hook line and sink 'em

It's what brings eyes to one's story in the first place. What makes for a good hook?

"In medias res." I like that :D

I for one am a fan of question hooks, or strange things at the intro. I loved the intro to PMD explorers of Time, Darkness, and Sky because I had no clue what that intro meant. And it was fun and exciting trying to unravel its secrets.

Like bard said, start in the middle not the end. I like to take quotes or scenes that I know I have planned for a big hit in the middle or end and then vaguely describe what's going on before bringing it back to the opening of it all. Although something like opening on the wake of someone's funeral where there's not much going on immediately, but learning soon after that there's actually a plethora of things going on everywhere could be nice too.