Fiction Editor Needed for 150,000-Word Investigative / Conspiracy Thriller

ENOCH is a completed approximately 150,000-word investigative/conspiracy thriller and Book One of The Rabbit Hole Series. I am looking for an experienced fiction editor to help prepare the manuscript for publication. The novel follows investigative journalist Daniel Mercer after an archaeological discovery draws him into a mystery involving the Book of Enoch, ancient texts, disputed artifacts, archival evidence, historical mysteries, and a modern network of people who may be preserving evidence, manipulating it, or both. The story combines contemporary thriller fiction with real historical texts, archaeological locations, and documented mysteries. A central theme is the difference between evidence and interpretation: who collected it, preserved it, classified it, and what happens when uncertainty is removed. Current status The manuscript is complete at approximately 150,000 words, consisting of a prologue and 36 chapters. It has already undergone extensive chapter-by-chapter and whole-manuscript analysis. I am completing a final author revision before handing it to a professional editor. I am not looking for someone to rewrite the novel or reduce the word count simply to reach an arbitrary target. I want an experienced fiction editor who can identify where the manuscript genuinely becomes stronger through tightening, clarification, or revision. Areas I would particularly like the editor to assess include: • unnecessary repetition or duplicated ideas • pacing and exposition • dialogue and repeated conversational patterns • character consistency and voice • continuity across characters, dates, locations, artifacts, and evidence • clarity within complex investigative and evidence sequences • unnecessary recaps or explanations of concepts the reader already understands • sentence-level clarity and readability • any remaining structural or character issues Some uncertainty in the central mystery is intentional, so an important part of the assignment will be distinguishing deliberate ambiguity from genuine clarity or continuity problems. Who I'm looking for Ideally, you have professional experience editing commercial mystery, thriller, conspiracy, archaeological, or investigative fiction and are comfortable working with a long manuscript containing multiple characters, timelines, documents, artifacts, and evidence chains. Please include the following in your proposal: Your experience editing thriller or mystery fiction, particularly novels over 100,000 words. One or two published novels you have edited, if available. Based on the description above, whether you would recommend developmental editing, line/copy editing, or a combination, and why. Your proposed fixed price for approximately 150,000 words. I have intentionally not set a budget because I would like experienced editors to recommend the appropriate scope and quote accordingly. Your estimated turnaround time. Whether your quote includes a second pass or author follow-up after I review your edits. Whether you would be willing to complete a paid 2,000–3,000-word sample edit before I select an editor for the complete manuscript, and what you would charge for that sample. I expect the final manuscript to be ready for professional editing shortly. Please begin your proposal with “Leave the break visible” so I know you have read the entire posting.