V.E. Schwab

"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."--Publisher.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

In the vein of The Time Traveler’s Wife and Life After Life, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is New York Times bestselling author V. E. Schwab’s genre-defying tour de force. 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.

Merry Rudinger

After all, life seems very long sometimes, but he knows it will go so fast, and he doesn't want to miss a moment.

That time always ends a second before you're ready.

That life is the minutes you want minus one.

maria garcia 

Luc's smile darkens. Because time is cruel to all, and crueler still to artists. Because vision weakens, and voices wither, and talent fades." He leans close, twists a lock of her hair around one finger."Because happiness is brief, and history is lasting, and in the end,” he says, “everyone wants to be remembered."

 Bea leans toward him. "But that's the thing, Henry, you haven't been you. You waste so much time on people who don’t deserve you. People who don’t know you, because you don’t let them know you.”

"Why?" And Henry's hands fall away from his face and he looks up at her, his green eyes fever bright, and says- “Because I made one, too."

I never thought that quote was from this book.

Alesha Clifford

Books, she has found, are a way to live a thousand lives - or to find strength in a very long one

H.B.

Vanessa Lugo

They look at you and see whatever they want...

He always liked learning. Loved it, really. If he could have spent his whole life sitting in a lecture hall, taking notes, could have drifted from department to department, haunting different studies, soaking up language and history and art, maybe he would have felt full, happy.

You waste so much time on people who don't deserve you. People who don't know you, because you don't let them know you. 

Pain can be beautiful,  he says,  exhaling a cloud of smoke. It can transform. It can create. 

Aut via invenium aut faciam- To find a way, or make your own.

Life is so brief, and every night in Rennes I'd go to bed, and lie awake, and think, there is another day behind me, and who knows how few ahead. 

Why, a world without reading,I cannot fathom it. -Remy Laurent

Ruthie C

attraction can look an awful lot like recognition in the wrong light.

Ilse 

“If she must grow roots, she would rather be left to flourish wild instead of pruned, would rather stand alone, allowed to grow beneath the open sky. Better that than firewood, cut down just to burn in someone else's hearth”

A gorgeous new collector’s edition, including: - Six new pieces of art from Addie’s story new to North America readers - Designed alternate debossed stamp under the cover - Ribbon bookmark -An exclusive note from the author

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, Special Edition

Tace

Books, she has found, are a way to live a thousand lives--or to find strength in a very long one.

What is a person, if not the marks they leave behind?

I hope she whispers in your ear now and then, reminding you to look around, to find the beauty, and most of all, to remember. 

After all, there is no such thing as perfect, only the effort, the honesty. 

Sometimes an unpleasant journey is worth it for a moment of joy. 

Konstantina Ag

Books,she has found,are a way to live a thousand lives-or to find strength in a very long one

Hannah Yang

A technical 3* with the potential to be a 5*?

I enjoyed reading The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, though I agree with the sentiment that this could have been a much shorter novel without losing much of its substance. Schwab's writing is, as always, juicily readable and the premise of the novel - Addie's Faustian bargain to be free, but unable to leave any impression, and her encounter with Henry, the first person to remember her in 300 years - is definitely intriguing. Spoilers ahead.

What The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue does well:
- I think Addie's and Henry's deals both represent common desires: the desire to live forever (and as a youthful, able-bodied person who can experience everything!) and the desire to be loved. The novel explores why neither of these things, taken to an extreme, are necessarily fulfilling. Both Addie and Henry feel that they lose themselves: how do you find value in living if you can't leave any mark on the world yourself and if no one will remember you? What is the point of being 'loved' if it is not for who you are? (Addie's deal has more obvious downsides, but I was definitely chilled by Henry's realizations that a) he couldn't become a professor and foster meaningful discourse if no one would ever disagree with him and b) his conversation with Bea when she sees him as the good friend he should be - but knows he isn't). The book is like an extended thought experiment.
- Addie's relationship with Luc is super interesting, and I really wish it had been fleshed out more especially as its evolution seemed rushed in the end. Schwab always does a great job with love/hate relationships (see the Villains series!!) and their mutual need for the recognition they found in each other, resulting in their anniversary being both a stage for cruelty but also relief, was a consistent compelling point in the story.
- The recognition of art and ideas as immortal!

