Bookverdict.com

Gr 9 Up—Griffin's richly descriptive writing exquisitely evokes a dark, dank dystopian world destroyed by humans' obsession with computers. Sixteen-year-old Nell lives with her mad scientist father, Julian, who is widely respected for his fantastical prosthetic creations. When Nell was young, Julian implanted a ticking heart in her, but he couldn't save Nell's mother. Nell's incessant ticking, coupled with the expectation that she live up to the reputations of her parents, both renowned scientists, causes her to feel like an outsider. E...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

In Griffin's post-apocalyptic Black Water City, Nell is feeling pressure to complete her "contribution," a project meant to advance the city's progress, without which she'll be sent to work in the stone yard. Her late mother designed the giant statue that lifts morale in the city, and her father is a genius at creating artificial limbs to replace ones lost in the epidemics that followed the toxic electromagnetic pulses of "the Turn," the disastrous end of a computer-run society. Ne...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

In Griffin's post-apocalyptic Black Water City, Nell feels pressured to complete her "contribution," a project to advance the city's progress. She f...Log In or Sign Up to Read More