Review: The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab

Lexi has heard the stories of the Near Witch her whole life.  “If the wind calls at night, you must not listen.  The wind is lonely, and always looking for company.”  So on a windy night when Lexi looks to the moor outside her home and sees a boy who fades into the wind, she knows that a stranger has entered her town which cannot be right because she’s always been told that “there are no strangers in the town of Near.”

Starting the next night, the children of Near begin to disappear without a trace.  The suspicious stranger is at the heart of accusations and the hunt is on to find him.  Lexi desperately believes the stranger is innocent and determines to find the children and the answers that just might lie in the stories her father always told.

I know so many of you have already read this book.  I saw it on NetGalley awhile back and it really made it's way around the blogs.  I just wasn't in a position to read it then (plus I just really like to hold books in my hands.  My Kindle is fabulous but I will always be a "real book" kind of girl.  This was a book I wanted to hold in my hands.).  Anyway, I'm finally getting around to reading this!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book.  The writing was just beautiful and I was carried into the world of Near.  I had a clear visual picture in my head of the people and the places even though the book took on a very dream like quality to me. 

The writing was so gentle and flowing.  I loved that it never felt forced or harsh.  I cannot wait to read more by this author. 

This YA book was part ghost story, part romance and yet sort of felt like a fairy tale too.  Here is a couple of my favorite lines from the book:

“Fear is a strange thing.  It has the power to make people close their eyes, turn away.  Nothing good grows out of fear.”

“Maybe one day the words will pour out like so many others, easy and smooth and on their own.  Right now they take pieces of me with them.”