What could have been better:
The ginormous missed potential of the book's focus. Addie lives for 300 years, claims to have traveled worldwide, and we get glimpses of her supposedly vibrant life. Yet, the story is basically solely centered around her relationships with Luc and Henry (or other men - who was Toby... why did we care about him), and it isn't clear how her centuries of experiences have shaped her to grow beyond the woman she was when she made her deal in the 1700s.

When a characters story spans literal centuries of history, there is opportunity to address many topics (ex: could someone like Addie, able to receive and transmit information and slip away with no consequences, have changed the outcome/direction of a war? unclear, Luc whisks her to Boston as soon as she gets thrown in a cell. How did historical events change/accelerate with the development of technology? How did going to more places and being exposed to more culture change Addie's worldview, and how she saw the people around her or the events in her life?).

Reviewers have pointed out that there is no mention of slavery or any of the isms (racism/sexism, homophobia, etc) which is an absurd exclusion from history - and if the novel had been about something else, an argument could be made that the novel doesn't need to address everything that happened in those 300 years - but even Addie's main 'hobby' of inspiring artists doesn't bring about much reflection on the role of art in culture beyond 'this was Addie's way of still making an imprint on the world.' Ok?? What kind of imprint? What ideas was she shaping? I appreciated Henry's story, but imagine if the book had been more focused on Addie's life and her choices after her deal - could Addie have found purpose and a reason to live beyond her spite? Sure, her deal required her to resort to behavior like stealing, which is a moral problem only briefly argued about, but could she have found other ways to make a positive impact? I feel like there was an opportunity to rewrite the concept of a legacy (what matters more than people's memory of you is the actions you take, what you leave behind) but the conclusion seems to focus more on Henry's cliched discovery that life is worth living, don't waste a minute, YOLO.

Overall, I remain a fan of Schwab's writing and the internal turmoil she explores in each of her characters - the novel, as it is now, is still interesting and worth reading - but I think if it had taken a different direction, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue could have been brilliant.

fiona

I liked Luc the best, Henry was bland to me and I did not care about their romance at all

Winona 

Can't believe V. E. Schwab made me fall in love with a bunch of characters that are essentially white hipsters in the NY art scene. 

Addie's fascination with Voltaire and Didero were...choices, to say the least. 

I don't think the story would have worked if Addie was some kind of anti-racist spy: a white woman, forgotten to history, ending slavery, ushering in the Civil Rights Era. That's giving aliens built the pyramids in Stargate. I don't really want to read V.E. Schwab write about that, we don't need another  The Help . 

A star docked for: the constant mention of Addie's freckles (girl! I don't care!); Henry being mostly a boring character who was giving 2010 hipster; instalove. 

3 stars for: 
- A beautiful  attempt> at an introspective look at one character who suffers the consequences of asking for too much without knowing what she really wants. 
- Decent poignancy. 
- Evocative prose (can lean on the purple, sometimes).

In the vein of The Time Traveler's Wife and Life After Life, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue When Addie La Rue makes a pact with the devil, she trades her soul for immortality. But there's always a price - the devil takes away her place in the world, cursing her to be forgotten by everyone. Addie flees her tiny home town in 18th-Century France, beginning a journey that takes her across the world, learning to live a life where no one remembers her and everything she owns is lost and broken. Existing only as a muse for artists throughout history, she learns to fall in love anew every single day. Her only companion on this journey is her dark devil with hypnotic green eyes, who visits her each year on the anniversary of their deal. Alone in the world, Addie has no choice but to confront him, to understand him, maybe to beat him. Until one day, in a second hand bookshop in Manhattan, Addie meets someone who remembers her. Suddenly thrust back into a real, normal life, Addie realises she can't escape her fate forever.

Lara Engle

The words were pretty, but I just really couldn't get into it. I read to page 100.

Elizabeth Wood

The writing was so beautiful. Addie is such a great character and I loved the entire premise of the book. 

