ARC Review: The Archived by Victoria Schwab

I posted my sneak peek review of this book about a week ago. This past Friday, I received an ARC for read and review from Lizzy Mason at Hyperion. I want to thank her with all my heart for allowing me to look in Victoria Schwab's incredible world of The Archived!

Title: The Archived (The Archived #1)
Author: Victoria Schwab
Expected Publication Date: January 22,2013
Publisher: Disney Hyperion

The Archived by Victoria Schwab
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received a ARC sneak peek of this book from Net Galley for an honest review. I was fortunate enough to receive an ARC copy of this wonderful book through Hyperion for read and review. After reading the sneak peek of this book, I knew I had to be able to read the entire book, and I was not wrong in any way.

Blurb from Goodreads:
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.
Da first brought Mackenzie Bishop here four years ago, when she was twelve years old, frightened but determined to prove herself. Now Da is dead, and Mac has grown into what he once was, a ruthless Keeper, tasked with stopping often-violent Histories from waking up and getting out. Because of her job, she lies to the people she loves, and she knows fear for what it is: a useful tool for staying alive.
Being a Keeper isn't just dangerous-it's a constant reminder of those Mac has lost. Da's death was hard enough, but now her little brother is gone too. Mac starts to wonder about the boundary between living and dying, sleeping and waking. In the Archive, the dead must never be disturbed. And yet, someone is deliberately altering Histories, erasing essential chapters. Unless Mac can piece together what remains, the Archive itself might crumble and fall.
In this haunting, richly imagined novel, Victoria Schwab reveals the thin lines between past and present, love and pain, trust and deceit, unbearable loss and hard-won redemption

Right from the blurb I knew I would enjoy this book, but I didn't know how much. I am not usually one to read about a book I am going to review, as I don't want to taint how I will perceive it, but I did take a little peek to now what it was about. The sneak peek gives you the first nine chapters of the book to read. I can tell you, it was not enough. So much so that I contacted the publisher and asked if I could get a copy, which I received and finished immediately!

First, the cover. This cover is absolutely amazing. I love how it captures the story with the few elements you learn throughout reading the book. I love the way the Narrows is depicted with the main character, Mackenzie, in between it's walls. And the key, well, the key is just that, "key" to the plot.

The characters are really well developed. The main heroine, Mackenzie (Mac), packs one powerful punch, literally! I connected immediately to her. The book is told from her point of view. Mackenzie's POV bounces from present day, where she has recently moved with her family to The Corondo, and old hotel turned apartment building, to the past where she reflects on times she spent with her grandfather.She is tough as nails. She is a hunter with all the hunter characteristics. But she is also still a young girl, learning her way in the world. A young girl exposed to so much so early, you can see it is emotionally draining for her. Bring in Wes (Wesley Ayers) and bang, you have the formula for an adventure filled with fantasy and just the right touch of romance. Wes is cockily sarcastic. He is confident and sure. He realizes his job is one that requires this confidence and he's not afraid to show that he has it. He's also funny and charming, which draws Mac even closer to him. That is until Owen, a History, comes into the picture. He is unlike any other History Mac has ever met. He doesn't slip, which means he maintains his calm. This difference confuses Mac, and in the process this calm draws her in. He projects kindness and warmth and she can touch him without hearing all the "noise" she hears when she touches other people. Finally there's Roland, the Librarian. He is keeper of the Histories shelved in the Archive and he has become the protector of Mac. He has promised to keep her safe as well and remove her from her Keeper status if need be. He is definitely a parental figure for Mac, despite the fact her parents are still alive and well.

The plot is a mix between paranormal and fantasy. Think The Chronicles of Narnia meets The Mortal Instruments. That right there is the makings of an amazing story line! The story tells us of where we go once we die. That we do not leave this earth but we are archived as Histories, a shell of who we were with our memories and and experiences kept intact. Our shell is a journal of our lives, our histories, kept safe. The mix of action and adventure, romance and deep emotional searching makes this story really intense and draws you into it. I didn't want to stop reading and had a hard time finding a point where I could put it down. It was intense. Schwab builds a world where you are constantly checking your own reality, wondering if some day you will meet the Keepers, the Crew, the Librarians and the Histories.

Schwab has an amazing writing style. It drips with forethought. The prose glide you along effortlessly, painting a picture of every scene and drawing you right in so you're standing there watching what is going on. I love when an author is able to do this. Victoria compels you to move forward in the story by wrapping you in an adventure you never thought existed. She mixes the creepy with the mundane in a way that makes you feel you are there with the characters, experiencing what they do. It is so real, you can't imagine that these places do not really exist somewhere in time. Her writing puts you right there, in the Narrows, in the Library of The Archived, in the Outer where life is "normal." Her writing is intensely visual and I love that about this book. I will definitely be reading more from this author.

So this one gets a huge 5 stars from me for being different and compelling, for being unique and completely new in it's storytelling. Thanks so much to Lizzy Mason from Hyperion for entrusting me to read this book and give an honest review! I am so excited that this book will be a series! I did not even realize it would be until I came here to write my review! So when this is released run, don't walk, to the bookstore and get yourself a copy because I promise you there will be not a single iota of disappointment when you do!

Review posted to the following site
http://thecovercontessa.blogspot.com

And to be posted to all buying sites when released in January.