PW #336: Young Adult Mystery #ownvoices: A STUDY IN BLUE

Manuscript Status: Finished

Mentor Name: Sharon Johnston and Stacey Nash

Mentee Name: Hoda Agharazi

Title: A STUDY IN BLUE

Category: Young Adult

Genre: Mystery #ownvoices

Word Count: 76,000 words

Pitch:

Female Sherlock Holmes meets Riverdale. Polar opposites Skylar Holmes and Jane Watson team up to solve cases for their fellow students. But their high school investigations instead lead to a search for a killer. When they get too close to the truth, they land themselves on the murderer’s list of targets. In this deadly game of cat and mouse, whoever catches the other first wins—and lives.

Excerpt:

It’s like I’m about to sell my soul to the devil.

I stand outside the diner, looking in through the glass walls. The tips of my fingers have gone numb. My legs covered in goosebumps. Wearing a skirt in this windy weather probably wasn’t my best idea. But it’s not like I knew I’d be standing outside for ten minutes. The smart thing to do would be to go inside for warmth, but I don’t know anyone who’s ever been in the presence of that girl to experience any sort of warmth whatsoever. There is nothing warm about her. In fact, it’s probably colder being near her than out here.

Skylar sits in the corner booth alone, reading a book. Her black hair pulled to the side over her left shoulder, and her dark brown eyes going over the page with impressive speed. Seriously, who skips class to come here?

I’m stalling.

Okay. I can do this. Pulling back my shoulders and lifting my head high, I make my way toward her table. “Hi.” I wince at the squeaky pitch of my voice.

She doesn’t look up. Instead, she flips the page of her book, keeping her nose buried inside.

“I was wondering when you’d come in,” she monotones. “Kind of creepy having you stare at me from outside for so long.”

Oh. My. God. Skylar Holmes just called me creepy.

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