Body of Work

Body of Work is an Eric Hoffer Award Gold Medal Finalist

The body parts business is a growing industry, and people are just dying to get in.

This thought-provoking thriller blurs the line between medical science, morality, and the human soul. At its heart lies a question both intimate and universal: what does it truly mean to possess a body, and what happens when that body becomes a commodity?

Olivia, a devoted mother of twins, is intelligent and compassionate, but carries deep vulnerabilities beneath her steady exterior. Life on her family farm seems far removed from the corporate and clinical worlds of cutting-edge medicine. However, when her path crosses with Haloderm, a powerful biomedical company promising to revolutionize surgery, organ preservation, and space travel, her world begins to shift.

Haloderm presents itself as a force for good that could save lives on Earth and beyond. Yet behind closed doors, it fights the "ghouls," profiteers who traffic in human skin and organs. The company's mission is shrouded in secrecy, ambition, and the ethical minefields of an industry that treats bodies as commodities.

As Olivia becomes entangled in Haloderm's web, the stakes turn deeply personal. Her roles as mother, wife, and survivor collide with forces that would claim her body, her choices, and her family's future. Surrounded by the simple rhythms of farm life, she struggles to hold onto normalcy as she navigates a reality where science and ethics no longer align. Especially when corporations and traffickers see flesh as profit, raising the question: who has the right to decide what a life is worth?

Blending chilling real-world medical research with speculative possibilities, this thriller delivers a narrative that is both intimate and universal. Olivia's fight is set against the stark contrast between a family farm and the sterile world of biotechnology, becoming a testament to the endurance of love in the face of exploitation. Thrilling, poignant, and deeply human, it leaves readers questioning the future of medicine, the cost of progress, and how far we will go to protect those we love.

For fans of Margaret Atwood, Kazuo Ishiguro, Robin Cook, Michael Crichton's Terminal Man, and gothic speculative fiction, Body of Work offers a compelling journey into the heart of what defines us, even when our very flesh is no longer our own.

Body of Work - Where the dead whisper and the living obey...

E. L. Wilk is an award-winning, bestselling soft sci-fi author. Body of Work is her third novel, combining her fascination with astronomy, medical advancement, and the perseverance of the human spirit. A space enthusiast and stargazer, she explores big questions about the universe, from the theory of everything to the history of manned spaceflight. She also enjoys the art of pairing food with wine, always seeking elegant solutions-whether in science, cooking, or storytelling. Wilk grew up in Boston, Belgium, and Hong Kong, is a Wellesley College graduate, and is an alumna of the International School of Brussels. She lives between Boston and Florida with her husband and their dog Khaleesi. Living with myasthenia gravis, a rare neuromuscular disease, she continues to write with resilience, curiosity, and optimism-always working toward her best version of happily ever after.