Fragments (Partials Sequence, #2)

by Dan Wells

Fighting to stop a war that could destroy everyone alive…

Kira Walker nearly died searching for the RM cure, but the battle for survival is only just beginning. The genetically-engineered Partials are inextricably bound to a greater plan that could save both races and give Kira the answers she desperately seeks.

Venturing deep into the wasteland, Kira’s only allies are an unhinged drifter and two Partials who betrayed her yet saved her life – the only ones who know her secret. Back on Long Island, what’s left of humanity is gearing up for war. But their greatest enemy may be one they didn’t even know existed.

It is the eleventh hour of humanity’s time on earth; this journey may be their last.

• ISBN13: 9780007465231
• Publish Date: 28 March 2013 (first published 26 February 2013)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Inc
• Imprint: HarperCollins
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 482
• Language: English
• URL: http://harpercollins.co.uk

Reviews

[alisoninbookland]

It was a very middle of the series book. It was a big book but most of the big developments didn’t happen until the last ~100 pages or so. That’s a LONG 400 pages to read before things get really interesting.

Despite how slow going the book was, the big developments are really interesting. I didn’t see them coming and I can’t wait to see how things go in the next installment.

I loved the moral gray areas in the book. It’s an interesting take on racism (species-ism?) and the decisions that need to be made aren’t easy ones. I know when reading I’d think about I would do in their situations but things would quickly change as we find out more information. You don’t know who the good or bad guys are. You’re not quite sure who you want to win. That always makes for interesting reading.

I’m not sure if I was a fan of the different perspectives. It did help because there were a lot of storylines going on and it filled in information we needed. On the other hand, it made for some choppy reading and I was constantly getting annoyed about being taken away from a storyline.

The bottom line? Slow going but the last bit of the book makes the book worth reading.

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[Angie]

Fragments is a twisty maze of twistedness! My mind is spinning out of control! What in the world is going on?! This sequel did get off to an extremely slow and boring start, but once it got going, it just kept going and going and going and going until my brain was mush. Kira is out searching for information on ParaGen, since there has been no success on replicating the cure, and she has no idea what she is. Meanwhile, Marcus is still in East Meadow trying to piece things together there, such as where Nandita went and why. Kira has better luck as she finds a man living alone who happens to have boxes and boxes full of ParaGen documents. Too bad he's missing the most crucial papers; i.e. the cure and how RM works.

The plot of Fragments became more intricate and complex as the book goes on. Once Kira learns something new, fifty more questions are created. Then what she thought was the answer, turned out to be something else. And the only person who can help her is Afa, a computer genius who is convinced he's the last human alive and often reverts to a childlike state. It was hard to coax information out of him, but eventually Kira learns all he knows, and most importantly what he doesn't know and where to find it. This takes her, Afa, and when they appear, Samm and Heron, on a trip across the country. There's all kinds of bizarre and frightening creatures out there, as well as the ruin from the war, making their trip more difficult. But, oh, the answers that they eventually get! Blew my mind!

While most of Fragments is focused on Kira's adventures, Marcus does learn some important information too. He doesn't come up with it on his own, he has to go find someone who he hasn't seen in a long time, Kira's "sister" Ariel. She reveals all kinds of sinister things that happened in Nandita's house, but that leads them closer to the truth, and there's another surprise that I didn't see coming! Nandita is certainly sneaky and smart. There are also a handful of chapters from Haru, which I wasn't that into. One plot twist is revealed, but nothing came of it after that. I'm sure that's being saved for Ruins, but I'm really not a fan of introducing a minor character's POV for a couple of pages just to reveal a plot point.

Fragments was really good! The beginning is a bit of a chore to get through, but it's absolutely worth it! I did work out one piece of the human-Partial puzzle, and felt so proud of myself! Of course, this is like a million piece puzzle of a polar bear in a snow storm, so there's definitely a lot more revealed and left to be revealed!

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[Ashley]

Nose Graze — Book reviews & blogging tips

2.5 Stars

Fragments really has me torn. I feel like there were a lot of pros and cons in this book. It wasn't bad but I feel like there are a few things that I'm going to complain about a lot.

What I Liked

We do get a lot of answers in Fragments. We find out more about the Partials, how they're connected to humans, what Kira is, and what role her "parents" played in the war. I think we get all the answers I wanted, and I LOVE that. These answers are what kept me reading the book. I so desperately wanted them, and I was thrilled when I got them!

The world building in Fragments was just as epic as in Partials. This time we learn a lot about what's going on in central/west America.

What I Didn't Like

Fragments was slow as hell. I honestly think we could cut out one third to one half of the book and still understand everything perfectly. This book was WAY too descriptive for my liking. We'd have a 30 page description on how they crossed a bridge. A 20 page description about Kira tip-toeing around a room to avoid an enemy. It just dragged on and on. I found myself skipping 2-3 pages at a time just to get past the descriptions and move onto the action.

