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crab_army's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
4.0
The pacing changed a lot through the book but the plot was still enjoyable and easy to follow. Small points of the story seemed rushed but overall it was very enjoyable, I’m excited to read the short prequel next.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
saracat's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
It is no surprise to me that I loved and adored this book. So far everything I've read by Schwab I have adored. Sometimes when I read books that authors wrote much earlier in their career, I can sense that they are still coming into their own. But in this book, she already feels to have an understanding of her craft and I would not have guessed this was written so early in her career without the forward saying so.
As with some of the other books I have read by her, I adore, love, and root for the main characters with everything in me and feel intense dislike and disgust at those who seem to give no effort to hear and understand what is being said to them.
This audiobook version includes at the end the story of Cole and it was painful to hear the full extent of what led to his coming to Near.
As with some of the other books I have read by her, I adore, love, and root for the main characters with everything in me and feel intense dislike and disgust at those who seem to give no effort to hear and understand what is being said to them.
This audiobook version includes at the end the story of Cole and it was painful to hear the full extent of what led to his coming to Near.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Physical abuse
Moderate: Confinement, Racism, Self harm, Blood, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Kidnapping, and Murder
In this book, the 'racism' is directed towards witches.celey's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Enchanting mystery, ya love story, exploration of witchcraft, and fairy tale about what it means to belong in a community all wrapped in a beautifully written box. I really enjoyed this book, and will be reading more of this author’s work.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, and Death of parent
snapeygan's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
As always, VE Schwab doesn’t disappoint!! I’m a big fan of all her work, and her first novel isn’t different from all her other books!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Torture, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury
ronjaorsomething's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, and Fire/Fire injury
lovelymisanthrope's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
I picked this up a couple years ago because I am on a mission to read everything Victoria Schwab publishes.
"The Near Witch" follows a bold young girl named Lexi. Lexi knows the old stories of the Near Witch, but she thought it was just a scary story to scare little kids. But, when a stranger arrives in a town where there are never strangers, and children begin to go missing, Lexi begins to question everything she thought she knew.
I really enjoyed seeing Victoria Schwab's first book because it really made me appreciate how far she has come in her craft. This book is definitely a solid story, and it has some of the fantastical charms that her more recent books have, but I could definitely tell that this work was one of her firsts. This story felt very fast-paced, and I did not always agree with the characters' reasonings or motivations. For example, Lexi seemed to easily accept what the adults in her life told her. I wish she pushed back more on her uncle specifically.
This book felt like it flew by so quickly; just when I thought I was beginning to meet and understand the characters, the book moved along. I wish there was maybe 50 pages more so that we could see some more fleshed out character development.
I had a fine time reading this, it was not my favorite from Victoria Schwab, but I enjoyed it.
"The Near Witch" follows a bold young girl named Lexi. Lexi knows the old stories of the Near Witch, but she thought it was just a scary story to scare little kids. But, when a stranger arrives in a town where there are never strangers, and children begin to go missing, Lexi begins to question everything she thought she knew.
I really enjoyed seeing Victoria Schwab's first book because it really made me appreciate how far she has come in her craft. This book is definitely a solid story, and it has some of the fantastical charms that her more recent books have, but I could definitely tell that this work was one of her firsts. This story felt very fast-paced, and I did not always agree with the characters' reasonings or motivations. For example, Lexi seemed to easily accept what the adults in her life told her. I wish she pushed back more on her uncle specifically.
This book felt like it flew by so quickly; just when I thought I was beginning to meet and understand the characters, the book moved along. I wish there was maybe 50 pages more so that we could see some more fleshed out character development.
I had a fine time reading this, it was not my favorite from Victoria Schwab, but I enjoyed it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Kidnapping, and Death of parent
kathrynleereads's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
While I really enjoyed The Near Witch, I thought the ending was a bit abrupt.
I wish she would've mentioned how long it actually took for them to get from the village to the grove of trees out on the moor. Once it was a half-day trek, then she ran all the way there and back.
It was also frustrating that they kept making it all the way out there, only to turn and return to the village before finding anything.
While children are being kidnapped it seems as if there would be a bit more of a rush than trying to fix the problem on three separate days.
Why not just hide from the men that followed them and then continue their search instead of trekking all the way back to Near to just start completely over the next day?
Also, as a tracker who should be fairly adept at listening, she sure did get followed a lot. And the men left to watch her and keep her from sneaking out of the house really just did not learn.
•
The first half of the book detailed only a day or two of Lexi digging into the mystery, while the second half of the book covers multiple days of action, seeming to flit from day to day a lot faster.
It felt like it should've gone in the opposite direction.
In the final scene, Lexi runs all the way from the clearing to Near with the basket of bones, only to not get there in time and for the Near Witch to come alive as she does at night.
