After some waffling, I'm throwing my query letter out here to see if anyone has helpful input - and / or thoughts on better comps.
Thanks for reading!
...
Dear [...]:
1984 meets Black Mirror in BURN THAT TRASH, an 87,000-word adult speculative novel with psychological thriller elements. It combines a technologically advanced setting that questions AI as in Jungle House by Julianne Pachico with the thematic exploration of power and human nature as in Blood Over Bright Haven by M. L. Wang.
The city with its AI-powered buildings, air-filtering domes, and strong surveillance is supposed to keep rural-raised Mia safe. But that safety comes at a cost: married off young, Mia must labor alongside her husband in the overcrowded cleaning facilities to earn her place within the city’s protective walls.
When Mia’s husband dies in a home invasion, the killer’s punishment is to fill the gap he left in the workforce and in Mia’s life. Mia is horrified at having a murderer in her home, though the mayor assures her the shock collar around his neck will protect her if need be. Only, the collar is synced to her heart rate, unable to differentiate between real danger and Mia’s anxiety attacks.
And the criminal is not the only source of her anxiety. With her husband out of the way, the mayor has cast his eyes on her, abusing his authority to worm himself into her life. From countless check-ins and “harmless” visits at her worksite, to accessing her smart house and the city’s surveillance cameras, he stops at nothing to pursue her. To escape him, Mia must flee the city, and the killer might be the only one willing to help. But trusting him means coming clean about the night of the home invasion, and her role in her husband’s death.
After growing up in [...], I worked in [the local publishing industry]. Now I live [here] with my binational family and am deep in my soccer mom era. I love baking bread, reading with my children, and discussing all things writing in my Discord servers. Mia’s anxiety is modeled after my own. I am a mentee in [program's name] with this novel.
Thank you for your time and consideration.