Pages

Friday 4 July 2014

Review - The Unbound by Victoria Schwab

The Unbound (The Archived, #2)

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.

Last summer, Mackenzie Bishop, a Keeper tasked with stopping violent Histories from escaping the Archive, almost lost her life to one. Now, as she starts her junior year at Hyde School, she's struggling to get her life back. But moving on isn't easy -- not when her dreams are haunted by what happened. She knows the past is past, knows it cannot hurt her, but it feels so real, and when her nightmares begin to creep into her waking hours, she starts to wonder if she's really safe. 

Meanwhile, people are vanishing without a trace, and the only thing they seem to have in common is Mackenzie. She's sure the Archive knows more than they are letting on, but before she can prove it, she becomes the prime suspect. And unless Mac can track down the real culprit, she'll lose everything, not only her role as Keeper, but her memories, and even her life. Can Mackenzie untangle the mystery before she herself unravels?

With stunning prose and a captivating mixture of action, romance, and horror, The Unbound delves into a richly imagined world where no choice is easy and love and loss feel like two sides of the same coin.

Oh, wow. You know there are some books which are THAT good you have trouble finding the words to express it? The kind of books you get totally lost in and are surprised when you look up and four hours have disappeared? The kind of books which worm their way into your head and you wander around in a book-haze for a few days after finishing? Just like The Archived, Victoria Schwab’s sequel The Unbound totally blew me away.

Three weeks after the events of The Archived, Mackenzie Bishop is struggling to come to terms with what happened. As a Keeper, it’s her job to prevent stray Histories from escaping from the Archive into our world, but after nearly being killed by one, she’s haunted (possibly literally) by his violent presence. Worse, people are vanishing, and she starts to suspect someone is trying to frame her.

The Unbound has the same spellbinding combination of gripping mystery, action, romance and emotion as The Archived.  I loved that we got more of an insight into the Archive, the Crew and Keepers, particularly the darker side (with the threat of Mackenzie losing her memories and consequently her identity if she fails the Archive’s tests). Mackenzie herself goes through some seriously tough times. She’s a great character – both tough and vulnerable, and I loved how Victoria made Mackenzie’s and Wesley’s relationship believably complex.

Oh, and the writing is beautiful. I had the dilemma of wanting to read slowly to absorb every word, but being too gripped by the plot to put the book down! All I can say is: read this series. You will not be disappointed.

Rating: *****


1 comment:

  1. Ooh, thanks :) I need something new and fun to read and this series sounds perfect :)

    ReplyDelete