The Archivist, what a very interesting premise. Death is not the end? People pay to see loved ones faces and chat to them again? I found the book a good read, it caught my attention straight away, although it confused me from time to time and lost me a bit at the end, I enjoyed it and would recommend it.

A Massive Thank You to the Author, the Publisher and NetGalley for giving me the chance to read and review this book prior to its release date.

Death is not the end.

There is no God waiting for you in paradise. No afterlife where friendships severed by death are reformed and families reunited. There is only the Aether, a dimension of insatiable hunger that will possess you no matter the life you led.

Such an interesting topic and wonderful writing

This is such an original story. I always wonder where an author gets the idea for something like this. I loved escaping into this world for a little while.

The Review
This was such a brilliant and unique read. The author did an incredible job of crafting a mythos and world that felt both alive and new in its identity. The emotional depth of the narrative was greatly felt, as readers felt the character’s struggles with loss and the concept of death and the afterlife as a whole. The heavy atmosphere and tension that came with that reality were both relatable and original in their delivery.

The character arcs of this narrative and how they played into the evolving mythos surrounding the Aether and the Archivists were incredible to watch. The complexity of the Archivist itself and how it holds so many other essences within itself while maintaining some sort of autonomy was so thought-provoking and unique. Yet it was the emotional toll of the families and those living within the Archivist in death that really drove the heart of this narrative home.

The Verdict
Heartfelt, engaging, and thoughtful, author V.S. Nelson’s “The Archivist” is a must-read novel o 2022. The growing mythology of the Aether and the Archivists was so creative and unique in its development, and the imagery the author used in their writing was both beautiful and chilling, depending on the moment in the book the reader was reading.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The Archivist is an incredibly compelling character, probably my favorite in the book. Compared to him, the rest of the characters felt a little flat to me, but still enjoyable. The writing was good, although it felt a little rushed in the last few chapters. I hope there's a sequel to this book, since this was a world I wouldn't mind venturing into again.

Intrigued from the outset, V S Nelson's The Archivist is a grim and original tale of a mythical half grim reaper and half shaman-like figure with the ability to preserve not only memories but also faces of the dead. With an air of mystery in every sense, the attempts at a suspense-filled story can fall a little flat when bombarded by shock and horror at almost every turn. Though despite some errant choices of pacing and attempts to repulse, I found myself enjoying Nelson's story more than I did the writing itself. Sometimes monotonal character-voice or lacking descriptions of scenes left more to be desired overall.

Ultimately, a refreshing look at death with an enchanting tale attached. In the end, the shining light of Nelson's latest book has to be the character development of Sun-Young, her little sister Laure, and the titular Archivist himself. The biggest disappointment, however, must be an ending that sooner fizzles out than concludes with a bang.

DNF'd at 16%. The concept is an interesting one, but the plot is far too grim and the Archivist too detached to maintain my interest.

I chose this book because of the cover, it reminded me só much of “the silence” a doctor who monster, and I was kind of hoping that the archivist had something to do with the silence, but no its only the aspect… what he does is much more impressive I guess, he can take the essence of dying people and eat that, while for comfort of the family of the dying he can connect the dying and living, if that makes sense… at first it gave me the idea that the chapters would be parallel stories but not directly connected and that was until a very significant part on the story where the archivist did something that he wasn't supposed to do, and all that to help a helpless teen and her younger sister…

hmm the book is well written but I didn’t connect with the characters, I needed more of each of them. Maybe my mood for this book wasn't what should have been and you will enjoy it much more than me…

thank you NetGalley for the free ARC and this is my honest opinion.

In exchange for an honest review, this ARC was provided to me by NetGalley.

"A soul implies something that is indivisible, a single entity that represents every part of a person. What we have inside us are essences composed of facets. Each facet is a unique aspect of the person: a memory, a feeling, a response, a trait. Facets appear when a person grows, either as they forget the memories or as their character changes with age. You are not one thins, you are many; constantly evolving and growing and dying."

In this world, we may not know if gods exist but we do know that Archivists exist, the closest physical manifestation to a god that walks the Earth. There is no afterworld, just Aether, an all consuming realm of nothing. Archivists take the essence of those dying and preserve them into their being, an act that allows the Archivist to access that individual at will into the corporal world.

To begin, we are introduced to Sun-Young Kang, a teenager who desperately wants to protect her sister Laure from the predatory ways of their guardian. Meeting the Archivist, she sees her opportunity. After tricking the Archivist into murder, both are ensnared into a whirlwind mystery of what seems to be a suicide cult of teenage girls,

Very fast paced, this book makes for a quick read that is difficult to put down. The only downside, the climax is rushed and does not quite tie up the loose ends.

As a half-Korean reader, I had the very interesting and pleasant perspective of have Sun-Young to identify with. Personally, it would have been nice to have a bit more of a cultural connection with her, other than appearance; as it is not often I get to see halfies portrayed in media. However, I know this was not integral to the plot and am still satisfied with the character.

Book review time! I decided to try something a little different. It’s kind of dark fantasy meets mystery/thriller. It was a last minute pick from the “read now” selection because I forgot to request something earlier. But it sounded like something I would enjoy. The Archivist by V.S. Nelson was released yesterday (the 28th) from Matador Books. As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for access to an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Let’s get to it!

The Archivist follows Sun as she tries to free her and her sister Laure from an abusive father figure. To do this, she enlists the help of a young man simply known as the Archivist. He has special abilities that allow him to save the essence of people who are dying among other things he hasn’t discovered yet. Unfortunately, the trio end up in the snare of someone who lures him in by stealing the essences of suicidal teenage girls.

