Review ~ "The Near Witch"

The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab
Source: Netgalley & Purchased
Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Genre: YA Paranormal


Description from Goodreads: 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. 

And 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. Still, he insists on helping Lexi search for them. Something tells her she can trust him.

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.

Beka's Thoughts:  The Near Witch book is about a small town called Near, in which every occupant is very suspicious of witches.  The most famous witch that the town remembers is the Near Witch.  It is said that hundreds of years ago, the Near Witch lived on the border of the town of Near, and the Moor.  Little children loved to go down to the Near Witches house to watch her do magic.  Until one day one of the children is found dead in the Witches garden.  

One night, Lexi, the main character of the story, sees a stranger out side of her window.  There are no strangers in the town of Near.  Soon after she sees the stranger, the children of the town start to disappear.  Lexi has to find out how this has to do with the stranger and  the rumor of the deceased Near witch, before her own little sister disappears along with the other kids.

The writing of the book was a little dull, and vague.  Furthermore, the romance that Lexi has goes too fast, and it doesn't feel like a romance, more like she is kissing him for no apparent reason.  Other than that  I enjoyed the story and would read more books by this author.