Isolation (Partials Sequence, #0.5)

by Dan Wells

[celinenyx]

Isolation is a novella set during the Isolation Wars, so before the happenings in Partials. I wouldn't recommend reading Isolation as an actual intro into the Partials Sequence world; it's much better enjoyed when you know the backdrop better.

In Isolation we get an insight into the life of one Partial we already met, Heron. She's an espionage Partial, created without an empathy package. It immediately becomes clear though that even though she's bred inside a vat, Heron is more human than her developers would like.

This novella was quite enjoyable, and I loved getting more information about the Isolation War since what exactly happened is never explained in Partials. I wasn't quite sure about Heron though - I felt she was sometimes inconsistently written. For example, at one point she sighs and mutters curses under her breath. This seems very out of character for a Partial, since they don't act on emotions as much as humans do because of the Link. To me it seems she'd rather just spew some annoyance-data into the air, instead of expressing herself in such a human way.

Even though Isolation is rather expensive for its 75 pages, it gives a welcome insight into the world-building that has gone into the Partials Sequence.