Book Review: Partials by Dan Wells

Partials
Partials #1
Author: Dan Wells
Reading Level: YA
Genre: Dystopian
Released: February 28th 2012
Review Source: Purchased
Available: Amazon

Summary: (from goodreads) 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.

How far is to far when it comes to the protection of a dying race? Almost annihilated by beings of their creation aka Partials, the human race finds it self on the brink of extinction. This is the concept given to us in the novel Partials. In Partials we find whats left of America based at Long Island,trying to fend off a virus that is ravaging their children. Kira, a young medical student with a courageous heart that yearns to find a cure, goes on a quest to find the mothers of the virus who just happen to be partials. Her journey gives her a different view on life, while at the same time questioning her very own race.

Although the novel had a seemingly slow start, looking back, I now kind of see why the slow start was necessary. Dan Wells does a great job of conveying the emotion and desperation of a dying race. It was a well composed novel, with the action flowing very well with the drama. Mr. Wells character development did not stand out much. While the characters were great, they never really grew to their full potential. It seemed Kira was the only character that truly grew throughout the novel. With those thoughts in mind, I must say that Partials was truly a great read. It's always good to try something new and I think Partials is refreshing enough to please any reader.