That was quite a sequel, and I loved it even more than the first book.
Although, I am still not sure of how I feel about Mackenzie. Honestly, at this point, I need more details about Wesley's life, and I hope the third book is more focused on him.
Look at me rambling on like they are people I know and talk to everyday.
Fast paced, steady and lucid - narrations cannot get any better than this. My gripe is, why did everyone like Mac so much? I mean, in the world that she exists in, I'm sure there were other women/girls to flirt with and like without having diminished her importance to the story. I have never liked this particular trope of YA fantasy.
I adored how the characters developed in the wake of their earlier adventure, and the plot and the Archive in general became even more complex with aspects added to it.
Have I fawned over the Archive yet? No, yes. Well, let me say that again. I loved it. I loved the concept of it, and thank you Schwab, that you are writing more of it.

Following the Coronado rooftop showdown, The Unbound sees Mackenzie dealing with post-traumatic stress and hallucinations about Owen. She’s not sleeping and is struggling to juggle starting at a new school with male attention from a cute new guy, and all the while trying to maintain her studies, sanity, and Returns list. This is only complicated when people suddenly start disappearing left and right - people for whom Mackenzie was the last person they saw. It then becomes a race against the clock to figure out what’s happening before The Archive take Mackenzie out of action.

I lowkey thought I was going to hate myself for reading this. The masochist in me wanted to know what happens in The Unbound, even if we never get a third book in the series. I knew emotional devastation was highly likely, and yet my masochistic ass wanted to do it anyway.

……….And I’m glad I did because I was pleasantly surprised!

Victoria Schwab manages to round off this book with the perfect amount of closure: she leaves it open for more adventures with The Archive, and yet she wonderfully ties up Mackenzie and Wesley’s loose ends such that if we never get any more Archive stories, us readers will be just fine. There are no cliffhangers, no gaping plot holes, no unanswered questions boring holes into my soul. If it forever remains a duology, it’s totally fine, and yet the doors to the Archive aren’t totally boarded shut.

The Unbound is such a fun, mysterious, action-packed read that was so atmospheric, I could practically feel Mackenzie’s stress and exhaustion in my soul. I forget how much I adore Victoria Schwab’s YA writing until I’m in the moment reading it - it’s so slick and I absolutely fly through it.

I won’t say more as I don’t want to spoil the novel, but if we never get another one, I’m honestly so happy with how this series finished. We got another solid adventure with Mackenzie and Wesley and we learned even more about the mysterious inner workings of the Archive. I enjoyed every minute and am so in love with this world. To bastardise a quote, "When it's right, it's right."

3.75

I was on the edge of my seat for the entire book.

Schwab does it again, every single time with every single book and I have no idea how she does it. She just does.

And not only am I anticipating the next book in this series but I'm also looking forward to every book that she's planning to write in the future.

I think i would have like this one more if I read it immediately following book one, but I still enjoyed it enough to finish it within like two days

Wesley Ayers is love. That's all.

Last summer, Mackenzie Bishop, a Keeper tasked with stopping violent Histories from escaping the Archive, almost lost her life to one. Now, as she starts her junior year at Hyde School, she's struggling to get her life back. But moving on isn't easy -- not when her dreams are haunted by what happened. She knows the past is past, knows it cannot hurt her, but it feels so real, and when her nightmares begin to creep into her waking hours, she starts to wonder if she's really safe.

3.5 stars. I thought The Unbound was a very good follow up to The Archived and I had a really hard time putting it down. I liked the way we get to see Wesley in a whole different light here. There was a side to his life that was hidden from Mac in the first book. Also the addition of some new characters was nice.

I do have a few of small complaints. One would be that Mackenzie keeps one bit of information from everyone including Wesley and Roland and there was no real reason for her to, except to create drama later in the story. Another is that there just doesn't seem to be any reason for the character Sako to dislike her so much, or Agatha for that matter. And I also disliked that Mackenzie kept wanting to protect Wesley like he was some fragile flower. But most importantly, did it answer my questions about why The Archive existed? No, not really. Despite those things I still managed to like the book quite a lot. The story is wrapped up pretty well in the end, but there looks to be a planned third book, although the author has said she doesn't know when it will be released. When or if it ever is I will most certainly read it.

Review also posted at Writings of a Reader

”maybe i am the bringer of change. but i’ll decide what kind.”

4.5 stars!!!
i’m so sad this series will not see an ending. it is so good and quickly became one of my favorites. this book really managed to surpass the first one and i thought THAT one was good. i honestly can’t put into words how much i loved it.
i have to wake up early tomorrow but i just couldn’t put it down so sleep deprivation be damned, it was oh so worth it. mackenzie bishop and wesley ayers deserve nothing less.

(3.5 stars)