Solid 4 stars, I loved it!
Just to preface this review, I don’t normally read romance or historical fiction. I’ve had rather annoying experiences with enemies-to-lovers, and most of the hyped books on Bookstagram have been underwhelming; The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is the exception.
First, I’ll just take a moment to express my adoration of V.E. Schwab’s lyrical prose. Stunning, quotable, and reads like literary fiction. I will definitely be picking up more of her books in the future (if you have any recommendations of what to read next, please let me know).
As for the characters? Addie and Henry were kind of just meh. Plain-Jane personalities, (view spoiler) Luc, on the other hand, was my favorite. Estelle seems like an interesting person to follow around too. Ok, I’m rambling…
A quote reminded me so much of The Name of the Wind, (view spoiler). I’m pretty sure that Addie trained with Kvothe:
All things have names. Names have purpose. Names have power.
I loved the historical elements of well-known artists throughout history.
The plot was a slow burn, and 70% of the book was mostly character-driven; I was getting a bit bored with the repetitive lives and events of the two main characters. I was leaning towards a three-stars, but the plot picked up near the end and brought everything together, and here were are at four-stars. I cried; you got me. If the ending hadn’t picked up, I would have finished just because V.E. Schwab’s prose is perfection.
Do I think this is worth the hype? In contrast to all of the other hyped books on Bookstagram, this one knocks them out of the park, so yes, worth the hype.
