With just a sneak peak, I can already tell this book will have everything I want to read in this new world. This series is going to be THE series to read.

Libraries? Intrigue? Mysterious building? Check, check, and check! This book was everything I hoped it would be when I picked it up.

This sneak peak definitely got me excited about reading the full title!

This book is beautifully written, but not to my taste.

Goodreads 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.

My review:

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was awesome. At first I was confused because I didn't realize that Mackenzie was a girl, but as soon as I got that all figured out, everything was settled. It was smooth sailing from there on. This book kept my interest the whole time, and was written in such a way that I couldn't stop reading it, couldn't put it down. I should have read this book a long time ago but I kept putting it off, Whatever. The second one is out now, I can read that soon! Mackenzie is something called a Keeper. There was no job information when she was being trained by her grandfather, her Da, Antony Bishop, ( He has many names ) She was accepted early, which doesn't happen very often, but her Da was going to pass away soon, and he needed someone to replace him. He chose Mackenzie. Being a keeper is no easy job, you're called at all hours to get these 'Histories', these copies of dead people back into the Library, the Archive. Because in this book, when you die there's a copy of you made and put in a shelf. Sometimes they escape and can 'slip', go crazy, and someone has to return them to their rightful place. Mackenzie is one of those people. Not the best job, you get covered in scars, but someone has to do it, right? The job is passed down through families, and no one but you and the other keeper can know. And of course, any other keeper you know. Which also doesn't really happen very often. Most keepers don't even meet another keeper outside of their family. This book was an amazing roller coaster ride, and I couldn't put it down for a minute. You should definitely check it out.

Thanks for reading! I'll leave this link here. (;

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This sneak is approximately the first third of the book and I am intrigued. The concept is original, if a little creepy. The dead, their bodies, are stored in the Archives, a library. What's important is not the bodies themselves but the memories they retain. What, if anything, is done with those memories? We aren't told, not in the excerpt, and possibly not in the full-length book either. It may be that like a book library, the information is stored but unlike those libraries, the memories of the dead don't seem to be available except to the librarians.

Mac is a Keeper, she finds escaped Histories (the dead) and returns them to the Archives. Her family and friends don't know what she is or even that the Archives exist. That means she is constantly lying to them. You can imagine the strain that puts on her and her relationships.

I particularly enjoyed the flashbacks to Mac's time with her grandfather and the peek at Mac's rebellion against the rules set down by the Archive. I'll be getting the full book to read and find out what happens.

I received an eARC from the publisher for review.

Thank you for the opportunity to preview this book.

Thank you for the sneak peek--this review is just to acknowledge that I received the sneak peek, but did not submit a review for it. I want to submit it before the new review submissions go into effect on August 14.

Did not read because I don't want to read just the Sneak Peeks of the stories, want to read the whole book.

I need more of this story! A sneak peek wasn't enough. Can't wait to read more from Victoria Schwab

I did not realize this was a sneak peek when I requested it.

I didn't get a chance to read this before it expired on my nook. I'm sorry! I did buy both books in the duology, and at this point, I'm trying to read all my Victoria Schwab books slowly so I always have something new from her!

Didn't realize this was just a sneak peak when I requested it.

A nice introduction to the book. Had me craving more!

Finally got around to reading the preview and I can't wait to dive into the book.

Was a great sneak peek at a book that I read and loved.

My Review of Archived:

Adventurous Archive
The Archived by Victoria Schwab


5 out of 5 gnomes

The Archived gives History a whole new meaning. This is such an intriguing book with its plentiful flashbacks, insight into a grieving family, and a fantastical secret world. Mackenzie Bishop’s character is truly complex and will have you rooting for her to succeed.

This book also has a wholly unique explanation for what happens/where people go when they die. As the tag line of the book states, “Imagine a place where the dead rest on shelves like books.” If you’re anything like I am then what you imagine after hearing that phrase is both fascinating yet terrifying. The real explanation used in the world of The Archived is both creepy and cool. While reading I always had kind of a foreboding feeling about the Archive and especially The Narrows (I don’t know about you but narrow hallways and hundreds of doors would creep me out, not to mention you never know what kind of History you’re going to run in to).

Being a full-time Library Assistant, I love seeing how Librarians are portrayed in fiction. The Librarians in the Archive are an interesting bunch and like Mac. I’m also a fan of Roland because of how much he helps her in the book and of course a rule breaking Librarian is always a lot of fun.

Mac’s training and talking about her Da (grandfather) as seen in flashbacks is very well done and helps the structure of the story. These flashbacks have a bit of a Buffy the Vampire Slayer feel to them and always fall in a way that helps add to the tension of the story.

There’s so much depth to these characters and it feels like there are plenty of stories left to tell. The Coronado where her family now lives feels like a character in the story too, the old building really helps set up an old school mysterious type atmosphere. The residents that you do meet are all unique and or weird.

It’s refreshing to see her parents as a part of the story. They are all grieving and her parents grieve in ways that are pretty much polar opposites. Her mom is high energy always almost maniacally fake happy while her dad is quiet and low energy. Through all this though they are there for each other as a family and you can tell that they love each other.

I adore Mac and Wesley and the fact that they don’t have an insta-love connection. Their friendship feels realistic and they have great chemistry. Their partnership is fun because she’d definitely the serious one while he’s more charming/goofy. They work so well because they ground each other and find that they have a lot in common.

The ending was full of WOW moments for me. I actually had more than one moment in the book where I found myself gasping because I couldn’t believe what had just happened. The mysteries and secrets all culminate in to one heck of an ending. I cannot wait to read this sequel and jump back into the world of The Archived.

Despite the hype and overall excitement for this author's works, I really just can't seem to get that excited over her. I think the reason I requested this sneak peek is to cautiously ask myself again 'is it just me? what am I missing out on?'