QUERY-REVERSAL OF PROVIDENCE- 4th REVISION

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Ex-Army security expert Ryan Anderson thought it was just his bad luck when a careless truck driver rammed into his car. He had no idea how deadly the truck's cargo was, or that the men guarding it had been given very explicit instructions- exterminate any witnesses.

But when the men from the truck hunt him down and brutally attack, Ryan retaliates with the help of attorney Jessica Webb. Turns out, she's the smart one. The one who figures out that it's not the Chechen gang posing as a trucking company that they have to worry about, but the really bad man who paid them to ferry his illicit shipment to Seattle from half a world away.

Working together, Ryan and Jessica quickly realize that his seemingly random accident has thrust them into the middle of a sinister scheme set in motion decades ago by the fall of the Soviet Union. They uncover a bloody trail that leads from Washington to the Sudan to Moscow, when Jessica suddenly disappears. Turns out, he's the brave one. The one who knows that unless he can find her, and stop the one man who started it all, they'll both be dead by first light. Ashes, actually.

REVERSAL OF PROVIDENCE is an 84,000-WORD thriller, first in a series. Readers of authors like Vince Flynn, Frederick Forsyth, Alex Berenson, and Daniel Silva might enjoy this book.

I have a BA in English from the University of Iowa. Like my protagonist Ryan Anderson, I am a 'security expert'. I own a business specializing in products for video surveillance.

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Query: The Silver Strand (second revision)

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Dear Agent,

The Silver Strand is a middle grade, fantasy adventure complete at 55,000 words.  The novel is based in the northern coast of New South Wales, Australia and in the inner earth city of Agartha.  It will appeal to readers who laugh out loud at Morris Gleitzman's Toad Rage, or those who love mythical creatures, secret underground worlds, high-tech flying devices and action adventures like Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl.

When thirteen year old Isabelle Tresdon wishes her chunky, silver strand of hair never sprouted, it tarnishes and withers away, along with her imagination.  Turns out the lock is her source of inner magic and in five days time it will die, and so will she.  To save her strand, she must undertake three tests with the help of two Masterminds.  In exchange, she agrees to deliver a crystal bracelet encoded with information.

Trouble is, these two tricksters manipulate energy using their minds and their idea of tests equals Isabelle's worst nightmare.  First they transform her into a toad until she masters tapping into her animal instincts.  Sure, toad warts aren't pretty.  But when they prickle, she best get her poison glands ready, unless she wants to be gobbled by a snake or squished by her father's spade.  Second, she stands up to a dragon that threatens to roast her on a spit if she fails to draw his portrait. 

After defying death, Isabelle thinks her last test will be a breeze until she and one of her companions are accused of being traitors and imprisoned.  All along, Isabelle is used a pawn in the Masterminds' game to expose corruption within the ranks of Agartha's rulers.  To escape, she must muster what remains of her inner magic and battle powerful enemies who break all the rules to seize the bracelet and protect their secrets.  If Isabelle's already good as dead, she may as well go down fighting.

Thank you for your time and consideration. 

Louisa Clarkson