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Flesh and Metal #1

Girl of Flesh and Metal

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A devastating accident. An artificially intelligent prosthetic that makes her sleepwalk… A series of murders.

Lena hates her parents’ tech company. The world worships each cutting-edge CyberCorp release, but Lena has her doubts. Machines that think for themselves? She doesn’t trust them… So when a car accident lands her with the company’s first cybernetic arm, she’s pissed.

A glitch in the arm’s artificial intelligence makes her sleepwalk. Meanwhile, children of CyberCorp employees start dying in their beds, and thanks to her unwanted nighttime strolls, Lena has no alibi.

Is she a target? A suspect? Lena literally can’t sleep at night until she proves her innocence—or her guilt.

Marissa Meyer’s Cinder meets Netflix’s Black Mirror in this YA sci-fi murder mystery with a twisty ending you won’t forget.

372 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 23, 2020

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About the author

Alicia Ellis

12 books251 followers
Alicia Ellis decided to write books about ten minutes before graduating from law school. She’s now an Atlanta attorney, but she moonlights as an author, electronics junkie, and secret superhero. With two degrees in computer science and an MFA in writing popular fiction, Alicia loves creative problem solving and all things mysterious. She writes mystery and suspense in multiple genres, including contemporary, science fiction, and fantasy.

Her debut novel, Girl of Flesh and Metal, a young adult sci-fi mystery, was the first self-published book ever to make the American Library Association’s LITA Excellence in Children’s and Young Adult Science Fiction Notable Lists.

https://writeralicia.com/links

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5 stars
40 (46%)
4 stars
28 (32%)
3 stars
12 (13%)
2 stars
4 (4%)
1 star
2 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
Profile Image for Kenya Wright.
Author 98 books2,211 followers
July 20, 2020
This was a family read. My two oldest kids and I read it. We enjoyed the mystery within the high tech world. I had no idea who the killer was until the end. An awesome read. I can't wait to read more from this author.
184 reviews2 followers
March 20, 2020
I requested a review copy of this after the blurb caught my attention. This is my honest review.

I don't normally read this type of book, being an avid fantasy fan, however the blurb was interesting so I thought I'd give it a shot. I'm so glad that I did!
Girl of flesh and metal is extremely well written, the characters are well fleshed out and there's more than enough action to keep you turning the pages.
Lena, after being in a horrific car accident has her left arm replaced with a cybernetic arm. Going home after physical therapy is when trouble starts in her life. Did she do it or is she just a patsy? Grab the book and read it to find out! You won't regret it I swear!
Profile Image for Gayle Noble.
1,553 reviews26 followers
June 24, 2021
Lena's parents own CyberCorp, a company which is on the brink of mass producing the first batch of humanoid robots to carry out the more mundane aspects of daily life, but Lena is old-school. She hates the technology and when she is involved in a car accident that leads to her being fitted with a more advanced cybernetic arm, she is furious with her parents. The other passenger in the accident ex-boyfriend, Jackson, is more amenable to the technology, but Lena can't shake the terrible headaches, then she starts sleepwalking. When the children of CyberCorp employees are murdered, Lena realises to her her horror that she doesn't have alibis for the murders because she was sleepwalking when they occurred. Is Lena guilty of murder and if she is, why is she killing them?

First of all let me tell you that I bought this book initially for the cover - it looks amazing on the Kindle version - the photo on here doesn't do it justice. The story itself is an interesting one, examining the ever-closer arrival of humanoid AI, what is means to be human, and the arguments from both sides. Lena is definitely one of the 'Against' camp and this is only heightened by her experiences following her accident.

I actually really enjoyed the sci-fi/thriller parts of the story but I found Lena to be a bit irritating at times, for example she blames her parents for the car accident with no mention of the fact she had been out partying with friends and lost concentration whilst driving. I did enjoy it enough that I will be checking out the sequels, and for that I rate this 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4).
Profile Image for Ixxati.
282 reviews16 followers
April 23, 2020
I requested this book when I saw the author post on facebook and I found the blurb kinda interesting. Thank you for Girl of Flesh and Metal ARC!

It was a good story but I think it should be longer. There are unresolved things between Lena and Jackson and the ending erghhhh!!! Btw I guessed who is the bad person in this story and damn I knew it!! Too good to be true lol
Profile Image for D.T. Henderson.
Author 4 books58 followers
February 23, 2022
Refreshing!

