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Witch Dreams
Sixteen-year-old Nyssa can enter into people’s dreams. Although the authorities of the medieval town of Lindenwolde would put her to death if they realized she was a witch, she feels compelled to practice her unique brand of witchcraft to answer the biggest question of her life: who broke into her father’s woodworking shop and killed her parents? Six years after the murder, Nyssa finally gets her chance to enter the dreams of the man she suspects is responsible. Suddenly she finds herself on a reckless, relentless journey that leads her through a maze of adventures—both in the real world and in the world of the unconscious. Nyssa risks death as she finally identifies the murderer in a shocking and unexpected climax.
120 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 2005
11 people are currently reading
332 people want to read
About the author
Vivian Vande Velde
51 books994 followersVivian Vande Velde (born 1951, currently residing in Rochester, New York) is an American author who writes books primarily aimed at young adults.
Her novels and short story collections usually have some element of horror or fantasy, but are primarily humorous. Her book Never Trust a Dead Man (1999) received the 2000 Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Novel. She says that she really likes to write for children. She likes to do school talks to children. She does many book conventions and also gives writing classes.
Her novels and short story collections usually have some element of horror or fantasy, but are primarily humorous. Her book Never Trust a Dead Man (1999) received the 2000 Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Novel. She says that she really likes to write for children. She likes to do school talks to children. She does many book conventions and also gives writing classes.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews
October 8, 2010
I'm not sure what it is about Vande Velde's writing, but when I pick up her books I get lost in whatever world she has created. Her writing style is usually simple but effective and the voice of her narrator (usually the main character, like in this case) is convincing and compelling. Like with most of the books I've read by her, I read this one cover to cover without pause. It's a quick read, in part because its short but also because the mystery is curious and the plot is engaging. In some ways I wish it were longer, but then I also recognize that she is master of not making the story last longer than its interesting, like many authors end up doing for the sake of a profitable series or just more pages as the case maybe. This is now one of my favorites by her.
August 26, 2009
I thought it was a really good book and the funny thing is that I had already checked it out of the library before and I didn't want to read it because I was still majorly into the Twilight Saga, so I just took it back to the library and I picked it up again and really enjoyed it.
February 15, 2009
A good, creative, quick read. Fast-paced, interesting, and with an ending I myself never saw coming.
May 31, 2011
At the end I was like "WTF?" I read the end like freaking ten times. I didn't see it coming. Nyssa has a real imagination and a heartbreaking way of coping. It ended well.
August 5, 2017
That twist at the end thoooo! Great little story, lots of intrigue and a unique plot packed into 120 pages.
May 21, 2019
The last VVV book I read (Cloaked in Red) was enjoyable but not quite as much as I was anticipating based on my memories of The Rumpelstiltskin Problem.
Here, my main expectations were based on having read Dragon's Bait a long time ago, and I actually ended up enjoying Witch Dreams /more/. They're pretty similar books, with the theme of an outcast main female lead who is looking for revenge, but I think I enjoyed Nyssa more as a character, and I actually found the main male character more interesting (and genuinely sympathetic) in this one, as charming as the eponymous dragon is in Dragon's Bait. I also felt the way the emotional baggage/unpleasant scenarios were handled was very matter-of-fact, which I appreciated, as YA novels tend to overdo the emphasis on how tragic the characters' lives are.
The writing and plot were both very strong, the mystery was actually interesting and several parts took legitimately unexpected turns. I'd had suspicions of how things were going to go, and they were largely wrong, which is always a positive for me. I also really loved the final twist.
I think my main complaint (and the one area Dragon's Bait does better) is that the story feels a little incomplete. I was actually not upset by the ending, but it felt a little fast based on everything else that had gone on, and I would have actually liked to see the next part of the story.
All in all, a quick enjoyable read with some pretty solid mystery twists and likable characters.
Here, my main expectations were based on having read Dragon's Bait a long time ago, and I actually ended up enjoying Witch Dreams /more/. They're pretty similar books, with the theme of an outcast main female lead who is looking for revenge, but I think I enjoyed Nyssa more as a character, and I actually found the main male character more interesting (and genuinely sympathetic) in this one, as charming as the eponymous dragon is in Dragon's Bait. I also felt the way the emotional baggage/unpleasant scenarios were handled was very matter-of-fact, which I appreciated, as YA novels tend to overdo the emphasis on how tragic the characters' lives are.
The writing and plot were both very strong, the mystery was actually interesting and several parts took legitimately unexpected turns. I'd had suspicions of how things were going to go, and they were largely wrong, which is always a positive for me. I also really loved the final twist.
I think my main complaint (and the one area Dragon's Bait does better) is that the story feels a little incomplete. I was actually not upset by the ending, but it felt a little fast based on everything else that had gone on, and I would have actually liked to see the next part of the story.
