This book was amazing. It was mesmerizing, bleak in parts, and evocative. The writing was gorgeous. The plot and characters were so well done. I can’t think of anything negative to say about this book. It was so good!

On the day of her wedding in 1714 Addie LaRue makes a deal with the devil (literally and figuratively). Addie wants to be free. She wants to grow out of the small French village in which she was born. She wants to explore the world without constraints. Bartering her soul for her freedom, what Addie doesn’t realize is that every word has power.

Addie will come to know that the Darkness (later known as Luc) takes Addie’s choice of words “freedom without constraints” to make her near invisible to the world. She cannot speak her name or tell her story. If someone leaves a room or turns away from Addie, she is quickly forgotten, but she is free. Erased. Invisible.

Then, Addie meets Henry who works in a book store. While trying to exchange a book she lifted from the store the previous day, she’s shocked at realization that Henry remembers Addie, he sees her. For the first time in nearly three hundred years Addie has a voice.

I’m finding it a bit difficult to truly convey my feelings for this book, this story, without giving too much away. There’s so much I want to talk about. V.E. Schwab has constructed a beautiful story that’s full of heartbreak yet is, oddly, also very hopeful and speaks to the strength of the human spirit.

Centering on Addie as she recounts her past and current present, V.E. Schwab fully conveys this suffocating feeling of not being able to speak ones truth. Of being overlooked, or quite literally forgotten. Of any formed relationship being relegated to one-sided and having to be rebuilt day after day after day. It seems so exhausting and there were plenty of times when Addie echoes this sentiment.

The really shining thing about this book is Addie’s perseverance. Visited by Luc on nearly every anniversary of their deal, he repeatedly tries to get her to give over her soul to him, to call it quits. Ever stubborn, Addie will not give him the satisfaction and what begins as a battle of wills between the two, devolves into Addie learning that maybe she doesn’t need her voice, she just needs an idea and she needs time—which she has in abundance.

Seeing Addie thwart the Darkness’s rules in seemingly minute ways, witnessing those small instances having a larger overall impact was absolutely brilliant and beautiful. When Addie meets Henry, the only other being—besides Luc—who remembers her, I had tears of joy for Addie. But I couldn’t in good conscience call their relationship romantic. I think they were each other’s saving graces and while true love could possibly form from that, I don’t think we see such a thing within the pages of this book. Only deep regard and affection.

This contrasts nicely with her relationship with Luc—the only constant in her life for all these years. I think V.E. Schwab played his ambiguity quite nicely. He remains a mystery throughout, one that I really want to crack, but this is Addie’s story and she’s playing her own game where they’re concerned, and honestly I’m 100% Team Addie.

If you’ve read V.E. (Victoria) Schwab, you know to expect wonderful settings, writing, characters, etc. This doesn’t change with Addie LaRue. But having finished I can say with real honesty that Addie is no longer invisible to me. I see her. I hope you will too.

France, 1714: Desperate to escape the fate of becoming a wife and mother, Adeline LaRue does the one thing she has been warned never to do – she calls out to the gods who listen after dark. The dark god hears her and grants what she desires – more time and the freedom to live as she pleases, but there’s a twist she didn’t see coming: everyone who meets her will forget her. Destitute but free, Adeline sets off to make a life for herself but her new reality is full of perils and problems, one of which is that she unable to leave a mark on the world, unable to write or draw or create. The story shifts from 1714 to 2014 in New York City, where Addie LaRue will meet the one person who is able to remember her, and it will change both of their lives.

The Invisible life of Addie LaRue is a decadent literary feast, one to be savored over long evenings and featuring such a range of delights that every reader will find something to enjoy. I was captivated by Addie LaRue and her incredible, unforgettable life. Her tale of going from an ordinary young woman from a small town in France to the accomplished, well-traveled, and always forgotten muse of artists and musicians is extraordinary. Between chapters of her new life in New York are flashbacks to turning points in her storied life, whether meeting influential people or finding the freedom of dressing as a man or her anniversary encounters with the entity that made her immortal and forgettable. I fell in love with Addie and Henry – the mysterious and unhappy young man she meets in a bookshop – and their intertwining story. I fell in love with the writing and the vibrant descriptions of cities, food, people, and art. I also enjoyed the LGBTQ representation!

