About a year ago, I read the absolutely delightful novel, The Library of the Unwritten, by A.J. Hackwith. That novel seemed written just for me with it’s eternal library of unwritten novels, nestled in an array of tetchy paradises, hells, and purgatories. The sequel, The Archive of the Forgotten, is a wonderful follow up that dives even more deeply into the mysteries and power of stories. All my favorite characters are back: Claire the prickly former librarian, Rami the ex-angel, Hero the ex-character, and the overwhelmed Brevity—all of whom have no guidance on how to handle the latest existential threat.

At the end of The Library of the Unwritten, Claire was demoted from Librarian and re-assigned to the Archive. Instead of books and characters, Claire has to deal with history’s mystical objects, magical bits and bobs, and snatches of supernatural materials. All this dangerous detritus is a piece of cake to manage compared to Claire’s grief over what happened to the Library. She hasn’t come to terms with the loss of her position either, an emotional hangup that makes things even worse when she and the new librarian, Brevity, find themselves at loggerheads over the appearance of a strange pool of weirdly aggressive ink. Claire claims the ink because it’s in the middle of her Archive. Brevity claims the ink because ink is clearly part of books. Neither of them wants to give way for reasons that take the entire book to work out. Meanwhile, Rami and Hero head over to the Greek and Zoroastrian afterlives (Elysium and Chinvat) to try and find answers.

There’s a lot of action in The Archive of the Forgotten, but it’s a more emotional book than The Library of the Unwritten. This isn’t at all surprising given that so much happened and so much was lost in that book. In other fantasy novels—especially that older generation of doorstoppers—emotions don’t seem to be processed so much as they are shoved aside so that the protagonists can go on to bigger adventures. This book would have been a lot shorter if the characters had access to a therapist, but I really appreciated seeing Claire and Brevity work through their issues even as they try to save the Library; the Archive; and kick some spooky, supernatural butt.

What I liked most about The Archive of the Forgotten, however, was the deeper mystery that Claire et al. have stumbled into. Claire and many of the other characters have wondered about the nature of the Library. Why is there a library of the world’s unwritten literature in a corner of Hell, anyway? Where do the books come from? Why can characters occasionally pop out of them to have new, unscripted journeys? And what’s up with the Muse Corps? I might not be a staffer at a post-vital library, but I’ve often wondered about what makes some stories immortal and others a flash in the pan or how authors can managed to capture deep truths in ink and paper. And I really, really like the idea that characters are alive on the other side of the page.

The whole misfit crew of librarians is back for another adventure through the libraries and archives of Hell trying to repair the damage done to each other in The Library of the Unwritten. I love the world and the characters that Hackwith has created. Claire and Brevity and Hero and Rami. Hackwith understands what draws readers to books and why writers are driven to write them. I will follow Hackwith through the depths of hell and back; I love her stories so much.

The Archive of the Forgotten, by A. J. Hackwith, picks up after the events of The Library of the Unwritten. Still unsure in their new roles heading the Arcane Wing and the Library of the Unwritten respectively, Claire and Brevity’s tenuous status quo is upended by the appearance of a pool of ink in the Arcane Wing that may be the remains of the hundreds of unwritten stories destroyed in Andras’ failed coup. Claire doesn’t know how it got there, only that it may be dangerous and needs to be contained. Brevity, spurred on by a visiting muse, is sure that the ink could be used to either resurrect the destroyed stories or fuel new creation. With the Arcane Wing and Library at odds, Ramiel and Hero’s investigation into the origins of the ink takes them to new worlds and sets them on a path that may lead them to the secret at the heart of Hell’s Library, one integral to its very existence and carefully hidden from its custodians.

The Archive of the Forgotten is a great follow up to The Library of the Unwritten. As in the first book, short chapters switching perspectives among the characters build tension, create cliffhangers, and make for a fast-paced narrative, although the beginning felt a bit slow. The mythology aspect is fun, taking the characters to new afterlives while further expanding the understanding of Hell’s Library and the different forms of the wings in other worlds. While I still love Claire, Hero takes center stage in this book and it works really well. As assistant librarian and a story who cannot return to his book, Hero is left in a limbo where he doesn’t really fit anywhere. His search to understand his own existence and carve out a life on his own terms, plus his growing relationship with Ramiel, is easily my favorite part of the book.

Takeaway: The Archive of the Forgotten delivers a satisfying blend of existing mythology and excellent original world building, with characters that reach out and grab your heart. The story stands well as an addition to the series, building on the events of the first book and leaving room for a sequel while telling distinct, interesting story.

