I am a known sucker for deals with the devil. Anyone who’s read one of my manuscripts can guess at that. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by VE Schwab was a recommended read that dropped in my lap, generated by an algorithm that I don’t usually pay attention to, but I decided to read it completely blind with all the spirit of why not, and it may be my first contender for favorite book of the year.

It originally came out in 2020 and I feel already late to the party of people who already know that this book is amazing, this book has a purposeful and distinctly timeless quality.

I found the pacing, character development, and flow of the story to be beautifully drawn out and balanced, shifting between scenes from the past and scenes from the present in 2014. The flow of story is important because it is reminiscent of the story’s crux, known as the darkness or Luc with whom Addie has made a deal for her soul. In her plea for time and freedom she has inadvertently rendered herself unable to leave a mark on the world around her, walking for eternity. Addie comments that Luc had initially been short, in her imagination, for Lucien but now apparently Lucifer. There is an elegant, flowing, consuming quality to the prose that mirrors its antagonistic presence well.

Ultimately, though, the most compelling nature of the book is that Addie herself is indomitable. At no point does she surrender, as Luc keeps seeking, and even in the end she is scheming her way to independence and survival. The love story that intertwines is practical in many ways while still romantic.

At 444 pages, it was a methodical, visually descriptive read and I would absolutely encourage you to seek it out.