Wow this book broke me on so many level. I have read almost all of Victoria Schwab's books, and this is definitely one of her best written. If you have not heard about this book, we follow Addie LaRue who makes a deal with a God after dark and trades her soul to live forever, but no one will ever remember her. She is doomed to never be able to leave a mark on the world and be forgotten by everyone she ever meets as soon as they loose sight of her, until on day, 300 years into her curse, she meets someone who remembers who she is.

This book is for sure a slower paced book, as we follow Addie from 1700s France, through to 2010s America, but Schwab gives us little details along the way that come back in significant, that if you aren't paying attention, you would miss. There was some beautiful repeating imagery that is present throughout the entire novel that helped develop the themes of the novel. I loved the exploration into what it means to live, and how to leave your mark on the world. I also appreciated the anxiety/depression depicted through Henry and how it was described. It was really realistic and was explained in such a beautiful way.

Now onto Addie and Henry. I loved them both separately and as a duo. I really enjoyed seeing how Addie grew throughout her long life through the glimpses into the past we got to see. I almost wish we got to see more from her life, but each vignette we got to see played an important role in shaping the person Addie is in the present. Henry was a character that a felt for so on such a deep level. I loved learning about him, as well as the arc the character went on.

Overall, this book was beautiful and amazing and everyone should read it.

Addie LaRue was the best book I read in 2020. Heartbreakingly beautiful, I fell in love with this book very quickly. Addie’s story is compelling and easy to connect with. It proved to be very timely for 2020 where many of us experienced so much loneliness. Addie LaRue is a great reminder of the importance of human connection and love that we need to survive.

I recommended this book for our book club at the library because there was a lot of themes and plot points that would make for a good discussion. Also this is what I like to call fantasy light in that there is a bit of fantasy driving the plot, but not so much that a person that doesn’t like the fantasy genre would be put off the book. I loved the story and the ending. I do feel that Henry’s part of the story dragged for me a little bit the end more than made up for that. It is definitely an interesting premise and I’ll be recommending this boom for reader’s advisory at work. Now I’m off to read some more V. E. Schwab.

Thank you to the publisher for an ARC of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue! I absolutely fell in love with this story. Victoria Schwab is one of my all time favorite writers, whether she writes adult fantasy or middlegrade fantasy. I have read everything by her, but this is just an out right piece of literary art. The poetic writing not only grabbed at my emotions, but made me feel more than any book I have ever read ( and I have read a lot of books!) Going into this book I didn’t want to know much about the story, and the synopsis was pretty vague as well. It is what I would call, a “ghost” story. Our main character Addie LaRue was born in the 1700s. She always felt like there is more to life than what she is experiencing, so in short, she makes a deal with a demon that offers her immortality. By her making this choice to stay immortal, everyone she meets will forget her. This story packs so much in just 400 pages. It is beautifully tragic and I will recommend this book for years to come! You can really tell how much blood, sweat and tears have gone into this literary m asterpiece. Can’t wait to see what V.E. Schwab has up her sleeve in the future!

I fell in love with this book immediately. the writing was amazing, Addie completely captivating, the story fascinating. Totally sucked in. It took me awhile to read, just because my reading was all over the place in 2020. I read the first 40% or so in a day or two, then didn't pick it up again for a few weeks. Again, that was me, not the book, but I do wonder if that is what kind of changed my feeling about the book, or if it was the book itself... either way, it did kind of... change a bit when a certain character shows up on the scene and we get more of their story/POV. I didn't especially want that, I wanted the character in the book, but I wanted to stay with Addie.

So yeah, not sure if it was me or that, but either way, overall, I really really really liked it. I liked the twists and how unique the story was. I was a bit meh about the last quarter/ending - mainly because I kind of lost the emotional connection to the story, not because of the actual ending itself. I just feel like the first part of the book packed such a huge punch that the last bit of the book felt like it was missing the oomph or something. Anyway. I was mostly satisfied with the ending - I won't lie, I'll always prefer a neater ending - but I wasn't mad about how it ended.

Anyway. Overall, Probably more 4.5 but rounding down.

A girl who just wants to be remembered, a boy who just wants to be enough and the power-hungry devil who deals them these hands.

I'm glad I ended 2020 with Schwab's latest book as The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue wound up being a great fall read for me. With its fantastical and historical elements, the ambiance of the book felt very inviting and I enjoyed seeing how the past and present-day timelines played out. Over the course of 300 years, we see the struggles Addie goes through as a woman living in 17th century France, feeling tethered to a life she doesn't want and without the freedom that she so longs for. Throughout this span of time to present day 2014, you can practically feel her pain as she's trying to adapt and navigate her new surroundings in what can be considered her new normal now.

