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bookph1le's review
5.0
I really enjoyed Partials and have been eagerly awaiting the next book in the series, so when I saw that there would be a novella that would provide some more background about the Isolation War, I was all over it. If you haven't read Partials yet, you could conceivably read this one first, as it deals with events that take place before the timeline in Partials. However, I'd recommend reading Partials before this novella, as the character this novella focuses on plays a small role in Partials, and reading this novella gave me a whole new appreciation for her. Some spoilers to follow.
First off, I think Dan Wells is frankly awesome at creating female characters. I loved Kira in Partials, and I loved most of the secondary women as well. They are fully-formed people with minds of their own, and they make their own decisions in life. I really, really wish more authors would create such great female characters.
Heron is certainly no exception. In fact, after reading this novella, I think Heron has become one of my favorite characters in the series. She is awesome. Wells really knows how to do an ominous character, to write one in such a way that their motivations are easily understandable and believable. Told in alternating chapters, the novella switches back and forth between Heron's creation and initial training, and the role she plays in the Isolation War.
This book poses a lot of very interesting questions. Heron does bad things, but does the blame lie with her? There are a lot of ethical questions swirling around in this novella, and none of them are easy to answer. I think Wells does a great job of pointing out the dangers in using technologies of war that remove actual human beings further and further from the front lines. True, human lives are saved in this book, but at what cost to humanity's sense of morality? By the time the novella ended, I found myself wondering if I could really blame Heron for her actions in Partials. I certainly am not excusing the atrocities she commits, but this novella really makes it a lot easier to see what led her to act as she does.
The other strong point about this novella's contribution to the series is that it gives the reader a much better sense of the world. I thought Wells did a really good job of world building in Partials, but this book provides background that helps really flesh out the setting. It was interesting to learn what had driven the creation of the Partials in the first place, as well as to realize what had led to their act of rebellion. With this novella, Wells answers the questions about what's going on in the rest of the world, giving the localized struggle in Partials a broader context.
I was completely immersed in this story the whole time I read it. It's very fast-paced and packs a lot of interesting detail without the narrative ever getting bogged down. I'm looking forward to the next installment in the series now more than ever, thanks to this novella.
First off, I think Dan Wells is frankly awesome at creating female characters. I loved Kira in Partials, and I loved most of the secondary women as well. They are fully-formed people with minds of their own, and they make their own decisions in life. I really, really wish more authors would create such great female characters.
Heron is certainly no exception. In fact, after reading this novella, I think Heron has become one of my favorite characters in the series. She is awesome. Wells really knows how to do an ominous character, to write one in such a way that their motivations are easily understandable and believable. Told in alternating chapters, the novella switches back and forth between Heron's creation and initial training, and the role she plays in the Isolation War.
This book poses a lot of very interesting questions. Heron does bad things, but does the blame lie with her? There are a lot of ethical questions swirling around in this novella, and none of them are easy to answer. I think Wells does a great job of pointing out the dangers in using technologies of war that remove actual human beings further and further from the front lines. True, human lives are saved in this book, but at what cost to humanity's sense of morality? By the time the novella ended, I found myself wondering if I could really blame Heron for her actions in Partials. I certainly am not excusing the atrocities she commits, but this novella really makes it a lot easier to see what led her to act as she does.
The other strong point about this novella's contribution to the series is that it gives the reader a much better sense of the world. I thought Wells did a really good job of world building in Partials, but this book provides background that helps really flesh out the setting. It was interesting to learn what had driven the creation of the Partials in the first place, as well as to realize what had led to their act of rebellion. With this novella, Wells answers the questions about what's going on in the rest of the world, giving the localized struggle in Partials a broader context.
I was completely immersed in this story the whole time I read it. It's very fast-paced and packs a lot of interesting detail without the narrative ever getting bogged down. I'm looking forward to the next installment in the series now more than ever, thanks to this novella.
michalice's review
3.0
Isolation wasn't what I expected, I went into this expecting a different war, but I did enjoy getting to see Heron in another role, both as an undercover agent, but also her 'birth' and learning journey.
Isolation lets us she another side to her, and gives some background information into why Heron acts like she does, being more human than other partials. I think if I had read this before I started this series, I may have liked Heron more than I did. This isn't really an essential read for the series, but it is very worth while.
Isolation lets us she another side to her, and gives some background information into why Heron acts like she does, being more human than other partials. I think if I had read this before I started this series, I may have liked Heron more than I did. This isn't really an essential read for the series, but it is very worth while.
emjay24's review
4.0
Isolation is a novella in the Partial series. It comes between books one and two, even though it’s labeled book .5 because the time frame in the book is before the series begins. We briefly met Heron, a Partial, in the first book, and this book is all about her, from her point of view. It switches from when she was born and being trained, to a mission near the end of the Isolation War. It also gives us some background on the Isolation War and creation of the Partials, something we didn’t have a lot of before, since Kira, the narrator of the first book, was only a baby or not even born during a lot of this time. This book takes only an hour or two to read, but is very fleshed out. Heron is probably a sociopath, since she was created with no conscience, but I like her a lot, and can’t wait to see her featured in the next Partials books.
sersi's review
3.0
Fairly short story set in the Partials universe. It was okay, although there wasn’t much time to get attached to anyone. The best part was probably the Fragments preview attached to it.
raquelzc's review
4.0
Reading this before the series has me a bit confused, but I loved the story! Can't wait to see how the series goes
beckykirk's review
4.0
This is what I was expecting from Partials! This is what I wanted! This makes me more excited about Fragments!
lissajean7's review
4.0
It was a fun, short prequel of sorts. I enjoyed Partials. I can't wait to read Fragments! It was too short, but I knew that when I bought it. I enjoyed the learning with the main character and seeing her grow. Fun story. :)
captainhotbun's review
adventurous
dark
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.75
lolasreviews's review
4.0
As far as short stories go I really enjoyed this one. It adds something to the world and it gives so much in terms of world building.
One of the things I missed in Partial was explanation about the Isolation War and this novella gives that missing piece of information. I love world building and everything that gives me more anshwers and world building is great. This novella focusses not only on the Isolation War, but also on the Partials. It is told from the point of view of a Partial and it was amazong to read how efficient and emotionless they are. Half is told from the past of the Partial from when she was born till the point where she is ready for her mission and the other chapters are about the Isolation War and some critical events during it.
To conclude: I really enjoyed reading this novella and I am glad I read it. It gives more explanation and understanding about both the Isolation War and the Partials. Certainly worth the read if you like to know more about the Partials and the world.
One of the things I missed in Partial was explanation about the Isolation War and this novella gives that missing piece of information. I love world building and everything that gives me more anshwers and world building is great. This novella focusses not only on the Isolation War, but also on the Partials. It is told from the point of view of a Partial and it was amazong to read how efficient and emotionless they are. Half is told from the past of the Partial from when she was born till the point where she is ready for her mission and the other chapters are about the Isolation War and some critical events during it.
To conclude: I really enjoyed reading this novella and I am glad I read it. It gives more explanation and understanding about both the Isolation War and the Partials. Certainly worth the read if you like to know more about the Partials and the world.