I would recommend this book to fans of The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern and The Watchmaker of Filigree Street and The Lost Future of Pepperharrow by Natasha Pulley.

This was a great book. It's slower paced, but definitely one that I look forward to recommending to others.

Deserveth of the hype, for sure.

Perfect tone and writing style? Check.
Schwab has this certain cadence to her writing where it reads like a beautiful lulling poetry. You can fall into this story so easily.

Incorporation of many fascinating places and points in time? Check.
This book takes you from France, to Italy, Germany, England, and a few different parts of the US, at various points between the 1700s and 2010s. It touches on different historical moments, including the French Revolution, World War I and II, and US Prohibition Era, and a few famous figures pop up throughout the story, which was fun.

Hitting all the Schwab points, which is why you're probably reading it in the first place? Check.
There are a lot of similar elements to Schwab's other books: Slytherin girls, Hufflepuff boys, shadows, dark deals, violins, love of the sea, not quite happy endings.
It's like if all of Schwab's previous books had one unforgettable night together, birthed a super baby with all of the best parts of their respective DNA, and that super baby grew up to a become the mature adult that is Addie LaRue.

V.E. Schwab's best book to date? Check, check, check.

What a clever and unique plot this book has! It's unlike anything I've ever read before which makes it equally hard for me to review. Even though it seemed to drag on forever, I see now why some of that was necessary. Kudos to the author for such a marvel and a great accomplishment.

Oh the magic of Addie! How do you write a review for a book you've waited for a long time, that delivered more than you expected, broke you, but also made you want to hug Addie, and Henry, and Luc (yes even Luc). So you clutch to the book with a little smile at the end and go question your own life.

That's it. That's the review.

Ok, I joke. There's more I need to say.

I loved loved LOVED this sad little story. It was lonely, it was pitiful, it was sad. But when a woman plays a game with the devil for 300 years - you know and must understand that there's resilience and hope and love in the grand scheme of things.

Addie's deal with the devil - a lifetime for a soul. And the only quirk to the deal, to make it a torture for Addie, the devil makes it so she's forgotten by everyone. There's nothing to hold her in a place. There's nothing she can hold on to either. No human, no item, no place. And that's where Addie's resilience comes in. How many years would you live if there was no mark left by you? If you lived an invisible life, when would you give up and give in? Does it even matter if you leave no mark in the end?

And then there's Henry. He reminded me so much of myself at a younger age - where you don't know what to do with yourself. What to reach for, what to try and accomplish. Everything is of interest, but nothing of importance. When you fail to please your family, or meet their expectations.. How do you contain all those feelings of self doubt, hate, the rush of trying to accomplish something out of yourself, looking for approval, and love?

The writing is exquisite as always. It's lyrical, poetic. You can feel the pain, the self doubt, the loneliness and the love for life and people from every page. Every word kind of digs deep into you and doesn't let.go.

Addie ended being such a clever character. While you're trying to remember her, you completely forget her in the end. Im glad I got to see and understand Addie and in the end I will remember her.

*Thank you to the publisher for an early copy to read and review. The opinions are my own*

My thanks to NetGalley for making an eARC copy of this book available to me.

Very enjoyable and easily recommendable book about a young woman, born in the 1600's, who becomes cursed to be forgettable. Anybody who has met her before doesn't remember her, to the extent that simply losing awareness of her briefly can make them forget her. The author has a lot of fun describing how she goes about surviving in a world where she can't have a job, can't have a stable location to live, can't have friends, and more. The book jumps back and forth between her earlier life and her story in 2004. Of course, there is a big change that comes half way through the book just to keep things interesting.