Where Addie's ultimate desire is to not be forgotten, Henry's is more so a matter of being accepted and loved for who he is, this sense of adequacy in his loved ones' lives. I happened to take quite a liking to him as his part in Addie's story helped give a balance of sorts towards their own individual character developments and as a pair.

I would say the way this book was initially marketed as was off the mark. It's so, so much more than a love story between a girl and the devil. It's about the marks we leave on this world, the importance of art, and the impact that stories, words and ideas have on the world and humanity. Just beautiful.

I'm interested to see how the film adaptation will be taking this story on.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I also received a copy of the audiobook for free from Macmillan Audio, which was my primary means of reading.

My thanks to Tor for an eARC of the book and to Macmillan Audio for the ALC.

This was a lot of fun. This was everything I wanted Oona Out of Order to be earlier this year, and I was happy to have this audiobook be a pick to wrap up my reading year. Julia Whelan was also a wonderful narrator.

Addie LaRue was a work of Shakespearean proportions in terms of scope, scale, and plot, and it also suffered on occasion from Shakespearean levels of melodrama, especially when they start name dropping all the famous people who sold their souls to Luc. But the melodrama was also expected and appreciated. I also enjoy that Schwab lets her characters be Queer and be Queer together.

As I said up top, Whelan is wonderful. I am new to audio this year, but I have found I have appreciated an actor as narrator very much. The one problem I had was Schwab's specific reference many times that you could barely hear Addie's accent in the modern timeline, which Whelan seemed to have a hard time keeping consistent.

Rating: 4/5

magical! Fantastical! Unforgettable! Addie LaRue I will not forget you! V. E. Schwab swept me up with her exquisite storytelling. Julia Whalen’s exceptional narration of the story completely enveloped me in the magic. An enchanting blend of romance, historical fiction, and fantasy.

Addie wants to live a life other than that expected by her parents and her small town so she makes a bargain. Addie can live her life on her own terms, but in exchange she will live forever and never be remembered. Centuries filled with art, books, history and loneliness, that is until... Addie meets Henry and he utters those three magical words, “I remember you“. this was just such a beautiful story filled with so much emotion. My heart sang with joy and broke with sorrow. Addie was such a smart, resourceful, sympathetic character. I just wanted her to find her happiness and could not imagine a better person to share it with then Henry. Henry what a great guy. The romance in the story will stay with me for a long time. The audiobook for this was narrated by one of my absolute favorites, who as always added so much to my overall reading experience.🎧

*** Big thank you to Tor and Macmillan Audio for my gifted copy of this book. All opinions are my own. ***

I chose The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab at random from a pile of recent books; I was reading the first few pages to see what I wanted to read next, and with this book, I never stopped until the end. I usually don't like stories that jump back and forth in time, but this story was an exception; each jump forwards or backwards illuminated some aspect of what I had just read, and somehow propelled the narrative forward. I would call it a literary fantasy, by "literary" meaning that the fantasy seems to be in conversation with ideas about art and what art means in and for our lives. Let's see if I can describe this without spoiling the experience. The title character lives in eighteenth century France when she makes a devil's bargain and ends up essentially immortal. The flipside is that her immortality, as you might expect stemming from such a bargain, has serious drawbacks. By 2014, she has learned to deal with the drawbacks while continuing to appreciate her life. But, being human, she longs for something more. The 2014 timeline is all about using her wits to struggle against her constraints and improve her unending life. The ending leaves her in a better place. Also, there is a bookshop with a cat in it, which is always a bonus.

LOVE LOVE LOVE this sweeping, moving, almost love story. I was intrigued from when I first read the description and it did not disappoint. I even bought my own copy because I know I'll want to revisit this one.

Addie LaRue made a deal with the devil and now she will live for as long as she wants; no aging, no illness. Sounds like a pretty good deal, yes? Not quite. The catch is that she belongs to no one. No person remembers her once she is out of her view. Including her own family members! She goes three hundred years in this nomad existence before she happens upon a bookseller who remembers her the next day. How or why, Addie does not know.

This was one of my favorite books of the year and I am so, so excited to shout that from the rooftops in my end of the year wrap up post.

This book's premise hooked me right away, and V.E. Schwab is an automatic read for me, no matter what it is. There were a few parts that could have used some trimming; I appreciated the discussions of mental health and depression but bits of Henry's backstory didn't feel completely relevant. Other than some pacing issues, this is a lovely, unique book I'll keep in my back pocket for reader's advisory.

For whatever reason, I just could not get into this book. The opening was ponderous and did not catch my attention at all. I have read other Schwab books and enjoyed them.

