BOOK REPORT

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

Victoria Elizabeth Schwab is a British-American fantasy author best known for her novel Vicious and
the Shades of Magic series. She was born on July 7, 1987. She grew up in Nashville (Tennessee), but today
she lives between France and Edingburgh. Schwab graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with
a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2009.
The book switches between the past and the present and it is divided into 7 parts.
In Part One, we meet Adeline "Addie" LaRue, who was born over 300 years ago, in Villon, a small
french village. A local woman, Estele, taught her about the old gods, but warned her not to call on
them after dark.
In 1714, Addie is 23 and engaged, but she longs to be free. As she prays to the old gods, the night falls and
the devil answers. Addie asks to live freely and to have more time. As a gift, she offers her favorite
possession, a carved wooden ring, but the devil rejects it. Instead, she offers the devil her soul and he
accepts. She is given eternal life, but there is a catch; she is doomed to be forgotten by everyone she
meets.
In present day, Addie survives by stealing and sneaking into others' apartments to sleep. She can't
give people her real name, tell her story or keep possessions. The exception is a wooden ring, which
she cannot get rid of. She walks into a used bookstore to steal a book, but is caught by the employee,
Henry.
In Part Two, the devil appears yearly, each time asking Addie if she's ready to relinquish her life and
her soul. Each time, she declines. He takes on the form and name, Luc, of an imaginary stranger Addie
once daydreamed about. In present day, Addie sees Henry again, who recognizes her, and they go on
a date.
In Parts Three & Four, Addie continues to see Henry. Eventually, she tells him the truth about her
bargain with the devil. To her surprise, Henry admits that he, too, made a deal with the devil a year
ago. After getting his heartbroken, he asks to be loved in exchange for his soul. Unfortunately, people
still don't love him for who he is. Except Addie, who seems to genuinely have love for him.
In Part Five, in the past, the book describes Addie and Luc's relationship over the course of over a
hundred years from the 1700s to the end of the 1800s. Addie travels across Europe, with Luc visiting
usually on July 29, but he skips some years. He occasionally will rescue her from a sticky situation,
claiming he wants to be the one to break her.
In Part Six, in 1914, Luc admits to liking Addie's company and gives her a wooden ring so she can call
on him. She finally uses it in 1944 when she gets captured during WWII. Eventually, they end up in an
affair which lasts for years, and they both fall for each other. Later, Addie asks Luc to release her from
her deal. They end up fighting and Luc doesn't appear again for 40 years.
In the present, Addie learns that Henry's deal was only for a year. After that, he'll die. So Addie begs
Luc to change his deal with Henry. He refuses until Addie promises herself to him in exchange for
releasing Henry.

In Part Seven, Henry lives and writes a book based on the stories that Addie has told him. He
publishes the book, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, as fiction and without an author. Meanwhile,
Addie and Luc move to London where she pretends to be happy and in love with Luc but in reality, she is
secretly plotting her revenge.