had already understood that he would never leave that room, for it was foreseen that the city of mirrors (or mirages) would be wiped out by the wind and exiled from the memory of men at the precise moment when Aureliano Babilonia would finish deciphering the parchments, and that everything written on them was unrepeatable since time immemorial and forever more, because races condemned to one hundred years of solitude did not have a second opportunity on earth.” – One Hundred Years of Solitude

📚 What do you think about these last lines? Do you have your own favourite? Do you like a satisfying last line?

10 thoughts on “10 Best Last Lines”

  1. The final lines of the Mexican masterpiece, Pedro Paramo, by Juan Rulfo, are impressive in their brutality: “He leaned on the arms of Damiana Cisneros and made an effort to walk. After a few steps he collapsed, pleading inside, but without saying a single word. He hit the ground and crumbled, as if he were nothing more than a pile of rocks.”

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  3. Epic, Masterful. You sure know how to pick’em, Diana (Lit-Ninja🥷🏽)

    These are all worth re-reading dozens of times or more. But my stand-out fav is the first. “Wait… and Hope” it seems such a let-down, at first— a cheap consolation… I love that character. Identify, even. As do “V”, and Andy Dufresne from Shawshank⚒️ … “Hope is a good thing. Maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies.” “Beneath this mask there is an idea, Mr. McCreedy. And ideas are bulletproof.”

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    2. Thanks! These are brilliant. I also love quotes from Shawshank and V for Vendetta. I thought there was quote on hope that goes something like “most men have no hope in their lives, and they are not locked up within four walls either”, as contrasting them with Andy (and the quote I love), but, strangely, I cannot seem to find it now in either the script or book. Some kind of a false memory syndrome I am having? 😉

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

Leave a comment