I really enjoyed this. Lena had an excellent narrative voice and didn't feel like a blank sheet of paper. Her rebellious attitude against the digitalization of society coupled with machinery becoming an actual part of her was a super fun conflict.

There's a sizeable slice of mystery and a dollop of thriller, but the sci-fi nature stays consistent throughout. I'll read the next book for sure!
Profile Image for Lois .
1,763 reviews466 followers
April 27, 2020
This is the perfect escape

I truly enjoyed this. I'm looking forward to the sequel to this as well as the first installment in her next series.
7 reviews
March 28, 2020
A wonderful mystery that has you guessing at every turn!

Consistently throughout the story, I had to keep trying to put clues together, to try to make sense of what is happening to Lena.

That was made me enjoy and love the story. It held me enough to keep me reading and wanting to know who the murderer really was.

The world building was done well too with the incorporation of technology.

However I feel the biggest disappointment was the fact that I felt like it should have been longer. That there should have been more to the story. Moments passed to quickly, and sometimes didnt make sense, and I felt like I needed more from every single character.

And the ending felt unfinished. Relationships left off at odd point. It built up so much and had a great lovely twist reveal, and then that was it.

Again, I loves the story very much, and would still encourage you to take the time to read it!
Profile Image for rat.
135 reviews2 followers
March 21, 2020
(3.5)
We are the destroyers of this world

Much thanks to the author for sending me an e-arc ❤


Girl of Flesh and Metal follows the story of Lena Hayes,a supporter of the anti-tech community who after a car accident has her arm replaced by a metal one. Soon, an event will turn Lena's life upside down and have her unable to sleep at night.

I'll try to keep this review as short as possible:
The writing and the pacing was okay. The characters were well-written,you could definitely see them as real people.

What I didn't like was the love interest. I felt it was unnecessary and would rather have the love interest as Lena's friend. Also, I didn't really like that reveal at the end. Don't know why,it just didn't satisfy me.


Not sure how this book will have a sequel (this is a series, right?)and how the story will be continued,but I hope it'll get better and better!
Profile Image for Jenay Sherman.
Author 9 books2 followers
April 23, 2020
Shortly after starting this book I "thought" I knew exactly what would happen. I guessed how it would end, who the true antagonist was, and even assumed what the "surprise" twist would be. But I kept reading, and I'm so glad I did! There were lots of twists and turns, and I can truly say I didn't see what was coming. It was really tense leading up to the climax--really a tight, mysterious thriller. By the end, none of the things happened I was sure would, and the thing I thought for sure would not happen, did. Refreshing reversal. The way it ended left me wanting more--I wonder if it is a standalone or if there will be more to look forward to. If there turns out to be a sequel, I will definitely read. If you love adventure and mystery in your science fiction, this is the read for you.
Profile Image for Vanessa Biggers.
241 reviews2 followers
April 24, 2020
LOVED IT!

This was my first book by Alicia Ellis and I can't wait to read more of her work. I seriously enjoyed this book from beginning to end. Lena is forced into a world she despises due to her antitechnology beliefs. She can't escape because her company owns they very company that makes all of the new technology. I really felt for Lena during the first encounter with her friends after the surgery. The book has you trying to figure out why certain things are happening and I have to say I was not expecting the ending! I'm looking forward to book two and I'm so glad I volunteered to read this book!
Profile Image for Kristie.
8 reviews5 followers
May 1, 2020
I received this book as an ARC. Without wanting to give anything away from the story, AI is a very intriguing subject with good and bad possibilities. This is a suspenseful YA storyline. I would be interested in reading Lena's next adventure.
Profile Image for Chrys Minter.
487 reviews5 followers
June 28, 2021
Fantastic Read

This is my very first Sci Fi read which was gifted to me as a diverse read. I enjoyed this story and can't wait to read more.
Profile Image for Isaiah.
Author 1 book77 followers
June 1, 2023
Really cool concept, the mystery actually grabbed me which is REALLY rare with mysteries.

The rampant abelism of the first ten chapters did give me some pause though.

