The Body Electric

this book is about me: Ella

This was so fun! Review to come. :)

REVIEW:

I've mentioned before and will probably mention again, Beth Revis is one of my all-time favorite YA Sci-Fi authors. I very much credit Across the Universe for showing me I actually really like YA Sci-Fi and dual POV. Anything she writes is basically an instal-buy for me, but you can imagine how excited I was when I won a signed, limited print edition (aka: VERY excited).

While I did find the opening to be a little on the slow side, the rest of the plot more than made up for it. I generally expect action, explosions, swoons and lots of twists from Revis, and in those respects, The Body Electric did not disappoint. I was expecting some sort of Inception-type elements, which were definitely present, but the twists in the book went so beyond what I was expecting and I really enjoyed the direction the book went in.

The Body Electric is very Sci-Fi with a fascinating futuristic world set in Malta (which was totally fun to read about) with ties to the Across the Universe series that were really fun to come across. Between cyborgs, androids, nanobots and more, I was totally immersed in The Body Electric's otherworldy-yet-not-unrealistic setting. As a bonus, the protagonist is a PoC and there are several PoC secondary characters, which was really nice to see.

I did notice that there were quite a few filter phrases throughout the work (which, to be honest, is more of a peeve I only notice because I'm a writer), and I did feel that the villain near the end bordered on a little too unequivocally evil—I tend to prefer my villains to be more nuanced and, at best, even somewhat sympathetic. But those flaws in no way ruined my enjoyment of the novel. I'm giving The Body Electric 4/5 stars, and I recommend it to those who like YA Sci-Fi rife with plot twists.

I can't wait to see what Revis comes up with next!

WELL Beth Revis did it again. She created, birthed, and gave me a new book that I have absolutely loved. The Body Electric was so much different than I thought it was going to be. Of course we all knew it was going to be a sci-fi read that had to deal with mind altering, war ending, and trust issues. What else is new?

This book is in the same universe as “Across the Universe”, Revis' very popular series that I absolutely loved. The story is in the prospective of Ella Shepherd. A young girl that is currently dealing with the loss of her very smart scientist father and having to take care of her sick mother. Ella comes from a very smart family. Her father has been trying to recreate a new human brain that can think for itself. Her mother has created a way for people to relive their memories. Of course when there are scientist involved, there are secrets that aren't shared and problems that rise with the creations.

[ WARNING MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS ]

Ella stars to worry about her mother more and more because she is getting more sick. I really liked the part where Ella's mom talked about the love story from Across the Universe. It was a nice addition and I believe that is the only time it was brought up in the whole book. Anyway, her mother is getting more sick and Ella doesn't know what to do. She just wants to make her mothers last days last. I really enjoyed Ella's character. She was bright and curious about the world. Later when we find out more information about her, I was shocked by how she was how she is. She really is someone that could change the world. She would take action when she needed it. Her strength and love showed through her decision in forgetting/protecting Jack. She was a wonderful main character and I really enjoyed going on the journey with her to figure out the secrets in her family and the secret about herself. I really liked how Ella was the one protecting Jack and not Jack protecting Ella. It showed how she is strong individually and in a relationship.

The readers are introduced to this mysterious guy that Ella sort of keeps running into. He seems to be there when she is at her fathers grave and she gets taken to him by her fathers grave. This mysterious guy is named Jack Tyler. Who is this boy that seems to know who Ella is? Why doesn't she remember the person who she apparently loved? and he loves her? Jack was an interesting character, in the beginning he came off as the arrogant, confident, and self assured young adult who knew what was going for him. He is smart, as we know being Ella's fathers assistant, and he wants to better the world. You can tell he truly loves Ella and still loves her even when he finds out information about her throughout the book. He is a strong male lead who you want to love and cheer on.

Soooo, this book was so much different than I thought it was going to be. I very much enjoyed it and every time I picked it up, I got a good dent into the book. I read about 3/4 of it in one sitting almost then took a break from it. This book makes you think you know what is going on then it changes your view. By the end of the book, you finally get the gist of how everything is going on. You get to know most of the secrets that Ella's father kept from her and her family. Most of the secrets are learned at the end of the book. Near the final chapter, the readers get to know what is actually going on in the world. What her father was actually doing and how it affected the people around her and the people of the world.

One portion I really enjoyed of this book was the short story that was at the end of the novel. That portion made me really excited for her future writings or possibly just some novellas in that storyline. I really hope that “The Turning Test” becomes a book/novella.

Overall, this book was lovely and awesome. It was worth the wait and all of the excitement I was giving myself. Beth Revis has been really awesome when it comes to seeing what everyone thinks of her new book and loves to interact with her readers. I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys sci-fi novels along with some romance, action, and mystery. It was a joy to read and I would also recommend picking up her other series, Across the Universe, because it is also a really great sci-fi read.