The Unbound by Victoria Schwab

The Unbound by Victoria Schwab
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Unbound is Victoria Schwab's sequel to her novel The Archived. Following the events that occurred in the first book, Mackenzie is not doing well. Her dreams terrorize her into barely sleeping, and as a result her nightmares are bleeding into real life, just as her life of the Archive is slipping into her "normal" life. What's more, her relationship with her best friend and Keeper partner Wesley is more complicated than ever, and her secrets threaten to put the people she loves in danger.

The Unbound is an incredible sequel that may even surpass its predecessor, The Archived. I ate this book up in less than forty-eight hours, and I'm still thinking about it. Victoria Schwab's writing is so unique, and I can only describe what I feel by quoting another book (Catcher in the Rye): “What really knocks me out is a book that, when you're all done reading it, you wish the author that wrote it was a terrific friend of yours and you could call him up on the phone whenever you felt like it. That doesn't happen much, though.” It happened here, and it's practically a problem, because all I want to do is rant at her about how much I love it, but then you seem like a stalker, and there's legal intervention, yada yada yada. Oh well. I guess I can just list all the things here for her to see:

-Mackenzie's nightmares. It's weird to say that a supernatural story is handled so realistically, but it fits Mackenzie has dealt with trauma after trauma, and to have her walk away without so much as a mental scratch wouldn't be very realistic. I felt for her, and I wish she hadn't had to experience it, but it is what would happen.

-The private school trope was quickly rejected here for something fresh and original. Usually when a protag (who usually doesn't come from money) enters a private school, it's all about the drama between her and the stuck-up students. That didn't happen here. The most drama was between her and Safia, and it wasn't any more dramatic than it would have been in real life. Cash is preppy, but he's not egotistical or jock-ish.

-Her and Wes. OHMYGODCANYOUNOTWESLEYAYERS?! Once again, I liked how the relationship was handled. He likes her, and it's highly likely that he's aware of her feelings for him, but because of events, he doesn't try to take things any further. That being said, their relationship that's not a Relationship is very sweet. They both care about each other, and even if there wasn't a romantic element going on, I suspect they'd still act that way towards each other, because their friendship is that naturally strong.

There's not much more to say, except GIVE ME THE NEXT ONE and also GIVE ME THE WESLEY POV SHORT STORY PLEASE AND THANK YOU. January can't come soon enough.


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The Archived by Victoria Schwab

Egads! She is risen! For all one of you that may be reading this, I dropped off the face of the earth (or just this blog) for a while. Since then, I have traveled all over Europe, seen natural wonders of the world, and read a crap ton of books. I'm going to be posting a couple reviews from what I've read, and then will do my best to keep it up from then on. It's not like I'm gonna run out of books any time soon.

So with that in mind, let's get cracking.

The Archived by Victoria Schwab
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Archived is an eerie fantasy novel by Victoria Schwab. The protagonist, Mackenzie Bishop, has not had the easiest life. Along with losing her younger brother to a hit and run and having to deal with her parents moving them to a hotel-turned-apartment building for a fresh start, she's also a member of the Archive, a place where the histories of the dead are kept organized.

So, I'm rather embarrassed of myself. I bought this book...when it released? Which was, what, 2012? And through no fault of its own (and much of mine--I actually have a problem), I owned so many books at the time that I never really got around to reading it. When I would try, my headspace wouldn't be right for reading it, and I couldn't latch on to it like I needed to. So a while later, it comes up on the Kindle Store for 99 cents. "Less than a cup of coffee," as Victoria said herself. So I got it (before actually owning a Kindle. I do now).

Yesterday afternoon, having finished one book and needing another right away, I picked this up. I finished it this morning. And it blew me away. So much that I'm having to restrain myself from buying The Unbound on my Kindle, because I'll be in the US to buy a physical copy in two days, but I almost can't actually wait that long.

This book made me want to write. Made my fingers itch, made me want to bring a world to life with such tangible clarity as Victoria did. The hotel is practically its own character, and the characters are forces to be reckoned with, regardless of if you ever actually see them or not.

I recognized some of myself within Mackenzie. Granted, I don't have the responsibilities of the afterlife causing my problems, but things she would say, like being the less active friend in a friendship, or not necessarily being able to deal with her parents' fragility. These things seemed to have been pulled out of my head as I was reading the book then and there.

I also thought that the various ways people deal with grief, and grief on its own, were expertly handled. When a loss occurs, no two reactions are the same. Some people want to push forwards in hopes that the loss gets lost underneath it all. Some push on, but let it drain them. Some force themselves to address it. Some let it flow over them, like Wesley lets Noise flow over him. I liked that there was never any solution to the problem of the characters' grief, because there is no solution. You have to let it happen in due course; you have to learn to weather the storm.

