The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

The Invisible Life of Addie Larue is a favorite of my more recent reads. Its premise has an original aspect, the protagonist Addie Larue is sympathetic, there are intriguing twists to the story, and the prose is excellent. The basic premise of this magical realism book is an old one. Addie Larue sells her soul to the Devil, or a devil, or an old god, or maybe simply a magical being. It never is clear. From this initial start, the story is all original.Addie is a uniquely independent French girl, born 1691 in the provincial town of Villon-sur-Sarthe. She yearns for more than a life of bearing children and married subservience. She eludes that fate for some years, until it is decided she must be wed. On the wedding day she runs. About to be caught she meets a man, or an old god. She pleads with him, “I want a chance to live. I want to be free…I want more time.” He asks “How long?” She doesn’t know. He becomes frustrated, and explains that he deals in souls. He will wait for her soul, but not forever. She tells him, “…take my life when I am done with it. You can have my soul when I don’t want it anymore.” This is a deal the old god will do. Addie accepts, not realizing the old god has rigged the game in his favor. No one will ever remember Addie. She can knock on a door and have a conversation, but when the door closes and reopens, the person has no recollection of her. Even her mother and father don’t remember her being their daughter.This would make life impossible for most people, but Addie persists and finds a way to manage over the years without going insane. She seems to be immortal. I found it fascinating how she forges a life for herself. Periodically the old god visits her, hoping to take her soul. Their changing relationship over the centuries is an interesting subplot of the book. Finally, in New York in the present, she meets a man who remembers her. That leads to the climax of the book, although not necessarily the end of Addie’s story. Or maybe it is the end of her story. I don’t want to spoil the finale for you.Once I always finished a book once I started it. Now, I finish a minority of the books I start. I am a tough grader of books, but on a scale of one to five, I give this book a six.

I’m so glad that I heard it was a slow book before I went into it. That helped a lot! If I had gone in expecting something fast paced, I probably would have been disappointed the whole time. However, knowing it was going to be slow, I was happy to listen to it languidly (audio book) and just enjoy the rich language as it went.Things I liked:*The line level language was beautiful. She is a VERY talented writer. I wanted to highlight nearly every line as it was so poetic and perfectly done. The language alone is one of the reasons I liked it.*I liked a lot of the ideas presented and the characters. I also enjoyed the relationships.*I listened to the audio book and whenever I put it on, it immediately transported my mind to a contemplative, melancholy state that was sort of like a trance. It was sort of soothing.Things I didn’t like:*I struggled with the bouncing around timeline. This was not a linear book. It hoped forward and backward and all around with no discernible rhyme or reason. It felt jarring and took a long time to get used to. Honestly, I sort of want to reread it but in chronological order some day. I didn’t find too many moments that felt like they had to go back to back. The only reason I can think of for the bouncing around was to help us FEEL how long and frustrated Adddie probably felt. But still, I would have preferred it in order.*As some people have already said, this book feels like it wants to be a big important book. It does feel at times like it tries too hard to be something grand. I still really liked it though.*I was surprised by how mundane her life was. She lived a long time and didn’t really seem to do as much with her time as I’d hoped. I was expecting a bit more of a grand adventure. Instead it was a simple, mundane life. I’m not opposed to that, I just expected something else.*I didn’t love the ending. I won’t spoil it, but I was not satisfied. I wanted a more definitive ending instead of one that “trails off.”*She also says she doesn’t want to be “tied to anyone” and that ends up not being true. I won’t explain how, but that disappointed me that she didn’t see the error in her “deal.”

This is one of the best books that I have read in a very long time. So enjoyable. It made me smile, it made me cry and I just could not put it down. Extremely well written and such a unique story. Truly a must read!

