How long can I go on without violence before the readers becomes terminally bored?

I usually begin my novels with a hook. I do it within the first sentence if possible because as we all know it's important to get the reader before the end of the first page or we've lost him/her forever.

   Hopefully I've done that with my newest novel. A little bit of a cliffhanger-ette to entice them onto the second page. Indeed I filled the first few pages with hopefully exciting revelations. The only problem is, I now have to go for an unknown time before the story really begins.

   I've tried to keep the surprises rolling; some quite alarming bumps along the way, and the promise of more devilish events yet to happen. Will that be enough I wonder? Will my readers wait until it really begins in earnest. In truth I don't really know when that will be for this is one of my panster novels. The first five pages were easy. From there on I have no idea what's going to happen outside an ultimate battle of titanic proportions between...well that's enough of that.

   I know my previous novels have stuck more or less to the convention of grabbing them and keeping them gripped - or at least I hope I have. I suppose I'll just have to finish the whole thing, leave it for a few weeks and then come back to it. if it's boring, then despite it being my own work, hopefully I'll realise it and rework the first quarter.

   This is why I love writing. I have no idea what's going to happen to my character(s) until it does. In a couple of my works I've known from day one, but that's a rarity. I don't even know whether this will be a single or perhaps the start of a series. Lets see what my feverish imagination can conjure up.

    On with the typing.