The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V.E. Schwab

Susanne’s Review:

Oh, Addie Larue, How I Adore You!

Making a deal with the devil (aka “The Darkness”) seems impossible and yet that is exactly what Adeline Larue does.  

The year is 1714.  The place is France.  From the moment the deal is struck, Adeline Larue’s life is changed forever.  

For Addie. Never again, will she.  Never again will Addie Larue be remembered.  Never again will Addie Larue own anything.  Never again will Addie Larue have a home.

She does however learn to survive and even thrive.  Days and nights are replayed with Addie deftly changing the outcome.

Of course ‘The Darkness’ reappears intermittently wanting repayment.  Haunting Addie, yet, she does not relent. 

Three hundred years later in the year 2014, it happens. Someone she meets remembers her.  

In this moment, astounded and astonished, Addie’s life begins anew.   

A novel that takes us all through Europe (including Berlin, Paris, Florence) to New Orleans, New York, and Chicago, detailing the rich history of the times “The Invisible Life of Addie Larue” is a masterpiece.  

Dark, atmospheric, evocative, beautiful.

A character-driven novel with heart – it completely stole mine.  Addie is a woman who is desperate to make an impact, to find love and fulfillment, and to belong.  In the end, I think that’s something we all want, with Addie however, that desperation is affecting, poignant, and wholly powerful.

Upon being remembered, there is amazement, warmth, and utter joy.  If you’re like me, it is felt deep in the recesses of your soul, all because of the man who remembers her. Swept up in the friendship, the romance, the sheer happiness of it.  

“The Invisible Life of Addie Larue” by V.E. Schwab is a wonderful mix of fiction, historical fiction, magical realism, and romance all intertwined in the most fantastical of ways. It will most definitely appear on my Goodreads best-of list for 2020.

It is unlike any novel I have ever read and it one I will never forget.  Addie Larue, I assure you, I will remember you.

Published on Goodreads on 12.20.20.