The story started out really strong. The pacing was tight and the plot was interesting, but when the climax showed up and there were only like 15 pages left, my heart sank. There was no way to wrap up all the loose ends for a strong finish in that limited of a space. But I kept reading. Only to be proven right. There’s zero satisfaction at the end, but it doesn’t feel like a cliffhanger where you know a second book is coming. It’s just a let down. I know… not every story gets a happy ending. I’m fine with that. But even the unhappy endings need to feel satisfying, like an appropriate stopping point has been reached. This one just felt like it didn’t really know where it was going, so everything kind of fell apart. I’m hoping for some kind of follow up (maybe a short story or novella) to wrap things up, but I doubt it’ll happen.

The characters were great. Sun was strong and caring despite everything she had been through. Laure needed more page time, especially for her big reveal. It wasn’t as woven into the story as it should’ve been, so it feels like it comes from nowhere. Plus, I liked her more than Sun and wanted to get to know her better. But my favorite was the Archivist. Poor dude doesn’t even get a name. And he was never really taught how to be a normal human being. Instead, he’s basically a freak that people avoid because they don’t understand him. And he’s mostly okay with that. The rest of the characters were a little flat. There were too many of them in a relatively short book. And so many weren’t even introduced until later. There was no room to flesh them out.

There was a dual POV in this book. It switched between the Archivist and Sun each chapter. But the narrative voice didn’t actually change much between them. Everything read as detached and matter-of-fact. It was an interesting choice since most thrillers tend to have an excitable, compelling voice that drags the reader forward. Personally, I liked the tone of this book. It was different, but it fit the Archivist’s personality. Sun’s sections could have been a bit more lively and desperate to match her personality though.

The writing was good. Everything flowed really well up until the last two chapters, when everything kind of imploded. It was a pretty quick read actually.

Ultimately, I liked The Archivist, but I felt it could’ve used some work, especially around the ending. It just needed some fleshing out. If there’s a follow up, I’ll probably check it out, but I don’t think I’ll actively go looking for other books by Nelson.

Overall, I gave it 3 out of 5 stars. If it sounds like something you would love, pick it up. But otherwise, you’re not missing much.

I thought I would enjoy this but it wasn’t for me. I did not really engage with the main character or the overall prose of the novel. But that is just my personal opinion. This story has a distinctive style and would appeal to somebody who likes that kind of thing.

What if you knew that death was not the end? That there was no afterlife, only the Aether, which hungers to possess your essence when you pass. You won’t be reunited with lost families, friends, pets. Just the all consuming Aether. No God, Allah, Yahweh, Brahman, or whoever you may believe in.

Yet, if you are lucky, and more importantly, wealthy, you may come across an Archivist. An archivist is traditionally a person trained in preserving historic material for future generations to access. However, these particular Archivists offer a link to the afterlife. They can capture your essence in the moments before your death, plucking it from the grasp of the Aether. This allows you to speak with your loved ones who remain. A loving lifeline, preserving you in life after death.

Sun-Young Kang crosses paths with an Archivist, and both of their lives are drastically changed. Sun-Young realises she has a lot more in life than she realised. The Archivist has kept from forming bonds with people, or caring about their problems. He does a job he is paid to do. When he finds he is getting emotionally invested in his new friends lives, and just how deep the connection goes, he wonders just how far he will go to save his friends? And who wants so many people dead? More to the point - why does it feel so personal?

This was one of the most original stories I have read in a long time. Dealing with life after death in a wonderfully original way. It explores the concept of what exactly would you do if you could cling on longer after death. What would be most valuable to you, and what would you hold on to the longest? How much is it worth? The Archivist is a fantastic character, flawed, vulnerable, cold, uncaring, yet fiercely protective of those he does let in. The plot of the story does stretch in some places, but when we look at what the Archivist is, I think you just have to roll with it. You will be engaged from the start, racing to find out what happens, yet not wanting it to end. Overall an absolutely engaging read, gripping from the start, and left me wanting more of this wildly weird, original world that VS Nelson has created.

*I received this book from NetGalley for review but all opinions are my own.

Unique subject matter is dark, but dealt with well. A good read. The author had a great idea for a lead character and shows real imagination and talent.

I loved this book. The premise of the story and how it approaches the topic of death was new and very well done. I liked the characters, particularly the Archivist. The story itself was well-done and kept my attention from the very first page until the last (I also stayed up far too late trying to read as much as possible one night). I would love for there to be more books about this.

Worth the read!

I started this book totally unaware of what the story was about. For a while I was confused. It often took a moment to figure out from whose perspective a chapter was being written. Characters appeared and disappeared and became connected in strange ways. The plot appears slowly and twisted.

I understood the 1 on 1 meetings with the families and international calls; accepting the architectural award for his client was a bit of a stretch! The climactic battle with the Jade archivist had echoes of similar battles in very different books; I didn’t think it worked as well as the rest of the book

The author asks in their Afterword “is an archivist a good thing?”

According to the classic definition –— “Archivists are specially trained in preserving the original material and helping people obtain it.” The one in this book kind does the same thing in a very different way. And I believe technology may just provide a less “metaphysical“ solution.

The Archivist

[Blurb goes here]

This novel is something I been giving a lot of thought to. It's hard for me to review it, and here's why: while I enjoyed the story—a lot, mind you—I didn't care at all for the characters, and the writing style. If there's danger, excitement, urgency...the author doesn't seem to care enough to convey it. To make the reader feel it. The story is quite good and original, so are the concepts it portrays, but there's no emotion behind the words. Any way, those are my two cents. Don't let me discourage you. It is worth reading, if for no other reason, than to discover what to me, is an adventure devoid of the usual derivative clichés.

Thank you for the free copy!