Stop what you’re doing and grab a copy of this book 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐰. I cannot even begin to tell you how glad I am that I blindly requested this book on @netgalley, simply because of the author, because it is now easily one of my favorite books of all time.⁣⁣⁣
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Never have I ever been more intrigued by a villain, and to be quite frank... never have I ever rooted for a villain so much (definitely not the entire time), but damn... And if you have read the summary and know who the villain is, you’ll understand just how 𝐇𝐔𝐆𝐄 that statement is.⁣⁣⁣
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This is my third 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐰𝐚𝐛 novel, and though I love her writing, I struggled with what I saw as some fairly slow pacing in the other two novels.⁣⁣⁣
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The thing is, I found the 𝘈𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘦 pacing a bit slow too, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 as a 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘵𝘩, perfectly paced in the build-up and lending itself to the true 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐲 and 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐢𝐞𝐜𝐞 that this book ultimately is. I honestly don’t know how I’m going to go forth and not compare everything else to 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘈𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘦 𝘓𝘢𝘳𝘶𝘦.⁣⁣⁣
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I’ll recommend this book forever and ever!⁣⁣⁣
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Thank you so much to @torbooks and @netgalley for my ARC in exchange for an honest review!⁣

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is beautifully written. The story of Addie bounces between the present and her past, weaving a tale of freedom, loneliness, self discovery, and being invisible, both figuratively and literally. This is my first experience with the writing of V.E. Schwab. Her style at times seems almost melodic. I found myself absorbed into Addie's life, her deal with Luc, and her interactions with others. I found the concept of love and relationships interesting especially in the construct that one of the people involved is forgotten. The introduction of Henry brings hope to the story. I think that maybe we all feel invisible, isolated, and alone at some time in our lives. In the end, I think we all want to be remembered or to matter to something or someone. Over all, I really enjoyed reading the book and am interested in exploring other writings from Schwab. Count me a new fan.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue was the first V.E. Schwab book I've read, and I was surprised by its leisurely pace. Schwab takes their time setting scenes and creating characters that you can't help but start to fall in love with. Addie and Henry shone through the pages, and the people that surrounded them became memorable and lovable as a result.
Although the book is technically fantasy, I think it would have high appeal for literary or romance readers as well, due to the characterizations and the slower pace. A solid New Adult story for 20-somethings looking for their post-YA niche.

I can say without a doubt this is the book I was looking forward to the most this year. I could feel the hum in my body and the thrill of a new book, but then the concern hit. What if I was too excited? Were my expectations unfair and I was doomed to be disappointed? I’ll let you judge for yourself where your expectations should lie, but I can tell you this book was everything I wanted and more.

Addie knows not to pray to the gods after dark, but when the other gods have ignored her pleas, she desperately makes a deal with the devil. In exchange for immortality and freedom, she is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets. Everyone that is until she comes across a man 300 years later who finally says, “I remember you.”

Pg 51, “‘But the old woman only shakes her head. ‘The darkness plays its own game,’ she says. ‘It makes its own rules,’ she says. ‘And you have lost.’”

The writing is lush and descriptive. The detail never felt unnecessary but heightens the emotions of the scenes. The prose is not to be rushed through. The languid pacing provides an opportunity to immerse yourself in the world and relish the rich language. The timeline of the book goes between the 1700s and present, but each section further develops Addie and makes me fall more in love with her as a character. The devil character is charming and sinister, which makes his interactions with Addie tense and exquisite.

Pg 191, “‘It would be so easy to forget you. Everyone else already has.’”

This was a story I never wanted to end. I was desperate to keep reading because it was enthralling, but I also wanted to savor every moment. Fans of Erin Morgenstern are sure to love this as well as The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger and Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

You’ve met Addie LaRue. You’ve met her a thousand times, and you’ll meet her a thousand more, and you’ll never remember her.

You might hang on to a trace of her. Some faint, lingering tune she hummed in the hours you spent together will come back to you, and you’ll have no idea where it started. You’ll paint a picture of a girl with seven freckles on her face, a constellation that you know you never saw in the night sky, but a pattern that tiptoes around your brain for the rest of your life.

You know Addie LaRue, though you never heard her name. She goes by so many, she can’t even keep track of which one she told you. It doesn’t matter. You’ll turn away from her for a split second, and when you see her again, it’ll be as if she never existed to you before. Out of sight, out of mind.

Addie LaRue can be seen, but not remembered, even by film. Addie LaRue is a living ghost. Addie LaRue… is cursed.

When she was young, Addie LaRue was engaged, but she was not in love. Fleeing from an arranged marriage, Addie pleaded to whatever gods might have heard her. In her desperation, she made a mistake. “Never pray to the gods that answer after dark,” she had been warned. But night had fallen, and her prayer was heard, and a bargain was struck.

