27 March 2012

Review: Partials - Dan Wells

Release date: February 28, 2012
Number of pages: 472
Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Humanity is all but extinguished after a war with partials—engineered organic beings identical to humans—has decimated the world’s population. Reduced to only tens of thousands by a weaponized virus to which only a fraction of humanity is immune, the survivors in North America have huddled together on Long Island. The threat of the partials is still imminent, but, worse, no baby has been born immune to the disease in over a decade. Humanity’s time is running out.
When sixteen-year-old Kira learns of her best friend’s pregnancy, she’s determined to find a solution. Then one rash decision forces Kira to flee her community with the unlikeliest of allies. As she tries desperately to save what is left of her race, she discovers that the survival of both humans and partials rests in her attempts to answer questions of the war’s origin that she never knew to ask.
Combining the fast-paced action of The Hunger Games with the provocative themes of Battlestar Galactica, Partials is a pulse-pounding journey into a world where the very concept of what it means to be human is in question—one where our sense of humanity is both our greatest liability, and our only hope for survival


An action-packed enthralling novel that will have you begging for more. Dan Wells introduces us to a promising story, in which the human population is at risk of becoming extinct because of their own creation: the Partials. These were engineered for fighting in a war but later when the humans started abusing them, they rebelled against humanity releasing a "RM" which killed almost everyone. In 2076 only a handful of humans are still alive. Even though the war against the Partials ended eleven years ago, the "RM" virus is still able to affect the population: every single newborn has died within the first 72 hours and a cure is yet to be found.


The story is told from Kira's point of view. A girl who works at the maternity ward in the hospital. Since the Hope Act was created, every 18-year-old girl is required to have a baby by law. Kira, who only has two years before the law requires her to become pregnant, is frustrated after watching a handful of babies dying in front of her. But when her best friend becomes pregnant too, she can't take it anymore. She takes it upon herself to personally find a cure for this virus. And her plan includes capturing a Partial, which by the way hasn't been sighted for almost 11 years. 

I do have to admit that I don't read many books by male authors, not that I have anything against them, is just that I can relate more to female authors since they have a better insight of the female world (and I prefer female main characters). But Wells' novel caught me by surprise. I really loved Kira as a heroine, she was strong and determined, overall an inspiring character. All characters were unique with their own characteristics and yet they were all somewhat realistic. 


The post-apocalyptic world that Wells crafted full of detail was breathtaking. You can completely imagine the world for yourself and that is something I really enjoy while reading a novel. And of course the beautiful writing helps a lot too! 

Another great thing about Partials is that the romance is not in the foreground of the story which surprised me a bit. Wells was able to keep me captivated without much romance. Nowadays almost every book has an amazing love story in it. Not saying that it doesn't have ANY romance in it but it certainly isn't the most important thing in the book.


Can't wait for its sequel! The ending was amazing and cliffhanger-ish! 
If you are a fan of dystopia, then this book is a must-read!








Dan was born at a young age, killed a man in Reno just to watch him die, and ate the last mango in paris. Then he wrote this book.You can find more about him here! Follow him on Twitter

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