Mackenzie and Wesley's friendship is probably my favorite boy-girl YA relationship in a very long time (and not just because Wesley is played by Jess Mariano in my head). There's obvious chemistry between them, but it's never forced. They're friends first, Keeper partners second, and everything else is currently floating in a vague cloud of Potential. This works for me, because sometimes a relationship has to evolve from more than smoldering good looks and kisses that are described in pyrotechnic terms. Sometimes, it can merely start from recognizing a bit of yourself in someone else, and just being content to exist around each other. That being said, I ship these two like Jack Sparrow and the Black Pearl, and if they don't end up together by the end I will be very sad.

I may also be a bit of a dunce, but I didn't actually expect things with Owen to turn out as they did. I was more or less completely blindsided by that, so well done there.

Conclusion? Fantastic novel. I'm kicking myself for taking TWO YEARS to read it (I got it signed, for crying out loud!), and now kicking a bit more that I have to wait TWO DAYS for the next one.

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In Which I Make Stephanie Perkins Buy Tea

Last Thursday, I was so so lucky to find a way to get myself to the Brentwood stop of the HarperTeen Dark Days Tour! I faced many obstacles, including, but not limited to:

-Rain
-Wind
-A tornado (twice)

Needless to say, I was excited, and hoping for good things. Four authors were scheduled specifically for the tour's purposes, but as it was in Nashville, a lot of authors who lived nearby came out. So, like any sane person, I walked into the Barnes and Noble with a 100% full backpack. Like, I-kept-it-with-me-because-I-thought-they'd-suspect-it-was-a-bomb type of full. I felt ridiculous, and it was heavy (18 books is not something light), but in the end, it was SO worth it.

After the panel, where they all gave really good advice (I recorded it but the video is messed up somehow), the signing began. It was very well organized, and I realized that it would take a while to get to everybody, so I decided to make a left and head towards the authors I'd spied on the way in. Stephanie Perkins, the author of Anna and the French Kiss, and Lola and the Boy the Next Door, was the only one not in the middle of signing or conversing, so I very awkwardly sidled over and chatted.

And, after some compliments on shoes, and attempts to be cool, I got a selfie with her.

The rest followed more or less the same. I did mention to Victoria Schwab (below with the short hair; also author of The Near Witch, The Archived series, and Vicious) that I'd seen her at signing before, and had chickened out. We all had a good laugh at my expense.

Also pictured here: Beth Revis of Across the Universe fame.

Ransom Riggs (Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children), who bears an uncanny resemblance to one of my professors, was the only one who required a photo done longways, because the man is capital-T Tall. I'm 5'2", as a reference.

So after that, I finally started getting in line for the official signings. Above is another thumb-clouded selfie, this time with Veronica Rossi (Under the Never Sky). I always worry that I'll have nothing to say to them, and result in standing silently while they write their name, but I'm pretty sure I was talking a mile a minute and overdid it. Sorry, authors, you just intimidate me (in a good way).

Tahereh Mafi (Shatter Me) was fantastic as one would expect. She was really the catalyst that made me decide to go to this signing, since even getting to an event in Memphis (where I live) is difficult, let alone a city 170 miles away; I was still suffering an Ignite Me hangover, which those of you who have read it will understand completely. She was wearing the coolest skeleton leggings, looking incredible, and so I had to buffer a table between us to avoid the shame of not being as incredible.

I was so glad to meet Kiersten White (Paranormalcy, Mind Games, The Chaos of Stars); I hadn't read any of her work in a while, but she emanated that sassy fun that I sensed in Paranormalcy, and she was probably the easiest to talk to. Also, she was actually shorter than me, which never happens. So yay :)

Here with all four, after the lines had dispersed. Though I haven't read anything by Sophie Jordan (Firelight, Uninvited), she was just as cool and I really enjoyed getting a picture with all of them.

And one last picture to close the curtains. This gives you a reference to how many incredible, talented people were in the room that night. Also pictured is Courtney Stevens, whose debut Faking Normal just released. She was very chill, and chatted up everyone nearby like they were old friends.

Thus ended the event. After nearly accidentally stealing forty dollars worth of books, and then going to pay for it, I bought myself some Starbucks, where Beth Revis and Stephanie Perkins had remained for the same purpose. While desperately trying to avoid the awkward possibility of standing in silence, I recommended one of the teas that the store was selling, and inadvertently became a personal shopper for Stephanie Perkins, at least as far as drinks are concerned. I expect my career to take off any day now.

This was the biggest signing I'd ever been to; and though it's really hard to quantify such an experience, if not one of the best signings I'd been to, it is definitely among the most memorable. There's always a real anxiety to meeting these authors; for me, they're essentially my heroes, and I'm a mixture of excitement, nervousness at not being an impressive fan, and the fear that they might not be what I've created in my head. But, as has been the case thus far, and I hope will continue to be, authors prove time and again that they are sincere, genuine, earnest storytellers who want their readers to enjoy the story as much as they enjoy being the ones to tell it. I cannot wait for my next adventure, though hopefully next time will suffice without the threat of tornadoes.