Review: Partials by Dan Wells

Partials

Author: Dan Wells
Series: Partials Series, Book One
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Genre: Dystopian
Format: Hardcover, 468 pages
Release Date: February 28, 2012
Source: Mid-Columbia Libraries

Synopsis:

The human race is all but extinct after a war with Partials--engineered organic beings identical to humans--has decimated the population. Reduced to only tens of thousands by RM, a weaponized virus to which only a fraction of humanity is immune, the survivors in North America have huddled together on Long Island while the Partials have mysteriously retreated. The threat of the Partials is still imminent, but, worse, no baby has been born immune to RM in more than a decade. Our time is running out.
Kira, a sixteen-year-old medic-in-training, is on the front lines of this battle, seeing RM ravage the community while mandatory pregnancy laws have pushed what's left of humanity to the brink of civil war, and she's not content to stand by and watch. But as she makes a desperate decision to save the last of her race, she will find that the survival of humans and Partials alike rests in her attempts to uncover the connections between them--connections that humanity has forgotten, or perhaps never even knew were there.
Dan Wells, acclaimed author of I Am Not a Serial Killer, takes readers on a pulsepounding journey into a world where the very concept of what it means to be human is in question--one where our humanity is both our greatest liability and our only hope for survival.

My Review:

This was actually a re-read for me. I read this book a few months before I started this blog and I have been dying to pick up the second book, Fragments, but really wanted to review this one first and also needed to refresh my memory. It was amazing the first time and just as incredible the second time. When I read books twice, I find myself finding things that I either didn’t catch or that didn’t bother me the first time I read it, but that didn’t happen with this book. In fact, I think I liked it even more the second time around. There isn’t a major romance going on, but there was plenty of action and world-building to make up for it. Dan Wells has done a fabulous job of creating this world and making it feel real. There were no unanswered questions in my mind. He gave us enough information about the history of the country and the creation of the Partials, super-soldiers created by humans to fight their wars for them. These Partials eventually turned on the humans and destroyed almost their entire species. The descriptive parts of the writing made Manhattan, Brooklyn, and East Meadow really come to life. My favorite part of this book is when he is describing a now deserted Manhattan. He talks about how nature has just completely taken over the city with greenery and wild animals. It sounded breathtaking to me.

Our main character, Kira, is an intern at the hospital. A brilliant intern, showing the highest scores in virology and other super complex medical things. I can’t even imagine the amount of research that went into this book. Wells goes into detail about the structure of viruses and how they interact with the human body. Granted, the virus is made up, but he uses plenty of medical lingo to support his claims. Kira is trying to find a cure for RM, a virus that could kill out the tiny remainder of the human race. She is highly intelligent and very passionate about her work. She understands how high the stakes are and is willing to give her life if it means saving the human race. She is only sixteen in this book, but she seemed a lot older probably because she was forced to grow up too fast as is the case in most dystopian novels.  

Marcus is Kira’s long-time boyfriend. I didn’t think he contributed that much to the story. He was actually kind of whiny to me. He is constantly telling Kira that he just wants to live with her in peace, but she wants to save the world. He doesn’t seem to understand the true crisis the world is facing.

Samm is a Partial that Kira ends up befriending. I really wanted the two of them to get together, but it never happened. Hopefully in the next book because there is definitely a connection there. Even though Samm is supposedly the enemy, you can’t help but like and trust him. He seems to truly want what’s best for both species, humans and Partials. He is gorgeous, of course, and I fell in love with him like I normally do. Curse me and my inability to read a book without falling in love with at least one of the characters.

Overall, this book was wonderful. It was definitely not your traditional dystopian or even young adult novel in general. The lack of searing romance made this book stand out from the rest, but also didn’t make the book lack in amazingness. There was plenty of action, intrigue, and plot twists to keep you on the edge of your seat. Loved it and now I am going to finish writing this so I can start Fragments. Happy reading all! 

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