I very much enjoyed listening to this audiobook. As always I listened mostly on my pre-work morning runs, and I have really enjoyed my runs of late due in no small part to my pleasure at this story.
Adeline Larue was born in France in the 18th century, and was not satisfied to accept the life of women in rural France at the time – to be married off young, bear children, run the home, cook, clean etc etc. She managed to avoid marriage for a while, but when aged 23 her parents had had enough and arranged a marriage for her, she couldn’t bear the thought and ran into the woods just before her wedding. Since childhood she had befriended the local ‘wise woman’ who taught her to pray to the old gods, and that’s exactly what she did.
This time, someone answered, and Adeline made a deal. She asked for time to be herself, to be free and not to be beholden to anyone, and in return she offered her soul to the god when she was finished with it. As anyone knows the gods/fey/faeries/ daemons will always twist deals with mortals and as Adeline (now Addie, as she loses her name in the deal) discovers she is now instantly forgettable – as soon as anyone loses sight of her they forget ever having known or even met her. She is also immortal, and thought she can feel pain and hunger etc, these things cannot do her permanent harm.
We follow Addie’s story for three hundred years, with flashbacks interspersed with the modern day story of Addie in 2014 New York. I found the book intelligent, thought provoking, exciting, fun, romantic (but not in an annoying way)- just all round really good. I tried to guess the ending (as you do…) and although I was kind of half right, the actual ending was much better and more satisfying than the one I came up with.
I liked the narrator as well (Julia Whelan) especially her French accent. At times I couldn’t make out if she was saying ‘he said’ or ‘she said’ which is probably down to my bad hearing more than anything else, but made for some confusing dialogues!
Sarah Wray Writer 