"Deja vu. Deja su. Deja vecu. Already seen. Already known. Already lived."

It's no secret that Victoria Schwab is a well-known and widely beloved artist of the written word, and I'm a huge fan of her work, my personal favorite being Vicious. She has a way with telling stories in a lush, atmospheric manner, while keeping her stories entirely approachable to readers of all kinds, which is something I admire and respect immensely. My 3-star rating of Addie LaRue is HIGHLY subjective and a result of my own personal reading experience, so I recommend you take my thoughts loosely and experience this sweeping saga for yourself.

Initially, I was off to a good start, as I had heard the second half is much more engrossing than the beginning, yet I was entranced from the very first page. I flew through the first 150 pages at breakneck speed and found myself trying to sneak in moments with my audiobook copy (thanks Libro.fm!) as Julia Whelan is a global treasure. Much to my surprise, once the initial love interest was introduced, and the prose fell away into heavy dialogue, I think I felt like I had entered into a new story and wished I could transport back to that inceptive atmosphere I had fallen in love with. There is a twist as to why Henry can remember Addie, and it felt a bit heavy handed in how obvious the general basis of that twist would be, but I don't think that was a make or break factor in my reading experience.

At the risk of including spoilers, I'll be vague, but if you've read my bio on my profile then you know what type of a reader I am and what I generally cheer for in my stories. If you've read this book already, then you know where I'm going with this, but if you haven't, then you may want to be briefed of the controversial ending, in both content and execution. There's a bit of a love triangle that happens throughout the second half of the book, and let's just say that my ship did not set sail. *whomp whomp* This heavily impacted my final rating, as I felt my investment of 450 pages was quite extensive compared to the pay out after completing the final page.

Regardless of my selfish thoughts, I do hope you give this a chance for yourself, and that you experience the magic and poetic prose included in Addie's story. I'll be waiting eagerly for Schwab's next novel.

*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.

Truly a perfect fall book.

Time jumps back and forth in a way that clearly and methodically introduces us to Addie and her situation, cleverly showing us the effects and boundaries of her curse. The way what was and what is to come are balanced is quite frankly stunning, in a way I’ve rarely seen. As we jumped through time, I constantly found myself wishing that more time would be spent with a certain place or character. But that wasn't a flaw - it was the point. That’s how Addie felt. That was how she lived, and it was what she was afraid of. When reading their respective sections, I *felt* like Addie and Henry. I felt their fears and their hopes as if they were my own.

And while the plot and structure deserve to be heavily praised, it's important not to forget the line-level writing. God, so many of the lines in this book are absolute knife cuts. Sometimes, I had to put the book down for a while because I was feeling too much.

When you know an author has poured their heart and soul and years of their life into a book, it can be daunting. I mean, what if it's not as good as you hope? But Addie didn't disappoint—far from it.

I received a digital advanced copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

V E Schwab does it again. She manages to create the most amazing worlds and characters to inhabit them.
In 1714, Addie LaRue is living in France and is about to be married. At the last minute, she makes a bargain with a God to be free. However, like most bargains, she doesn't get exactly what she thought. We watch as Addie LaRue navigates the struggles that come from the bargain and lives her life.
I don't want to give too much away since I went into the book knowing very little and loved it. The book is beautifully written and the characters feel so real.

Addie LaRue is cursed. She made a deal with the darkness, and for a life of immortality she was forgotten by all. But her stubbornness has kept her alive. Until one day she meets a boy who remembers her...

Blink and you're twenty-eight, and everyone else is now a mile down the road, and you're still trying to find it, and the irony is hardly lost on you that in wanting to live, to learn, to find yourself, you've gotten lost.

I was genuinely surprised by how much I liked this! I have a history of either feeling ambivalent or loving Schwab's books, and this was one that had the ingredients of everything I despise (a boy, artsy fartsy shit, a 300-year-old woman who acts like a child, a plethora of Harry Potters with pale skin, black hair and green eyes) and yet mixed them into something enjoyable. And it's a standalone!

Adeline (not the Blake Lively character, although similar vibes) only acted like a child around humans, but like herself with Luc, the devil character who was the real reason for this book being 5 stars because...he was every Darkling trope combined and yet this time it worked because he had real bite.

I still was incredibly annoyed by Henry (not by his storms though—fully related to those, was annoyed by everything else).

When everything slips through your fingers, you learn to savor the feel of nice things against your palm./blockquote>
Anywho, after sitting on this for um, almost a month, I did knock it down to four stars.