This was one of the best books I read in 2020! V.E. Schwab has weaved a story told over centuries and has created a memorable character in Addie LaRue. I loved reading about Addie's life through the years and then finding joy with Henry. However, the story felt very euro-centric. It would have been great to see Addie go to Asia or South America once she had crossed the ocean.

In France in 1714, Addie LaRue made a deal with the god, Luc. She will live forever, but she will be forgotten by everyone she meets. Addie quickly realizes that this curse will be difficult to live with. She cannot create anything or leave her mark anywhere. She must steal to survive. Everything changes in 2014 when she walks into a bookstore in New York. She meets Henry, who remembers her when she returns the next day. With Henry’s help, Addie can leave her mark on the world.

Any review cannot do this book justice. It was so beautiful from beginning to end. I read this book slowly, over a couple of weeks, because I didn’t want to rush through it. I needed to savour the beautiful prose and the heartbreaking story of Addie LaRue.

Addie’s life was heartbreaking from the beginning. There were many instances of people forgetting her over the course of 300 years. Some of her close friends who knew her from before her curse didn’t recognize her after she made her deal. I kept hoping that someone would remember her after they had left, and eventually she found Henry, who remembered.

The time period jumped between chapters. I sometimes find that kind of jump in narrative disorienting because the setting is constantly changing. However, the alternating time periods in this story made sense to the story. Each chapter answered questions or demonstrated the meaning of an event from the previous chapter.

Addie’s story was so moving and heartbreaking, but also filled with love. This is one of my favourite reads of 2020!

Thank you Tor Books for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first book by V.E. Schwab and wow, what an introduction to the author! I love the Faustian tinge to this story, and couldn't help but fall in love with Addie herself. The character kept me turning the pages, eager to see where her extraordinary life would lead next. I loved the curse aspect, but wish it'd been explained or embellished upon a bit more - for 400+ pages, I just wanted a little bit more depth, I think! Still, very good overall, and will absolutely be checking out more by the author in the future!

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is one of my top 10 reads for 2020 and was a wonderful way to end my year. Addie’s story is about love, loss, and sacrifice on the deepest level. We all make choices - most of us will never know what we lose when we choose one path over another, but in Addie’s case the deal she makes will haunt her for the rest of her very long life. Beautifully written and deeply touching - Addie’s story will live a long time in my heart.

This was my first experience reading V. E. Schwab. I'm working to explore more of the fantasy genre, and I'd read a lot of hype about this book. Overall, I enjoyed reading this and I'm excited to check out the rest of Schwab's books.

The solo portions with Henry, and all the bits of the narrative that take place in New York City in the 2010s were a drag for me to get through. It felt more like a standard, romance story - which is totally fine, but I went into the book most excited about the narrative that takes place within the 18th and 19th centuries. I was most looking forward to the "historical fiction/period piece" aspects, so I was bummed that a sizable chunk of the book is spent in the 2010s.

Nevertheless, this book packed an emotional punch and I felt for the main character Addie. The relationship with the demon Luc was interesting. I'm not sure that there intends to be a sequel or another book following any of these characters... but if there is I would not feel compelled to read it.

I'm still kind of mulling this book over. I don't know how a book can be this long yet maintain a feeling that you're never going to get past the surface level of things. I'm trying to figure out why I was unable to feel more submerged in the many places the book took me. The setting changes regularly, you're in multiple different countries at pivotal historical points, you meet semi-interesting characters along the way... but I never felt fully immersed at any point.

It seems my lukewarm feelings are the exception to the rule, so I think if you enjoy a mix of historical fiction and romance, this would be a book worth exploring. I'm glad I read it, it was cute enough! My enthusiasm stops short of understanding the hype and outpouring of love that surrounds this book. For me, it was just okay.

Thanks to #NetGalley and Tor Books for sharing a copy of this book with me in exchange for an honest review.

Schwab is a wonderful writer but this read more like a young adult novel, which isn’t a bad thing but I was expecting a more adult read.

While it's hard to imagine any future book Victoria Schwab writes bumping her Darker Shade of Magic series from my numero uno favorite position, "Addie" is definitely a close second. While these two works of Schwab's are different in tone and approach, what they do share is her awesome prose, richly textured worlds and an ability to make you care deeply for her MCs. This latest work also boasts such a terrific premise--a girl cursed to be forgotten and ever alone as soon as someone's gaze drifts off her--which I found quite haunting. It kept putting me in mind of the novel The Time Traveller's Wife and another pair of lovers so perfect together and yet fated to be torn apart over and over. Of course, this time out it's no physiological condition that curses the main character, but a trickster demon/devil. "Luc" is a great villain, and watching Addie learn to spar with him, to up each trick of his with one of her own, is yet another worthy reason to curl up with "Addie LaRue."

This book was long worth the wait. Enchanting but heartbreaking, I was rooting for Addie the whole way.