Review: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue | V.E. Schwab

Summary: 
France, 1714: In a moment of desperation, a young woman named Adeline meets a dangerous stranger and makes a terrible mistake. 

As she realizes the limitations of her Faustian bargain-being able to live forever, without being able to be remembered by anyone she sees- Addie chooses to flee her small village, as everything she once held dear is torn away. 

But there are still dreams to be had, and a life to live, and she is determined to find excitement and satisfaction in the wide, beckoning world-even if she will be doomed to be alone forever. 

Or not quite alone-as every year, on her birth-day, the alluring Luc comes to visit, checking to see if she is ready to give up her soul. Their darkly thrilling game stretches through the ages, seeing Addie witness history and fight to regain herself as she crosses oceans and tries on various lives. 

It will be three hundred years before she stumbles into a hidden bookstore and discovers someone who can remember her name-and suddenly, everything changes again. 

My opinion: 
I think it's a beautifully written book that remains accessible to a wide audience. Adeline's story is moving and reveals a remarkable life. I've now read the book twice. The first time was in 2022 and then again in 2024 when I recommended it to my book club. It was a big hit there too. 9/10

Book stats: 
-Published on October 6th, 2020
-Pages: 444
-Genre: historical fiction & fantasy

What I liked: 
-Adeline's story throughout history is beautiful. The book does not feel long-winded, even though the story spans 300 years.
-The ending is a nice twist that I did not see coming the first time and still evoked the same emotions the second time around.

What I didn't like: 
-I would have liked to see more but shorter stories from Adeline's history. I thought that was one of the best parts of the book and would have liked to read more.

—Iris