I have to admit, it wasn't until the second half of the book that The Archived really started clicking together for me. I've heard that some people who read the extended preview online were unsure if they wanted to continue, and I can see why--but something about the writing was really appealing to me and I ended up having a great experience with it.

Here's what I liked about the book:

* Dead people who are kept on shelves like books? Sign me on! Awesome premise.
* I loved the eerie, something's-n More...

Actual rating: 4.5

I truly underestimated this book. You know how when you first read a book's blurb and it totally catches your attention as something different and unique? You know that feeling right afterwards that can only be described nothing short of "Gimme Syndrome"? Yeah, that's how I felt with The Archived. But for whatever reason, I got distracted and started picking up other books (you know how it is). Well, one day I was frolicking through my bookshelf, re-read the blurb and engaged t More...

Review of the sneak peek can also be found in my blog: http://www.nightowlreads.org/2012/09/...

I loved it. It's a unique story with and intriguing plot. Since it's only a sneak peek, there's still much more to learn about this world. So far it's only been about Mac and her job as a Keeper, and how she misses family members she'd lost.

Mac looks back to when she first trained for the job she was too young for, but asked to be part of. At the same time adjusting to the new life her parents want for More...

**Please go to my blog The Bookaholic to see my full review.**


Today, I have a most wonderful book to talk about. I’ve been trying to hold off a little while on my review since I had finished it a few weeks ago, but I figured it’d be okay to post it now.

Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff is perhaps one of my favorite books of the 2012 releases. But it’s not going to be a tough one to answer next year when asked about favorites of 2013. Hands down, The Archived by Victoria Schwab is one of the best read More...

The Archived is a book I would read for the writing, but for me at least there’s just something missing to the story that didn’t leave me particularly satisfied. It wasn’t until almost the end that I really understood how the variously storylines connected together and what the ultimate point of the book is, but even now, my reaction to the whole thing is more underwhelmed acceptance than anything else because I just don’t have any strong feelings toward anything I’ve read. I guess for a book th More...

I'm not really the sort of person who needs to have all her questions answered by the end of the book. I don't sit and dissect every book I read, trying to figure out the allegories, once I'm done - I'm mainly in for the ride. Make the story and the world it's set in (not to metion the writing) plausible and I'm a happy camper. So, it's not wonder that The Archived (where, though the world-building is not fully explained away, it is enough to make you think "A library for the dead? Sure, why not More...

There are no windows because there is no outside, and yet above the shelves there is a vaulted ceiling of glass and light. The place is vast, and made of wood and marble, long tables running down the center like a double spine, with shelves branching off to both sides like ribs. The partitions make the cavernous space seem smaller, cozier. Or at least fathomable.

The Archive is everything you told me it would be: a patchwork…wood and stone and colored glass…all throughout, a sense of piece.

But

More...

Actual rating: 2.5 stars

Imagine a place where the dead rest on shelves like books.

Each body has a story to tell, a life seen in pictures that only Librarians can read. The dead are called Histories, and the vast realm in which they rest is the Archive.

Initial reaction when reading the blurb: Yes, I so want to read this!

Reaction after finishing: what I was thinking?

Blurbs are one of the utmost misleading information to be given to mankind. Reading a blurb and thinking it sounds decent is like More...

Originally posted here: http://wonderly.com/the-archived-by-v...

ELIZZIENOTES:

Gargoyles!

Archive = where they store people's Histories

Narrow = buffer between Archive and Outer (where we live)

REVIEW:

With each new book Victoria Schwab blows me away. It's her second novel, and it's the best yet. I don't know how to describe her writing very well other than to say it makes me yearn for more. More of this really good writing. The kind that is full of emotion and and and... Gahh! It just makes me smile More...

I am only reading this because Victoria wrote The Near Witch, which was one of my favorite books this year. (Seriously, go read it, it's fucking BRILLIANT)

OHMIGOSH, I SO EXCITED.




Upon Finishing...

Inheriting the job from her grandfather, Mackenzie Bishop works as a Keeper, someone who can slide a key into cracks in the world. These cracks lead into endless corridors of doors called the Narrows. Mackenzie's job is to find Histories, copies of people who have died, who have woken up and send them More...