The first book in the Hell’s Library series, The Library of the Unwritten, was probably one of the most imaginative, unique fantasy books I read last year. Imagne a library in hell, full of books that were never completed and a librarian in charge of keeping them in order and their characters from escaping. And then one does escape… It was quite the adventure.

Book two starts out slow and I will admit it took me quite a bit to really become engaged. Thankfully I was familiar with the characters so I kept reading. Claire is now the Archivist in the Arcane Wing and Brevity is the new librarian. They become embroiled in a mystery when a huge pool of ink suddenly appears and it seems to be dangerous. Brevity and Claire are at odds on how to deal with the problem, and it doesn’t take readers long to figure out that there is more going on between them than just this issue.

I was very happy to see Hero and Rami get more page time. They are a huge part of why I ended up enjoying myself as much as I did after the slow start. Especially after being introduced to the new “villain” of this book. Whew, but she was awful.

I did end up enjoying this new adventure and was once again surprised by the ending. I did not see it coming. There is a blossoming relationship (I won’t say between who), but it makes me happy and I hope to see more in the finale to this trilogy.

Thank you Netgalley and Berkley Publishing for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

A solid sequel, The Archive of the Forgotten delves into new aspects of the world that A. J. Hackwith created in The Library of the Unknown. It felt marvelous to return to the beloved characters, and just like the first book, this is a book you can cozily curl up and immerse yourself in a The Good Place meets Good Omens premise. The first half of the book seems a little slow but the final half of the book seems a little rushed, but overall this book is an excellent second installment to an amazing trilogy thus far.

The full review will be published one week prior to Publication Date on September 30th at armedwithabook.com

I absolutely loved A.J. Hackwith’s The Library of the Unwritten published last year and have been waiting for its sequel since!
I’m thrilled that The Archive of the Forgotten is a solid sequel following Hell’s former and current librarians, Claire and Brevity. Readers witness the aftermath of the loss of hundreds of stories that happened at the end of book one and the struggle of Claire and Brevity awkwardly adjusting to their new roles in the Library and Arcane Wing.

When Claire is “infected” with a strange leaking ink, she realizes the Library has secrets its kept from its librarians and even Hell may not know.
The relationship between Claire and Brevity is already strained under their new roles and the emotional upheaval of the Library’s losses. It’s further tested when they cannot agree on how to deal with the powerful ink. The muse Probity arrives to advise Brevity while the angel Rami and the mischievous character Hero seek answers on behalf of Claire by traveling to other realms.

I adore the log entries from former librarians throughout history; they are thoughtful and often humorous with insight into the past that readers are eager to learn more about. Another good vs. evil story, we are one step closer to understanding the true purpose of the Library and the fate of its occupants!

I recommend this highly original series to readers who enjoy sci-fi / fantasy and books about books. (Definitely read the series in order; if you jump in anywhere else than the beginning you won’t understand what’s happening)

Thanks to Ace Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The Archive of the Forgotten is scheduled for release on October 6, 2020.

In this second installment of the Hell’s Library series, we find Claire and Brevity uneasily settling into their new roles as arcanist and librarian, respectively, with Ramiel and Hero to assist them. They are disrupted by two appearances: a fellow muse comes to visit Brevity with an unclear agenda, and a mysteriously insidious pool of ink is discovered in the Arcane Wing.

Tensions mount as they try to figure out just what the ink is and how big a threat to the library it might be. The quest also gives each character time to reflect on how they define themselves in this new underworld order.

This is a beautifully constructed fantasy series, and as a librarian whose patrons very much missed being able to borrow ink and paper books recently, reading about print books was a pleasure. I am grateful to NetGalley and the publisher for access to the review copy.

What I Loved:

The main characters. Coming back to the dynamic foursome of Claire, ex librarian and current Archivist, Brevity, ex assistant and current Librarian, Ramiel the ex watcher angel and current Archivist assistant, and Hero the wandering book character and current Librarian’s assistant felt so good. Hackwith wrote amazing characters that are all deeply flawed but complementing each other, who all have a common goal of saving the Library’s books from the denizens of Hell. Claire is gruff and at times cold because she has no way of expressing how she feels, but she is working on it; Brevit is full of color and light but can at times be too bold in her decisions and conversely insecure about her new position as Librarian; Ramiel is an angel with no heaven whose stoic calming presence helps everyone’s way; while Hero is a book with no book to get back to, a villain who is not a villain. Hero and Ramiel got some well-deserved page time in this book, which was a little lacking in the first one. Even when the pacing is odd and the story drags a bit (see below), these four keep the reader engaged. And the budding romances (no spoilers here) are too adorable not to root for.