As I thought about it, I kept thinking back on how much like a cupcake this book was. Beautiful packaging. It just looks too good to consume. And then you take the first bite and you're like, whew that's sweet. And you eat it and it's delicious and filling but twenty minutes you're hungry again and feeling unsatisfied and you don't know why.

I think I figured it out. Okay, I completely didn't. And despite my enjoyment of this book I don't think I'm going to dip my toe into VE Schwab's waters anymore (yes, this is a weird metaphor. Go with it).

Because like a cupcake, this book drew me into the aesthetic.

Dark, delicious, forbidden. And yes I'm talking about Luc, who was just the most delightfully amoral devil (I still do love the ending).

"Henry has his father's loose black curls, his mother's gray-green eyes."

But I remain turned off by the artsy fartsy lifestyle led by Henry and his woe-is-me-I'm-loved-by-all mentality. I'm tired of boys who look like Harry Potter and Penn Badgley (I initially wrote Ben Padgley and was like, no, that's not right) had a baby and that baby was I-like-classic-books-and-have-no-personality Henry. Also, Henry is canonically Harry Potter. It's in the text. I do feel strongly for his feeling of being adrift and his emotional swings to sorrow and heaviness. I feel those so, so strongly.

Then I was like, I don't get Addie. Her life truly sucks and despite her constantly telling the reader of the wonders of the world, I kept wondering what they were. I didn't see a lot of it beyond her suffering through everything and hooking up with artsy folks and being a muse with her weird freckles. I did like the commentary on art, though, and the thought of influence and ideas.

Also, I kept thinking about Blake Lively in Age of Adeline, and how Blake Lively and Penn Badgley got married in Gossip Girl and was this entire book just some weird fan-based Inception mash-up of the two???

Okay, this review is now hopelessly garbled and I apologize. My thoughts are everywhere.

On the one hand, I liked it (see final quote below) and on the other, I wasn't bowled over by it. I loved Luc but was it because I loved the amoral assholery of him? The forbidden that called to Addie and made her love the unloveable? I did love how she was with him, her personality and how she let herself be old and unhuman and sassy in a way that she wasn't with Henry.

And, okay, I did not like the ending. I mean, I liked one particular aspect of the ending, but not the meta part of the ending.

Overall, I really, really liked everything about the book except for Addie's relationship with Henry. That just felt like such a weak point. There was no chemistry. No spark. It was only because he saw her and she saw him.

And that's that for this gobbleyblech of a review! If you stayed through it this long, have a cookie!

He can tell that your heart's not in it anymore, and he advises you to find another path, and he assures you that you'll find your calling, but that's the whole problem, you've never felt called to any one thing. There is no violent push in one direction, but a softer nudge in a hundred different ways, and now all of them feel out of reach.


I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

This is probably my favorite book I've read this year. Such beautiful writing and a heartbreakingly beautiful story. I never wanted this book to end.

Thanks, I assigned an interview with the author with a freelance writer and ran the story in 11 newspapers and websites in the Southern California News Group including the Orange County Register and Los Angeles Daily News. I include 2 of the 11 links below.

I know I am in the minority but this book just didn't do it for me. I thought it was really long...and I just didn't buy the tension between Addie and the devil. The book did get better when she finally met Henry. I thought it was unrealistic that she basically lived as a homeless person for 300 years and yet managed to be the muse of numerous artists. As I said, just not the book for me.

I highly recommend this book if you are a fan of tales of immortals or dealing with the devil at the crossroads. It's refreshing to get a story about immortals who are not vampires. I can't wait to see this as a movie, and I'm certain it eventually will be one. It's that good.

This book is so exquisite and so beautifully written by VE Schwab, that I hugged this book right after I finished reading. This book is a treasure of magical moments. I can’t stop talking about it and recommending this fantastic book to everyone.

Just as the title states, this story is about the Invisible Life of Addie LaRue - a young woman who in desperation made a Faustian bargain with the devil in 1714 France.

This is a sweeping novel that spans 300 years, and yet still, you wouldn’t want this story to end. You will follow Addie’s story as she moves through centuries and continents, historical landmarks and artistic masterpieces living a life forgotten, leaving no trace, or memory. While in New York in 2014, a small used book store and its shopkeeper Henry, changes everything with three little words, “I remember you”.

This book is delightfully unforgettable. I read each line of this book carefully not skipping a single word Schwab constructed, to build this world that was enchanting and dazzling. It is a book so clever and witty, magical and fantastical, and romantic that defies time and fate.

