[QCrit] YA Contemporary Romance, THE PICNIC BLANKET (75k, First Attempt)

Hey guys! This is my second ever completed novel but the first one I've really queried. I'm super nervous to share so please be kind but don't be afraid to rip it apart, either. Feel free to ask me any questions you have. Thanks in advance!

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Dear [Agent],

I'm seeking representation for THE PICNIC BLANKET, a queer contemporary YA novel complete at 75,700 words. An enemies-to-lovers romance braided with the history of the AIDS generation, it will appeal to readers of Canto Contigo by Jonny Garza Villa and When You Call My Name by Tucker Shaw. [Agent Personalization — May Adjust Comps Based On MSWL]

Eighteen-year-old Nico just wants to go on exchange already — put a whole ocean between himself and a bad year he won't talk about and start over. All he has to do is complete the volunteer hours he's been avoiding, and babysit the old guy who has to sign off on them. Sounds simple, but on day one, Nico gets the door slammed in his face.

That’s how he meets Franklin, a sharp-tongued elderly gay man with no interest in being anyone's good deed. Frank came of age during the AIDS crisis: the protests, the losses the world ignored, a first love he's spent forty years grieving in silence with no one left who remembers. He offers that history not as a lesson but as a life, changing how Nico understands his own.

Then Perry (almost literally) crashes into the picture. A good-natured boy and a genuine menace behind the wheel, he nearly flattens Nico at a crosswalk. Unlike the other blind dates his friends have saddled him with, Perry is, inconveniently, the first one Nico actually wants to see again. But the closer Perry gets, the more there is to hide. When no one’s watching, Nico is still calling Christian — the ex-boyfriend who made fleeing to Europe feel like the only way to survive — and he can't bring himself to explain it. Or bring himself to stop.

As Frank's health starts to fail and the truth finally comes out, Nico realizes no ocean is wide enough to outrun what he won't name: why he can't stop calling Christian, what really happened between them last year, and what it will cost him to finally hang up.

THE PICNIC BLANKET is a story about first love, second chances, and the queer history that makes both possible — told by a narrator you'll want to trust right up until you realize you shouldn't have.

I'm a Canadian writer in Toronto and a graduate of [school], where I received the [award] for Diversity Writing for a queer-focused feature. My work has appeared in [x], [y], and [z]. THE PICNIC BLANKET is my debut, drawn from my life in the community it portrays — and my respect for the generation that came before it.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Best,
[name]
[email/phone]