“And this is what she’s settled on: she can go without food (she will not wither). She can go without heat (the cold will not kill her). But a life without art, without wonder, without beautiful things- she would go mad. She has gone mad.”
I’ve recently had the blessing of coming upon the greatest literary achievement of the 21st century. No, that is not a hyperbole. I read this book last November, and it has become a vital part of my daily life. I think about the characters and magical setting nearly every day. This masterpiece is none other than the TikTok sensation The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab. Not only did Schwab incorporate all my favorite genres into one book, but she effortlessly delivered one of the most unique plots with the most resilient protagonist I’ve ever met. The book is a transcendent mix of magical realism, historical fiction, romance, and fantasy.
Our story takes place on July 29, 1714, in the fictional village of Villon-Sur-Sarthe, France. We follow 23-year-old Adeline LaRue, a French woman who has been betrothed to a man she does not love. Despite her reluctance to the marriage, her parents fear for their daughter’s future as Adeline has no prospects and is on the cusp of reaching an age that—in this period—would have deemed her old. In a moment of desperation, Adeline strikes a deal with Luc, a God of the night, aloof to the fact that she had been warned never to pray to the gods that answer after dark. Adeline wishes for a life full of freedom and no responsibilities. To never owe anything to anyone and never feel trapped under constraints similar to the ones that impede her now. In return, Adeline agrees to give her soul up to Luc when she perishes.
I immediately knew this was going to be a failure. Not only did Adeline make a bargain with a God of night (the equivalent of condemning oneself to hell, according to the book), but her wish was terribly vague. It is a common pattern among myths and fairy tales that non-descriptive wishes can be taken way out of proportion and result in the characters dooming themselves, which was what I feared for Adeline. Luc did not appear to have Adeline’s best interest in mind and would not go out of his way to accurately cater to her wish. The only thing he cared about was adding her soul to the rest of the harem after her death. The deal is sealed by a blood oath, and Luc vanishes into the night as quickly as he had come. This leaves Adeline in solitude among her probing thoughts, the only form of company she would receive for a very long time.
Thus begins the epic journey of Addeline LaRue that spans exactly 300 years. From 1714 to 2014.
After completing the deal, Adeline awakes on the forest ground in the morning, immediately enveloped by uneasiness. While her body is still in one piece, and her surroundings look the same, she can’t shake off the feeling that something is not right. Rushing to her home, she comes to the dreadful realization that nobody recognizes her. Her mother and father regard her with a chilling indifference that she had never been given before. Her desperation and pain at realizing the aftermath of her mistake was heart-wrenching. Even more so when Adeline comes to accept that there is no going back from her decision. To make matters worse, Adeline has become completely forgettable. Even when she reintroduces herself to the townsfolk, one glance away from her causes any trace of her to be erased from the minds of the people. Her attempts to reform bonds with those she grew up with prove futile when all memories of her dissipate after a moment. Knowing that there is nothing left for her, Adeline leaves her hometown, claiming the memories engraved in the village are too painful to live with.
“What she needs are stories. Stories are a way to preserve oneself. To be remembered. And to forget. Stories come in so many forms: in charcoal, and in song, in paintings, poems, films, and books. Books she has found are a way to live a thousand lives- or to find strength in a very long one.”
What I find admirable about this woman is her grit and determination to fulfill a fruitful life despite the deprivation of human interaction she is cursed with. Since human connection is out of the realm of possibilities, Adeline turns to books and stories as a form of companionship. Her feat of overcoming illiteracy and teaching herself to read and write was a beautiful accomplishment that took her years to perfect. Adeline spends the next several centuries folded between the pages of her books. In the absence of human relationships, she forms bonds with fictional characters and experiences life through association.
What made this book so unique was that, as the reader, I was able to live vicariously through the same character for centuries, thanks to Adeline’s immortality. An experience that would be inconceivable in reality.
Adeline spends the next 60 decades in France and then travels to Britain shortly after the French Revolution. There, she spends half a century roaming England until departing for Germany. She remains in Germany through both World Wars, witnessing the Holocaust and the Nazi occupation happening at the time. She finally makes her decision to travel to the United States during the 1950’s. Not only did the setting change, but so did Adeline’s inner monologue. Her way of speaking evolves throughout the years to accommodate the current date, which I thought was a genius touch by the author. Through all this time, Adeline has been quickly forgotten by all the short-lived acquaintances she was able to make.
With the exception of one.
Luc makes a point of paying visits to Adeline every single year on the anniversary of their bargain. And every year, he asks her if she is ready to put an end to her suffering and give her soul up. Adeline, being the strong-headed woman she is, refuses every single time.
What I found fascinating was the comradeship that began to blossom over the years between Adeline and Luc. Whereas before, Adeline used to dread Luc’s annual visits, she slowly begins to look forward to them. The two would sit in each other’s company and converse about the only thing they had in common. Lifetime.
Luc had been around for a millennia and made Adeline’s already massive lifetime seem almost insignificant. Looking back on their conversations, I learned that Adeline and Luc share more than one thing in common. They both crave emotional connection. And while they may not say it, both have been tortured by a life of solitude and deprivation.
Knowing Luc is going through a similar hardship as Adeline allows the reader to see him from a different perspective. It helps humanize him and paints him as something other than the heartless villain.
Already, Adeline has seen and experienced more than any human ever could. But, little did she know that the real journey was just beginning. In early March of 2014, Adeline enters a New York City bookshop. She grabs a book with no intention of paying and marches out of the shop without a care in the world since she knows the store clerk will forget her in seconds. (A habit she acquired over the years from being completely forgettable.)
Adeline returns to the shop the next day and is shocked when the clerk (Henry) calls her out for stealing a book the previous day. When she asks how he knows that, the young man responds with three simple words that knock the plot on its axis.
“I remember you.”
Henry’s arrival in the story had been the rainbow after the storm. The only individual in the universe able to break the centuries-old curse by remembering who Adeline LaRue is. This is the part that had me kicking my feet up, giggling, screaming, and crying tears of joy. After three long centuries of being forgotten, this incredible woman was finally allowed to have what she had always yearned for, what she had sacrificed her soul for. Adeline could fall in love.
But as the saying goes, love isn’t a destination; it’s a journey. Adeline and Henry face many obstacles throughout their romance. Her secret could not be hidden for much longer, especially when Henry makes his intentions to introduce Adeline to his family and friends clear.
By telling him her truth, Adeline risks ending their love before it has the opportunity to fully flourish. To make matters worse, Adeline receives an early visit from Luc long before the day of their anniversary. Much to her disbelief, she learns why exactly Henry is immune to her curse and the consequences that it entails.
A story about love, loss, and what it means to live forever, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is the most gut-wrenching, tear-jerking, earth-shattering book I’ve ever had the honor to read, which is why I could not rate this literary classic any less than five big stars. I would sell my own soul to Luc for this gorgeous work to be part of the school curriculum someday. For a protagonist doomed to be forgettable, Adeline LaRue will forever be remembered in my heart. She is endlessly deserving of love and remembrance. So please, do yourself a favor and READ THIS BOOK, I PROMISE YOU WILL BE FOREVER CHANGED! 😀