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A review by alba_marie
The Archived by V.E. Schwab
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
"Knowledge is power, but ignorance can be a blessing."
"I agree, but once you know, you can't go back. Not really. You can carve out someone's memories, but they won't be who they were before. They'll be full of holes. Given the choice, I'd rather learn to live with what I know."
It's been some time, but I'm back to immersing myself in the worlds created by fantasy author Victoria Schwab. The Archived isn't my favourite but dang, even when she's not writing her best work, Schwab is fantastic. (Ok so my order of favourites probably goes in order: Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, Darker Shades of Magic series, Monsters of Verity, The Near Witch, Gallant, The Archived, and finally, Vicious. Yep, superheroes don't work much for me, sorry!)
The Archived, the first in a duology, is a genre-defying book. Kind of a ghost story, kind of a romance, kind of an adventure, kinda a mystery, dabbling in urban fantasy and the paranormal, the one thing it definitely is: portal fiction. Which is a trope that almost always works for me. And it's about the afterlife, which also is pretty much my thing.
In the world created in the book, every person leaves an imprint, a story – their history. Upon death, it's recorded in a sort of imprint of their shape, which is stored in eerily coffin-like shelves at the Archive. They are called Histories. But sometimes they walk up, go walkabout, and get confused, wreaking havoc. It's the job of the Keepers, people like Mackenzie, to "Return" them to the Archive. She polices the Narrows, creepy hell-like hallways full of Doors, Returning (lots of capital letters in the book) wandering Histories.
But after moving into a new place, a creaky old building called the Coronado, and being given a new territory, suddenly there are tons more awakened Histories. There's also the record of a cold case of deaths in Mackenzie's new flat. There's a new guy too – Guyliner, or Wesley – who catches her eye. Owen, another mysterious guy, catches her attention too. And then there's the tragic death of her brother which still feels fresh even more than a year later. Something strange starts happening at the Archive and somehow Mackenzie falls into the middle of it.
The book isn't Schwab's strongest. The world building could use more work - how did the Archive come to be? What is its purpose? Why bother recording the History of dead people if they are "asleep" and no one is able to visit or read them? Maybe these questions are answered in book two.
But even if it isn't my favourite of hers, I still really enjoyed it, and I liked the characters, particularly Wesley and Roland, the librarian. Mackenzie could do with a bit more to her life, and she makes some frustrating, eye-rolling decisions, but she does mature (a little) by the end of the book. It doesn't feel like the start of a series, so I'm curious where book two takes us, but happy to be along for the ride! Already checked out from the library :)
"I agree, but once you know, you can't go back. Not really. You can carve out someone's memories, but they won't be who they were before. They'll be full of holes. Given the choice, I'd rather learn to live with what I know."
It's been some time, but I'm back to immersing myself in the worlds created by fantasy author Victoria Schwab. The Archived isn't my favourite but dang, even when she's not writing her best work, Schwab is fantastic. (Ok so my order of favourites probably goes in order: Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, Darker Shades of Magic series, Monsters of Verity, The Near Witch, Gallant, The Archived, and finally, Vicious. Yep, superheroes don't work much for me, sorry!)
The Archived, the first in a duology, is a genre-defying book. Kind of a ghost story, kind of a romance, kind of an adventure, kinda a mystery, dabbling in urban fantasy and the paranormal, the one thing it definitely is: portal fiction. Which is a trope that almost always works for me. And it's about the afterlife, which also is pretty much my thing.
In the world created in the book, every person leaves an imprint, a story – their history. Upon death, it's recorded in a sort of imprint of their shape, which is stored in eerily coffin-like shelves at the Archive. They are called Histories. But sometimes they walk up, go walkabout, and get confused, wreaking havoc. It's the job of the Keepers, people like Mackenzie, to "Return" them to the Archive. She polices the Narrows, creepy hell-like hallways full of Doors, Returning (lots of capital letters in the book) wandering Histories.
But after moving into a new place, a creaky old building called the Coronado, and being given a new territory, suddenly there are tons more awakened Histories. There's also the record of a cold case of deaths in Mackenzie's new flat. There's a new guy too – Guyliner, or Wesley – who catches her eye. Owen, another mysterious guy, catches her attention too. And then there's the tragic death of her brother which still feels fresh even more than a year later. Something strange starts happening at the Archive and somehow Mackenzie falls into the middle of it.
The book isn't Schwab's strongest. The world building could use more work - how did the Archive come to be? What is its purpose? Why bother recording the History of dead people if they are "asleep" and no one is able to visit or read them? Maybe these questions are answered in book two.
But even if it isn't my favourite of hers, I still really enjoyed it, and I liked the characters, particularly Wesley and Roland, the librarian. Mackenzie could do with a bit more to her life, and she makes some frustrating, eye-rolling decisions, but she does mature (a little) by the end of the book. It doesn't feel like the start of a series, so I'm curious where book two takes us, but happy to be along for the ride! Already checked out from the library :)