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I’m excited to offer my adult M/M romantasy novel, THE IRIS AND THE ACONITE, complete at 105,000 words. Romantasy is still going strong, but as a trend it is beginning to cool. With that in mind, your window is likely closing and a word count over 100k as a debut isn't going to do you any favors It features the court politics and conflicting loyalties of Mask of Mirrors by M.A. Carrick, and is set in a secondary, Slavic-inspired world reminiscent of Where the Dark Stands Still by Ania Poranek.
It’s a simple plan. Seduce the king, platonically. Get him alone. Kill him. The chancellor’s only warning? Do not let the king charm you. So I wasn't really sure how a person would go about seducing someone platonically, then I remembered this is M/M so it could be under the guise of friendship, etc. Overall, I think it's a good hook.
Kresimir Zaheriev, beautiful as he is prickly, is a courtesan by trade, so he is certain nothing of the sort could befall him. Not when it was all the king’s fault that he was in this business. Your tenses are getting mixed up - some present (is a courtesan) and some past (was in this business) Had his benevolent monarch not slaughtered his parents under false accusations of heresy, Kresimir and his ailing best friend wouldn’t have had to fend for themselves. It is only reasonable that when he learns of the chancellor’s search for a king’s assassin, Kresimir jumps at the opportunity for vengeance. So I read this as a job opening to assassinate the king - which the opening hook supports - and wondered why someone would just advertise that job title. Then I realized you meant that he's the king's personal assassin, but I had to untangle it. Needs clarifying.
As expected, Kresimir effortlessly steals the king’s attention upon his arrival in the capital. idk if "steals" is the word you want here, b/c it implies he's taking it from someone else. When a kidnapping case targets Kresimir's fellow courtesan, the king insists the two of them work together, often in close quarters. But, as Kresimir grows closer to the king, another problem arises: King Athanasi is nothing like the tyrant Kresimir had dreamed of–infuriatingly handsome, maddeningly cheery, with a keen interest in gardening and a habit of lending a hand to anyone who needs it. Soon, the king's affection chips away at Kresimir's carefully tailored armor, and Kresimir begins to doubt the circumstances of his parents’ execution. But he has already promised the King’s death to the chancellor, and going back on his word means not only losing his life, but that of his best friend as well. And there is nothing that Kresimir would not sacrifice for her, not even the king who had accepted every jagged piece of him with a smile. Not totally clear on what this last line is trying to say.
I am a first-generation Polish immigrant raised in the Midwest, and I currently live and work in Hokkaido, Japan, as an assistant language teacher. I also hold a B.A. in English and an M.A. in Library Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and have self-published on the serial-publishing platform Tapas under the pseudonym REDACTED. Through my work, I hope to bring more attention to Polish history and culture. Thank you for your consideration.
Overall this is in good shape, but the word count might give you an issue. The only other thing I would clarify is whether or not this is historical, or fantasy. There's no place / kingdom name, and since you lean on your Polish background in the bio, I wasn't sure whether this is suppposed to be historical or fantasy, or a fantasy kingdom based on Polish history and culture.