A review by evermoreau
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.25

lukewarm. i found the concept more exciting than the execution & was particularly disappointed in the limited & repetitive approach to addie's short relationships, because most of them came down to her sleeping with people (kudos for at least making her bisexual ig), it got tired quickly & i would have appreciated a bigger variety in the way she interacts with people. her leaving a mark through artists’ hands was interesting in theory, but it felt equally underwhelming in practice, i think mostly due to the fact that there was more emphasis put on her beauty (the freckles) than anything else — i understand that she gets forgotten, but those rules were self imposed through the plot by v. e. schwab, and i’m saying that the whole concept could have been thought out in a better way. the ending felt cheesy, as did the reveal that the book we’re reading is something of a story within a story, but i enjoyed addie and henry together enough to be satisfied by their conclusion being overly sentimental. luc, on the other hand, was sooo corny it bordered on unbearable & i truly think the only ppl who like his character are the ones who never outgrew their the darkling phase (or whatever ageless shadow annoying man he, in turn, had been inspired by, i’m not sure and i don’t care bc i’ve always hated this character type). if i wanted to witness a man talk to a woman like she’s an idiot i’d have more than enough opportunities for that irl, why would i want to read about that treatment coming from a pseudo love interest 😭 overall this is the type of book i MIGHT have enjoyed more had i read it in middle school, which doesn’t seem like the reaction the author hoped for, seeing as the characters are (body-wise) in their 20s & sex is a topic that comes up often, even though all the scenes are fade-to-black, so it probably wasn’t supposed to feel like a young adult novel