Witchlight

by Jessi Zabarsky (2016)

The first time Sanja lays her eyes on Lelek the Witch, she gets caught up in a whirlwind of chaos and stolen away from her humble village life. Sanja quickly finds out that her kidnapper Lelek isn’t as bad or as hard as she hopes to appear – the Witch is on a desperate quest to recover her missing half. As they travel together, the unlikely pair grow more entangled. Lelek learns about strength, gentleness and her own limitations, while Sanja learns more about the traumatic past behind Lelek’s bravado, and both stumble their way through the difficulties of growing close to another person.

Set against the backdrop of a Miyazaki-esque fantasy world, is filled with witch battles, murky pasts, quiet moments and tender emotion. This volume collects Zabarsky’s lushly illustrated shoujo adventure series into a single book, including the heart-gripping conclusion.