“But this is how you walk to the end of the world. This is how you live forever. Here is one day, and here is the next, and the next, and you take what you can, savor every stolen second, cling to every moment, until it’s gone.”
Addie LaRue makes a desperate deal with the darkness to live forever, but she is cursed to be forgotten by all she meets. The darkness remembers her : hates her, loves her, torments her, and finally, won’t let her go. The journey in between all those moments are precise, tethered together with the suffering, agony, and awe that only a character like Addie can provide.
Victoria Schwab is good at action - read any number of her fantasy and science-fiction books, and it is immediately clear. Schwab knows fast-paced thrill and gripping page turners. Her writing is full of the grit and grime all good science fiction and fantasy is. You could call her a master of action, and you’d get no argument from me.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is none of those things: it is a slow-paced but sure-footed journey. And it is absolutely the best thing that Victoria Schwab has written (yet). Schwab’s writing is given space to explore, and Addie shines for it. A patient reader, with a soft spot for character-driven and slow-burn romance will find a match in this one. Readers with a love of art, in all its forms, but especially the visual and the musical - will find this story is a love letter to art, artists, and the power of an idea. This book will make a mark on its readers, much in the same way Addie makes her mark in the melody of a song or the oil on canvas - subtle and subverting, but permanent nonetheless.
P.S. This book is incredibly gay, and I love how not-a-big-deal it is, so I won’t make a thing of it either. But it’s there, and it matters.

There are only three books in this world that have made me cry. Addie LaRue is the third, and I fully believe that V.E. Schwab deserves a standing ovation for this beautiful and heart-breaking tale.

Even though I've been up and down with this author's work over the past year, I was thrilled to have received an ARC for this book. I wasn't sure what to expect, but given the amount of attention it has received, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to read it. Almost immediately I knew this was a book to be savoured. Usually I finish a book this size in 4 to 5 days, but I didn't want this one to end. From the start, this tale is terrible loneliness and sadness wrapped up in some of the most stunning writing I've read all year. It is bleak, with so little chance of hope, and yet I plunged on in the hopes that Addie would find a happy ending.

This story, of course, follows the life of one Adeline LaRue. A young woman who made a deal with the devil to be free to do with her life what she wanted. Unfortunately, as is needed with all bargains made, some specificity was lacking. The narrative unfolds both in the "present" day of 2014 and throughout the course of Addie's life, starting as a young girl in the late 1600's, through to striking the deal, and her travels through France, Europe, and America in the centuries to follow. Centuries, because Addie's bargain did not turn out as she hoped. Addie is free because she is immortal, and no one remembers who she is.

Here is where it is terribly sad. Sad, but also terribly clever from a writer's standpoint. Addie is incapable of leaving her mark on the world. She is forgotten by everyone she meets. She could spend five hours with one person, but the second they leave the table to go to the bar, she never existed. Works fabulously for thievery, but is absolutely lonely and sad. Addie can't write, can't build or craft anything, can't even tell someone her full name. But she can plant ideas. I loved seeing the threads of Addie scattered throughout history, in paintings and in music, her seven freckles transcending above the memory of her.

Across the 300 years Addie wanders the world, there are many people she meets who shape and change her, but two are clearly the most important. Luc, who is the devil himself. The god in the dark who cursed Addie, but visits often to see if she is ready to give up. To let him finally have her soul. Against my better judgement, I really liked Luc. He is cruel and callous, obviously, but there is a spark in Addie and Luc's dynamic that made me love every interaction between them. It's clear from when we first see Addie in the 2014 timeline that they have some serious history over the years and it was interesting to learn about it. The second person, obviously, is Henry. The young bookshop employee who remembers her. And you'll just have to read to find out what happens.

I feel like I've barely scratched the surface of this book in this review. There is so much beauty and love and heartache to this story that it is truly something that needs to be experienced in order to fully appreciate it. Schwab has officially won me over with this wonderful book and I can't wait to read what she has to offer next.

Victoria Schwab has done it again! I loved Addie LaRue. The writing was a bit flowery in the beginning which can be off putting because you don’t care about the characters yet but once you do, it adds to that love or at least it did for me. I was worried about the length of this book but honestly I would have read three hundred more pages.

To anyone who has been a fan of Schwab's for at least a few years, you've heard about how this book has been simmering in her mind for 10 years.

