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Happy Book Birthday, Jennifer!
Eighteen-year-old Blanca has lived a sheltered life. Her entire childhood has been spent at Tabula Rasa School where she’s been protected from the Internet. Blanca has never been online and doesn’t even know how to text. Her lack of a virtual footprint has made her extremely valuable and upon graduation Blanca, and those like her, are sold to the highest bidders. Blanca is purchased by Cal McNeal, who uses her to achieve personal gain. But the McNeal’s are soon horrified by just how obedient and non-defiant Blanca is. All those mind-numbing years locked away from society have made her mind almost impenetrable. By the time Blanca is ready to think for herself, she is trapped. Her only chance of escape is to go online.
So I inch closer to him. “For centuries holy
people … nuns … monks … hermits … they locked themselves away and took on the
sins of the world. They were living sacrifices of prayer, and it made the whole
world better. They kept knowledge alive through the Dark Ages. Vestals are
living sacrifices too. We are reminders that you don’t need chips and you don’t
need texts, and you shouldn’t give away every last piece of yourself for one more
hit.”
“Because selling yourself is so much better?”
I square my shoulders. “Yes.”
“But you’ll never have a normal life. Doesn’t
that bother you?”
“Of course not. Not when ‘normal’
is so messed up. Not when ‘normal’ gave a whole generation of people brain
cancer.”
Two
weeks of cloistering. Two weeks of pacing my room, dusting the bookshelves, and
pressing my face against the windowpanes, unable to see anything but the walled
courtyard below. Two weeks of hoping Fatima, Beau, and Ethan didn’t know about
my disgraced situation. Two weeks of reciting my favorite verse from the Vestal
Code of Ethics over and over again.
I am
loyal. I am discrete. I follow the rules. I picture Fatima brushing her
hair to the rhythm of Ms. Corina’s voice at night in our dorm. “One hundred
strokes, children,” Charming Corina would tell us. Then her saccharine voice
would call out, “I am loyal. I am
discrete. I follow the rules.” Brush. Brush. Brush.
Wrap me
in silk, twirl me around, and tie up my chest with diamonds. My bare arms are
cold, even though Cal has every fireplace in the house burning. I lean into his
shoulder and drape my wrist around his arm. His wool jacket is scratchy but
warm.
“I didn’t think I’d be so nervous,” Cal says as
we descend the stairs. There are executives everywhere, filling up the great
hall. The McNeal Solar Enterprises board of directors is out in full force,
watching my every step.
“You’ll be fine.” I try to sound reassuring,
but I’m not used to so many strangers. Invisible butterflies beat in my
stomach. In mere seconds, an older lady in a sequined top approaches, her black
hair pulled tight in a French twist with a fleur-de-lis inked on her neck.
Cal whispers in my ear. “Here comes Nancy
Robinson, my attorney. Don’t let her manners fool you. Nancy is a shark, and
the whole board listens to her opinions.”
Jennifer Bardsley writes the parenting column “I Brake for Moms” for The Everett Daily Herald. Her debut YA novel, “Genesis Girl” will be published by Month9Books on June 14, 2016, with the sequel releasing in 2017. “Genesis Girl” is about a teenager who has never been on the Internet. Jennifer however, is on the web all the time as “The YA Gal” with over 20,000 followers on Facebook, and 15,000 followers on Instagram. On Facebook, she hosts the weekly instant book club called #TakeALookTuesday where YA Gal friends geek out, share pictures of what they are reading, and chat about books. Jennifer is a member of SCBWI, The Sweet Sixteens debut author group, and is founder of Sixteen To Read. An alumna of Stanford University, Jennifer lives near Seattle, WA where she enjoys spending time with her family and her poodle, Merlin.
That’s the motto that the Order has given the residents of Dome 1618 to live by. Natalia Greyes is a resident of Dome 1618, a covered city protected from the deadly radiation that has poisoned the world outside for four generations.
Nat never questioned the Order, until one day she sees a stranger on the outside of her dome.
Now Nat wants answers.
What else might her government be hiding from the good and loyal people of Dome 1618?
Whether it’s uncovering the corruption of the future, or traveling to other worlds to save the universe, Melanie McFarlane jumps in with both hands on her keyboard. Though she can be found obsessing over zombies and orcs from time to time, Melanie focuses her powers on writing young adult stories to keep the rest of the world up reading all night.
