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A review by natiesreads99
The Archived by V.E. Schwab
4.0
I went into this book not really sure what to expect cause I haven't heard that much about it but I was pleasantly surprised.
The Characters
Mackenzie
This is one of the few female character's I did not ever get frustrated with and I just loved being inside her head. I loved how she described everything, her feelings and family and what she was going trough. She was very relatable for me, because she's a teenager and she has all these teenager feelings and her emotions were very strong.
The fact that she had to deal with the loss of her brother and then her parents acting like nothing was going on and on top of everything dealing with a secret world she couldn't tell anyone about until Wes came along. You could see it was very tough for her and I think if she wasn't so lonely she wouldn't have believed Owen as fast as she did but in the scenes with him you could see that she was alone and so was he so she took a shot even though it didn't really end well for them.
Wes
He was such a good friend/possible love interest in this book because he's a tad bit different and you could see he's much more comfortable with himself than Mac is. Also I loved their relationship how it built up and how he taught her things and visa versa. I knew he was a Keeper because the way he was kind of drawn to her revealed it.
His personality was great and I loved his confidence, the fact that he wore eyeliner with pride and was always cracking jokes and the way he spoke to Mac or to her parents. But I also really enjoyed when he softened up and got a bit sentimental cause that really set Wes for me.
Roland
I loved Roland's "big brother" character in this book. The fact that they showed from the beginning how he was standing up for Mackenzie and looking out for her no matter what mistakes she might've made. They have a very beautiful relationship, in the sense that they have to look out for each other, otherwise both of them will crumble.
He knew what the risks were but he still stood by Mac till the end and even though not everything he did was perfect he was a great friend
Owen
I always knew there was something off about him, basically cause of the obvious fact that he is the only History who doesn't slip. I didn't know if he was the bad guy or not cause the mystery and story was so tangled up it really could've gone both ways. But I liked how the mystery unraveled. The whole little fragments of his sister's stories and the desperation of wanting to bring her back no matter what the costs was painfully beautiful. What he did obviously wasn't right but I do understand him and why he did what he did. In the beginning I truly believed that he was good but as we went along I honestly started questioning everyone.
The World
I really enjoyed the whole Archive world and the explanation about Histories and Reading people and walls, it was very interesting and it had a hint of reality to it cause everyone has their own history, except in this book its explained in a more fantasy kind of way which I really really loved.
I really liked that the mundane world took place in a hotel that was converted into apartments, it kind of reminded me of suit life of zack and cody and all the different rooms and people living there. the mysteries and the little fragments of stories from Regina being hidden was a fantastic aspect and I truly enjoyed it.
I definitely recommend this book because its not too fantasy if you don't like fantasy, it has a nice balance and the characters and the way the story unfolds is just amazing
The Characters
Mackenzie
This is one of the few female character's I did not ever get frustrated with and I just loved being inside her head. I loved how she described everything, her feelings and family and what she was going trough. She was very relatable for me, because she's a teenager and she has all these teenager feelings and her emotions were very strong.
The fact that she had to deal with the loss of her brother and then her parents acting like nothing was going on and on top of everything dealing with a secret world she couldn't tell anyone about until Wes came along. You could see it was very tough for her and I think if she wasn't so lonely she wouldn't have believed Owen as fast as she did but in the scenes with him you could see that she was alone and so was he so she took a shot even though it didn't really end well for them.
Wes
He was such a good friend/possible love interest in this book because he's a tad bit different and you could see he's much more comfortable with himself than Mac is. Also I loved their relationship how it built up and how he taught her things and visa versa. I knew he was a Keeper because the way he was kind of drawn to her revealed it.
His personality was great and I loved his confidence, the fact that he wore eyeliner with pride and was always cracking jokes and the way he spoke to Mac or to her parents. But I also really enjoyed when he softened up and got a bit sentimental cause that really set Wes for me.
Roland
I loved Roland's "big brother" character in this book. The fact that they showed from the beginning how he was standing up for Mackenzie and looking out for her no matter what mistakes she might've made. They have a very beautiful relationship, in the sense that they have to look out for each other, otherwise both of them will crumble.
He knew what the risks were but he still stood by Mac till the end and even though not everything he did was perfect he was a great friend
Owen
I always knew there was something off about him, basically cause of the obvious fact that he is the only History who doesn't slip. I didn't know if he was the bad guy or not cause the mystery and story was so tangled up it really could've gone both ways. But I liked how the mystery unraveled. The whole little fragments of his sister's stories and the desperation of wanting to bring her back no matter what the costs was painfully beautiful. What he did obviously wasn't right but I do understand him and why he did what he did. In the beginning I truly believed that he was good but as we went along I honestly started questioning everyone.
The World
I really enjoyed the whole Archive world and the explanation about Histories and Reading people and walls, it was very interesting and it had a hint of reality to it cause everyone has their own history, except in this book its explained in a more fantasy kind of way which I really really loved.
I really liked that the mundane world took place in a hotel that was converted into apartments, it kind of reminded me of suit life of zack and cody and all the different rooms and people living there. the mysteries and the little fragments of stories from Regina being hidden was a fantastic aspect and I truly enjoyed it.
I definitely recommend this book because its not too fantasy if you don't like fantasy, it has a nice balance and the characters and the way the story unfolds is just amazing