New York Times bestsellerNew 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.… 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.
Perfect for fans of One of Us Is Lying and Big Little Lies, 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….
more
I definitely recommend The Thousandth Floor to those who love YA. It was a glamorous fusion of accessible sci-fi (think Uglies or Cinder) and contemporary drama a la Gossip Girl.
There’s a really fun mix of characters:
*Avery, the uber rich girl who lives on the top floor and is in love with her adopted brother (gasp)
*Leda, also in love with Avery’s brother, who is hiding a drug addiction
*Watt, a hacker whose illegal tech gives him enormous powers
*Eris, who loses her status when she finds out her rich dad isn’t her biological father
AND MORE.
I totally loved this narrative and this world, and I’m very into the idea of living in a tower that is its own sustainable community. I really liked the diversity (non-white characters! a lesbian relationship!), though the focus was definitely on class struggle. The book opens with a girl’s death, and the whole time I was guessing who it would be, while also getting caught up in the tangled web of relationships. I certainly look forward to reading more from this author.
Twenty-second century Gossip Girl-like fun. Sexy and engrossing!
After reading a couple darker books in a row, I wanted to get lost in something frothy and fun, so I decided to pick up Katharine McGee’s first series – I’m so glad I did! I really enjoyed American Royals and The Thousandth Floor has similar elements – multiple narrative perspectives, compelling forbidden romances, and a mix of upstairs-downstairs drama that I’ll never not be a sucker for. I know this book has been comp’ed to Gossip Girl but I was actually reminded more of The Luxe, a series I adored when I was in high school. The world of the Tower was exactly what I needed to get lost in (it was as glossily creative as it was ethereally futuristic) and I’m excited to dive right into book 2!
Compelling and imaginative – I loved everything from the fascinating vision of the future to the scandalous lives of the characters.
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!
This was def a good read! From previous reviews it sounds like you know who was falling from the very beginning but that’s not the case! It’s an intriguing story set in the future with that “gossip girl” mentality. Even though it falls into the YA catagory, it’s definitely a good read for adults!
This book was way different from what I normally read, which why I kind of picked it. I needed a short break in my normal genre.
And honestly it was like reading a soap opera, with all the different over the top lifestyles and drama and angst. This book packed full of teem drama and angst.
The writing was fun and easy to follow and honestly one of the reason I stayed with the book, even with all the drama and angst that made me roll my eyes more than once or even twice lol.
We follow few people in this book, from the rich spoiled kids from the most upper floors all the way down to the lower and poor people floors. Some lose their money in the story others gain access to the upper levels and then some are just shady. I think all the different people, personalities and voices made it just so much more fun to follow along.
I also liked the future tech we get in this book, but sometimes it was just a bit too focused on that and not the people and it got a bit too much. Not sure yet if it just was because it’s the first book in the series and introduces us to the tech or if that will stay that way. I guess I will find out in the next book.
Overall, not the greatest book but fun and interesting enough to keep me reading it, all the drama helped too.
I will continue on the series to see how it all turns out for them.
I rate it 3
This is a typical teenage angst story. There is no reason to set the story in the future; it adds nothing, and in fact, detracts from the story.
McGee grabs you from the first chapter and doesn’t let go in this futuristic blend of Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars. The Thousandth Floor opens with a girl falling to her death from the top of a New York Megastructure, with you guessed it, one thousand floors. From there the reader meets four potential candidates for the girl who’s about to meet her maker.
While The Thousandth Floor has a futuristic bent, it’s by no means hardcore science fiction. It’s more about sudsy interpersonal relationships and the dynamics of class structure than sleek tech, although there is some of the latter, just enough to help create a vivid picture of what life inside a thousand floor megastructure might be like.
The characters are well drawn and the mystery of which girl will take the plunge keeps you guessing.
Verdict: A soapy romp perfect for a long weekend and a great start to a new series that will leave readers panting for the sequel.
Book 153 towards my goal of 290! 4/5 stars for this YA scifi set in the future. Set in future New York City, people’s “rank” is determined by which floor of this building they live on. This one is such a tough one to review because I don’t want to give anything away! I love this cover. A full cast of main characters. Some likeable, some not. Some morally grey…..some even more morally grey lol I’ll read anything Katharine McGee writes. Highly recommend. There are a few trigger warnings for this one.
YA Book with suspense and romance.
They lied to you when they said a diamonds a girl’s best friend. Maybe because it’s a secret. A dirty little secret that I’ll tell you for one of your own.
