Fragments

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Author Dan Wells is back with the sequel to the sci-fi blockbuster Partials , which Pittacus Lore called a "thrilling sci-fi adrenaline rush, with one of the most compelling and frightening visions of Earth's future I've seen yet." After discovering the cure for RM, Kira Walker sets off on a terrifying journey into the ruins of postapocalyptic America and the darkest desires of her heart in order to uncover the means—and a reason—for humanity's survival. Dan Wells extends his richly imagined, gritty world and introduces new memorable characters in this second installment in the Partials Sequence. ** From School Library Journal Gr 9 Up-In this second book in the saga, set in a postapocalyptic U.S. in 2076, Kira is struggling to accept the fact that she is a genetically enhanced human known as a Partial. She makes her way on foot from East Meadow, New York, to the company headquarters of ParaGen in Manhattan in search of a way to cure the RM virus that kills newborns and to stop the expiration of Partials at age 20. Kira allies herself with the last human in Manhattan, Afa, a mentally unstable IT Director from ParaGen who may be able to help her, along with Samm and Heron, the Partials who betrayed, then saved her, and know what she really is. She has to find a cure before the Partials and humans destroy one another. Only by being united will everyone be able to live in peace. They all travel on foot and horseback from Manhattan to Chicago and then Denver to find answers. They end up with even more questions after finding human survivors in Denver who have a cure for RM that allows them to have children, but the cure comes at a huge price. Kira discovers a secret about herself that forces her to make the ultimate sacrifice to save others. The cliff-hanger ending ensures that fans can look forward to more surprises in the next book in this exciting and thought-provoking series, but this one doesn't stand alone.-Sharon Rawlins, New Jersey State Library, Trentonα(c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. From Booklist In this sequel to Partials (2012), Wells drops readers right into the action. This is a highly political, postapocalyptic morality tale where each side sees the other as both threat and salvation. Violent, gory warfare is balanced by a philosophical bioethical dilemma; humanity is teetering on the brink of extinction due to their own blindness in creating genetically modified super soldiers called Partials, who have rebelled against their creators. Partials are dying from a built-in expiration date; humans, from a plague. Kira Walker is a new breed of Partial who may just hold the key to cure both in her DNA. Little backstory and quick-paced alternating points of view make the players and circumstances difficult for newcomers to catch on to, and there are a few jarring anachronistic notes (references to toll roads and quarters although no one has used money in years, for example). But the epic scope and grand adventure will keep readers glued to the page, right up to the cliff-hanger ending, which will leave them screaming for resolution. Grades 8-12. --Charli Osborne