But, I did feel like it was too long and drawn out. And I wish the historical parts would have included a little more history (it’s hard to classify this as historical fiction). Those are my only complaints ✨

so hard to finish this book but the writing was really good i’m not sure why i didn’t enjoy it as much as i thought i would 

ariah west

A waste of a good concept. I think this book would easily have been a favorite book of mine if it had a plot . I loved the characters, the writing and descriptions were so beautiful, but sadly there was zero plot. This book just felt like a collection of random parts of Addie's life. There wasn't any main goal of the characters or anything the story was building too. Regardless I did enjoy this book but it did feel quite lacking to me 

June

Desire JoRay

There were parts of this book that got a bit boring and repetitive to me but I am so glad I kept going and finished it. It’s a lovely story that reminds you how short life actually is and to not take anything for granted. It has actually made me start thinking about what I want to be remembered for. Love books that make you pause days after reading them, as the story keeps winding it’s way through your thoughts. About the ending: (view spoiler)[ All in all I think it was the best possible ending we could hope for, love that Addie is actually holding the cards in the end.  (hide spoiler)]

Levena Banda

Definitely one of my all time favorites. I love this book with my whole being.

A young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever―and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets. Addie LaRue, 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 man in a hidden bookstore and he remembers her name.

La Vida Invisible de Addie Larue

Paula Najar Santamaria

Clare

Dieses Buch hat einen so edlen Schreibstil, dass ich es mit geradem Rücken und gespreiztem kleinen Finger gelesen habe. Es regt wirklich zum Nachdenken an, ist gleichzeitig aber auch irgendwie positiv gestimmt. Großartige Idee, schlauer Plottwist, all in all fantastisch! 

…aber die letzten drei Seiten haben mich erzürnt! Ich finde, dass Addie den guten Luc nicht so verletzen sollte, das war fies:/

Leon

Dieses Buch hat einen so edlen Schreibstil, dass ich es mit geradem Rücken und gespreiztem kleinen Finger gelesen habe. Es regt wirklich zum Nachdenken an, ist gleichzeitig aber auch irgendwie positiv gestimmt. Großartige Idee, schlauer Plottwist, all in all fantastisch! 

…aber die letzten drei Seiten haben mich erzürnt! Ich finde, dass Addie den guten Luc nicht so verletzen sollte, das war fies:/

I did like this book. There's genuinely nothing wrong with it, the plot was amazing, the character's even better and the atmosphere and vibe was perfect to a tee, but the ending just really spoiled alot for me icl. I was expecting some sobstory ending, which is what i really wanted ngl, but the ending just was not giving tbh, and I will blame myself for having high expectations. 

Overall, I would still recommend you read this book, it has beautiful flowery writting, which blossoms your soul and your eyes.

surtified™

I did like this book. There's genuinely nothing wrong with it, the plot was amazing, the character's even better and the atmosphere and vibe was perfect to a tee, but the ending just really spoiled alot for me icl. I was expecting some sobstory ending, which is what i really wanted ngl, but the ending just was not giving tbh, and I will blame myself for having high expectations. 

Overall, I would still recommend you read this book, it has beautiful flowery writting, which blossoms your soul and your eyes.

The start was not as interesting as I thought it could be but by the middle, I was hooked, and I loved the ending.

Miranda Hall

eury

i missed the feeling of being lost in a book because it was so good and well written !!

Petaco

Well it started off strong, but then it just started to DRAG. I feel like over half of the book could have been nixed and it still would have made the same point. 1/4 of the way through, I liked it a lot, but ultimately I lost interest. Too much repetition. Henry was boring. No chemistry. 

Addie was not likeable. She is whiny and has made Zero accomplishments in 300 years other than learning a few languages. She just takes, takes, takes, and whines. At one point Luc, LUC of all people, challenges her on her actions. Wants her to think about how her actions affects other people. She quickly brushes him off. Yes, people won't remember her, BUT they will remember the items she's stolen. They will get in trouble for all the crimes she has pinned on them over her 300 years. Not once has she used her skills to make a difference for anyone but herself! She could have used her skills to help someone find the answers to problems. So instead of this vain mystery muse (her beauty and bedroom skills must be off the charts to inspire SO MANY PEOPLE - (view spoiler)[including Luc!!Okay, whatever *eyeroll* (hide spoiler)]!), she could have been the mystery girl that actually helped people. Go to a historian and clarify history. Clarify a recipe! Give advice! Give people the nudge they need to help find the truth. Do something that does not directly benefit you.