Originally posted at http://shelversanonblogspot.com

Note: If decimals were allowed, this book would be rated 3.75 stars. It is a good book, but I'm allowing space for improvement.

FINALLY! I don't know if you guys remember, but I highlighted The Archivedin a Wishlist Wednesday post waaaaay back in July of 2012. I was so excited that I went out and bought an Archivedbookbag with swag.Since then, I have been waiting not-so-patiently to get my hands on a copy.

And while I wouldn't call The Archivedth More...

Victoria Schwab is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. The Near Witch was one of my favorite books of 2011 and it really impressed me. I was pretty sure her sophomore novel couldn’t be better than that one but boy was I wrong. The Archived is one of the best books I have read in 2012 and one of my all-time favorites.

The Archived is one of the most unique books I have ever read. The concept is fabulous and the execution is perfect! I wasn’t quite sure where the story was going to go in More...

* No spoils.


Fantastic. Superb. Had I been in possession of the rest of this book, I would have devoured it and forgone sleep.

I was lucky enough to score the first 9 chapters of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. While my review will be honest to a fault, I may be slightly biased, as I can really relate to the MC and what she’s going through.

I lost my grandmother one month and 2 days ago. While my life doesn't crumble every day, my heart does, for a few minutes at a time, More...

Absolute perfection! I know it's only November of 2012, but I predict that this will make my Best of 2013 list. Full review HERE.

*Just finished reading the rest of the book. Will post review later. :)

“O.M.G.” I was saying this over and over in my head, smiling and getting a bit frustrated, as I stare at the message in my reader saying “Rate this book” – that is, telling me that I’ve reached the last page. But not the end, oh no, definitely not yet the end.

I was so excited when I saw this on Net Galley with the Read Now button. Oh yes, I was practically squirming with excitement that I didn’t notice (or maybe, I didn’t min More...

4.5

"The only way to truly record a person is not in words, not in still frames, but in bone and skin and memory."

The Archived is not a perfect book but with a concept as utterly original as this, who cares about imperfections??

A library of the dead.
A million interleaving hallways lined with shelves.
Bodies in place of books.
A record of every minute lived.

How spooky fascinating!

I was hooked the minute I read the blurb, and every chapter only added to the intrigue. I loved everything this book had More...

MY REVIEW
I received this e-galley from NetGalley, in order to give me a sneak peek into The Archived by Victoria Schwab. So I will start with the cover, I love the colour blue on the cover , it adds an air of mystery. The face, I think is Mackenzie peering through the darkness in the narrows perhaps. The key represents the key Mackenzie wears around her neck and uses to open the doors to the return, the archive and the narrows. I like the cover, it's pretty simple yet has a mysterious air about More...

SO MANY STARS. Review to come once I am actually able to think about this book without flailing helplessly.
_______________________________________________

This book. Is so. Good. I've been trying to write this review for EVER, but haven't been able to find words because I loved it so much. So please bear with me as I ramble and try to put my thoughts together.

First of all, The Archived has everything I need in a book: depth, beauty, mystery, action, suspense, and fantastic characters.

So let's sta More...

AHmazing!! I am so happy this book lived up to my expectations! If you don't read this book you will be missing out. In my perspective, this book was a whole new view on the dead. This isn't about ghosts, and it isn't about a troubled teenager. It's about life, death, and something more.

That's right, there's more!
So you have the three main "worlds" in this book. You have the Outers, everyday life for us normal beings. The Narrows, in my head I pictured a sort of go between for these different w More...

I've finished the 100 page galley of this book, and I am dying at the thought of having to wait until January to finish the rest. It was a perfect teaser of a story, and just the sort of story that I love. Victoria writes like poetry, but not in an overwrought way, but a carefully beautiful way. I adore the world she has created. It's so creative and expertly put together. I felt like it was real. I could see every shelf in the Archive, every door in the Narrows. Brilliant as the world was, it w More...

