The Unbound
Ratings27
Average rating4.2
Can Victoria Schwab be any better of a writer? This book was everything I hoped it would be and more. I just want to live in the world of the Archived.
Initial Thoughts:
lol guess who was dumb and finished this at 1 am? Me!!! I enjoyed this one at 1 am but not as much as the first one which I think is a very good indicator it's not as good as the first one, if you are able to judge a book as worse at 1 am- it definitely is worse.
Spoiler-Free Review:
The book manages to create a new mystery interlaced with some action for the reader whilst introducing new characters and develop some relationships. It also offers a wider discussion and discourse on The Archive and it's purpose.
However, this book doesn't progress the development of the main characters, plot or world-building in any meaningful way and falls into the same trap many second books in a trilogy do: it's a filler book.
This is still a good read and does read as the sequel to ‘The Archived', and whilst it has some redeeming qualities it doesn't feel as if it's strong enough to stand on it's own.
Spoiler Review:
I never thought I'd rate a Schwab book below a 4 stars, but here we're are.
I wanted to love this book as much as I loved the first one, however there wasn't enough development in this for me to fall for it.
I know this book is set only three weeks after the events of ‘The Archived' and so it's unfair for me to expect any meaningful development in our characters or the plot, but I believe that is this book's fatal flaw. It sits too closely to it's predecessor to be able to stand on it's own in the series, and it feels more like an extension of ‘The Archived' rather than it's own narrative within a larger one.
Note: I don't usually format my reviews like this (by what I liked and didn't like), but due to the lack of development in this book I can't format this as I usually would.
Things I liked:
The exploration of Mackenzie's mental health: I appreciate the fact Schwab didn't pretend like Owen or the events of ‘The Archived' wouldn't have impacted Mackenzie in some way. She wasn't miraculously cured nor was it ever forgotten she was suffering - Schwab did what a lot of YA authors forget, accept mental health is a part of a life.
The development of Mackenzie and Wes's relationship: This came very late in the book but I'm not going to complain, I was very grateful for it.
Wes: Do I ever need to explain this one?
Things I didn't like:
The lack of world-building: Nothing was added to the world in this book and I was left feeling bitterly disappointed over it, the world building was something I had really enjoyed in ‘The Archived' and I was hoping for more in this one.
The Setting: I didn't enjoy the use of a school as a setting, I didn't think it fit the with the mysterious atmosphere Schwab was going for in this book. The Archive and the Coronado really helped with a mysterious and creepy atmosphere in the first book, and the school robbed us of that in this sequel.
Miscommunication used as a driving force for the plot: I think we all hate this one and I don't need to explain why.
Read my full review here: https://moonlitbooks.home.blog/2020/04/16/theunboundreview/
Challenge: Read a book from an author you love that you haven't read yet Read a book set in high school
I had really high hopes for this book and I'm happy they were met. Victoria Schwab is able to create interesting and believable characters. I quite enjoy seeing Mac and Wesley in a different environment and seeing how they both react to it.
I still have problems with love triangles. In this book I was especially annoyed with it because of the people involved in the triangle. I saw no point of having it and it made me dread the moment of the confrontation.
Also, I wasn't a big fan of the flashbacks this time around but I could see their purpose so I'm not going to hold it against the book.
All in all, The Unbound was a great sequel. To be honest, I'm dreading the release of the third book just because I can imagine what problems might arise with the characters and I just don't want them to stay like this FOREVERRRR.
I love this world. I love the idea behind the Archives, and I love Mac and Wesley. So, I figured that even if the characters just read aloud to each other from The Inferno, I was going to like this. And I was right. I really liked this second book in the series. I hope there will be more.
If there are more books, I would really appreciate some back story on the librarians (seriously: what's up with Patrick? What is Roland's deal?) and I want a new big bad. Seriously, there needs to be a new bad:) But Hyde school is a great addition, and I think it would be fun to see more of that.