The Body Electric - Special Edition (47 page)
Read The Body Electric - Special Edition Online
Authors: Beth Revis
PRAISE FOR BETH’S WORKS
The Across the Universe Series
--Three weeks on the NY Times Bestseller’s List
--Two Kirkus Starred Reviews
--Romantic Times Seal of Excellence
--Two-time recipient of Romantic Times YA Futuristic Book of the Year
--YALSA Teen’s Top Ten Award of 2012
Across the Universe
“Cunningly executed thriller…a compulsively readable crowd-pleaser.”
–-Booklist
“…a believable romance and a series of tantalizing mysteries that will hold readers’ attention.”
–Publisher’s Weekly
“Who Should Read This: Well, sci-fi and mystery fans will love it, but so will any girl or boy who’s ever sat in a room full of quiet conformists and wanted to scream at them all, ‘Wake up!’”
–MTV.com
A Million Suns
“Revis has penned a fast-paced, action-packed follow-up with her dystopian, sci-fi thriller…that explores not only the nature of authority and loyalty but fear of the unknown and fulfilling one’s personal destiny.”
–LA Times, 8 January 2011
“There literally isn’t one dull moment in the entire story!”
–Seventeen.com
“Setting and plot are the heart and soul of this ripping space thriller, and they’re unforgettable.”
–Kirkus, starred review
Shades of Earth
“A tense and delicious ride — one that satisfyingly brings the series full circle.” –The Examiner
“[Revis has a gift] as a propulsive storyteller with a knack for jarring surprises and raising the stakes.” –Booklist, Dec. 1, 2012
“[Shades of Earth] brings it home on a planet far from home.” –Kirkus, Dec. 1, 2012
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This book came from two things I love most in the world: reading and traveling. The first time I left the continent was in college, with a trip through my education program organized by Dawn Shepherd. She led us fearlessly to a little island none of us had heard of before. Malta left an indelible print upon my soul, and I have been forever, irrevocably entranced with this beautiful, unique country. Subsequent trips—notably to the Italian version of Venice—helped me to see the world in a new perspective and invent a new one of my own.
But of course,
The Body Electric
is more than a world—it is also a story. And while Ella and Jack and the rest are fully mine, I was inspired, like many other modern science fiction authors, by the work of the brilliant Philip K. Dick. Ella Shepherd is an homage to Dick’s
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
and the Reverie Mental Spa owes a debt to the novella
Total Recall
.
I have so much gratitude to the people who helped me produce this book. Merrilee Heifetz and Sarah Nagel at Writers House are my very own knights in shining armor, and among the few people who inspire me to never give up. I will never forget how awesome you are. Thanks go also to Gillian Levinson for reading and providing editorial feedback. Hafsah Faizal developed a beautiful cover and interior design for the book, and I’m so honored to have the chance to work with her.
Carrie Ryan and Lauren DeStefano are my heroes; thank you for the countless emails, the tea and sympathy, and the encouragement as I wrote this story. Elana Johnson and Natalie Whipple are both fantastic writers and incredible people; thank you for giving me information, advice, and cheers as I started to turn this story into a book. Extra love to Alan Gratz and the Bat Cave group for helping me to revise the story, especially Megan Miranda and Megan Shepherd for reading the whole thing; Heather Zundel for being so enthusiastic for this tale; Christy Farley for willing to drop everything to read for me; the Breathless Girls, who have become my sisters: Andrea Cremer, Marie Lu, and Jessica Spotswood. I know I’m forgetting people—I’m sorry! I have the best friends in the world, and my life is better for it.
Huge thanks to my local independent bookstore, Malaprops, for always wanting my next book!
There are three people who are more important to me than all the words on all the pages: my parents, Ted and JoAnne Graham, and my husband, Corwin Revis. I will never forget your love.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Beth Revis is the
NY Times
bestselling author
of the Across the Universe trilogy, hailed by the
LA Times
as “fast-paced [and] action-packed.” The complete trilogy is now available in more than twenty languages throughout the world. A native of North Carolina, Beth loves to travel, and first visited Malta when she was in college. She currently lives near the Appalachian mountains with her husband and dogs, and is working on several new books.
Find her online at www.bethrevis.com
or on Twitter @BethRevis.
A SINCERE THANKS TO ALL MY READERS
INSPIRATION FOR THE TURING TEST
THE INSPIRATION BEHIND
THE BODY ELECTRIC