The Archived by Victoria Schwab - Paul's Pre Reading

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Title: The Archived
Author: Victoria Schwab
Year Published: 2013

Synopsis: 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.


Why?: I have heard really good things about this book. I follow the author on twitter, and she seems like an awesome person. You can follow her at @veschwab. I don't know the protocol for using the word "at" next to the "at sign", but I think you understand what I meant. Anyway, just the concept of this book is so intriguing. Everyone wonders about the afterlife and what happens after you die. Dead bodies on shelves in a library? Sounds interesting to me. The cover is also very captivating. 

Expectations: I expect a mystery with some really interesting concepts. What is death? How does one continue after death? 

Judging a book by its cover: This cover is just amazing. I love the colors and the simplicity of it. The key with the smoke in the form of a girl's face is so interesting. I want to know what it means! To add, the inside of the book is beautiful as well with old wallpaper like lining. Time was definitely taken on the details of this book. 

-PAUL