Well done, indeed.

Thank you so much to Tor Books for the advanced reader copy of The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by VE Schwab. This book far exceeded any expectations that I had going into it. I have had a rocky relationship with Schwab in the past, so I was skeptical, however the more reviews I saw for this book the more I was convinced that I was going to love it. Loving it doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface.
The number one thing that I loved about this book is just the tone and atmosphere of the book. It was honestly the best fall read. It felt dark and sad, while somehow a little hopeful. This book really made me think about life from a lot of different angles and what it would be like to truly be forgotten, as well as what you’d be willing to trade for “happiness”. I won’t go into too much because I truly believe that this is a book that is best if you go in as blind as possible and let the story take you away.
I highly recommend this book and it will absolutely be one of my favorites of the year.

Love story between a French girl and the devil over 300 years... SOLD!

I tried to go into this book with low expectations considering romance isn't my genre and... Wow, this has to be V. E. Schwab's best book!

I've always liked her writing but this character-driven, slow-paced story really works for her. It's closer to literary fiction than her other work and her characters are much stronger.

Frankly, I recommend you go into it knowing nothing else.

This is an amazing book. From the second I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. It's truly a work of art and absolute genius, which left me wanting to read more and more until it was over. I will highly recommend this book to everyone I meet, as it deserves a chance from everyone.

A Life No One Will Remember. A Story You Will Never Forget. This is the tag line for the The invisible life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab. But it doesn’t quite live up to to it.

I had high hopes for this story after reading the blurb and then finding out how long the author spent writing this tale. It brought thoughts of another book I read and couldn’t put down, but somehow while the story was okay I was disappointed. Even the ending wasn’t a surprise for me...I saw it coming.

France, 1714: in a moment of desperation, a young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets.
Thus begins the extraordinary life of Addie LaRue, and her life will play out across centuries and continents, as she tries to find herself and get someone to remember her.
But after nearly 300 years, Addie stumbles across a young man in a hidden bookstore and he remembers her name. Can she find love and save her soul? Or will she end up with darkness forever.

The two problems I had with this was the constant flashbacks, in this book, there was just too many of them. The bigger one for me though was the “faux” love triangle. I won’t go into details due to spoilers. But there are plenty of people who loved it so try it if you feel like it. 21/2 stars rolled up to 3

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy.

Absolutely loved this book. Over the years, Schwab has become one of my favorite authors. I love ADSOM, Holland in particular. I love This Savage Song. Vicious is one of my favorite novels. But Schwab really outdid herself here. This isn't my favorite of her novels. That honor still belongs to Vicious. But this book is a completely elevated version of Schwab. The prose was just magnificent. On the sentence level, she's doing things she's never done before. It was, technically, so well executed. I loved the rhythm and how some of her sentences just seemed to cut to the quick of me. Some of the things she wrote were just so true.

This story is, at its core, a story about life. I took this book in so slowly. It took me almost exactly two months to read. Because I could feel it doing things to me. In every moment, it felt so human. There were highs and there were lows, but the whole time, it was incredibly real and true to the human spirit and that is what I liked about it the most. This book gave me words to keep forever. "How do you walk to the end of the world? One step at a time." I love that the book says that what you do with your time is far more important than how much time you have. And that a full life happens in every moment, not in some far off future.

I don't care to talk about the characters, though I liked Addie and Henry and I especially loved Luc. To me, they were just vehicles for the spirit of the story, and its the spirit that made such an impression on me. This book is a shout into the void to live. To live fully and defiantly and without fear. I love it for that. It has a soul.

Again, I must say, ALL THE STARS!!!!! I cannot stress enough how much I loved this novel! The Invisible Life of Addie Larue is the story of a girl who barters her soul in a deal with the devil (or the Darkness, if you will), so that she may be free to live her own life in a time when all women must be held to a certain standard. But in the deal she has made, the darkness curses Addie to be forgotten by everyone she has ever known and everyone she will ever meet. She cannot say her name, nor write it. There are no photographs of her through the years. However, Addie finds a way through art to leave a mark through the years. And after 300 years she meets a boy who remembers....
This book gave me all the feels! You will end up cheering & routing for Addie through all her struggles in life and with the darkness. The ending was damn near perfect. And I'm sorry it had to end.
*Special thanks to NetGalley for advanced copy. :)

After a long wait that was entirely my own fault, I finally read THE INVISIBLE LIFE OF ADDIE LARUE by VE Schwab and it blew me away. Total 5 star read. Haunting, beautifully written, gloriously explored. Shooo dog, I get it now.