All in all, a quick enjoyable read with some pretty solid mystery twists and likable characters.
June 25, 2023
There was room to further develop and expand here, which would have answered a few questions. The premise is original and intriguing, and the dreams themselves are interesting and well-written. It's the present that goes by too fast, and there are no seeming consequences for Nyssa's total disregard for her livelihood by the end of the story. I would have liked to see her and her new ally try to move on from the town only to be drawn back into the controversy in some way and have to defend themselves without revealing what they can do.
August 26, 2019
An intriguing, but sad and happy tale. The story is constructed well.The murderer couldn't have done it, nobody likes her, and she gets council from dead people. Not a very good life for an orphan servant. But forbidden talents can bring people together . . .
Although the reading level says 10 and up, the scenes of death and murder might disturb the very youngest folk.
Although the reading level says 10 and up, the scenes of death and murder might disturb the very youngest folk.
May 7, 2021
A big fan of V.V.V. and overall I found this book easy to read as I finished it in one sitting. However, this story seemed to rush to a rather abrupt ending and I would have liked to see it pace a little differently so I got to be more invested in the characters.
January 19, 2018
A very quick, simplistic read. This was a discard from the library. It could have been a better book if it had been developed more.
September 27, 2019
Enchanting. I really felt like i could understand our see from the main character's point of view. The ending was perfect.
May 14, 2021
Amazing! But I always love a book by Vivian Vande Velde.
August 6, 2022
I really liked these characters and arcs. The “twist” was rather obvious, but I think that was the point, so I’m not mad about it. As always from VVV, a lot of relevant social commentary.
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August 12, 2011Read the full review at Pica Reads.
When I finished Witch Dreams, my first thought was "that's it"? The story was both interesting and well-written, but I felt like the entire 120 pages of Witch Dreams was the introduction to a much longer book. Vande Velde could have expanded so much more - I felt like I got a tiny peek into a huge and rich world that I would have loved to spend more time in. And since the book was so short, I felt like I was missing about 200-300 pages of story.
Other than that objection, there was only two other things I was dissatisfied with. One was the very strange twist at the end that seemed to come out of nowhere. If you've read the book you'll know what I'm talking about (Worrell's "secret") (spoiler, highlight to view). It's one of the main reveals at the end, and I felt like it didn't need to be kept from the reader. Rather than a gasp of realization, it made me flip through earlier pages to see if I missed an earlier mention of it. The last issue I had was that at the end I felt like I knew more about Elsdon than Nyssa. Even though the reader got inside Nyssa's dreams, I never felt like I rally got inside her head. She didn't seem very deep as a character, or if she was, it was not obvious enough for me to really get at.
Many aspects of the story were very well done. Vande Velde started with a good concept and was able to expand it, if not to its very fullest potential, to a complete story. VVV was also very skilled at presenting the story in different narrative styles (flashbacks, dreams, straightforward narrative, etc.). One chapter was told from the point of view of a dog - one of my favorite chapters, actually. Read more...
When I finished Witch Dreams, my first thought was "that's it"? The story was both interesting and well-written, but I felt like the entire 120 pages of Witch Dreams was the introduction to a much longer book. Vande Velde could have expanded so much more - I felt like I got a tiny peek into a huge and rich world that I would have loved to spend more time in. And since the book was so short, I felt like I was missing about 200-300 pages of story.
Other than that objection, there was only two other things I was dissatisfied with. One was the very strange twist at the end that seemed to come out of nowhere. If you've read the book you'll know what I'm talking about (Worrell's "secret") (spoiler, highlight to view). It's one of the main reveals at the end, and I felt like it didn't need to be kept from the reader. Rather than a gasp of realization, it made me flip through earlier pages to see if I missed an earlier mention of it. The last issue I had was that at the end I felt like I knew more about Elsdon than Nyssa. Even though the reader got inside Nyssa's dreams, I never felt like I rally got inside her head. She didn't seem very deep as a character, or if she was, it was not obvious enough for me to really get at.
Many aspects of the story were very well done. Vande Velde started with a good concept and was able to expand it, if not to its very fullest potential, to a complete story. VVV was also very skilled at presenting the story in different narrative styles (flashbacks, dreams, straightforward narrative, etc.). One chapter was told from the point of view of a dog - one of my favorite chapters, actually. Read more...
April 21, 2013
I (re)read A Hidden Magic by Vande Velde not too long ago, and I admit, it made me worry that I wouldn't like this book by her. I've read books I liked (Dragon Bait and Companions of the Night), but A Hidden Magic was fresh in my mind. I'm happy to say Witch Dreams was a better read, though like A Hidden Magic, it's surprisingly short. At the heart, it's a murder mystery with a young girl playing detective in a medieval town. The mystery of who killed her parents has plagued Nyssa for six years to the point where people think she's crazy, but she's also a witch (or rather a psychic which is more accurate) who with a small token from her target can enter their dreams. She's determined to get revenge, and when the one who killed her parents comes back to town, she sets out get it.
