Reviews with content warning for Rape - The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

Reviews tagging 'Rape'

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

135 reviews

tessvb's review

reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

Beautifully written, but not my cup of tea. It’s a love letter to the arts, and New York, buried between the character’s self reflection on what makes existence worthwhile, tied together with a love story, that didn’t end quite as tragically as I thought it would.
I’d recommend this to the introspective romantic reader who likes flawed characters and literature.

Content Warnings

kelly_e's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Title: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
Author: V.E. Schwab
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4.00
Pub Date: October 6, 2020

T H R E E • W O R D S

Imaginative • Quiet • Tragic

📖 S Y N O P S I S

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.

💭 T H O U G H T S

It's quite possible I am the last person to read The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, as this book took Bookstagram by storm upon release. Personally, I was glad some of the hype had receded, as it afforded me the opportunity to go at my own pace and develop my own thoughts and feelings free of being bombarded with reviews and hype. And to be quite honest, the whole experience was rather dizzying and don't exactly know how I ended up feeling.

On the one hand, V.E. Schwab's writing was mesmerizing, atmospheric, and haunting. Although I didn't always know what was going on, I was transported into the story so vividly. Addie, herself, is a fairly unlikeable character, yet I could find myself empathizing with the why. There's such a strength in what this unique and clever story attempted to do.

Yet on the other hand, because of the structurally necessary repetitive descriptions I was never compelled to keep reading. I never found myself thinking about the narrative or characters when I wasn't reading. It lacked a depth I craved so badly. This sense of detachment made it feel longer than it actually is.

And finally, I found myself completely satisfied with the ending, meaning I finished on a high note and that's kind of what I focus on when I think back to my time with Addie. Taken in pieces, there are a lot of mixed feelings, yet it is a real testament to making the most of the time we have.

I do certainly understand why The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is beloved by so many. It's such a unique and fascinating idea, yet for me the reading experience was tedious. I am not sure I have been convinced to explore more of V.E. Schwab's work, but you just never know.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• fans of The Time Traveler’s Wife
• readers who like unique stories

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"'Nothing is all good or all bad,' she says. 'Life is so much messier than that.'"

"Live long enough, and you learn how to read a person. To ease them open like a book, some passages underlined and others hidden between the lines."

"And perhaps it is just that happiness is frightening."

Content Warnings

jennifer243308's review

Go to review page

mysterious medium-paced

5.0

Content Warnings

elizabeth_lepore's review

Go to review page

adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

mseals's review

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Content Warnings

lou_ka's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I liked the story's writing and general premise, but the ending disappointed me. It was a bit too much about giving oneself up for someone else. Although the author probably tried to reduce it with the last few pages by framing it as a strategic choice, it was not really believable to me. But this might also be cause I could not really bond with the characters.

Content Warnings