Usually when I have high expectations for books I become greatly disappointed. However, this is one of those cases in which my expectations were not just met, but the book rose above them to new heights. The Archived is both gorgeously written and undeniably original. The Archive is a place where the dead are shelved and contain their memories like records in a book. Mackenzie's job is to keep the dead from escaping into the real world, so she is properly called a Keeper.

The world may seem confu More...

The Archived by Victoria Schwab
ARC received from Disney Hyperion at ALA
Release Date: 1-22-2013
Reviewed by: Middle Sis Jenn
The Sisters Say: Brilliant, Bewitching and Beautifully Written
Wow!!!! At first this was not high on my TBR list. I had heard good things, but there was so much more I needed to read. And then I made a trade with another blogger, so I read it quickly before sending it off. And I am SO GLAD I did! This book was so uniquely addicting that I read it in one sitting. The characters More...

Sometimes a book can be perfectly well done, and unique, and clever, but still fail to work for a particular reader. I mean, I like The Archived, but I do not have hugely strong feelings for it. On some levels, I'm really not sure where the book lost me, but I'll try to explain as best I can. Keep in mind as you read that this is a good book, even if it's not as much of a "me" book as I expected.

The whole concept of the Archive makes me so curious. Even now I have a million questions about what' More...

Just finished and I'm still spinning with awe and delight from the ending. This is gonna be a LONG REVIEW folks.

The premise of the Archive is fascinating. Making copies of people so that when they die, all their memories are organized and preserved. There's something so reassuring about this, that when we die, our memories still live on.

But here's the problem, as described by Mackenzie's grandfather as he teaches her about his work for the Archive:

"Then I met my first Histories, face-to-face, a

More...

I am happy to announce (to all who have been eagerly awaiting my verdict) that The Archived, which is Victoria Schwab’s sophomore novel, is far more intriguing and far more entertaining that her debut (in my opinion). I liked The Near Witch, I did, I just didn’t love it. But The Archived, I do love and unashamedly at that. It is not perfect by any stretch but that is precisely why I love it.

The novel, if you’ve read the synopsis, is very original and the premise is one we have never seen before More...

Review to be posted on my blog closer to publication date.

I don’t even know where to begin talking about The Archived by Victoria Schwab. I am head over heels for The Archived. If you thought The Near Witch was amazing, you are just going to be blown away by The Archived.

I mean, for one thing – the story. I loved the world Victoria Schwab created in The Archived. There are so many elements to the world of The Archived, like the Narrows and the Histories and the Librarians and the Outer and the A More...

While only a sneak peek, I loved it. I'm so invested in Mackenzie and figuring out the nuances of her world. I like the premise of the story and how original it is. I've never read anything like this and can't wait to finish reading it and going on adventures with Mac. She's such a great girl: she's smart, brave, and trying to stay on top of things. Dealing with death and what it means to those left behind is such an interesting topic. I'm psyched for the release date to arrive. Definite must re More...

Cross-posted on Readerling

To be clear, I only read the 108 page sneak peak available on Netgalley, and not the whole novel. I'm unlikely to read the entire novel, not because this book is bad, but because I'm of a mind that most young adult fictions, especially paranormal fictions as sloppily built as this one, should be read in a sitting so you don't have time to tear it down. The teaser ended up being a flinch.

The idea here, in the abstract, is wonderful: people, upon death, are kept as reco More...

Confused at first but made more sense. What i really like is its a library of the dead, a record of everything you did in life. I didnt really find an interest with the love. DON'T get me wrong i liked it. It just didnt give the feeling that i would have when reading Divergent. I still think it was a great book!! YAH!! It did seem more like an adventure. Can't wait for the sequel!THere is more I want to say but can't. Because it just took the words out of my brain. I just can't think anymore.

EDIT: Okay, I think I can form a sort of review-ish-thing now.

So let's do the whole go-over-the-synopsis thing. Take a second, and let this idea sink into your head: imagine that, when you die, a copy of you was stored on a shelf somewhere, exactly like a book. You could be read, every detail of your life viewable like turning through chapters in a great novel.

Loving that idea so far? Good, keep up with me here.

When I came across the cover to The Archived through the lovely Victoria on Faceboo More...