The slow pace kept me from wanting to pick the book back up. There were a few times where I actually considered putting it down because I was bored. Ultimately, it took like a week for me to finish it because I had such little desire to keep picking it back up.

This was definitely the book's biggest downfall. This was a LONG book (almost 600 pages) and I don't think it needed to be that long at all. It could have easily been cut down to 350 or 400 at most, without the story suffering because of it.

Also there's one thing that Jessi from Novel Heartbeat brought up in her review that I totally agree with. There were a few moments where the book made me feel nothing. No emotion. No sadness. Nothing. This is particularly true when a character dies. It's like pages and pages of travelling descriptions, then BAM. Right in the middle of the page. "Afa is dead". There's zero build up to it. It's literally just text inserted into the page. Just like Jessi, I actually had to go back and read the sentence like 3 times because it was so random that I didn't believe it had actually happened.

Finally, sometimes Marcus's chapters bored me. I wasn't as interested in his side of the story. I'd mope a little when I got to his chapter, because I just wanted to go back to Kira since she was the one finding all the juicy information.

Overall

I'm giving this book 3 stars, so I didn't hate it. I just think the bad pacing ruined it. But if you ignore that fact, I think it was a pretty good book. Getting all the answers to our questions was really interesting—that's what kept me going in the end. And just like the first book, Fragments had pretty epic world building.

[kimbacaffeinate]

Fragments is the second book in Dan Wells Partials Sequence trilogy and was one of my most highly anticipated books. I began this tome during the Take Control Read-a-thon in March and consumed it in just two days. Stepping back into this dystopian world I found myself once again caught up in the cure, the battle and the unique characters. Wells outdoes himself with the incredible world-building and thought provoking questions he raises. With the exception of the characters ages this tale reads like an adult novel from its depth to it complex tale. Fans of The Passage and White Horse will enjoy this trilogy. Three word review: fascinating, chilling and suspenseful.

The tale begin where we left off in Partials. Kira is searching for a cure for both RM and the expiration date while dealing with the discovery of her origins. The humans on Long Island are frantically searching to replicate the cure for RM that Kira stole from the Partials. As group of Partials evade Long Island in search of Kira; determined that she holds the cure, Kira begins a quest to save them all. Samm and Heron along with Afa Demoux a fractured IT employee from ParaGen join Kira on an epic journey into the wild where they will face untold challenges and question the fate of both sides. Meanwhile, Marcus steps up to try and find an ally with one of the fractured Partial groups and what he and his commander undercover fascinated me.

Kira has become one of my favorite protagonists as she searches to uncover the truth and come to terms with what she is. She has left Long Island and Marcus behind although they stay in contact with short-wave radio. Kira sees growth in this second book, and her thirst for understanding, wonder at humanity and quest to save them all endeared her to me. Samm is a Partial and offers us unique insight into their hierarchy, emotions and quest for survival. His loyalty and willingness to help Kira are rooted in something deeper then survival. I liked Wells approach to him, and the subtle ways he added depth to Samm. When he speaks we get incredible depth and his actions revealed a true hero. We see a bond forming between Samm and Kira as they both explore their feelings. Their relationship is built on trust and friendship and I adore Samm. I never really felt the connection between her and Marcus as it played a small role in book one. A triangle develops here but it isn’t one that is driving me insane or making me choose sides. I am confident of whom she will partner with but the romance is only a second thought to the overall ARC. As a character we see tremendous growth in Marcus as he moves out of his comfort zone, and at times he was hilarious. He appoints himself an ambassador of relations between the humans and Partials. Heron is a complicated Partial and struggles to separate herself from the pack mentality or link of the Partials. She is not at all happy about this quest, but her trust in Samm has her making the journey. I never warmed up to her and her snarly superior attitude but she did give us insight into her people. Afa was a unique character and his part in the quest was significant. He and his backpack stole a little of my heart. The Trust, doctors, Kira’s sisters and step-mom all add to the tale and drove us towards the final book.

I know many will have complainants about the length of Fragments as it comes in at a little under six hundred pages a rarity in young adult fiction but for me I loved every page. World-building is so important to me and I have no problems with length if it provides fleshed out characters, depth and plot advancement. Wells delighted me with the back history,from the complex information regarding the Partials, ParaGen to the ramifications of the war. His descriptions of the cities, the toxic wastelands and ParaGen were all riveting. We also get more character depth, especially in the secondary characters and for me this made the tale genuine and believable Wells splits the tale between Kira’s quest and those of Marcus and the Long Island humans. The pacing was wonderful for me and I quickly slipped back and forth between the two threads equal enjoying them. At no time did I think when is this going to end instead I savored this raw, unique world. The world is not pretty and both humans and Partials do unspeakable things. Wells raises noteworthy questions about humanity, technology and our morals in the quest for the biggest and the best. While we get a lot of answers and as a reader I am confident with the direction this tale is heading we did end with a cliff-hanger. The last part of the book picked up speed with several revelations and now we wait! *gasps*


originally published @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer