Review also published on my blog! :)

There's been sooooo much hype about Victoria Schwab lately that I couldn't resist any longer: I had to pick up one of her books. So I started with The Archived – it was on a $1.99 special on the Kindle store, so I figured that was a good enough reason to decide where to start. And I have to say, I was not disappointed!

The thing that surprised me the most about this book was that Schwab managed to create a very unique universe. I really cannot think of anything to compare it to. The idea of everyone being compiled in a library after death – as an embodiment of all their memories – was what really drew me in to this story from the get-go. What I also really appreciated was Schwab's beautiful writing style. Not only was it quite exquisite, but she did an excellent job of setting a mood. There was a distinct sense of foreboding that steadily built up to the climax of the story, making it more intense.

One of the main themes of the book was dealing with grief, which Schwab handled and wrote about very well. As someone who has gone through grief, I can really appreciate when authors are able to convey that feeling accurately.

"I just want to see him. Not a Ben-like shape, but the real thing. Just for a moment. A glimpse. The more I miss him, the more he seems to fade. He feels so far away, and holding on to empty tokens ... won't bring him any closer."

But there were other things I appreciated about The Archived that made it stand apart from other young adult novels. Namely, the romantic aspect – while not exactly subtle – doesn't take the foreground of the story. And there is a little bit of a love triangle, but the way it pans out doesn't make it your traditional young adult love triangle in the slightest. Additionally, the romance between Mackenzie and who she "ends up with" definitely has a nice, slow build-up of chemistry between the two, which is very refreshing. Another thing I appreciated was the story was not obvious. I wasn't able to easily predict what was going to happen in the story, which definitely made it a page-turner for me. The foreshadowing was very well-executed, and made me feel like "something's going to happen, but I have no idea what!" There were also twists that I definitely was not expecting.

There were some things I disliked. First of all, it was kind of difficult to really get into the story from the first few pages. In fact, it wasn't until about 150 pages in that I was totally hooked on the story. The first part is mostly spent acquainting the reader with Mackenzie's everyday life – what her world is like, what her job is like in normal circumstances. A lot of time is spent in the beginning seeing Mackenzie do some pretty mundane things. Another aspect that made it difficult to get into was deciphering all the lingo that's thrown at you in the beginning... it took me some time to get a hold of it all, and know for sure what it meant – Archive, Narrows, Outer, Keeper, "Da"... etc. It's a little overwhelming at first, because explanations come after the words are introduced. This book definitely shows before it tells.

And lastly, I wasn't totally into Mackenzie as main character. I felt that she could have used more character development. Wesley, in comparison, I felt was a fully developed, well-rounded character, and he wasn't even the main one. He was much more fun to read about than Mackenzie, which I know isn't good since she is the main character. I didn't totally dislike her, but there was just something about her that was... lackluster. Additionally, all the stupid decisions and obvious mistakes she kept making drove me crazy. Although I know the plot wouldn't have advanced too much if she didn't make certain mistakes. But I kept talking to the book: don't do that thing, something bad will happen, duh!! Anyways.

Despite some flaws, I really liked this book, and I'm excited to pick up The Unbound eventually. (Though not super soon because I guess it's kind of cliffhanger-ey and Schwab still hasn't written book three. :( ) But I do really want to see what happens! Overall, I would totally recommend checking out this book. To me it seems like a good introduction to Schwab's writing, or a continuance if you've already read some of her books!

Final rating: ★★★★ ( )

Review posted at SoManyBooksSoLittleTime ( )

Eu amei a mitologia desse universo, mas a história demorou pra desenvolver e eu demorei pra engrenar nessa história.
Mas no fim fiquei empolgada e terminei apaixonada pela escrita da Victoria Schwab! Já quero ler outros livros dela. Que mulher criativa! ( )

The concept is a pretty cool one, even if the reasoning is vague. With the myriad underworld/afterlife myths, why not a library? What I didn't get is why do the Histories wake up? It would make more sense (to me) if the Histories were being stolen or something.

Whichever it is, the writing itself is really beautiful and the story is just interesting. I didn't love that Ben's death was basically just Mac's motivation (Stuffed Into the Fridge to be exact), even though there was an attempt to give him more personality than "tragically young dead boy".

The arc in this book is resolved, so no cliffhangers, but with plenty of room to keep exploring this universe. I'll be reading [b: The Unbound|13638131|The Unbound (The Archived, #2)|Victoria Schwab|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1361898093s/13638131.jpg|19250879] when it's released. ( )

I might be in the Minority here but I completely understand why Owen did what he did. ( )