Origins: The Fire (Mila 2.0, #0.5)

by Debra Driza

Heart-stopping and electric, MILA 2.0: Origins: The Fire contains a short prequel story and an excerpt to MILA 2.0, the first book in a riveting Bourne Identity–style trilogy by Debra Driza.

Mila can't remember anything before the fire that took her father's life. It's normal to have some memory loss after traumatic events, but Mila doesn't remember if she's ever learned to ride a bike, or if she's ever been in love. Nothing.

What she doesn't know is that she isn't supposed to remember—that she was built in a computer science lab and programmed to forget. Because if she remembers, she might discover her true identity.

The question is: If she relived the fire, what would she see?

• ASIN: B00AMOC5Z2
• Publish Date: 8 January 2013
• Publish Status: Unknown
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Katherine Tegen Books
• Format: eBook (Kindle)
• Pages: 15
• Language: English

Reviews

[readingwithwrin]

This novella has made me really excited to start reading this series again. Knowing what exactly happened to Mila now and why she was in the fire was a good thing for me, and I can't wait to see what happens to her in the next book!


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[Joséphine]

First off, I read this after reading MILA 2.0, so in terms of determining its effectiveness as a prequel to hype up the release of the first book in the trilogy, I am not in the best position to decide. Origins: The Fire is extremely short. Length-wise, it's the equivalent of a chapter and in my opinion, it should've just been included as a prologue to MILA 2.0. While both #0.5 and #1 can stand alone, they might as well have been tied together.

Personally, I found the drama surrounding the fire a bit too easy. Mila wakes up to a fire and is worried for the safety of her parents. That pretty much sums it all up. I thought it was too centred on the plot without much regard for who Mila is as a character. In the very least, it did reflect Debra Drizer's writing style for the MILA 2.0 series, so this prequel does serve a purpose. I doubt that it would've made much of a an impact on me as a teaser though.

[Jo]

Originally published on Once Upon a Bookcase.

This short story prequel to Mila 2.0 is exactly that - a short story. Not a novella, like I was expecting. But it's still an awesome short story! Mila 2.0: The Origins: The Fire covers the fire that, in Mila 2.0, Mila can't remember anything before. The fire her father dies in.

It's fast paced and exciting, throwing you right into the action from the very get go. There's no slow building up to it; one minute Mila is dreaming, the next she wakes up choking on smoke. Debra Driza has written the story in such detail that even though I have never been in a fire, I could feel everything. The thick, choking smoke, the incessant, blistering heat. In such a small amount of time, Driza sets up extreme drama and tension, and has you sitting on the edge of your seat before you've even realised you've moved.

With this short story, Driza shows she is an extremely skilled writer, but also gives us some insight into what to expect in the full length novel. Mila is extremely resourceful, and although panicked and scared, keeps a clear enough head to think. And with the ending, I am so intrigued to see where Mila 2.0 will follow.

This free (currently) short story comes with the first seven chapters of Mila 2.0, but I didn't read them as I get too interested, and then can't continue! But as it is, I am super excited to get my hands on this book once it's released! It's going to be awesome!