Much emphasis is often put on a novel’s opening lines. It’s there that authors can do so much: set the tone, establish a character, and, of course, hook the reader. But closing lines can be just as impactful, if not more so.

By the time the last lines appear, the author has long ago established trust with their reader, allowing the fruits of their labor to finally come to rest in a way that feels meaningful, appropriate, and—perhaps most importantly—earned. A good last sentence will linger with audiences long after they’ve closed the book, sometimes transforming or simply confirming everything they’ve just read.

With that in mind, here are fifteen of our favorite closing lines. (It should be noted that many of these lines obviously contain spoilers.)

1. “Until the day when God shall deign to reveal the future to man, all human wisdom is summed up in these two words, -Wait and hope.” 

—The Count of Monte Cristo (1846) by Alexandre Dumas

After such epic betrayal and meticulously plotted revenge, these words are a hopeful balm for the novel’s long-suffering protagonists—and us readers.

2. “There was the hum of bees, and the musky odor of pinks filled the air.”

—The Awakening (1899) by Kate Chopin

Such beauty underscores the tragedy of Edna’s final, fatal decision in the face of a patriarchal society that can’t tolerate anything different.

3. “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.”

—A Tale of Two Cities (1859) by Charles Dickens

With the ultimate sacrifice, Sydney somehow manages to comfort himself, those watching him, and readers with this hopeful and defiant declaration.

4. “Within, its walls continued upright, bricks met neatly, floors were firm, and doors were sensibly shut; silence lay steadily against the wood and stone of Hill House, and whatever walked there, walked alone.”

—The Haunting of Hill House (1959) by Shirley Jackson

An appropriately haunting conclusion to a novel that spent its entirety making audiences feel just the right amount of unsettled.

5. “But the effect of her being on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts; and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life, and rest in unvisited tombs.”

—Middlemarch (1872) by George Eliot

A poignant reminder that even those who don’t live “big” lives can still make significant and meaningful impacts on the world and people around them.

6. “All their life in this world and all their adventures had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which goes on for ever: in which every chapter is better than the one before.”

—The Last Battle (1956) by C. S. Lewis

A suitably hopeful end—that rightfully hints at a brand new beginning—from a book that emphasizes love, friendship, and change.

7. “I lingered round them, under that benign sky; watched the moths fluttering among the heath, and hare-bells; listened to the soft wind breathing through the grass; and wondered how any one could ever imagine unquiet slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet earth.”

—Wuthering Heights (1847) by Emily Brontë

After the emotional torment and unspeakable tragedies that abound, these soothing lines suggest everyone is perhaps finally at rest.

8. “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.”

—The Great Gatsby (1925) by F. Scott Fitzgerald

A classic for a reason, this sentence captures the haunting and irresistible echoes of the past that still contain the power to impact the future.

9. “But, in spite of these deficiencies, the wishes, the hopes, the confidence, the predictions of the small band of true friends who witnessed the ceremony, were fully answered in the perfect happiness of the union.”

—Emma (1816) by Jane Austen

A sweet and happy ending for our well-meaning but often misguided protagonist, which feels nothing short of perfect.

10. “The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”

—Animal Farm (1945) by George Orwell

A bleak conclusion that drives home the darkest impulses of man, offering little hope but much opportunity for introspection.

11. “In the darkness, two shadows, reaching through the hopeless, heavy dusk. Their hands meet, and light spills in a flood like a hundred golden urns pouring out of the sun.”

—Song of Achilles (2011) by Madeline Miller

A posthumous reunion that is as heartbreaking as it is joyful, this line will leave you sobbing (if you weren’t already).

12. “Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody.”

—The Catcher in the Rye (1951) by J. D. Salinger

Our surly, smart-mouthed narrator reveals a crack in his teenage armor that offers readers a chance to consider how human interaction is itself a type of vulnerability.

13. “The eyes and the faces all turned themselves toward me, and guiding myself by them, as by a magical thread, I stepped into the room.”

—The Bell Jar (1963) by Sylvia Plath

Plath’s only novel ends on a wistful, some may say hopeful, note. But it also leaves it wide open for interpretation—ultimately begging the question of whether Esther really knows herself any better, or if she will simply be swallowed up by society’s expectations.

14. “P.S. please if you get a chanse put some flowrs on Algernons grave in the bak yard.”

—Flowers for Algernon (1966) by Daniel Keyes

A final line that is sure to break readers’ hearts into a million pieces, this glimpse into the extent of Charlie’s regression is simultaneously pure-hearted and tragic.

15. “He was soon borne away by the waves and lost in darkness and distance.”

—Frankenstein (1818) by Mary Shelley

A layered sentence that reflects both the creature’s physical state and his ultimate loss of human connection, it’s one that is just as haunting as the prose that precedes it.

Andrea Moran lives outside of Nashville with her husband and two kids. She’s a professional copywriter and editor who loves all things books. Find her on LinkedIn.