Title: Ruins

Author: Dan Wells

Series: Partials Sequence #3

Genre: Teen Dystopian

Rating: 4/5 stars

The Overview: Kira, Samm, and Marcus fight to prevent a final war between Partials and humans in the gripping final installment in the Partials Sequence, a series that combines the thrilling action of The Hunger Games with the provocative themes of Blade Runner and The Stand. There is no avoiding it—the war to decide the fate of both humans and Partials is at hand. Both sides hold in their possession a weapon that could destroy the other, and Kira Walker has precious little time to prevent that from happening. She has one chance to save both species and the world with them, but it will only come at great personal cost.

The Mini Review:

I’d like to preface this review by declaring that Ruins was a really good book and definitely earned its 4-star rating… but I still find myself a little disappointed with it. The problem is, the first two books in the series were PHENOMENAL and I was hoping for an equally strong ending to what still amounts to my favorite dystopian series. “Really liking” a book is not the same as “loving” a book, yet that’s where I find myself with this series-ender. Did I have high expectations going into it? Absolutely. And, like I said, it was still a very entertaining read, I just wanted it to finish with the same bang it started with… kapeesh?

So now we get into the inevitable question of why it let me down, and that one is easy to answer: it felt rushed. Incidentally, it was rushed – written in just a few short months, but ALL of them had the same constraints, so why was this one different? I truly believe if Wells had just a little more time to brainstorm and really pull all of his amazing plotlines together, this book would’ve been killer! Amazing! And easily the best one of the series. Sadly, it falls victim to the industry’s strict deadlines. As it is, there was resolution, but not in a way that resonated with me.

So, aside from my probably unrealistic expectations, the story progression in this final novel was interesting, the characters were memorable, and (despite my issues with pacing) I really did love getting to immerse myself in this world for a final time. It’s important to note that the Partials Sequence is still my favorite teen dystopian/post-apocalyptic series, and I’m sure I will continue to recommend it often for many years to come.

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