I am excited for book two!
Profile Image for Linda.
152 reviews8 followers
May 15, 2020
So I'll preface this review with I usually don't read young adult books. This one was enjoyable. The pace was good, and I liked the characters. I liked that the ending wasn't immediately obvious (at least to me, my sisters are great and sussing these things out). I kept changing my opinion on the "who dunnit" through out the entire book. This book kept me on toes. I liked that.
26 reviews
March 31, 2020
Lena Hayes is the daughter whose parents own Cyber Corp company. Lena is involved in a car accident and looses her arm which is replaced with a metallic artificial arm. She is not able to control her metallic arm that reacts on its own while she is asleep. Children of Cyber Corp employees are being killed and Lena is being blamed for the crime. Lena has to try to prove her innocence for the murders. I really enjoyed reading this young-adult sci go novel by Alicia Ellis. I received this free book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Michelle.
574 reviews2 followers
June 8, 2020
Arm of the future

I like the premise of ghost book , I loved the way the story came together and it was easy to follow me the scientific terms did not go over my head, I loved that the writer was able to bring this idea to pages . Some things in this book had me peeved at the lead her constant harping on how hehe thinks her parents feel about her got annoying and the way she just shrugs off responsibility for the accident blaming it on the car just did not sit well with me she came off as annoying more than any thing else. All on all an interesting read.
Profile Image for Erin.
1,094 reviews49 followers
January 14, 2021
Lena is a young woman whose parents are very into tech and run a tech company that specializes in robotics, and have also started working on making robotic limbs for people that will act and eventually look exactly like real body parts do. Lena is very against this and is anti-tech for the most part, but her entire world ends up changing when she gets into an accident that causes her to have a robotic arm.
She is understandably upset about this considering her views on robotics, but things get worse as her 'friends' abandon her. She does make new/old friends again though and these two end up helping her not only deal with accepting her arm but also figure out what is happening to her and why people who work in her parent's companies children are ending up dead. Lena is also dealing with her arm doing things she doesn't want it to do at times and is also living off of very little sleep which makes everything far more complicated. She has no real adult to turn to during this time, leaving it just to her and her new friends to figure it out on their own.


Overall I loved this book and couldn't get enough of it. Lena is a character that I loved, she was extremely smart and was piecing things together before anyone else was. Of course, she does make some questionable decisions because she's a teenager but those were to be expected especially considering the position she was in. All of the robotics stuff mentioned in the story was very easy to follow along with, even the programming talk. We got to see how/why her arm was doing certain things after a while and how it pertained to the other things that we're having to do with her life. Now for the mystery part of this story and what helped me love it so much. Now I thought it was several different people throughout the book that was murdering the kids of her parent's company given the clues that Lena and her friends found. I didn't figure out who the killer was, and I loved that. Not knowing the entire time and figuring out what was happening and why it was happening alongside Lena was fun.

I'm very interested to see where the next book in the series go and I have already pre-ordered it!

Girl of Flesh and Metal not only shows a different very high-tech world, but it also has a mystery of who is killing off these teenagers of Lena's parent's employees and why they were doing it.
Profile Image for Libby.
Author 2 books9 followers
April 17, 2021
This book was very kindly sent to me by Alicia Ellis, along with an ARC of the second book in the series, Clash of Flesh and Metal. This book was so so so good and I could barely put it down! It’s like sci-fi meets thriller which was a perfect read for me, as I have never really read much of the sci-fi genre before so I think this was a great book to get into it.

The story follows Lena, the daughter of the owners of the futuristic CyberCorp, who after a car accident loses her arm which is replaced by a metal one and consequently a chip installed in her brain - much against her morals on the use of this technology. The story begins to get dark when her new metal arm seems to have a mind of its own and starts to hurt her friends against her will - making them terrified of her. On top of this, murders start to arise, and Lena is narrowed down as a key culprit by her peers...Lena herself starts to believe this when she begins to wake up out of her bed, out of her house, not far from the murder victims’ homes.

I really enjoyed reading this as not only was it fast paced and kept me on my toes, the twists took me by surprise and left my eyes wide and my mouth open! The last few chapters especially were so intense and action packed, I was practically holding my breath until the end. I also really loved Lena as a character, she has a strong mind and morals which makes her independent and overall a badass - a great centre character.

