Stolen - by Vivian Vande Velde

As with most of Vande Velde's books I've read so far, this was a fun, quick read with a neat little twist at the end.

The same day that the local witch has had her cottage burned down for stealing another child, twelve-year-old Isabelle (is that really her name?) wakes up running through the forest and quickly finds herself chased up a tree by dogs. She doesn't remember anything before the running. Not her name, her family, where she's from, or why she was running. She is taken in by a kind family in the village of Thornstowe to help her recover, but is soon claimed by villagers Mady and Frayne as their daughter Isabelle, who was supposedly stolen by the local witch when she was six. Isabelle is not convinced, and neither is her supposed sister, Honey, who thinks Isabelle was sent by the witch to torment them. Will Isabelle ever remember who she truly is? Will she ever feel like she belongs again? Will she ever find out what happened to her?

Isabelle is an honest, likeable character who, while really wanting to belong and know who she is, is not ready to jump to any conclusions. While she doesn't like Honey, she doesn't disagree with her about the uncertainty of her origins.

As the events unfold and the truth starts to slowly seep in, both Isabelle and the reader feel the dread and anxiety building about how it will end. But it does end, and all wraps up well, and we know who Isabelle is and where she came from, and what happened to the stolen children.

I figured out who Isabelle was early on. But whether you figure it out or not, it is still a delicious little twist on the typical witch fairy tale. I highly recommend it!