Again, this book was 120 pages long, so the story goes very fast and some things are handled very briefly. One thing they glossed over in the book was the passage of time from Nyssa's parents death to the day Elsdon, the suspected murderer returns to town. She was ten when her parents died and now is 16. That's a lot of time for someone so young. She works in a wool merchant's house as a maid, but is that what she's done for six years? It didn't seem like it, and what about her brother? I know now that I've read the whole story why Vande Velde may have glossed over the years, but it still feels a little lacking. I wonder why she made so much time lapse. Why not have it only a year or two? Why six?
I knew the whodunit pretty early in the story, but it may be just because of my love of police procedurals. I thought the way Nyssa worked it out was clever. Overall, I thought it was a good read. I think tween girls would enjoy it and maybe some boys as well.
Again, this book was 120 pages long, so the story goes very fast and some things are handled very briefly. One thing they glossed over in the book was the passage of time from Nyssa's parents death to the day Elsdon, the suspected murderer returns to town. She was ten when her parents died and now is 16. That's a lot of time for someone so young. She works in a wool merchant's house as a maid, but is that what she's done for six years? It didn't seem like it, and what about her brother? I know now that I've read the whole story why Vande Velde may have glossed over the years, but it still feels a little lacking. I wonder why she made so much time lapse. Why not have it only a year or two? Why six?
I knew the whodunit pretty early in the story, but it may be just because of my love of police procedurals. I thought the way Nyssa worked it out was clever. Overall, I thought it was a good read. I think tween girls would enjoy it and maybe some boys as well.
February 10, 2016
Nyssa, who is 16, has the ability to share a person's dream. There are different kinds of dreams, and she dreams a true-memory one, remembering things as they happened. She was ten and her father had slapped her and called her a witch, threatening to send her to a convent. She was outside her house with her brother when they hear something happen.
Her brother goes into the house and finds the parents killed and he himself is badly injured. Nyssa ends up working as a servant girl for a wool merchant, and she blames herself for her father's death, feeling that she could have done something to prevent it.
She's sure she knows who killed them, but she wasn't there to see him and swear to that in court. His parents had lots of money and he was never convicted of the murders.
She gets a coin the supposed murderer threw at her (in the present time) and plans to use it to get into his dreams. Things go bad when she finds out he's not the one. Worse yet, she leaves her job after she gets a beating for being late to work.
She still is desperate to find out who actually killed her parents. To do so involves trusting someone she never trusted, and attempting to see into the dreams of something that is not human.
It's a fairly good book. I sort of guessed what actually happened, but there were various elements that I had not anticipated.
Her brother goes into the house and finds the parents killed and he himself is badly injured. Nyssa ends up working as a servant girl for a wool merchant, and she blames herself for her father's death, feeling that she could have done something to prevent it.
She's sure she knows who killed them, but she wasn't there to see him and swear to that in court. His parents had lots of money and he was never convicted of the murders.
She gets a coin the supposed murderer threw at her (in the present time) and plans to use it to get into his dreams. Things go bad when she finds out he's not the one. Worse yet, she leaves her job after she gets a beating for being late to work.
She still is desperate to find out who actually killed her parents. To do so involves trusting someone she never trusted, and attempting to see into the dreams of something that is not human.
It's a fairly good book. I sort of guessed what actually happened, but there were various elements that I had not anticipated.
May 24, 2010
Nyssa is a witch, which is not unheard of, but is punishable by death in this middle ages (sort of) world. She does not cast spells or anything like that, but she has the power to see other people's dreams. She can not control what dreams she sees, but she attempts to discover the truth of her parent's murder through the dreams of several witnesses. She also learns quite a few things about the man she accused and herself in this journey.
This is definitely not my favorite book I have read. There were some fun twists in the story. Also it was an interesting way to trace the mystery of her parents deaths (through the dreams she can see.) However the narrator of the story was honestly annoying. She kept telling herself how witless she is and how she can not do anything. This creates quite a few of the problems she experiences. I want to just shake her and say deal with it! It is a short read though and there are some enjoyable parts to the story.
This is definitely not my favorite book I have read. There were some fun twists in the story. Also it was an interesting way to trace the mystery of her parents deaths (through the dreams she can see.) However the narrator of the story was honestly annoying. She kept telling herself how witless she is and how she can not do anything. This creates quite a few of the problems she experiences. I want to just shake her and say deal with it! It is a short read though and there are some enjoyable parts to the story.