Okay, it's hard to classify this book so I won't try too had, but I'd call it light-fantasy literary fiction.

In 1714, Addie LaRue makes a deal with the darkness for her freedom--freedom from her provincial life and her impeding marriage. Now, she's eternally 23, eternally young and healthy and free, but cursed to never be remembered.

Told in two timelines, we follow Addie from 1714 onward a she lives through history, interacts with the darkness, and struggles with the curse. In 2014, we see Addie finally meet someone who remembers her, but he has his own darkness.

As Addie lives the live she never expected, falls in love, is forgotten, and inspires art, the reader is gasping for more and more and loving every moment of the glorious prose. Short, beautiful chapters, fascianting characters, I loved this book.

I loved Addie. I loved Henry. I even loved Luc in his own way. I loved the dual timelines and the PROSE was intoxicating. Schwab is clearly well-traveled and worldly, and it shows in this book without showing off. It's a slow-burn, but it doesn't move slowly, if that makes sense.
God, I hope this book gets its due and not being from a big 5 publisher doesn't hurt it. I would LOVE to see this be a BOTM pick or from one of the celebrity book clubs. I cannot wait to recommend this book all around!

To know Addie is impossible— a ghost, a vague memory, a muse. For three hundred years, she has seen the rise and fall of humans. She remembers everything, yet nobody remembers her.. except, of course, the darkness following closely behind her.

Hauntingly beautiful read, perfect for the fall.

I'm a huge Schwab fan, so I knew I was going to like this book, but if you go into this thinking it's like A Darker Shade of Magic, or even Vicious, you'll be surprised. While the realistic setting matches the Vicious vibe, the tone is less . . . dramatic and more lyrical. 

We get a blend of historical fiction, fantasy, and mystery through Addie's story and I loved it. It was a blend of three of my favorite genres perfectly working together to tell me what's happening and why. Plus, we get to see the evolution of Addie's relationship with Henry and Luc as well as her life through the ages. There's no dramatic fighting scenes or battles to the death, like her other books. This story is about mental resilience - how well you can play the game, trick the trickster, and get away with living forever.

I aspire to be Addie's level of strength and pettiness. To look the devil in the eye and get away with it made my jaw drop. Watching them battle is like watching a beautiful, coordinated dance as each player makes their move. Simultaneously working for their own goals and ambitions while pissing the other off is *chef's kiss* so beautiful. I couldn't help but be dazzed and in awe as I watched them play with their words, their actions, and their wishes so gracefully. 

And let's not forget Victoria's strong suit - her expert storytelling. Not only can Victoria give me a book that made me laugh, cry, and cringe all at the same time, but she does it so beautifully. While this isn't the fast paced, adventure novels we've seen before, I wasn't bored. In fact, I was so enamored by the characters and how they got to their place in this story, that I had to put the book down so it wouldn't stop. Along with an interesting story, we have gorgeous imagery that left me gasping from tears. I admire Schwab's ability to take a simple idea/concept and turn it into an emotional event on every page. There's no getting through this book without shedding a tear. 

Overall, I love the mix of genres, the storyline, the dialogue, the characters, the plot, the writing - everything! Victoria always has a way of taking a story and making it something we've never seen before. And, at the same time, making me wish I could live in that world, even for just a moment. It's like magic. 

A life no one will remember. A story you will never forget. And I will never forget this book. 5 // 5 stars.

A glorious story. Magical realism is my favorite genre of all time and the subtleness of its inclusion in this book was breathtaking.

It is hard for me to put into words, that make sense, how much Addie LaRue's story means to me. It just covers SO much and I feel as if talking about it takes away some of the magic.

Go into this blind. You won't regret it. Just know it is a stunning work of art.

Did V. E. Schwab make a Faustian deal of her own in order to make this masterpiece? I would believe it!
There is so much about this book that I loved. Schwab’s style of writing is gripping and I felt transported. The characters are developed well and I feel that the overall character arcs worked SO well.
As I got closer to the end I began to get nervous I wouldn’t be completely satisfied with how it would end. I imagine some people may not be in love with how it all works out, but I truly thought it was perfect. I didn’t predict how it would end, but was ultimately very satisfied with how things wrapped up.