The other realms. In Library of the Unwritten, we were treated with Valhalla, and here, we get to see Elysium. I love how Hackwith incorporated all of these great mythological elements into what could have been a very Judeo-Christian premise (Heaven and Hell centric), and the descriptions are absolutely delightful. The premise that the Library has wings in all of the various realms, complete with their own Librarian, is also well executed and a fun concept. Elysium’s Unsaid Wing is brilliant.

The Librarian ledger. Throughout both Unwritten and Forgotten are chapter header quotes pulled from the ledger that all Unwritten Wing Librarians write in. While sometimes chapter headers seem ancillary or just for fun, these quotes are integral to the reader solving the mystery in this book. I love the timeline continuity as you read writings from Librarians centuries prior, all the way up to Claire, Brevity, and Hero. Hackwith wrote a story within a story.

What I Didn’t Love:

The Pacing. I think that this comment is going to be fairly universal with anyone who reads this: The first half of Archive of the Forgotten dragged, while the second half flew by. The first half introduced a new character, muse Probity (more on her below) and dealt with a lot of simmering resentments, particularly between Claire and Brevity, left over from the first book. The second half dives headlong into the overarching mystery, takes us to new realms and wings, and gives us a hasty beginning of a beautiful relationship. While it was worth reading through, the first half didn’t deliver the promise that the first book gave readers.

Probity the muse. Every story needs some conflict, I appreciate that, but sometimes the conflict comes in the form of a deranged flash of color who upsets the balance of a story and really doesn’t provide anything other than doubt to one of your favorite main characters (ahem). Probity embodies the archetype of a little sister who has hero worship for her older sister, but misunderstands that in trying to follow her older sister’s footsteps, she loses her own way. She is a wrecking ball, and Brevity, Claire, and gang don’t need more going on – they have their own demons (ha!) to fight. Probity’s character felt like a sledgehammer for the plot.

Conclusion:

This was a solid sequel to Library of the Unwritten, if not as strong as the first book. I loved seeing our favorite foursome grow and being realizing their potential towards the end, and the new realism and worldbuild were very well executed. The pacing is uneven, but it was still worth the read. Four stars out of five!

Aaaahhhhh! This was a PERFECT sequel to an amazing series. I love this series SO MUCH; it's possibly the best magical library fiction since Jasper Fforde's "Thursday Next" series. And speaking of "Thursday Next," if you love that series because of it's bookish witticisms, it's snarky sass, and it's adventure, then THIS book will be right up your alley. A. J. Hackwith creates such a compelling story with characters the reader truly comes to care for. They have depth, growth, feel heartbreak, pain, love - everything you need in an excellently written character. These characters set in this wildly creative afterworld/alternate world realm of Hell AND OTHER LIBRARY REALMS (O.M.G.) just makes me so incredibly happy.

In this sequel, we begin in Hell's Library with Brevity, the new muse librarian, after the Library rejected Claire. Claire takes up the mantle as Archanist of the Arcane Wing, where artifacts and relics want nothing more than to lash out at all around them. Both Brevity and Claire nurse hurt and pain from what happened in their attempts to defend the Library of the Unwritten from the traitorous demon Arcanist Andras, who tries to take over the Library of Hell. A fellow muse, Probity, wants to reclaim stories from the destruction of humans and wield book powers for their own, which can only end badly. Then Claire stumbles upon a well of dark ink in the Arcane Wing, which threatens to unravel all it touches. In an effort to find answers to this mysterious ink, we travel, alongside fallen angel Rami and book character Hero, to the paradise realm of Elysium where we meet Echo in the Library of the Unsaid. One of my favorite characters is Walter, the unfathomable Death who wields great insights into the universe and experiences time in an entirely other dimension, who also holds such philosophical musings and truths about life and how everything experiences it. We also visit the dark Dust Wing of Hell's Library, a veritable bone desert of books never to be read again; forgotten, destroyed, and fading stories piled in mounds of mildewed, burned, torn tomes of the past. These afterlife worlds lead to greater questions about the "life" of a book and all it contains - does it contain emotions? fiction? truth? simply words? the soul of a living thing?

A. J. Hackwith's "The Archive of the Forgotten," and the series of "Hell's Library," is truly an ode to loving books, loving reading, loving libraries, and loving the stories that fill our souls.

I seriously adore this series! I love everything about it and recommend it to everyone. I ordered a couple copies for the library after recommending the first book to all my patrons. Thank you so much!

I found this installment distinctly more enjoyable than the first. Possibly this is due to all of the world building being done so there is more space for story, but it's at least more likely that the story became the world building. I can't explain that, you'll have to read it yourself.