September 11, 2016
Short, interesting fantasy set in a vaguely medieval world. Nyssa, 16, can dream what other people dream, enter their memory-dreams as an observer, if she puts something of theirs under her pillow before she goes to sleep. She keeps this ability secret, for she fears if townsfolk learned she is a "witch" that she would be persecuted. She is haunted by her desire for revenge on the rich young man Elsdon, whom she is convinced murdered her parents and injured her older brother, rendering him unable to remember whom he saw commit the murder. She tries to get into Elsdon's dreams, but she sees only his fears, not his memories. The concept is intriguing and there's a couple of great twists to the story that I don't want to reveal here. It's a mystery and suspense story set among peasants and wealthy folk in a more primitive time.
March 16, 2014
I like the size of this book in my hand. I like how quickly I read it because I don't have a lot of time to invest in reading these days. What a great superpower -- just have something personal and you can see into someone's dreams--I would love to be able to do that. I knew all along what happened, but it was a different perspective to go through it in the mind of a traumatized girl. The ending is more of a beginning when you imagine all that these damaged characters can become for each other... support, love and encouragement as they had not experienced in life despite their backgrounds on opposite sides of society. So much is said with few words which makes this story one that will stay with me for a long while.
July 16, 2011
I must confess this is my least favorite of VVV's books. I was completely thrown off by her brother's....ah...situation as discovered at the end. I also thought that while the ending completely worked, it was a bit rushed. The whole story has hints of Nyssa being a bit mad - something you brush off as people not understanding her abilities. And yet...somehow you close the book wondering if she is truly a bit off. Or more than a bit. This made it harder to like Nyssa, and I like to enjoy my heroines. But then, this wouldn't be a VVV book without a little oddity mixed in, yes?
December 6, 2011
Nessa is a sixteen year old witch, orphaned by a murderer she is bent on bringing to justice. When the man she is sure has killed her parents returns to town, she uses her ability to join him in his dreams but these kind of dreams don't lie and what she sees through his eyes will change who she is forever.
I have to admit I was sure I had the 'mystery' figured out from the beginning and was both feeling lenient to Velde as this is a YA and berating her a little for too much foreshadowing but I was surprised by a twist I didn't see coming.
I have to admit I was sure I had the 'mystery' figured out from the beginning and was both feeling lenient to Velde as this is a YA and berating her a little for too much foreshadowing but I was surprised by a twist I didn't see coming.
October 7, 2009
This was not the best book I've ever read.
This was taken place about the time during the Witch Trail. When people who have been accused of messing with witchcraft were killed.
Nyssa went into people's dreams without them knowing.
One day her parents were murdered and she assumed it was the Prince, and that his parents were covering for him.
But there's more.
I would not recomend this book to people who have short attention spand.
This was taken place about the time during the Witch Trail. When people who have been accused of messing with witchcraft were killed.
Nyssa went into people's dreams without them knowing.
One day her parents were murdered and she assumed it was the Prince, and that his parents were covering for him.
But there's more.
I would not recomend this book to people who have short attention spand.
August 4, 2013
Vande Velde uses her tried and true plot formula once again, this time with a witch as the supernatural element and a murder mystery to drive the plot, resulting in an unlikely romantic couple by the finale. This may be a little formulaic for long-term readers of her novels, but the interesting characters and narrative style keep things interesting. And of course there's always at least one good plot twist right near the end, and Vande Velde does not disappoint!
January 9, 2011
Initial thoughts after reading (found in a notebook): I really like her books, especially how you know that the two main characters will fall in love some day, but it wasn't love at first sight where they spent the next 12 pages kissing. I really liked that aspect. I also liked the plot twist at the end - it completely shocked me - very cool.
October 27, 2008
This book is about a girl who can see people's dreams. In her time, witchcraft was a dangerous thing and a person accused could be killed. The heroine is left an orphan when her parents are killed. As she grows older, she is determined to find out who did it. She has a main suspect, and through dreams she finally finds out who did it. I think the ending of this book may surprise you.
September 20, 2016
Short but effective. A young girl's parents are killed and she is on her own after that. Blaming the person that was seen running from their home, Nyssa no longer believes it was Elsdon after seeing him again in a dream from her neighbor. Who killed her parents? This is what plagues her. A quick twist at the end is great!
July 25, 2016
Maybe 2.5. It felt more like a short story and I was a little disappointed. I didn't find any of the characters very interesting or compelling and found the whole book missing on action or any climax. I have enjoyed some of Vande Velde's other work a lot more.
February 1, 2016
I picked this book up at a garage sale and it was quick read since it was written for young teens i assume. I quite enjoyed it. I didnt expect the part of the ending. It was very intriguing and a good read
May 1, 2015
2.5
Definitely and interesting idea but I think it could have been more developed into a full length novel. Obviously adding more elements to the plot, not just stretching the current one out.
Definitely and interesting idea but I think it could have been more developed into a full length novel. Obviously adding more elements to the plot, not just stretching the current one out.
April 16, 2009
Vivian Vande Velde is the best!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews