The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee

[Young Adult Fiction (Ages 12-17)] [Read by Phoebe Strole] Debut author Katharine McGee has created a breathtakingly original series filled with high-tech luxury and futuristic glamour, where the impossible feels just within reach. But in this world, the higher you go, the farther there is to fall. New York City as you've never seen it before. A thousand-story tower stretching into the sky. A glittering vision of the future, where anything is possible -- if you want it enough. Welcome to Manhattan, 2118. A hundred years in the future, New York is a city of innovation and dreams. But people never change: everyone here wants something and everyone has something to lose. Leda Cole's flawless exterior belies a secret addiction -- to a drug she never should have tried and a boy she never should have touched. Eris Dodd-Radson's beautiful, carefree life falls to pieces when a heartbreaking betrayal tears her family apart. Rylin Myers's job on one of the highest floors sweeps her into a world -- and a romance -- she never imagined but will her new life cost Rylin her old one? Watt Bakradi is a tech genius with a secret: he knows everything about everyone. But when he's hired to spy by an upper-floor girl, he finds himself caught up in a complicated web of lies. And living above everyone else on the thousandth floor is Avery Fuller, the girl genetically designed to be perfect. The girl who seems to have it all -- yet is tormented by the one thing she can never have. Editorial Reviews From School Library Journal Gr 10 Up--One hundred years in the future, New York City's skyline has been dramatically altered by the addition of a 1,000-story tower. The wealthy dwell in the upmost levels, while those who support the infrastructure of the tower live below. The book opens with an unidentified young woman plunging to her death from the penthouse. The remainder of the title flashes back two months and follows the points of view of five teens. Perfect Avery Fuller lives in the penthouse. She harbors a secret love for her adopted brother, Atlas. Meanwhile, her best friend, Leda, is tentatively dating Atlas. Cool girl Eris is about to lose everything. Rylin, who works for party boy Cord, tries to juggle her feelings for her boss with her loyalty to her incarcerated boyfriend. All of these plotlines intersect with the expected amount of fashion, scandal, partying, drug use, and hookups. Readers will spend time wondering which teen's dark secret would lead her to jump or be pushed from the tower. This will be gobbled up by fans of Gossip Girl and its ilk. High-tech elements are prevalent throughout, but it is the characters who will keep young adults reading. VERDICT An excellent hook and familiar tropes make this title a likely hit with teens.--Kristin Anderson, Columbus Metropolitan Library System, OH --This text refers to the audioCD edition. Review The luxe lives of Manhattan's elite are even more extraordinary in Katharine McGee's futuristic, highly addictive page-turner. The Thousandth Floor will give you vertigo and leave you eager for more. (Cecily von Ziegesar, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Gossip Girl) Katharine McGee's vision of glamorous twenty-second century teens makes for an addictive and compelling read that left me longing for the second installment! (Alyson Noël, #1 New York Times Author) Twenty-second century Gossip Girl-like fun. Sexy and engrossing! (Melissa de la Cruz, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author) An unparalleled mash-up of romance, mystery, and science fiction unlike anything I've read before. Katharine McGee gives the speculative fiction genre a much-needed make-over with a novel that's as glamorous as it is fiercely intelligent. (Kass Morgan, New York Times bestselling author of The 100) A gleaming future where a dirty secret still has pull on any human heart. (Anna Godbersen, New York Times bestselling author of The Luxe) Compelling and imaginative - I loved everything from the fascinating vision of the future to the scandalous lives of the characters. (Amy Tintera, author of Ruined) A confident debut, replete with romance, jealousy, and enticing future fashions and tech, McGee's story delivers more than enough drama and excitement to hook readers and leave them anticipating the next book in the trilogy. (Publishers Weekly) A clever construction, readers who love uncovering scandalous secrets will find themselves staying up late. This is a towering debut. (Booklist) This will be gobbled up by fans of Gossip Girl. An excellent hook and familiar tropes make this title a likely hit. (School Library Journal) McGee has done her work in world building and character development to make a juicy, memorable future that readers will want to revisit. (Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books) --This text refers to the audioCD edition. From the Back Cover New York City as you've never seen it before. A thousand-story tower stretching into the sky. A glittering vision of the future where anything is possible-if you want it enough. Welcome to Manhattan, 2118. A hundred years in the future, New York is a city of innovation and dreams. Everyone there wants something . . . and everyone has something to lose. Leda Cole's flawless exterior belies a secret addiction-to a drug she never should have tried, and a boy she never should have touched. Eris Dodd-Radson's beautiful, carefree life falls to pieces when a heartbreaking betrayal tears her family apart. Rylin Myers's job on one of the highest floors sweeps her into a world-and a romance-she never imagined . . . but will this new life cost Rylin her old one? Watt Bakradi is a tech genius with a secret: he knows everything about everyone. But when he's hired to spy for an upper-floor girl, he finds himself caught in a complicated web of lies. And living above everyone else on the thousandth floor is Avery Fuller, the girl genetically designed to be perfect. The girl who seems to have it all-yet is tormented by the one thing she can never have.Amid breathtaking advancement and high-tech luxury, five teenagers struggle to find their place at the top of the world. But when you're this high up, there's nowhere to go but down. . . . --This text refers to the audioCD edition. About the Author Katharine McGee is from Houston, Texas. She studied English and French literature at Princeton and has an MBA from Stanford. It was during her years living in a second-floor apartment in New York City that she kept daydreaming about skyscrapers and then she started writing. The Thousandth Floor is her first novel. --This text refers to the audioCD edition.