Thrust into an unusual and harrowing position to help a French spy thwart a terror attack against the United States, a suburban New York family must rise to the occasion in more ways than they could have ever imagined.
2. Antagonist Sketch
The antagonist, a mysterious new terrorist organization named 829921, is mainly unseen. The threat it poses, a terror attack on the United States timed to take advantage of anticipated disorder within the young Trump administration, creates an anxious urgency that drives the plot forward while the lack of details adds to the horror of the unknown. From the outset, readers learn that 829921 has been quietly infiltrating the government, and it appears that somehow only Antoine (the spy) and the unsuspecting family he recruits are in any position to respond to this threat. As the story unfolds, readers gain a clearer understanding of 829921, Antoine's disturbingly complicated history with the organization, and how and why Antoine came to recruit this family.
3. Breakout Titles
The Family Who Trusted a Spy
The Winter That Changed the World
To Trust a Spy
4. Comparables
Churchill's Secret Messenger: A WW2 Novel of Spies & the French Resistance by Alan Hlad (pub. 4/27/2021)
This book is about a woman who is drafted into Winston Churchill’s overseas spy network during World War II. She helps the French Resistance behind enemy lines and works to liberate Nazi-occupied Paris. It is similar to my book because it is about unlikely heroes needing to rise to the occasion and use talents against a dire conflict, and it is a thriller that relies on a true-life setting (1941 in Europe in the midst of WWII; my book is set in the opening months of the Trump administration).
Enemy at the Gates (A Mitch Rapp novel) by Vince Flynn and Kyle Mills (pub. 9/14/2021)
This book is a spy thriller about Mitch Rapp, a top CIA top operative who must find a high-level mole to prevent the rewriting of the world order. Similarly, my book is about a family who must work with a spy to prevent an attack that would trigger the rewriting of the world order while knowing the government is already compromised by members or sympathizers of the terrorist organization planning the attack. Both works involve people operating under near-impossible circumstances to save the United States and prevent the triumph of evil over good.
5. Logline
When a home intruder in suburban New York claims to be a French spy on an urgent, secret mission, a father must race to figure out how to protect his family, keep his sanity, and save the world.
6. Inner and Secondary Conflict
The father, Ethan Starker, is a law professor on sabbatical, who mourns his wife and lives with his 12-year-old son (Asher) and their French au pair (Joelle). A loving father, Ethan is committed to supporting Asher's attempts to overcome his disability, and he strives to shield him from others' misguided observations. Ethan struggles to ensure Asher and Joelle stay happy while Antoine is living with them and keep the family together after disaster strikes close to home. He must also handle the stress of harboring Antoine while eluding authorities. Over the novel, Ethan returns to pondering the morality of his decision to help Antoine, ultimately taking a risk by trusting a disgraced rabbi and then a New York Army National Guard medic (Mackenzie) with the mission while revealing his deepest fears. Ethan continuously questions whether he should trust Antoine, suspecting that he is probably not exactly who he claims to be. While he tries to work with Antoine, Ethan encounters problems as he views him as a competitor for Asher's attention and affection. As Ethan begins to fall in love with Mackenzie, he must suddenly face his demons from his recent marriage. As life becomes increasingly sorrowful and unbearable in their town after disaster strikes, Ethan also struggles with how to honor the milestones and traditions of the Jewish faith in a time of crisis.
Other major characters also face important conflicts over the course of the story. Joelle must deal with a worsening anxiety disorder as she helps Ethan harbor Antoine, and she must live with the uncertainty of her boyfriend's whereabouts even as she learns of an unexpected pregnancy. Joelle also faces fears that her Muslim background will lead to visa complications under the new Trump administration. Asher must deal with the distress of Joelle's imminent return to France a year after his mother's untimely death, as well as overcoming challenges posed by his disability. Antoine continuously battles against the threatened success of his mission, his uncertain future and a new serious illness. Mackenzie must accept the apparent death of her ex-husband and young son even as she struggles to heal her beleaguered community as a National Guard medic. She and Ethan also run into difficult decisions as their romance begins to blossom in the wake of unspeakable tragedy.
A subplot involves a single mother (Shannon) and her adopted daughter (Avayan) from China living in the Seattle area who are flown to the White House to meet President Trump following Avayan's unsolicited letter. When the pair wind up rushed into an underground bunker with the president and a Secret Service agent (Sam), they struggle to figure out what is happening. Avayan, who is deaf, must ultimately realize a unique opportunity to become a hero as she deals with the apparent death of her mother. In the meantime, Sam must overcome doubts as to where his loyalties lie.
7. Setting
This book is a 96,000-word espionage thriller set in an alternate 2017, with most of the action unfolding on Long Island, New York, and in Washington, D.C. The book explores complicated human relationships and the growth of diverse characters who must work together under highly unusual circumstances, under the backdrop of the political tensions of the period. The book's main themes include overcoming the odds, faith, heroism, death and loss, love, disability, and parenting.