I loved this story!

Just wow. This book is hard to quantify as just one thing. To say I loved it is an understatement. Addie and her journey is a breathtaking exploration in the human spirit and want for more. I would recommend this novel to anyone and everyone.

I cannot express how much I loved this book. I fell in love with Addie from the start and then melted when Henry came into the picture. This book was so moving and wonderful and ahhhh it was perfection. I laughed, I cried, I hurt, and I felt hopeful.

I enjoyed this one!

A huge thank you to NetGalley for my advanced copy of this wonderful book.

I don't really have much to say about this one. I felt like it was well written and the storyline was unique. The pacing was great and I never found myself bored.

A lot of people are loving this and I don't blame them. Upon hearing that I didn't give this a five my book bestie was disappointed. It was good y'all. It's not something that will stick with me forever but something that I'm glad I read.

I will definitely be reading more by this author.

A fantastic, well written book that will appeal to many audiences. This will definitely be one of the best books of the year. The story is intricate with great characterization.

𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: Addie and Henry ⁣
⁣
𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗔𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗦: This book was such a heartbreak and joy to read. VE Schwab’s lyrical writing pulled me in from the very first chapter, from the opening line and then I completely surrendered my attention to Addie and Henry’s story.⁣
⁣
Addie was such a fantastic main character. Her desperation, her vulnerability, the sheer stubbornness of her character made me love her. Then Henry, the softest boy I’ve ever read about. His character arc was so achingly crafted, so painfully realistic. VE Schwab does wonderful job of making you understand 𝘸𝘩𝘺 Addie and Henry made their decisions. I almost felt like I was living their lives with them, running from the things they feared, loving the way they loved. These are two characters that nestled their way into my heart and will remain there forever. ⁣
⁣
Now let’s get metaphysical. This story makes you question everything, the meaning of life, time, the feeling of love and the way we, as humans, make our mark on the world. Addie and Henry’s story is an homage to art. It is a celebration of art in its many forms, writing, painting, photography. ⁣
⁣
This is the type of book that will break your heart, mend it and then fill you up with enough hope to make you set out and mark the world. ⁣

This was phenomenal! Victoria's writing was so lush and beautiful, and the story was perfectly told. You can tell that she put so much work, so much time, into this book and it absolutely pays off in the best way possible. This was a remarkable tale, and I'm so glad I got the chance to read it.

Absolutely incredible! I think this might be VE Schwab's best book yet and it definitely met all the hype. The characters were so rich and the plot managed to twist and turn in just the right parts to keep it from being predictable. Would absolutely recommend this to anyone, whether they're usually a fantasy lover or not.

This is easily one of the top books of 2020 that I've read, and I've already read almost 140 books in 2020. The way it is written hooks readers from the very beginning, causing them to fall in love with Addie and root for her, no matter the situation she ends up in, during the 300 year span of her life covered in the book. At first, I was not going to read this because of the fantasy aspect, but I am so glad I did. It is written more like a realistic fiction book and both the prose and the imagery are wonderful and beautiful. I could not put it down. It takes place through Paris, New York, and many other lovely little places in between. If you are looking for a magical story that will leave you captivated and never able to forget the main character, Addie LaRue will fit the bill!

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was one of my most anticipated books of 2020. I am a huge fan of V.E. Schwab and this book was no exception. I loved every minute of it. Schwab is just a great writer and storyteller in general. Every book she writes just draws you in and tugs at your heart. She has such a beautiful writing style that makes her books impossible to put down (even when they are super long).

As soon as I got the notice for the ARC, I could not wait to read it. At this point in time, I have read it twice and I’ve listened to the audio book once. I will say REREAD IT AGAIN!!! You will catch so much more the second time around!

The ending was a complete surprise, but then again so was the story. So much time and emotion went into this amazingly dark collection of moments about a forgettable girl turned into an unforgettable story.

Can I give this a 10 out of 5?!

Thank you kindly to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this review copy.

Oh my gosh what in the world did I just read?! That was amazing. The writing was absolutely beautiful and the story was incredibly unique. I loved every single one of the characters and found them each to have so many complexities to them. I would highly recommend this novel and look forward to picking up more from V. E. Schwab. Thank you Tor and Netgalley for sending this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted more, especially from the ending. it was so well written and well developed I was kind of shocked by the abrupt ending. I mean, I guess that it is brilliant and clever I just wanted resolution. The concept was fascinating but the execution let me down. Maybe there will be a sequel? I hope so, because there was so much story left to tell