If you loved the first book in this series, Library of the Unknown you will this sequel. Your favorite characters are back and this is a creative premise for them to play in.

First off you really should read book one before reading this if you haven’t already read it. This series is set in a library at the edge of Hell so the setting will be a little confusing without the background of book one.
Since it’s set outside of reality any version of the afterlife humans have ever dreamed of exists in this universe and the characters flow between them.
The characters have recovered somewhat from the events of the first book and are trying to settle into their new roles when a new crisis hits. It’s an interesting ride watching them try to fix it. There’s obviously going to be a book three and it’ll be fun to see where the author takes us next.

I absolutely loved Archive of the Forgotten! I was really into the first story about Hell's Library, and I am so happy that the sequel holds up to the first. The cast of characters is essentially the same, but each of them experiences real growth throughout the book and come out the other side changed.

I loved the new settings that we got to visit, there was just enough "new" to make the familiar characters step up and show more of themselves. This is definitely going to be one of those series that I revisit down the road and continue to enjoy.

Early on in the book I spotted a ship, and was so hoping that it would set sail. And without saying who was on that ship, I will just say that my ship dreams came true. And I'm very annoyed that I have to wait until the book's release for fanart. But such is the curse of ARCs.

I picked up the first book in this series on a recommendation from a friend and it did not disappoint. So when I saw the second in the series was to come out soon, I had to get my hands on it. This was masterfully done. Love the characters. They have so much depth. It's easy to empathize with them or rage when something terrible happens to them. I love this world that Hackwith has created. I want to visit the places she describes, even if some of them would scare the crap out of me. I look forward to anything she writes in the future. Fantastic!

I didn't notice this was the second book in a series unfortunately so I paused reading and I don't know when I'll continue the first one tbh.

This book was received as an ARC from Berkley Publishing Group - Ace in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

I absolutely loved Library of the Unwritten and was so psyched to find out that there is a sequel and it was even more exciting with the book record and the previous librarians recordings. The main detail was the leak of the ink from the books that got lost and this ink revealing secrets not only of the library but in all of Hell itself and its up to Claire and Brevity to uncover all the secrets and put an end to all this madness once and for all. I was more pleased with this book and more excited which made the book a breeze and fun to read.

We will consider adding this title to our Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

This was a lovely romp through realms and further into the mythos of The Library, and its' splinters. Following Claire's expulsion as Librarian of the Unwritten Library, and placement as Archivist, we begin to learn a little more about stories. Brevity has taken over, unwillingly, as Librarian for the Unwritten Library, and a visit from her old friend/sister Muse sets off the chain of events that is the heart and soul of the book. The core characters remain the same, and there is travel between realms, so the feel is consistent with the first book, but Probity's character, is clear from the start.
I look forward to the next book - and hope that there will be more than a few!

In The Archive of the Forgotten the story continues with characters from the previous book: Claire, Brevity, Hero, and Rami. A new character comes into the story with questionable motives. Due to events that happened in the previous book, relationships between characters are strained and the appearance of mysterious ink makes things even more complex.

I thought the book was good, but had issues that were hard to ignore. The story itself had potential but it had really slow pacing and things didn't really seem to pick up until over halfway through the book. I ended up setting this book aside many times because it just couldn't hold my interest. I also found myself frustrated with the book because a lot of the characters were keeping secrets from each other but it wasn't clear to the reader what those secrets were. I felt that the book hinted towards a lot of things but it was hard as the reader to be able to guess what might be going on until a character explicitly stated something. There was also very slow romantic development that was almost too subtle to pick up on. Overall, this was an alright followup to The Library of the Unwritten, but it wasn't as great as it had potential to be.

I absolutely adored THE LIBRARY OF THE UNWRITTEN and to be honest wasn’t sure how Hackwith was going to follow it up. As it turns out, the answer is with an even more compelling second novel on the series I would have read in one sitting had life not interfered. Darker, creepier, more expansive, and more heartbreaking, THE ARCHIVE OF THE FORGOTTEN is also more poetic, richer, deeper, and, well, darker which is something I welcome much of the time and certainly did here. We know Claire, Brevity, Hero, and Rami already, which leaves Hackwith more space and time to explore their inner lives and relationships with one another (and there is a Thing that happens I really need to scream to SOMEONE about in the best possible was in that regard) and to expand the world, showing us more libraries as well as that which exists beyond them.
I really can not recommend THE ARCHIVE OF THE FORGOTTEN and its predecessor highly enough and look forward to the tested of the series.