New York Pitch Assignments - December 2021
in New York Write to Pitch 2023 and 2024
Posted
The Family Who Trusted a Spy
by Ron Leshnower
______________________________
1. Story Statement
Thrust into an unusual and harrowing position to help a French spy thwart a terror attack against the United States, a suburban New York family must rise to the occasion in more ways than they could have ever imagined.
2. Antagonist Sketch
The antagonist, a mysterious new terrorist organization named 829921, is mainly unseen. The threat it poses, a terror attack on the United States timed to take advantage of anticipated disorder within the young Trump administration, creates an anxious urgency that drives the plot forward while the lack of details adds to the horror of the unknown. From the outset, readers learn that 829921 has been quietly infiltrating the government, and it appears that somehow only Antoine (the spy) and the unsuspecting family he recruits are in any position to respond to this threat. As the story unfolds, readers gain a clearer understanding of 829921, Antoine's disturbingly complicated history with the organization, and how and why Antoine came to recruit this family.
3. Breakout Titles
The Family Who Trusted a Spy
The Winter That Changed the World
To Trust a Spy
4. Comparables
Churchill's Secret Messenger: A WW2 Novel of Spies & the French Resistance by Alan Hlad (pub. 4/27/2021)
This book is about a woman who is drafted into Winston Churchill’s overseas spy network during World War II. She helps the French Resistance behind enemy lines and works to liberate Nazi-occupied Paris. It is similar to my book because it is about unlikely heroes needing to rise to the occasion and use talents against a dire conflict, and it is a thriller that relies on a true-life setting (1941 in Europe in the midst of WWII; my book is set in the opening months of the Trump administration).
Enemy at the Gates (A Mitch Rapp novel) by Vince Flynn and Kyle Mills (pub. 9/14/2021)
This book is a spy thriller about Mitch Rapp, a top CIA top operative who must find a high-level mole to prevent the rewriting of the world order. Similarly, my book is about a family who must work with a spy to prevent an attack that would trigger the rewriting of the world order while knowing the government is already compromised by members or sympathizers of the terrorist organization planning the attack. Both works involve people operating under near-impossible circumstances to save the United States and prevent the triumph of evil over good.
5. Logline
When a home intruder in suburban New York claims to be a French spy on an urgent, secret mission, a father must race to figure out how to protect his family, keep his sanity, and save the world.
6. Inner and Secondary Conflict
The father, Ethan Starker, is a law professor on sabbatical, who mourns his wife and lives with his 12-year-old son (Asher) and their French au pair (Joelle). A loving father, Ethan is committed to supporting Asher's attempts to overcome his disability, and he strives to shield him from others' misguided observations. Ethan struggles to ensure Asher and Joelle stay happy while Antoine is living with them and keep the family together after disaster strikes close to home. He must also handle the stress of harboring Antoine while eluding authorities. Over the novel, Ethan returns to pondering the morality of his decision to help Antoine, ultimately taking a risk by trusting a disgraced rabbi and then a New York Army National Guard medic (Mackenzie) with the mission while revealing his deepest fears. Ethan continuously questions whether he should trust Antoine, suspecting that he is probably not exactly who he claims to be. While he tries to work with Antoine, Ethan encounters problems as he views him as a competitor for Asher's attention and affection. As Ethan begins to fall in love with Mackenzie, he must suddenly face his demons from his recent marriage. As life becomes increasingly sorrowful and unbearable in their town after disaster strikes, Ethan also struggles with how to honor the milestones and traditions of the Jewish faith in a time of crisis.
Other major characters also face important conflicts over the course of the story. Joelle must deal with a worsening anxiety disorder as she helps Ethan harbor Antoine, and she must live with the uncertainty of her boyfriend's whereabouts even as she learns of an unexpected pregnancy. Joelle also faces fears that her Muslim background will lead to visa complications under the new Trump administration. Asher must deal with the distress of Joelle's imminent return to France a year after his mother's untimely death, as well as overcoming challenges posed by his disability. Antoine continuously battles against the threatened success of his mission, his uncertain future and a new serious illness. Mackenzie must accept the apparent death of her ex-husband and young son even as she struggles to heal her beleaguered community as a National Guard medic. She and Ethan also run into difficult decisions as their romance begins to blossom in the wake of unspeakable tragedy.
A subplot involves a single mother (Shannon) and her adopted daughter (Avayan) from China living in the Seattle area who are flown to the White House to meet President Trump following Avayan's unsolicited letter. When the pair wind up rushed into an underground bunker with the president and a Secret Service agent (Sam), they struggle to figure out what is happening. Avayan, who is deaf, must ultimately realize a unique opportunity to become a hero as she deals with the apparent death of her mother. In the meantime, Sam must overcome doubts as to where his loyalties lie.
7. Setting
This book is a 96,000-word espionage thriller set in an alternate 2017, with most of the action unfolding on Long Island, New York, and in Washington, D.C. The book explores complicated human relationships and the growth of diverse characters who must work together under highly unusual circumstances, under the backdrop of the political tensions of the period. The book's main themes include overcoming the odds, faith, heroism, death and loss, love, disability, and parenting.