Now, three centuries have passed. Addie has traveled the world, learning to survive on her own. Three centuries with no one able to say her name, save for the dark being who came to her on that darker night, and who returns on occasion to see if she is tired of being forgotten. Three centuries to live as little more than a fleeting shadow.

From the fields and cities of France, Addie eventually made her way to New York, a bustling place just perfect for her to blend into. She grew comfortable there, pushing at the delicate edges of her curse to leave seed ideas in the minds of artists. “She has scattered herself like breadcrumbs, dusted across a hundred works of art.” Still, the real Addie was just as easily and quickly forgotten.

Until she wasn’t.

One day, Addie met Henry, a young bookseller. Against all odds, and in defiance of everything Addie had come to learn in 300 years, Henry remembered her. Somehow, he remembered her, and her carefully built world twisted beneath her. Soon, she is falling for Henry, and wondering if this might be what love feels like.

But Addie isn’t the only person in the world to have made a desperate plea, and she’s not the only one to have had it answered in an unexpected way. Now, everything is poised to change forever, and Addie must decide how much she is willing to risk in order to save man who remembers.

Victoria Schwab has crafted another fantastic world, equally as wondrous as the myriad Londons explored by her other heroines. This book has had my heart for months, and now it can have yours as well.

Today, Addie belongs to the world. Go find her. May you never forget her. I know I won’t.

My most sincere thanks to NetGalley for an eARC of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue in exchange for an honest review.

I waited. I waited, and willed, and watched.

Then, I read. And I fell.

Addie will always be remembered as the woman who made a choice, even when it was the wrong one or the one that hurt, and found the beauty in th small moments. The truth was in the honesty and brief bits of life.

Follow her example. Find your joy, what brings you awe. Never stop stopping at the wonders around you.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue follows Addie, over the course of her very long life, slipping away from peoples memories. After a deal she makes, she’s left forgotten, peoples glances slide right over her, forgetting they’ve seen her, or spoken to her. For hundreds of years, she explores the world, staying forgotten but making her own memories as she goes. Until one day, someone notices her. Remembers her, and her name.

The idea behind The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is brilliant, and engaging. I knew I needed to read it the minute I heard about it, not only because of the story, but because of my general love of V.E.Schwab. Yet, something about this one didn’t quite hit for me. The writing is, as usual, fantastic, Schwab knows how to keep you interested and turning the pages. Addie was a good character, one that you’re invested in. But something about this one just fell a little flat for me.

Going back to Addie being a character you can be invested in. Mostly, I was invested in her story before the current day events, before she is remembered. The story of her travels, the experiences she had, what led her to modern New York. The adventure behind that is exactly what I expected, knowing the deal that Addie made, knowing the freedom she wanted. That aspect of the story was brilliant, and I could have read several hundred more pages about what she did over the course of those hundreds of years. Where it lost me was the current story, of Addie being remembered. While that is very much the story we are meant to be interested in, I just wasn’t. It felt a bit slower, it deals a lot more with the romance involved, and the conflict with her concerns just didn’t keep me hooked.

Saying that, I know this is a me problem. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is a really great story, a wonderfully written book, and one that so many people are going to adore. I just wanted more freedom and exploration from it, I don’t much care for romance in my books, and it lost the thread of the freedom that Addie had and wanted. Give me more about what happened to Addie before, and I’d be screaming from the rooftops about how much I loved it.. But instead, it ended up being just a middle ground book that I enjoyed, and know others will love, but didn’t wow me the way I hoped it would.

4.5/5

CW: drug and alcohol abuse, some mention of suicidal ideation

What happens when you make a deal with the devil that results in freedom and immortality? In Adeline (Addie) LaRue’s case, she is left with a curse that allows nobody to remember her. Over the course of 300 years, Addie travels the world and tries to make an impression despite her curse. Everything changes for Addie when a person says, “I remember you.”

“Stories are a way to preserve one's self. To be remembered. And to forget.”