GO BUY IT !! YOU WON'T REGRET IT !! Be prepared to be emotionally invested. I felt I lost a part of my heart in this book. I love the twist in the end; Made me weep and slightly disappointed but when the reasoning was revealed, I applauded the character. Exceptionally enchanting with unforgettable characters. Undoubtedly a unique story, unlike any other stories I’ve read before. Just the depth and the complexity of the story alone is deliciously clever. I would give this 10 stars if I could.“I do not want to belong to someone else. I do not want to belong to anyone but myself. I want to be free. Free to live, and to find my own way, to love, or to be alone, but at least it is my choice, and I am so tired of not having choices, so scared of the years rushing past beneath my feet. I do not want to die as I’ve lived, which is no life at all.”

Memo to Victoria Schwab: You have written the most amazing book, covering the 300-year lifespan one of the best characters I've ever read about ... what you do with words is absolutely incredible. I couldn't stop reading and it was hard to put the book down each night after our reading sessions (instead of watching TV, blue lights an all). I can't express just how much I loved this book ... and I'm going to get the rest of your books ... so many novels are based on too much of a gimmick, but what you do with words is magical!Hey, everyone ... BUY THIS BOOK!

Definitivamente es un libro que dejó una marca en mi corazón y que recomiendo bastante. Lo disfruté de principio a fin.El encuadernado de esta edición es muy bonito!

Amazingly well-crafted and clever story. So good, I had to buy a physical copy to add to my small collection of unforgettable books. Almost every line is poetry and every character memorable. I am in awe of this calibre of talent.

Victoria Schwab é uma escritora de fantasia Americana. Ela tem uma série de livros de sucesso, e mais recente um dos livros mais falados dos anos de 2020 e 2021, A Vida Invisível de Addie LaRue.Conhecemos Addie, uma jovem francesa que vive no início do século XVIII, e logo entendemos sua ânsia por liberdade, por fugir da vida que lhe era imposta. Em um momento de crise, ela foge para a floresta a fim de oferecer qualquer coisa por liberdade. Só que é o Deus da escuridão que responde, e ela acaba por cometer um erro grave. A escuridão concede sua liberdade, mas em troca receberá sua alma. Addie passa a ser esquecida por todos que já conhecia, e a cada pessoa nova que cruza o caminho. Basta fechar uma porta, virar a esquina, ou dormir, para que ela se torne uma desconhecida.“Como você caminha até o fim do mundo?Um passo de cada vez.”Além do esquecimento, Addie também ganha a imortalidade, sem nunca envelhecer. E assim, atravessamos 300 anos de história, entre guerras e amores, decepções e arte. Addie atravessa continentes, e aprende a falar muitas línguas, mas não por mais que algumas horas ela é lembrada. Teria ela deixado algum legado? Tudo o que ela escrevia sumia, nem seu nome verdadeiro podia ser pronunciado, mas havia uma possibilidade de não ser completamente apagada: através da arte.“Não consigo segurar uma caneta. Não consigo contar uma história. Não consigo segurar uma arma, nem fazer alguém se lembrar. Mas arte, ela diz com um sorriso mais calmo, arte é sobre ideias. memórias. Eles são como ervas daninhas, sempre encontrando seu caminho para cima"A narrativa é em terceira pessoa, e se alterna entre os flashbacks dos 300 anos, e o momento atual (2014). Poucas vezes na vida eu vi uma escrita tão bem-feita, a autora soube deixar claro todas as suas intenções, e tudo fez muito sentido. É um livro impecável e sem falhas.Nos dias atuais, Addie conhece Henry. Seria mais uma paixão de um dia (para ele) e talvez alguns meses (para ela), até quando ela se cansasse de vê-lo esquecê-la a cada noite. Só que Henry lembra. Para ele, ela não era invisível. Por que?Este livro é uma obra de arte. É um livro perfeito para fazer jus ao seu plot: suas ideias nunca serão esquecidas. Addie LaRue toca nosso coração, toca em assuntos tão reais quanto ignorados.“O que é uma pessoa, senão as marcas que ela deixa no mundo?”Este é um livro obrigatório. Não viva esta vida sem conhecê-lo.

Anfangs war der Schreibstil etwas gewöhnungsbedürftig, aber er erklärt sich von selbst, je weiter man liest. Alles in allem ein toller Zufallsfund!

Livre reçut avant la date prévue de livraison. Très bon état !!!