ReWired
by S.R. Johannes
Publication date: August 27th, 2017
Genres: Thriller, Young Adult
YA cyber thriller, ReWIRED, by Shelli Johannes-Wells (writing as S.R. Johannes), which offers a fresh and exciting new take on the genre, and could be described as Ally Carter’s HEIST SOCIETY meets THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO for teens.
Sixteen-year-old Ada Lovelace is never more alive and sure of herself than when she’s hacking into a “secure” network as her alter ego, the Dark Angel. In the real world, Ada is broken, reeling from her best friend Simone’s recent suicide. But online, the reclusive daughter of Senator Lovelace (champion of the new Online Privacy Bill) is a daring white hat hacker and the only female member of the Orwellians, an elite group responsible for a string of high-profile hacks against major corporations, with a mission to protect the little guy. Ada is swiftly proving she’s a force to be reckoned with, when a fellow Orwellian betrays her to the FBI. To protect her father’s career, Ada is sent to ReBoot, a technology rehab facility for teens…the same rehab Simone attended right before killing herself.
It’s bad enough that the ReBoot facility is creepy in an Overlook-Hotel-meets-Winchester-Mansion way, but when Ada realizes Simone’s suicide is just one in an increasingly suspicious string of “accidental” deaths and “suicides” occurring just after kids leave ReBoot, Ada knows she can’t leave without figuring out what really happened to her best friend. The massive cyber conspiracy she uncovers will threaten everything she cares about–her dad’s career, her new relationship with a wry, handsome, reformed hacker who gets under her skin, and most of all–the version of herself Ada likes best–the Dark Angel.
With a deliciously twisty plot, the topical bite of Cory Doctorow’s LITTLE BROTHER, ReWIRED delves into technology addiction, internet privacy, and corporate/government collection of data, as it vividly illuminates the universally human questions about ethics, privacy, and self-definition that both underpin these socio-political issues and dovetail with classic coming-of-age themes. Ultimately, ReWIRED is about the daily choices we all make about who we want to be, how much of ourselves we choose to share with others, and the terrifying risks and exhilarating rewards of being ourselves, online and off.
EXCERPT:
Simone never did anything without a reason.
There’s only way to find out what that was. I need to get on a computer. And I know just where to find one. In Ms. Matthews office.
When Ms. Matthews pops in for room check, I pretend to be deathly ill. Getting this lady to believe me isn’t as hard. My fake gagging sounds cleared the room really fast.
After everyone heads to their first activity, I sneak down to the lunchroom and snag the lunch lady’s security card from her register. After some time observing, I know the center uses a standard swipe system, so hopefully this card will gain me access.
I inch down the back hall and stop a few doors down from Ms. Matthews’ office. As soon as the security camera swings away, I run to the door and swipe the card. When the panel beeps, I push open the door and close it behind me. I lean back and breath. So far, so good. I roll the interior blinds shut so no one can see in and eye the bookshelves.
That modem light told me there was a computer in here somewhere.
I just have to find out where Ms. Matthews hides it.
Trolling around the cramped space, I’m careful not to shift anything out of place. Some paranoid people set traps. A moved garbage can, a misplaced pen, or a wrinkled cushion can all shows signs of an intruder. I’d bet all my typing fingers that Ms. Matthews keeps this office extra dusty, hoping to snag a fingerprint or two.
I nose around her desk, looking for a clue, and tug on the top drawer. It’s locked but easily crackable. Using a letter opener, I jimmy the latch until it opens, careful not to leave a scratch. I sift through a few ancient photos of Ms. Matthews and a boy who I assume is her son Patrick, an old pack of hairy gum, and a letter from the bank about some missed payments. I also come across a book of deposit slips. The carbon copies recorded huge amounts. Wow, this place brings in some serious dough. Seattle has way too many computer addicts. I jot down the bank routing number and the account number in my notebook before replacing the slips.
Sitting in her chair, I twirl, taking in the view from every angle. When I spot the paneled wall, I stand and knock. Sounds hollow. The perfect place to hide a computer.
Or a body.
There’s no door handle, but there is a keypad. The kind that usually has an open button for convenience or in case of forgotten codes. I go back to the desk and slide my hand around the drawer past broken pencils, dust bunnies, and lonely paper clips. In the very back, my finger grazes a small lever. The paneled wall slides back, revealing a hidden room.
Open Sesame!
I pull on the light cord and step into the damp space reeking of mothballs and mold. I squint in the dim light. Filing cabinets and stacks of cardboard boxes labeled with black marker crowd the tiny room. Jim. Sandi. Michelle. No names I recognize.
Unfortunately, there appears to be no order to this lady’s stacking madness. I rummage through some old files until one folder catches my eye: CONSTRUCTION PLANS. There, I discover archives of the mansion’s floor plans, including past building additions and blueprints. The schematics show me the enormity of this old place.
I shove a few in my back pocket. I case they come in handy later.
Something hums a familiar song, grabbing my attention. I spin around and spot an old school desk in the corner. Sitting on top is the prettiest sight I’ve seen since checking out of reality and into CrazyLand.
A computer.
And not just any machine. A state-of-the-art HP PC injected with a speedy processor. Matthews may pretend to live in the 1800s, but she’s more tech-savvy than she lets on. Not to mention, a total hypocrite.
“Hello, beautiful,” I whisper. The stress of the last few days dissipates.
The Dark Angel is back.
Author Bio:S.R. Johannes is the award-winning author of the Amazon bestselling Nature of Grace thriller series (Untraceable, Uncontrollable, and Unstoppable). She is a winner of the IndieReader Discovery Award in YA, an IPPY a Silver Medalist for YA Fiction, a Finalist in The Kindle Book Review’s Best Young Adult Fiction, and a Finalist in US Book News Best YA Book.
Since leaving Corporate America, she has followed her passion for writing and conservation by working with The Dolphin Project, the Atlanta Zoo, other animal rescue organizations, and by weaving conservation themes into her books.
Currently, she lives in Atlanta, GA with her English-accented husband and the huge imaginations of their prince and princess, which she hopes - someday - will change the world.
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