I Didn’t Love V.E. Shwab’s “The Invisible Life Of Addie LaRue” But Didn’t Hate It Either
The whole time I read it, I kept asking myself the same question

It finally happened. I downloaded TikTok and got into a sub-category called BookTok.
It’s fun watching how people divide over books. Most of BookTok is a group of women around my age and younger talking about fantasy, romance, and YA novels they loved and hated. There’s hardly any in-between.
One of those diving books is V.E. Schwab’s The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. People either loved or hated it.
Until I read it. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t love it. Instead, I found myself wondering one question as I read. What the hell was the point of the book?
What Is The Story About?
In summer 1714, a young Adeline LaRue ran away from her wedding. She desperately prays to old gods, not noticing the day turning night.
When one of the night gods answers her calls, she the god offers her soul for the freedom to live how she wishes. This mysterious god accepts her offer. She will never belong to anyone.
It doesn’t take long for Adeline, or Addie, to realize the cost of her bargain. Nobody remembers her. If someone sees her, talks to her, then lets her out of their sight, then they forget her. She can’t get a job, so she has to steal to get food. And she’s unable to tell anyone her real name.
Three hundred years later, Addie steps into a mysterious bookstore where someone remembers her for the first time. It’s the first time she can say her name too!
I liked the story’s creativity, but I couldn’t find the point of it. But maybe that was the point? Maybe it doesn’t need one.
First Off, The Story Is Creative With Fantastic Characters
Now, I know it will sound like I hated the story, but as the title says, I didn’t hate it. There were some parts of the story I had issues with, but it doesn’t mean it was a lousy story.
Henry’s character fascinated me. His story was the only one that gave me genuine surprises. Addie’s obsession with being remembered is annoying, but I still enjoyed reading about how she managed to live through three hundred years. And Luc is a fantastic, complicated villain.
Schwab did a great job of closing any plot holes one can find. With a curse like being forgettable, it’s easy to find loopholes. Think of the plot hole in Disney’s The Little Mermaid. Why didn’t Ariel write Eric a letter?
Say what you want about the book, but making Addie a living ghost is pretty damn cool. How awesome is it to break into someone’s house and make yourself at home only for your mess to disappear when you leave? You could be a messy cook, and no one would know.
Watching Henry come up with a loophole for Addie’s inability to write was creative too. It’s fun watching them find any way they can around Luc’s curse.
The ways Henry and Addie exploited loopholes in Addie’s curse kept me reading. I enjoyed the loopholes more than anything else. It’s what made the story fun despite the slow pace.
It’s Hard To Feel Sympathy For Addie When She’s Constantly Featured In Art
As Addie goes through the past three hundred years, she constantly complains about how it sucks that she can’t leave a mark on the world. She can’t write, can’t make anything, and can’t have her picture taken.
Except, she exploits all of the loopholes. She can’t draw herself, but an artist can draw her. She can be sculpted and have stories written about her, even if she cant make art. You can’t see her face well, but you can tell it’s her because of the seven freckles on her face.
Addie says she doesn’t leave a mark on the world, but she does. The people don’t remember her, but their art shows her in it.
This brings up a question. Do you have to remember someone for them to leave a mark on your life? I know it sounds weird, but every artist she meets has no memory of using her as a muse. Yet their art is some of the greatest in the world. I don’t think you need to remember a person or event to have it make a mark on you.
Here’s an example from childhood. When I was super young, maybe three, I roasted marshmallows and blew into one. I thought I blew all the fire off, and I bit into it.
I can tell you growing up and now, I don’t eat any food burned black. I don’t remember the event. Does it have something to do with the night I burned my mouth? Probably, but I have better things to do than overthink my weird eating habits. That requires a professional, not me.
So Many Questions When I Read This
The more chapters I read, the more questions I had. Of course, one of those was wondering what the point is. The whole story pissed me off, as well as the ending. I liked the peek into New York’s art world, but what was the Schwab trying to do?
Was Schwab trying to write a feminist Faust?
The back of the book doesn’t have a synopsis anymore. You have to open the damn thing to figure out what it’s about. That’s not inherently bad, but it’s annoying reading critiques about said book.
One of these critiques jumped out at me, though. A reader called the story Faustian. Was Schwab trying to make a female version of the damned character? As much as I’d love to answer, I’ve never read Faust, so I can’t.
I know a man sold his soul to the devil, but I don’t know why. I know the basics. And I have vague memories of the guy being a scientist. But anything past that? I couldn’t tell you a damn thing. Maybe Faust needs to go on my To Be Read list to answer the question. Then I could tell you if it’s a retelling or not.
The critique reminds me of when my Book Club talked about Circe. Critics called it the feminist version of The Odyssey. However, I haven’t read the original source either, so I can’t say if it is or not.
Is Schwab trying to be like Neil Gaiman?
Some of my more avid readers might be rolling their eyes about now. I’ve made it common knowledge I’m not a fan of Gaiman’s work. I think it translates better into film and TV than it does in books.
It doesn’t mean I think Gaiman’s a bad writer. His stories have fantastic concepts, but they fall flat in book form. They look so much better on-screen.
As I read Addie’s story, I kept getting flashbacks to the Gaiman stories I read. Luc gave me American Gods vibes, Henry reminded me of Good Omens, and Addie like Coraline.
I could see flashes of Gaiman’s stories through Schwab’s work, and it read like an homage to Gaiman. However, I don’t know Schwab personally. For all I know, she could hate Gaiman. But considering he’s one of the people who left a rave review on the back cover, I don’t think that’s the case.
What’s the point of the story?
The whole time, I’m wondering what story Schwab is trying to tell with Addie LaRue? Is it showing you don’t need to remember someone or something to have it leave a mark on your life? Is it the 2020 version of The Alchemist, saying, “Fate is bullshit?” Or is it an homage to a writer few people dislike?
I still don’t know the answer. It’s part of why I don’t love or hate the story. Its slow start is another reason I didn’t love or hate it. It didn’t get to the point as fast as I’d want.
You Can’t Have A Pointless Story With A Slow Start
Here’s my biggest gripe about the story. It’s slow. It’s a slow start, slow middle, and slow end. By the time the story ended, I was relieved but still mad about the lack of purpose.
When you have a slow-starting story, it’s easier for readers to figure out it’s pointless. A fast-paced tale makes readers realize how pointless it could be much later. However, I haven’t found many fast-paced stories I’d deem pointless.
If the story wasn’t so slow, I wouldn’t have needed to take many breaks. I wouldn’t have asked, “What’s the point?” over and over again.
The pacing took away from the story. Instead of enjoying a decently paced adventure spanning three hundred years, I kept wondering when it’d get to the point. I would’ve appreciated the ending more if it were faster-paced. But the only emotion I felt when I closed the book was relief.
Final Thoughts
The Invisible Life Of Addie LaRue isn’t a bad story. It’s a creative concept with interesting characters. However, the pacing took away from the characters. It was so slow it had me questioning what the point was.
Maybe in a few years, we’ll see this story as a film. And maybe the pacing would work out better. Even if it doesn’t, it’s not a bad story. It’s worth reading no matter how you feel about story pacing.
If you find this book in your library, check it out. It’s worth looking at and making Addie feel remembered.
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