The Archive Undying

4.25 stars This review definitely does not contain spoilers...

This reading experience reminded me of Witch King (Martha Wells) in that you are dropped into a deep and complicated world without a great deal of exposition or other hand holding. I listened to this one, and, although the narrator is fantastic, I plan to read the physical book, as I think I'll get more out of it. The prose, vivid descriptions of the world, and the main POV character's voice all pulled me in. The plot was somewhat secondary for me, possibly because it was harder to parse than the more clearly drawn character conflicts and relationships. I think this book would benefit from tighter execution, especially in the final act. The ultimate conflict was repetitive, and it was the primary point where my vague understanding of the world really hampered my enjoyment. There were also a lot of POV switches in the back half of the book, and it was sometimes unclear who was speaking (for plot reasons?), which was not ultimately enjoyable.

This is not the right book for anyone who can't abide a soft magic system. The tech here is definitely soft, and I don't think there is a point where all is revealed or clarified, though certainly some major things become clear as you go along. Reading this was a similar experience to the first two-thirds of Harrow the Ninth; I didn't really get what was happening, but I was still totally there for it. The major difference is that the big reveal in Harrow doesn't happen here. I think Witch King is the better comp, as in both cases I loved the world and characters but felt like the plot, especially the denouement, was weak. I also saw a lot of common threads in the reviews of Witch King and The Archive Undying. If you are OK being thrown into the deep end and want to experience a unique setting and gorgeous prose, then give this a try. This is supposed to be a duology, and I will definitely be picking up the sequel.

I'm sad that I have to DNF (30-40%) and give this a lower rating.

The cover, the concept, that first damn chapter!! I was so freaking hooked and couldn't understand why it had a lower rating. I thought it deserved higher, and I was determined to prove everyone wrong!

Iterate Fractal has corrupted, and it is dying, and in it's divine death, it has killed you.You clutch the root in your breast. It is the largest of veins Iterate Fractal stuck into you, and the least intentional.

My love for beautifully crafted words drank in the opening chapter, hungry and grinning like a wolf for more. I'd found a new gem in the rough. Alas, it was not to be my fate, and my heart began to sink as I delved into the following chapters. I started to feel like I had entered a cave with no flash light. The light dimming the further I went in.

I believe Emma Mieko Candon is going to be great author. One day. As beautiful as her writing is, she fails to remember that us readers can't see into her thoughts. Because that's how it felt to read. I felt like I was getting only half the story. I couldn't SEE anything. Descriptions were vague for the sake of ‘pretty words', it was so hard to imagine what any of the machines looked like, and when I thought I might have finally landed on an concept, Candon seemed to counteract that.

A story of AI gods that created cities and housed it's citizens like it's children, only to fall into terrible corruption and nuke the very people it protected? F* yes. Give me more of that. I wanted in. I want so badly to discover this world of Candon's and learn more about these corrupt AI, relic's, ENGINES and everything else. But that's all I could really get, the names of things.

I am not giving up on Emma Mieko Candon, as long as she improves the clarity and depth of her writing, I will gladly pick up another book of hers. The ideas, and concepts and the worlds Candon is creating are meant to be read, they are too cool and epic not to. But until then, I unfortunately need to put The Archive Undying back on the shelf, and sigh wistfully at the cover until I'm ready to let it go to a tiny library or second-hand book store.

Pretty sure next time I read this it will get 5 stars.