Overall, a fantastic book and gripping story, with an unexpected ending - I’m super excited to read the second book in this series!
Profile Image for Vivienne Neal.
Author 12 books20 followers
May 20, 2022
A Terrifying Tech Thriller

What a pulse-pounding story, which had me on the edge of my seat. Protagonist Lena Hayes is a teenager who sees her parents’ tech company as evil, but things are not what they appear to be. Filled with multifarious characters, a significant exchange of ideas, and expressive surroundings, the plot pulls you in when her best friend Harmony is murdered in her own home. Like a jigsaw puzzle, the narrative keeps you speculating from start to finish. What makes this story so intriguing is that Lena is a strong-willed, audacious, and tenacious teen who believes in fighting for what is right, even if it means going against her greedy parents. The storyline is loaded with curveball twists and turns, secrets and lies, manipulation, deceit, intimidation, bitterness, greed, revenge, and turmoil, shaping up to an ending that will leave you asking, “At what point does the use of technology crosses the line?” This young adult novel will appeal to readers of all ages.
Profile Image for Tiffany.
648 reviews38 followers
April 26, 2020
After reading this book, I wanted to write and post this review to share my honest experiences toward the story.

Contemporary, scifi and mystery, all mashed up into one thrilling, heart-pounding, addicting read! I was hooked on the story right from the beginning and stayed immersed into the story until the end. I literally could not put it down. All elements of the story were excellent, and the mystery part was satisfying. There were so many twists and turns, and different things happening to provide clues and lead the reader’s thoughts in one direction, and surprise us at the end at who the killer is. It was a real pleasure to read, and I look forward to exploring more of the series when it is released.
1,513 reviews27 followers
February 27, 2022
A really interesting premise! We have a girl who was in a terrible accident and lost her arm. It just happens that her parents own a cyber tech company, and they were able to design an arm for her with artificial intelligence. The arm has taken over her life. She sleepwalks and has no idea when she does at night. Now the children of her parents' company are being killed and she has no alibi? Has she been killing the children? Or is there someone else that hates her parents' company as much as she does? You will have to read the novel to find out! This is the most interesting novel. Suspense and mystery weaves it way across each and every page. I highly recommend this novel. I received this novel from BookFunnel. this is my true and hones review.

2 reviews
April 12, 2021
A novel of twists

Deep characters with complex issues—all come together in surprisingly fast-paced, engaging book. The author did a great job making me terrified right along with the main character whom we grow to adore. Is she responsible for the deaths of those other teens? Is someone out to murder her, too? Who can she trust? By the time we discover the answers we are invested so deeply in the future of our protagonist, we’re wishing we had already bought book two. Wonderful story by a wonderful writer.
Profile Image for Regina.
911 reviews
May 16, 2021
Engaging and entertaining!

Alicia Ellis is a new-to-me author (or rather, I am a new-to-her reader), but the blurb of this story got me hooked, and the book did not disappoint.

Lena is a smart and gutsy heroine, I enjoyed getting to know her - and I was rooting for her to solve the mystery (and hopefully prove her innocence). While I was able to guess some of the puzzle pieces, there were enough twists and turns to keep me guessing how everything fit together.
And I really need to know what happens next!
Profile Image for Donna Munro.
Author 34 books312 followers
February 21, 2021
This is the hero we need in YA right now. She's a kick ass girl in a bad situation so far up a tree, she's going to fight her way back from bad.

She's been made over, like Frankenstein, against her will by parents who love her. But something is wrong with the upgrades.

Read this! You won't regret it.
7 reviews
November 28, 2021
A Very Good Read

This book was a very good read. Although the main characters are African American, this was just a descriptive aspect of their appearance. Nothing more. Which I liked very much. The author focused on the mystery of the plot which was well done. I really liked the story and look forward to reading the remaining 2 books in the trilogy.
122 reviews2 followers
May 14, 2021
Riveting read!

The author did a great job of telling this story. The characters were very believable. The plot had some great twists and turns in it. It made for a very enjoyable to read.
Profile Image for Connie Wilson.
120 reviews42 followers
February 11, 2022
Great read for teenagers & young adults. Teen angst, rebellion against parents for the business they built -Artificial Intelligence Robots. But doesn't mind the life of privilege that comes along with parents business.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
62 reviews
May 25, 2020
Very Black Mirror

Reminds me a bit of the 'I, Robot' movie with Will Smith. Also of course the Black Mirror tv show, which shows the potential downsides of technology.
Profile Image for Kris.
Author 17 books21 followers
July 29, 2020
Fabulous read and very hard to put down. Reminiscent of the Lunar Chronicles. I stayed up way too late finishing this book. Cannot wait for the next one!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews

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