The Thousandth Floor Review

The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee

Goodreads Summary: 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 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.
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….

My Thoughts:

I am obsessed with this book.  To say that it was addictive is an understatement.  I could not stop thinking about these characters or this story when I was not reading.  I couldn’t even get it out of my head when I was out at the bar with friends.  It’s that good.  Katharine McGee did an amazing job creating a futuristic New York City.  It was kind of surreal to read about a futuristic NYC, while being in the current one.  Everything was over the top, but not to a ridiculous standard.  The idea of vertical urbanization, is a very realistic, and logical way that huge cities can continue to grow and expand with technology.  I loved the tech and gadgets that she created for this time period, which all made sense with the trajectory we see technology moving toward now.  I loved learning about the structure of the tower, and the way that it completely changed the dynamics of the city as a whole.   The use of the phrases “up tower” and “down tower,” as the common vernacular, really tickled this “up-town” girl. The fact that people could live a completely full life, just as we do today, without ever leaving the tower was mind blowing.  The few glimpses that we got of the rest of the world were also super intriguing, and I want to know more about what the future outside The Tower looks like.

Inside this beautifully crafted world, were a group of super dynamic characters.  McGee did a great job of writing diverse characters, without seeming like she was trying too hard to be diverse.  They all had interesting and developed arcs, especially Leda and Eris (who was my favorite).  The switching of perspectives with each chapter weaved together a very exciting and fast paced plot.  There was never a character whose chapter I dreaded.  I connected with them all in different ways, and could not wait to find out what was going to happen to them.  I finished the book with my jaw on the floor, and celebrated when I realized I only had to wait a week until the second book was released (it is now in my hands and I could not be more thrilled)!  I still have a humongous book hangover, and I think The Dazzling Heights will be the only cure.