From the Bookshelf of Book Nerds Unite…

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

V.E. Schwab,

Victoria Schwab

Start date: July 1, 2021

Finish date: July 31, 2021

Discussion: BOTMs

Why we're reading this: Adult BOTM for July
[close] Adult BOTM for July

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BOTMs

* November 2022 BOTM | Nominations
By Asia | Advent… , Creator, Head Mod, Book Nerd #1 · 4 posts · 27 views

last updated Aug 19, 2022 01:35PM

* July/August 2022 BOTM | Fable
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last updated Nov 17, 2022 09:25PM

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What Members Thought

Aug 17, 2021 Indira Wolf rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: good-to-really-good-book, just-shatter-my-soul-why-dont-you

**No major plot spoilers were harmed in the making of this review**

"“Being forgotten, she thinks, is a bit like going mad. You begin to wonder what is real, if you are real. After all, how can a thing be real if it cannot be remembered?”

So...this was an experience. It is difficult to even put my thoughts into words. (I guess i should be lucky that I can). I guess I will just start as usual. The writing was pretty good. It was definitely different than what I was used to, but that does not mean **No major plot spoilers were harmed in the making of this review**

"“Being forgotten, she thinks, is a bit like going mad. You begin to wonder what is real, if you are real. After all, how can a thing be real if it cannot be remembered?”

So...this was an experience. It is difficult to even put my thoughts into words. (I guess i should be lucky that I can). I guess I will just start as usual. The writing was pretty good. It was definitely different than what I was used to, but that does not mean it was a bad thing. It was more flowery and I suppose poetic in a way. The semi lengthy details were not..bad necessarily, just different. The writing definitely was made for painting a vivid image in your mind of what was occurring. So, most of the lengthy, sometimes abstract, sometimes concrete descriptions,were more or less necessary for the narrative. I definitely felt the writing invoked some powerful imagery and emotions from me, due to the adequate build up and anticipation and just raw...energy and vibe from the writing and descriptions. Although I did feel as if by the end or just a few places it sort of...dragged. But that might of been just my personal opinion because by that time I was really tired and kinda just wanted it to end ahah. But yeah, overall I think the writing did what writing should do: immerse the reader into the story, make them feel as if they are experiencing things alongside the characters, make them feel as if they are the characters. I also thought this book did well weaving the past and the present together. Luckily there was not too much intersection between the past and the present, which is where I often get confused. It was more like...you read about whats happening in the present. Then you read about what happened in the past. Two stories that eventually merge into one, quite tastefully if I do say so myself.

As for the characters...Addie. You just want to ache for addie. Yes, at first she was a naive and innocent young girl. She did not deserve what happened to her. She never asked for it. Well...she did, but how was she to know what was going to happen on that fateful night. You definitely feel as if everything is unfair and that addie deserves only the best. Addie is strong though. She is a fighter. She is a suvivor. She took an impossible situation, and rose to the darkness's challenge. She was amazing. It is a testment to a books writing that it managed to captivate and capture me, ensnaring me so thoroughly into her story that I did not want to leave. Addie was breathtaking. She may of been dealt a terrible hand, a terrible cost,a curse...yet she tried her best to make it seemlike a gift. She tried to do everything she could to make him suffer for it. To make herself not a ghost, to be seen, to be known, to be remembered.And at the end of the day, isnt that something we all want? To be remembered for who we are and what wedo in this world, in this life? Would you trade that for something else? Doesnt what we do andwho we are at the end of the day matter? Or are we actually just inconsequential in the grander scheme of things?

Henry. Henry is my baby. I loved him from the first sentence. I connected with him so much. I know his soul. I ache for his soul. I wanted to just reach through the pages of this book and hug him so tightly, never letting him go. Henry is a quiet, tortured soul. He was a drifting, lifeless, unsure soul, wanting to do everything and nothing at once. He wanted to be anyone or anything, yet nothing at all. Overall, He just wants one simple thing in life that turns out not to be so simple: to be loved. Dont we want to be loved by those around us? DOnt we want to be able to measure up in their eyes? Dont we want to make them proud? Henry did. He wanted to be enough. But is it worth it? Is it worth...the cost.

The darkness....to be honest, I did not really pay much attention to him. He was just..kinda there. To be honest, I kinda felt like he was just a plot device to move the story along. He was just something to keep Addie pushing, driving, or to crush her spirit, devour her soul. He was there for addie alone. And yet....he was always there.Always....there. The remembering darkness was her only company from now, until darkness claims her. He....was there. And perhaps he is enough, in his own way. He was definitely, I suppose intriguing, but I felt like I needed just...somethingmore to truly have him capture my attention. I felt like he needed to have his own..thing. He did, but at the sametime...he was only there with addie, not...on his own. So yeah...he was...their dynamic was certainly intriguing, and made me think. BUt other than that.....

So yeah , overall, this book is definitely a heavy book, dealing with many topics we think about, but we do not think deeply about. It certainlyhas some foodfor thought. Remember, this is all my opinion. Make sure not to forget. ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Aug 16, 2021 Alina Barac ( book_nerd_cafe) rated it it was amazing

Best book of 2021

Can't believe I left it so late. I was sucked in the story and hooked from page one. It is fantastic and I kept thinking how can such an extraordinary and unforgettable girl can be forgotten

Can't recommend it enough ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

May 21, 2022 Whitney Wakefield rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 5-star-reads-of-2022

Wow, my pillow is now soaked with tears. Thanks!

Review will be coming after I’ve taken more time to reflect and put my heart back together

3 likes · Like · see review

Oct 24, 2021 Vicky rated it it was amazing

No está mal. Se me hizo un poco difícil de leer, nunca me terminó de atrapar. La manera en que esta narrado es interesante pero lenta. El final es impredecible y muy bonito.

2 likes · Like · see review

Jan 30, 2023 Rebecca rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: owned, audiobook, 2023-reads

This book! I sobbed as I got through those final pages. VE Schwab has a knack for beautiful story telling. Addie LaRue made me mad, sad and happy. The beauty of this book cannot be understated. I read the book both by Audio and physically. I definitely recommend this book.

Like · see review