Addie’s story begins in a quaint village in France. She lives a quiet and unassuming life, but longs for adventure and freedom. She prays to the gods to avoid being tied down, but her prayer is only answered by a devil attempting to appeal to her. She was told not to pray to the dark, but she made a mistake in her agony. The two make a deal, and so the dance begins.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue alternates between past and present. Readers see Addie’s many hardships and few triumphs along the way. As her nemesis repeatedly revisits Addie and tries to encourage her to break her end of the bargain, she shows resilience (or stubbornness). Readers also follow Henry, a 28-year-old with a broken heart.

This book was one of my most anticipated books of the year. Not only is it penned by one of my favorite authors, but it is also clear how much love and hard work V. E. Schwab put into this book. Addie has a slower start than I am used to reading, but the payoff is absolutely worth it. Once I became invested in the story, I wanted to keep reading. This book was advertised as a love story between Addie and the devil. It is definitely not that. If anything, their “relationship” is toxic because of the way they both toy with each other over 300 years.

I recommend this book to people who like light fantasy, character-driven novels, and historical settings.

Note: I received an e-ARC from NetGalley and Tor Books in exchange for an honest review.

Passion has a way of blurring our rational minds, of pushing us into longing for our most impulsive desires, of breaking us down into vulnerable creatures anxious for comfort, harmony, care, and joy. It is such an intrinsically powerful state that doesn’t seize to overwhelm us on a sudden whim but grows with the appetite of a famished beast. It is during these devastating moments that we spew out our minds with our most-haunting prayers, hoping that someone would hear us, that someone would reach out into our miserable lives to console us with hope, with answers, with solace. But you know what they say: “Be careful what you wish for, you may just get it.” Bestselling author V. E. Schwab now returns with an intimate tale of love, loss, and remembrance that testifies to her astounding writing prowess in the literary realm.

What is The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue about? In 1714, there was a young lady by the name of Adeline LaRue, born and raised in a stone house just beyond an old yew tree in Villon-sur-Sarthe, France. On the day of her marriage, crushed down by the weight of the expectations set by her parents Jean and Marthe, she succumbs to a desperate desire to escape this life she’s forced into, to be free of these chains, and to make one last attempt to be heard by the new or old gods, even if it meant that only the darkness would answer. And the darkness does, as Addie LaRue makes a Faustian bargain that will leave her cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets but to also live forever. Throughout centuries, she thus embarks on a journey through time where she will have to overcome the obstacles born from her predicament, until, 300 years later, she stumbles into a young man in a hidden bookstore who stuns her with the impossible: he remembers her.


Told through two distinct timelines, one exploring Adeline LaRue’s odyssey through three centuries as she learns the ropes around her bargain with the darkness, and another set in a modern period where the impossible strikes her conscious and presents her with a reality she had never fathomed before, this story is unequivocally author V.E. Schwab’s most intimate chef d’oeuvre. Painted with raw emotions, she offers readers the chance to plunge into the life of a character who’s existence is intangible, one who has witnessed human nature’s complexity firsthand while repeatedly tormented by the darkness that lingers around her, gnawing at her soul as she’s reminded of her loneliness, her fading resolve, and her inability to live. Bathing in a narrative that also serves as a love letter to art and its many forms, whether it’s paintings, music, or literature, the story also strives towards illustrating the immortality of an idea, the suffocating strength of its grasp on our mind, on our memory, and on our life.

Whether it’s the concept of immortality or damnation, author V.E. Schwab delivers a stark and tightly-knit self-contained story that never forgets the ideas on which it is all built on. However, it is her compelling and authentic characters that make this story grow on you from the very first moment that her characters are introduced. Flawed to the core yet unquestionably human through their choices and their behaviours, it is stunning to watch these characters attempt to forge their identities as they embrace the consequences of their decisions and quickly understand the fragility of their lives.

Demonstrating an outstanding ability with words, author V.E. Schwab also never stumbles throughout this story, allowing every single word to magically capture the tone of the story, the atmosphere of each era, and the emotions of her characters. Veiled in darkness, this story will remind you to never take anything for granted, that every instant is precious, that everything you do will leave an impression somewhere, somehow. Nevertheless, author V.E. Schwab will tuck you under a snug blanket of happiness, of love, of longing, of remembering. She will remind you that even if all you see is darkness, there will always be light, somewhere, somehow. You just have to look hard enough.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is a visceral and striking cautionary tale that explores the intrinsic and complex nature of love, life, and memories.

