The Invisible Life of Addie Larue

The Invisible Life of Addie Larue is the belle of the book nerd ball. Everyone was scampering to get their hands on a copy, and I was one of them. This was an atmospheric, character-driven read with a slower pace that has a fantastical feel about a woman who makes a deal with the devil only to learn that you have to be careful what you wish for. 

I loved the concept, but I set my expectations too high based on its rave reviews. Since the book had over 16k reviews - most of them being 4 and 5 stars - I expected to be totally enamored with this story and I kind of was, but I kind of wasn't. 

Schwab's writing had a lyrical feel, and she had an interesting premise that slowly built over the first half and then whacks readers over the head with a good twist. I loved it! But then the story falters and d-r-a-g-s in the second half as we go over and over the fact that A) people will soon forget Addie, B) she has seven star freckles on her face (I'm still not sure of their relevance) and C) Luc will visit her on the anniversary of her curse. We meander through the mundane issues of her daily life as she adapts to new eras/people and while I wouldn't say the story was dull, it never fully caught my attention either. The story is about Addie, but I never got to know her and I felt like I was on the periphery of the story and emotion. I also didn't buy the romance Schwab was selling. We're told there's romance, but it felt forced and lacked passion. There was a whole lot more emotional zing to the other relationship in the story.

Schwab's languid approach to writing is filled with good descriptions of the different eras, but Addie remains emotionally elusive to the people around her and to the reader. A unique premise but with its overly drawn-out plot, this was just an okay read for me. 

My Rating: 3 stars

Author: V.E Schwab

Genre: Fantasy

Type and Source: Hardcover, personal copy

Pages: 442

Publisher: Tor Books

First Published: October 6, 2020

Opening Line: A girl is running for her life.

Book Description from GoodReads: A Life No One Will Remember. A Story You Will Never Forget.

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 a dazzling adventure that will play out across centuries and continents, across history and art, as a young woman learns how far she will go to leave her mark on the world.

But everything changes when, after nearly 300 years, Addie stumbles across a young man in a hidden bookstore and he remembers her name.