Book: The Near Witch by V.E. Schwab
Read From: 31st July - 2nd August 2021
Rating: 3/5 stars
Summary: Lexi has been told all her life the stories about The Near Witch, as well as there never being any strangers in Near. However, one night a stranger appears outside Lexi's bedroom window - a stranger who seems to disappear like smoke. The next night, children begin vanishing and the stranger immediately 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.
As my favourite author ever, I'm slowly but surely making my way through V.E. Schwab's backlist. Admittedly, I did go into this book with slightly lower expectations - after loving a lot of her other books it was inevitable to me that her debut novel would not match up to the likes of Vengeful, Shades of Magic and The Invisible Life of Addie Larue. I was definitely correct in my assumption, by all means this is not my favourite from Schwab by a long shot. However, I did end up being pleasantly surprised by just how fun this little book was, where Schwab once again proves she can write brilliant books for a big range of audiences.
This is a very atmospheric and quiet book which at times was very eerie. The setting was just PERFECT; it's set on the moors which I think fit the story very well. The characters were interesting enough, particularly Cole (the stranger) and local witches Magda and Dreska. Lexi herself was quite boring in my opinion but maybe that's because I'm subconsciously associating Schwab's work with fierce and dedicated female heroines such as Lila Bard.
Overall though, this was a strong debut. Would I recommend this over any of her other books? No, I'd say that if you want to give Schwab a try maybe start with the Shades of Magic trilogy or, if you want a middle grade alternative, the Cassidy Blake series. But did I enjoy reading this? Yes. And do I regret reading this? Absolutely not. Especially now I am one step closer to having read her full collection!