I was always unsure about how The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab got so much praise and was on every girl’s favourites list several years back (and even still to this day). My first read of it ended in a sentiment that it wasn’t anything special, that people may have overhyped it, but since I have reflected on the book and on what would make this a stellar book for readers and I might have some answers.

First and foremost, let me say that my opinion of the book and V.E. Schwab is not hate in any way. I have mad respect for her and for the power that The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue has on hundreds of thousands, if not millions of readers. These are my views about a book that I do not believe is my kind of book and I will explain why below. Please consider that I have varied preferences to you if this is your favourite book and that I’m glad you love this book so much.

The first thing to strike me about this is the poetic prose narrative style. Poetic prose is a beautiful thing, truly I am envious of those who can do with without it coming across as fluffy or boring. Poetic prose straddles the line between poetry and stories whereby most of the language use carries a tone, a melody if you will, that floats across the entire story. It also leans more into the visual and sensory details of a book and draw you in like you’ve discovered a fairy leaping across mushrooms in the forest on your semi-regular walks and you feel drawn to follow it. Y’know, that mystical and magical experience that is almost otherworldly. That’s the power of poetic prose. The main thing I cannot dislike Addie LaRue for is its writing style. there were some mundane details, for example, when Addie is walking from her small town to a bigger one, and the narration includes several pages of what is essentially filler. Those times, I feel that the poetic prose is spoiled and used in a way that drags down the whole narrative.

Unfortunately, Addie LaRue as a character does not share the same fate. I don’t like her. I don’t think she’s a standout character in anyway. I understand that some people may really empathise with her – feeling like your life is about to end, wanting to run away, wanting a way out of this certain doom ahead of you. Maybe I’m too well-versed with history and the realities of life back then, but Addie seems weak-willed to me and she doesn’t solidify a backbone in the years that go by. She doesn’t adapt or grow a second skin one may get with facing adversities and the harsh fact of life. She chose to contact Luc and she’s only facing the consequences of her actions. Maybe I’m also too analytical and opportunistic (and maybe forgetting some details) but if I was in her place I would make myself remembered by writing books or theses or painting landscapes under an alias. Something practical while dealing with my demons and the dreaded fact I’m immortal.

I also, unfortunately, think the love triangle is weak. Again, no harm or shade if you like it. It stems from not liking Addie, but I also don’t particularly like Henry or Luc. Luc is an old god; ageless, the morally grey villain with dark hair and sharp eyes much like all morally grey love interests these days. He does nothing for me because he’s nothing new. In terms of the whole triangle, love brought up by desperation to be remembered and to be seen does nothing for me. I need individuals with their own stable sense of who they are and what they believe in before any solid ideas of romance come up, that way when beliefs are challenged and ideologies break down, we get some of that mutual reliance and support that blossoms into a beautiful relationship (maybe with a few great tropes in there like A is injured and B is patching them up or A is watching B take in all this information and B drops, overwhelmed with emotion, and A holds them as they cry).

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is a popular book that I may not understand, but I will respect it nevertheless. It sits on the same shelf as A Starless Sea and The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern and Madeline Miller’s books The Song of Achilles and Circe in the sense that they are beautifully written books but they are not my reading taste.