I found this book really hard to get into or hook my interest. At times it felt unnecessarily pretentious and others a bit patronising with uneeded explanation, or perhaps I just missed the comedic intention. It's obviously a very niche complaint, and maybe not something the author could do anything about, but as a non- american I found some of the abbreviations and behaviour quite baffling.
Thank you to netgalley and faber and faber for an advance copy of this book.

A clever, perhaps too clever account of a young woman trying to overcome a difficult start in Southern California. The writing tries too hard in places and was at times confusing as the action moved between characters without any clue as to who was speaking. It did make me laugh at times and so I wanted to like it more than I did, found it hard to relate to the main characters, which is always tricky. Useful insight into how things are often not what they seem.

With thanks to the publisher and netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The E-Book could be improved and more user-friendly, such as links to the chapters, no large gaps between words some text written has been typed in red and a cover for the book would be better. It is very document-like instead of a book therefore a star is lost for this.

In Avalon, we follow Bran’s attempts to escape her dire upbringing and make a better (??) life for herself - Bran’s journey to ‘basic bitch’.

Avalon had strong characters, but their pseudo-intellectualism and edgelord humour felt a bit over-cooked to me. With that said, some of the humour kept me engaged. Overall, I felt it missed the mark.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for access to a digital proof of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

I gave the three stars because it wasn’t badly written at all. I just felt that for me was way too derivative. I felt like I was reading Donna Tartt style mysterious and complex family entanglements but with no heart or really any attempt to make me like anybody. I was 10% into the book before I realised I’d wrongly assumed I knew what gender the narrator was, which shocked me at the time. Had I missed it? Did it not matter? I feel like I should’ve known at least the basics before I could start to be invested in a character. Not my thing, sorry, but thanks for the pre-read.

Teenage Bran has no contact with her father, and after her mother abandons her lives on a plant farm with her “commonlaw stepfather” and his workers who are also part of a biker gang. She is both neglected and exploited by them, and as a misfit herself, her only friends are fellow oddities. When she meets arty but pretentious Peter and he both leads her on and rebuffs her constantly, she slowly begins to broaden her horizons, escapes from the farm and recreates herself at the start of a new life. Unusual and sometimes funny and engaging, this was a strange novel, aimed at a younger, hipper demographic than me I think. I loathed Peter but warmed to Bran, a young woman with the odds piled against her but with a strong instinct for survival.

Zink's prose is as deft as her sideswipes at everyone from rogue bikers to worried-well do gooders. There's something Pynchonesque about her writing style. Definitely not everyone's cup of tea, but will surely hit the spot if it is.

I really love the way Zink writes. Muscly and original sentences, bizarre scenarios, keenly wrought characterisation. This madcap story of a young woman escaping from dire circumstances with the help of some eccentric and challenged friends won’t be everyone’s idea of fun but suspend cynicism and intolerance and enjoy the unusual literary ride.

Nell Zink’s Avalon sees a young woman with a less than favourable upbringing, trying to find her place in the world, becoming caught up in a relationship which seems doomed almost from the get-go.

Bran's mother took herself off to a Buddhist monastery leaving her ten-year-old daughter with her partner and his shady family. Expected to earn her keep by working in the family business, Bran is a social outcast, drawn into a high school clique of fellow misfits by her only friend. It’s Jay who introduces her to Peter with whom she becomes besotted, beginning a torturous relationship made even more so by Peter’s accidental engagement to a woman whose apparent ambition is to be a 1950s housewife. The novel culminates in a party which will put some sort of seal on their relationship, for better or worse.

Bran tells us her own Cinderella story beginning with an ending of sorts and winding backwards. Beautiful and bright, she suffers a Dickensian exploitation by the Hendersons, living vicariously through her few friends who scatter to various colleges leaving her behind. It's very funny at times - Zink has a lot of fun with the painfully pedantic Peter and his inability to utter anything without larding it with literary references. An enjoyable enough read which occasionally stretches credibility – Bran and Peter are the most unlikely couple you’re ever likely to meet - I’m sure it will please Zink's many fans.

The writing in the first couple of pages was so off putting that I gave up rather than wasting any more of my time. I seem to be gettIng ruthless in my old age! I ams simply not prepared to make the effort when the initial reward is so slight.

After reading Avalon by Nell Zink I feel like I wanted more about Bran and her attempts to find a family and less about Peter.

Hmm... is this a 'challenging' text or is Zink just trying to be clever and coming across as pretentious? I don't know. I don't think it's so much the subject matter, or the plot, as the use of language and the need (so it seems) to demonstrate an intellectualism that seems a bit... well... overcooked. I don't think there was any need to overwhelm the reader with that kind of style, though this is the first novel of Zink's I've read, and perhaps it's just a narrative quirk. Nevertheless, if you can look past that, it's a novel that has its compelling moments and I liked the characterisation of Bran, who is, essentially trying to find herself, and Peter who thinks he's found everything about everything, perhaps. Despite the (slight) criticisms here, as a reader, I did become invested in Bran's life and I'll probably read it again - it's one of those novels that probably needs a re-read.

My grateful thanks to NetGalley and to the publishers for the ARC.