The Near Witch
Ratings54
Average rating3.4
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY'S BEST YA OF THE DECADE NEW YORK TIMES bestseller Brand new edition of Victoria Schwab's long out-of-print, stunning debut. All-new deluxe edition of an out-of-print gem, containing in-universe short story "The Ash-Born Boy" and a never-before-seen introduction from V.E. Schwab. The Near Witch is only an old story told to frighten children. If the wind calls at night, you must not listen. The wind is lonely, and always looking for company. There are no strangers in the town of Near. These are the truths that Lexi has heard all her life. But when an actual stranger, a boy who seems to fade like smoke, appears outside her home on the moor at night, she knows that at least one of these sayings is no longer true. The next night, the children of Near start disappearing from their beds, and the mysterious boy falls under suspicion. As the hunt for the children intensifies, so does Lexi's need to know about the witch that just might be more than a bedtime story, about the wind that seems to speak through the walls at night, and about the history of this nameless boy. Part fairy tale, part love story, Victoria Schwab's debut novel is entirely original yet achingly familiar: a song you heard long ago, a whisper carried by the wind, and a dream you won't soon forget.
Series
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1 primary book2 released booksThe Near Witch
The Near Witch is a 2-book series with 1 primary work first released in 2011 with contributions by V. E. Schwab.
Reviews
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this book fell a little flat for me. i listened to the audiobook and the narrator has a really unusual tone to her voice. she reads... The book... like this... and has odd emphasis on random words and it's not always clear where one sentence ends and one begins. i should've just given up and read the print book but i think the narration definitely negatively affected the story for me. her voice was great for the speaking/character voice parts.
The actual story had an interesting background, not very much seemed to happen, most of what i can remember is mc running about from place to place and her talking about her love at first sight.
i read this because on the cover it said one for fans of Neil Gaiman and i was disappointed. hopefully the rest of the author's books are more up my alley cause a few of them are on my tbr
So this is my first reading of V.E S. I found this book in my local bookstore and though it would be nice to start discovering her with her first book !
I have to say the writing is very good. I like the universe and the story of this suffocating village where fear reigns. I could perfectly see this book be a Hayao Miyazaki movie as its universe is beautiful, weird and intriguing. Sometimes you feel like all this story is a dream.
But god it is slow... I seriously think it could have been a hundred pages shorter and be a masterpiece.
I am really excited to read shades of magic soon and discover how this potential was then mastered in her next saga. Nice book but not a great one.
