Hook Us Query Letter

What if, in a modern world where Packs of werewolves exist side by side with a none-the-wiser humanity, one person stood between a lasting peace between the werewolf packs and all-out civil war? A young female werewolf called DES is bound by a blood-oath with the guarding of this person, the aging leader of all the Packs: the Dyre. But when the Dyre is murdered on Des’ watch, she’s sworn to protect the new Dyre, must deal with her emerging feelings for her stubborn new charge, RUBY, and uncover who’s behind the continuing murders of powerful werewolves. It’s stable employment—nice work, if you can get it . . . at least until the silver bullets start to fly. . . .

At the next full moon, when Ruby experiences her first Change into a werewolf, it is a chaotic time for all Packs, and Ruby’s enemies waste none of it by attacking Ruby and Des, abducting Ruby, and smuggling her out of the country. Des’ rival for Ruby’s affections, THIERRY LAFOURS, takes off to Paris, the place where the abductors’ trail goes cold. Des follows, joining Thierry, only to discover startling new abilities of her own . . . abilities she must hone and control if they’re to help her find her Dyre before it’s too late.

Ruby, meanwhile, is being held on a private island by the Dyre of the European Packs, LAZSLO KIRALY, who also heads a faction that wants to do away with the North American-style of Pack government. He’s willing to kill Ruby to do so. Des, Thierry, and a Tarot card-reading werewolf named NICOLAE have mere days in which to get Ruby away from him.

Kiraly soon kidnaps Ruby’s blood-oath protector and champion, Des—for a fight to the death—and kills Thierry LaFours. When the time to fight comes, Des enters a place called the Forest Primeval to fight Kiraly. In the meantime, Ruby is making her escape, carrying Des’ unconscious body, and helped by one of their repentant kidnappers, who believes that using Kiraly’s yacht they can escape the island. Both kidnappers wind up killed and Ruby is shot in the side. Des—awakened by the sounds of gunshots after killing Kiraly—makes good her escape with an unconscious Ruby. Their subsequent Mayday is answered by a fishing vessel. Eventually, they return to the U.S. and begin rebuilding their lives. Together.

Ethan M. Bailey—who was born “Rachel” but prefers to be called “Ethan” these days—was born and raised in New York City, and currently lives in New York State’s gorgeous Hudson Valley. Ethan has been a freelance everything, from copywriter to article writer. He’s also worked in various retail jobs and office jobs that have tried to, but haven’t quite, sucked the soul out of him. He’s earned a bachelor’s of fine arts in advertising, with a focus on copywriting, and is in the process of earning a second bachelor’s in English, with a minor in creative writing. This is his first completed novel.