[Dan Wells] Partials Impressions

[Chaos he/him]

So Partials is out and getting awesome buzz pretty much everywhere. I haven't read it yet, but who has? What did you think? Anyone planning on getting it?

[Shivertongue he/him]

I just finished it last night. Utterly fantastic, and very surprising. One of the things I love about Dan's books is that, despite my extreme genre-savvyness and the thousands of books I have read, Dan manages to consistently surprise me with every story. Very, very few authors manage that at this point in time - Brandon has only done it once, with Way of Kings.

One thing I loved was the very first paragraph - it set the entire world, the conflict, everything up so perfectly. I was amazed. The quote on the back is fantastic for this reason as well.

It was interesting to see Dan's use of third person, albeit with only one viewpoint - seems like a good transition from first person.

I'd love to give a more in-depth review, and maybe I will soon, but for now I'll just end with saying GO OUT AND BUY THIS BOOK! NOW!

[lyssie95 she/her]

Agreed. It was a great book- I was sold on it from the minute I went to Mr. Wells' reading of it at LTUE.

<---where this cool picture was taken with him

I bought it the night it came out (on my Nook) and then I participated in his book bomb on amazon (bought the hardcover).

I definitely recommend it. It does have a lot of science-y explanations, which bugged some people, but I thought it was really interesting.

Erm... yeah. Good book.

Edited March 15, 2012 by lyssie95

[Ryan he/him]

I got this book the first week it came out, but for various reasons (my WoT reread among them) I haven't finished it until now. I wasn't particularly engaged with the first part of the book, and it wasn't until part 2 that it really grabbed me, and the reason why was Kira. I just didn't connect with her very well. Even once the plot really picked up and got crazy, I didn't really connect that well with her. I suppose the fact that I kept reading is a testament to the compellingness of the plot.

A large part of why I didn't like her is because she is a very realistic teenager, and a lot of her attitudes and actions are cringeworthy. Worse, I remember being a lot like her as a teen. At least, the arrogance, the assurance that I was right and everyone else was wrong, the anger and railing against things I saw as stupid, but which in hindsight I just didn't understand. I know everyone is stupid as a teen, but it still causes me embarrassment to remember it, and I think for that reason I was extra annoyed by Kira.

There were other things about it that bugged me. Mostly inconsequential things, like how Jayden and Haru's punishments of imprisonment and hard labor never seemed to ever be carried out. But that aside, and despite my annoyance at Kira, I found it brilliant.

I loved how it's a bleak post-apocalypse, but without the bleakness and depression and despair that usually fills that genre. There is a lot of brightness, and happiness, and hope in the face of overwhelming odds. Life is mostly normal, though it's a different normal than we know.

Big spoilers, now:

There were two twists that caught me completely unawares. I didn't predict them, even a little, even right before they happened, and (not to boast or anything, but) that's pretty rare. The first was Samm's betrayal. I suppose I should have seen it coming, but I was completely blinded by my desire to see more of the world and Partial society that I just assumed they would get to Group D and everything would be rosy and wonderful.

The second was Nandita. While I completely called Kira's Partial nature, I never imagined she might have a mother, nor that her mother would actually have been her adoptive mother all along. That was a twist that took my breath away and made me want to start over again, just to watch Nandita and reinterpret what she does. Also, that's one heck of a setup for book 2.

There were a few things that shocked me, too. Haru shooting the loyal scout (and then suffered no consequences, which annoyed me). Kira shooting a Grid soldier in the face without a second thought. Even with everything that was going on, and everything that was at stake, I don't think I could have done that. Certainly not as coldly as she did, nor without it wrecking me emotionally. I don't know if I should admire or conviction or just be terrified of her.

One thing that I wish I'd done is look at maps of NYC and Long Island so I knew the places in the story were like. I get the feeling there are a lot of famous places in the book that I don't recognize because I know essentially nothing about NYC in general and Long Island in particular.

You know what would be awesome? If someone marked out all the places in the book on Google Earth. If I ever reread the book, I think that's what I'll do.

Anyway, all told, and despite complaints, I loved the book, and recommend it wholeheartedly.