Will I ever recover from this book?
Not likely.
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My previously established love & admiration for @veschwab led to some HIGH expectations for this novel, & it exceeded every single one. I don’t have a single critique, just praise & awe.

The year is 1714 & Adeline wants more than her provincial life. She wants the freedom to experience everything the world has to offer, so in a moment of desperation, she makes a deal with the darkness: freedom & immortality in exchange for her soul. Only, the darkness takes more than she bargained for, because everyone she meets forgets her the moment she’s out of sight. Until 300 years later, when someone finally says, “I remember you.”

Reading Addie LaRue was a bit like floating, like an out of body experience. It washed over me in a wave of bittersweet longing & nostalgia. It was shimmering stardust in the palm of my hand & I didn’t want to let go.
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I often talk about the importance of world building in fantasy, something I’ve frequently praised Schwab for, but Addie LaRue reads more like historical fiction + magical realism. The world, our world, already exists. Still, Schwab’s talent for imagery shines as she manages to world build within our reality, making me long for places I’ve been & those I’ve yet to visit.
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Schwab introduced me to vivid characters & said: here is what it means to be human; here is what it means to dream and create and hope and fear and love and live. She spoke to the dreamers, those who worry about a life unfulfilled, time slipping away, crushed under the weight of societal pressures & monotony. She said: this is how you leave your mark. And she did it through masterful storytelling & heartbreaking, ethereal prose. I’m pretty sure she sold her own soul to produce this masterpiece—it’s that good.
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I have read 100+ books this year & I mean it when I say this is my favorite. And yes, I cried, but not because I was sad. I cried because it was just so damn beautiful.
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Addie LaRue, I will never forget you. @veschwab, thank you for this extraordinary gift.
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⚠️CW: suicidal ideation, depression, substance abuse, attempted assault
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*Thank you @netgalley & @torbooks for the digital ARC

After making a desperate deal with a Faustian like figure, Addie LaRue will live forever, but be forgotten by everyone she meets as soon as she is out of sight. Addie understsandbly becomes increasingly frustrated with her lack of ability to leave a mark on anything or anyone: she can't even speak her own name...until one day someone remembers her. What follows is a story much more beautiful than I was expecting. This is "fantasy" yet didn't feel like typical fantasy to me. I somehow was believing the whole way. The parts with Faust or the devil or whatever you want to call him were also very spooky so it was a perfect October read. I did feel the length a bit towards the middle, but the ending for me made it worth it. It's a fantastic reminder that the joy and the beauty are worth the pains the sorrow.

I've always enjoyed Schwab's writing style, but more than that I love her world building and detail. And this book did not disappoint.

As a girl growing up in the 17th century France, Addie is unable to conform to the rules society sets for her. She does not want to be rooted to one place, to one man, to one family. So on the eve of her wedding day to a local young man, she runs away, begging the gods to set her free from this constricting lifestyle. And as anyone experienced with the ways of gods in literature, word choice matters.

Fast forward 300 years later, and Addie finds herself living in NYC, just another forgettable face among the millions. Literally -- whenever she meets a person, all it takes to forget her is to simply cross a threshold. But one day, a man named Henry remembers her and her whole world changes.

The story begins with Addie's POV, alternating between 2014 NYC and her journey through time and space starting from the 1700s. These chapters detail the difficulty of a life living with no connections and an inability to physically make a mark on the world. Some of these chapters are fascinating, but many of them for me read a little dry, as Addie recounts the historical events she lived through. About halfway through, Henry is given a few chapters of perspective, and we learn more about his life prior to meeting Addie. While I appreciated the information we learned, I found that this was also the point of the book that dragged the most for me. The first 20% and the last 20% were AMAZING, but the pacing of the middle parts felt gratuitous and could have been pared down. (It is a pretty long book after all.)

But nevertheless, I still found myself in tears in the last few pages. The larger conflict and the mysterious characters will carry you quickly through this book, and you will find yourself enjoying Schwab's prose. But I'm sure you already knew that by now.

Oh, and I just found out that this wasn't intended as a series, and I'm not sure how to feel about that...I'm not convinced this story is over.