An Agent's Inbox #9

Dear Sara,

I am currently seeking representation for my YA fantasy REDHUNT, and your interest is stories with a gritty narrative and darker themes encourages me that you will connect with my book. 

The end of the war will change seventeen-year-old Olethea Parker’s life forever.

In the Lands, a gritty otherworld ruled by the Tribunal’s wonderworking power, Reds have always been hunted, the minds of the people have long been controlled, and unnatural Beasts and Carriers destroy anyone who opposes their makers. Olie is a Red, one marked by red hair and immune to the Tribunal’s power. As her Colony falls, her life is desperately close to ending, but Olie's mother sacrifices herself so Olie can live.

Olie's survival is imperative, because she alone has the power to end the Tribunal's bloodthirsty reign. With the aid of rebels, Olie is hidden beneath the nose of Regime soldiers on a farm in the East. There, Olie discovers a revolution brewing. One that hinges on her and a prophecy foretold in wonderworking-made Tales. When Hunters--blood-trackers bred by the Tribunal to kill their adversaries--come for her, Olie narrowly escapes with a boy trained to protect her.

Hunted across the East, Olie begins to uncover a power she never dreamed she possessed, and the secrets her mother had long hidden. But not even the Hunters stalking her, or the dangers that litter the Eastern landscape, are as perilous as falling in love with a boy who would die for her.

REDHUNT is the first novel in a planned trilogy that will appeal to fans of the unique fantasy world in Leigh Bardugo's Grisha trilogy, as well as the dark twisted elements present in Cassandra Clare's The Mortal Instruments series. Lindsay Cummings, author of the forthcoming The Murder Complex and The Balance Keepers has already given my novel this terrific blurb: "Redhunt is an epic tale of love and betrayal, with writing so gorgeous I was devastated by the time it was all over."

Before REDHUNT, I wrote both stage and screen plays, which were locally produced. This is my first foray into YA, and recently I completed a workshop with Nova Ren Suma through MediaBistro. You can find me on Twitter and the blogosphere, where I’m busy building my author platform, and always, ardently writing or reading something.

Thank you for your time. I hope you enjoy reading Olie’s story, as much I enjoyed writing it. 

My best,

R.F.

REDHUNT

The sweat pooling between my knees and the crooks of my elbows wakes me, but it’s the shrieking of the Watchers hawks through my open window that jolts me from bed. One swoops past our cottage, sounding its call, and then darts high in the sky and away to safety. They come from the boundary of Green Mountains. These cries are a warning. We can run but we will not win. Soon our colony will be invaded, the very guts of it ripped apart until the pieces can’t be assembled again. Soon, all my hiding will be over.

Momma skitters across the living room like a harassed mouse chased by a broom, her shape is a blur to my still sleep-filled eyes. She’ll be punished for having a daughter like me, and it’s too late to change that.

As she passes my doorway again, I see why I’m sweating. The fire in the hearth blazes, being fed by stacks of paper and twine, its heat thickening the air of this late summer night. On the other side of the room, her trunk is cast open and mostly emptied. She grabs out another handful of paper, sending buttons and thread-spools falling to the floor beside her feet.

“We need to go. What are you doing?” I ask, pressing into the doorway and lifting the hem of my gown off my sweat soaked thighs. After a few beats with no answer, I move from the doorway into her path.