Ultimately, the theme of being truly seen by someone really resonated with me, and made my heart ache. The relationships made me analyze my own and how “seen” I feel, and how I well I am “seeing” my loved ones.

This is a gorgeous book. I think it’s my favorite of the year.

I fell in love with V.E. Schwab's storytelling and lyrical prose with the Shades of Magic series, and I was thrilled when this new book was announced! From the publisher's description: "In a moment of desperation, a young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever—and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets." Addie's story is, at times, sad and full of challenges but watching her move through the centuries--facing hunger, cold, and war but also discovering novels, operas and love--is addicting to read.

"Were the instants of joy worth the stretches of sorrow?
Were the moments of beauty worth the years of pain?
And she turns her head, and looks at him, and says, "Always.""

I finished this book late last night and I am still processing it. This was a slow start for me but it got to a point when I could not put it down until I finished. This book had me feeling pretty much every emotion but sadness and melancholy were the ones that stayed with me, even though the ending is hopeful. This is a story about love, time, connection, loss, and most importantly, being remembered. It's about that longing we have to matter to someone, to leave our mark on the world, even if it's just one person, to love and be loved.

This book is so richly descriptive. V.E. Schwab transports the reader through 300 years of time, from little villages in France to modern day New York City. Every aspect of the story is intricately detailed from the clothing to the food to the locations. I could picture Addie's childhood village so perfectly in my head, could smell the woods, could feel the rain, heat and snow. I felt like I'd been transported through time and space while staying warm and comfortable at home. That's really the mark of a fantastic book - when you're truly able to escape into the world and the story because of the author's use of words.

There's so much more I wish I could say here but I don't want to give anything away. There is love and hope in this story but there is also loss and sadness. The ending of the story is not what I expected but it felt exactly right. It broke my heart a little as well. 300 years with Addie were not enough and I didn't want her story to end. Reading the last sentence felt like a loss for me because I didn't want to say goodbye to these characters. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is a must read.

Thank you to Tor Books for this copy in exchange for my honest review. Quote is taken from an ARC and is subject to change.

This book is amazing. It is so magical, and I can't find a better word to describe it. The pacing changed drastically about three quarters into the book, but it was done so well and was so necessary that I can't complain.

Firstly, thanks so much Tor and NetGalley for my copy! It was greatly appreciated, and gave me a wonderful moment of joy and exercise when I ran laps around my house in excitement.
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Before I get into my thoughts, something I took note of and was delighted by was the capitalization of Black when referring to Black people. There were a few times when Black wasn't capitalized that I figured was an error and will be corrected, but little things like that mean a lot coming from a Black reader as myself.
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On to my thoughts! While I ended up enjoying the book overall, there were definitely a few moments where I struggled. Many times we are reminded that there is no one on earth like Addie LaRue. She’s special and different and not like other girls and I can’t lie, I rolled my eyes a few times, but I got over it.

I also had a bit of trouble with the pacing, as we are, like Addie, in this for the long haul. We constantly go from past to present and a few times I wondered if we really needed to (we did, in the end, but why so much). Sometimes the hopelessness, the fleeting moments of joy tainted with underlying despair, the two steps forward, nine steps back journey Addie takes is tiring not just to her, but to us readers (at least for me it was), but Schwab has such an amazing way with words and I greatly enjoyed what came from the buildup. For a while, I wondered where this was going, but when we got there?

Ouch.

Actual 0-100.

I do wish we had a bit more time to make the romance more believable, as we got a good chunk of backstory where it could have been further developed. It was a little sudden as the hatred between the two is so intense. This seems like a lot of complaining but please rest assured, I enjoyed it. Addie LaRue is a book I had to be patient with, but when things picked up, THEY PICKED UP. I love a story about a woman who refuses to back down.

Cheers to another good read from Victoria Schwab!

I loved this book. This was such an interesting way to frame the "deal with the devil" idea. I particularly enjoyed the way the author played with timelines and dates to bring pieces of the story together. It didn't feel like I was being told a story but rather like I was uncovering something that already existed, bit by bit. Usually I find it jarring when an author switches settings so frequently but because the characters themselves were so well written, they provided the context and continuity to make the transitions feel natural.