Cole and Otto then run out from the stone wall (which is in the opposite direction of where she left them), seemingly having beat her there or caught up to her, despite the fact that they supposedly had a whole hashing-out of their issues (which couldn't have been quick), and the fact that Lexi ran the whole way back.
Then after beating Lexi up for a minute, the Near Witch sees her old garden and just kind of floats into the grave the sisters had conjured there and went back to being dead.
It felt a little lacking to me, like after all the build-up, the ending should have been a little more drawn out.
•
Character-wise I loved Lexi, her parents, the sisters, Cole, and Wren.
Mrs. Thatcher had some good moments and provided good insight into the mindset of the village.
Master Matthew seemed to be alright but then told the other council members where Lexi and Cole were going and what they were doing, despite saying that he believed Lexi was correct and the Near Witch was to blame.
Otto seemed like deep down he was a decent person, but he was a pushover and should never have been granted the title of Protector, because he honestly sucked at it. He was very well-written, though.
Bo was a truly awful human. I'm curious to know what happened to him, as it's never mentioned.
The character that is still stuck in my mind though? Tyler.
Sexist, misogynistic, piece-of-dirt pig.
He was not worth any redemption and deserved the same as Bo. He thought he deserved Lexi and completely ignored her protests and requests.
•
Besides the abrupt ending to the story, I thoroughly enjoyed The Near Witch, and was very enthralled by the story while reading it.
It was also frustrating that they kept making it all the way out there, only to turn and return to the village before finding anything.
While children are being kidnapped it seems as if there would be a bit more of a rush than trying to fix the problem on three separate days.
Why not just hide from the men that followed them and then continue their search instead of trekking all the way back to Near to just start completely over the next day?
Also, as a tracker who should be fairly adept at listening, she sure did get followed a lot. And the men left to watch her and keep her from sneaking out of the house really just did not learn.
•
The first half of the book detailed only a day or two of Lexi digging into the mystery, while the second half of the book covers multiple days of action, seeming to flit from day to day a lot faster.
It felt like it should've gone in the opposite direction.
Cole and Otto then run out from the stone wall (which is in the opposite direction of where she left them), seemingly having beat her there or caught up to her, despite the fact that they supposedly had a whole hashing-out of their issues (which couldn't have been quick), and the fact that Lexi ran the whole way back.
Then after beating Lexi up for a minute, the Near Witch sees her old garden and just kind of floats into the grave the sisters had conjured there and went back to being dead.
It felt a little lacking to me, like after all the build-up, the ending should have been a little more drawn out.
•
Character-wise I loved Lexi, her parents, the sisters, Cole, and Wren.
Mrs. Thatcher had some good moments and provided good insight into the mindset of the village.
Otto seemed like deep down he was a decent person, but he was a pushover and should never have been granted the title of Protector, because he honestly sucked at it. He was very well-written, though.
Bo was a truly awful human.
The character that is still stuck in my mind though? Tyler.
Sexist, misogynistic, piece-of-dirt pig.
•
Besides the abrupt ending to the story, I thoroughly enjoyed The Near Witch, and was very enthralled by the story while reading it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, and Murder
Moderate: Body horror, Child death, Death, and Death of parent
Minor: Grief, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
_haggis_'s review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Self harm
Minor: Death
CW: Self harm only applies to the short story at the end of the book.gssll_lpz's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Self harm, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
whenjessreads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
The Near Witch is Schwab’s debut novel, and because of this I went into it with lower expectations, and a little bit of curiosity about where she came from and how her writing has grown. While I didn’t think it was as immersive and polished as her later books (which was completely expected - genius doesn’t spring from nowhere 😂), this book was still beautiful, whimsical and poetic. The focus on atmosphere over characters or plot made it feel like folklore; a creepy fairytale told to children in front of a fire.
Schwab herself describes this book as ‘strange and quiet’, which is so fitting in a way that I can’t really describe. There’s this common feeling of isolation and inherent creepiness in books set on the moors - think The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, or Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle.
Typical of Schwab, The Near Witch has a dash of horror, but in the way that fairytales often do: more creepy and suspenseful rather than grotesque. There isn’t a lot of world-building, but in a way this worked - the isolation and emptiness of the setting played a large part in the overall feeling of uneasiness and suited the haunting writing style.
In terms of the main character, Lexi… It was nice to read a female heroine without the sarcasm and the sword, strength in a way that seems more accessible to children and younger adults. But although she was the narrator of the story, I didn’t get the greatest idea of her drives - her feelings weren’t really dipped into, and instead it was more a play-by-play of what she saw and did. There was also a little bit of insta-love, but after all, this is a fairytale (and what is more representative of a fairytale than love at first sight?).
Overall, this was a haunting but beautiful story about acceptance, understanding and friendship, but also prejudice and loss. And VE Schwab is obviously some kind of word-witch.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Death of parent, and Murder