This was a fabulous read. The author created a super interesting and realistic world set in the future. She did a great job of creating memorable, original, and interesting characters as well. Excellent job telling the stories of several characters and weaving them together. Definite page-turner!
I had the pleasure of meeting Katharine in person at the Twin Cities Book Festival and became aware of her book, The Thousandth Floor. It sucks you in with its gripping opening which unfolds like some tragic murder mystery and hooks you there with its superb world building and suspense. Whether its diverse, multiple characters, high rise party lifestyle, fashion do’s and don’t’s, or sharp contrast between the upper and lower floors, Katherine’s novel reads like a futuristic soap opera on steroids. Even the tiniest details as it comes to advancements in technology are not brushed aside whether it’s a screaming gummy bear treat or a super speed train that can get one from New York to Paris in a couple hours (may I visit, pretty please?). The Thousandth Floor’s world is just as decadent and perpetuated by drama as one expects and demands. Everyone will form their own favorite characters whether it’s the genetically-engineered-to-perfection penthouse Avery, the super-brain and unwavering Watt, the hardworking and relentless Rylin, the riches to rags Eris, and of course the cunning yet lamentable Leda. One will not just be able to sample this book. It’s a hide-under-your-blankets-with-a-flashlight-until-2am kind of book. And yes, I went on a 100-page bender for the final chunk while my bath water got cold. My only regret was picking this up so swiftly after it was published because I’ll probably have to agonize over the cliffhanger ending for another year! Two thumbs up for a well-written novel. Not as prose heavy or having the emotional depth that I go for in books, but that’s just my personal preference.
The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee is like Gossip Girl set in the future
As a huge fan of Gossip Girl, I’m not complaining.
‣ UpTower is the Upper East Side
‣ Avery Fuller is Serena van der Woodsen
‣ Watt is Dan (all the way down to his quant spying on the UpperTower people)
‣ Cord is Chuck Bass
‣ Leda Cole is Jenny Humphrey
‣ Atlas is Nate Archibald
‣ Rylin is Vanessa Abram
etc., etc.,
And just like Gossip Girl, The Thousandth Floor is a guilty pleasure read that helps you escape from your poor people problems and fully become one with the elites.
And although a lot of the characters are almost complete rip-offs of Gossip Girl, this story stood strong on its own nonetheless.
I think a lot of it was the setting; I absolutely loved the Tower in which the story took place. Katharine has built a convincing, and addicting world, where all the little details had been thought of. All the way down to aroma therapy showers, and 4-D scans of your body so you can try on clothes without actually undressing, was brilliant. I loved seeing all the technological advances, all the little quirks that money could buy in this future world. I really am excited to see more of the character’s interaction with the technology.
I also very much enjoyed the suspense that Katharine has created throughout the entire story. The epilogue of the story there’s a girl falling to her death from the thousandth floor, and the entire time you just sit on the edge of your seat wondering which girl???
The writing/language was sub par for the most part. I didn’t have any problems, but I didn’t particularly love it either. It was straight to the point, which might some people’s styles, whereas I like writing with a more metaphorical beauty to it (if that makes sense??).
Overall, this was a fast-paced, easy read. It’s a good way to escape your problems; to not worry about how you’re gonna afford gas in your car and instead dive into these UpperTower girls’ problems, it’s an easy dive. You could almost pretend, for just a moment, as if you were part of the UpperTower as well.
I am eagerly waiting to get my hands on the sequel.
This book disappointed me; A futuristic world is supposed to be fundamentally different from the present, with its own set of rules and an unbreakable bond from the plot. If all the difference is that instead of mobile phones there are communication lenses, instead of cars have higher skyscrapers, what’s the point? Why should not the story take place in our world?
Overall, the book is very successful if marketed to the right target audience: telenovela fans will find it perfectly worthy of their standards, will like the characters, enjoy the trouble in lies and secrets and enjoy the scandals. Science fiction lovers, on the other hand, who choose it because of the brief promises a futuristic book, may demand their money back.
Excellent futuristic novel, very creative and entertaining. I didn’t want to put it down.
(Audiobook)
This took me a long time to get into. I just had a hard time getting past the narrator’s voice. I am glad I hung in because what unfolded was a unique story showing the world of four teenagers. Some of whom are privileged and some of whom are not. As each chapter unfolds we get a look at each of the teens’ lives. Their lives are not as perfect as they make them out to be. Then one night changes everything, as a tragedy took place that will bind them forever. I only wish we knew more about their world. Why were they living in this tower when the outside world seemed safe to live? I hope the second book gives us more about their world and I look forward to seeing how the characters cope with this tragedy.
Great read! Couldn’t put it down!!
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.