Ivy 

I have no words to explain how much I love this book. Such a good read going into the new year, and I know will think of it all the time.

wow what an incredible read! this book was so beautifully written. seeing addie’s life throughout many years was so interesting and seeing how she grew. i personally also relate to addie as i sometimes fear that life is passing me by and that i won’t be able to see the world. the ending though was soo good! i’m so glad that the end had a note of hope that addie may be able to truely be free. 

Hannah Williams

There are no words to write about this book because it took all of them. Wowowowowowow is all. Wow.

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. 

I liked the fact that there was bi representation, but I didn’t particularly understood the fact that she has a crush on Luc???? And that it is reciprocated at some point? Idk, I didn’t really feel any kind of chemistry or a proper reason for them to actually feel something for each other. 

It is well written so it wasn’t difficult to finish reading it + I liked the metaphor of Henry’s wish. It’s what we think is best for us: be what everyone else want us to be so that they’ll like us. But that way they’ll never know our true self and therefore never appreciate us for being us. They’ll be there by our side just because of who we choose to be at that moment. It is important that we must not seek others approval and love. If you feel like you’re not loved then try to move on and find someone else. Understand that if your parents don’t love you as much as you’d like to, it’s okay too. Unfortunately they’ll always be that way, we can’t too anything to change that. We must not. They’ll find something they don’t like about us even if we try to be as close as possible to what they want us to be. Just be yourself. And more importantly, be kind to yourself. 

marga <3

I liked the fact that there was bi representation, but I didn’t particularly understood the fact that she has a crush on Luc???? And that it is reciprocated at some point? Idk, I didn’t really feel any kind of chemistry or a proper reason for them to actually feel something for each other. 

It is well written so it wasn’t difficult to finish reading it + I liked the metaphor of Henry’s wish. It’s what we think is best for us: be what everyone else want us to be so that they’ll like us. But that way they’ll never know our true self and therefore never appreciate us for being us. They’ll be there by our side just because of who we choose to be at that moment. It is important that we must not seek others approval and love. If you feel like you’re not loved then try to move on and find someone else. Understand that if your parents don’t love you as much as you’d like to, it’s okay too. Unfortunately they’ll always be that way, we can’t too anything to change that. We must not. They’ll find something they don’t like about us even if we try to be as close as possible to what they want us to be. Just be yourself. And more importantly, be kind to yourself. 

Kelci

Danny Werhane

This book very well written. V.E Swchab’s prose is fantastic. I also love the casual queerness of all of the characters. But unfortunately besides that, this book did very little for me. 

There was very little plot, and the characters where not interesting enough for me to carry the whole story. I wish Henry had introduced much sooner. I felt like I was waiting for that piece of the plot to come for way to long. Once he was introduced my interest was peaked, but not for long. After we figure out why he can remember Addie, I felt It turned into a romance novel and there was nothing besides that for a hundred pages. I think this book would had been great had it been shorted down by 200/300 pages-there is simply not enough substance for it to be 500 pages. I thought the ending was interesting, but by that time I just wanted the book to be over.

there are people who say that when you find a book you can’t forget because of how much you love it, it stays in your head forever and you never forget it, not even when your trying to. and that’s exactly how i feel with this book. 

the story was beautiful. addie lived a devastating life, which in itself was also something beautiful. this is definitely a comfort read. a book i will never forget. 

there are people who say that when you find a book you can’t forget because of how much you love it, it stays in your head forever and you never forget it, not even when your trying to. and that’s exactly how i feel with this book. 

the story was beautiful. addie lived a devastating life, which in itself was also something beautiful. this is definitely a comfort read. a book i will never forget. 

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

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