Official Review: Zavannah by Jo Duckworth

[Niv123]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Zavannah" by Jo Duckworth.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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Zavannah, by Jo Duckworth, is a mixture of fantasy and pulp fiction. It narrates the story of Zavannah and her complicated adult life as a witch and gypsy. The novel is written from the point of view of Zavannah, though at times we feel the author’s presence as well.

The plot is not vast, but is quite complicated in a peculiar fashion. Zavannah is a young girl who stands out for her bright red hair. She has been brought up by her grandmother, as her mother, Rebecca, went missing many years ago after she was kidnapped by Annabelle, a villainous woman who was after Rebecca’s husband. Having been turned down by him, she is furious, and for the next twenty years, Annabelle is after any red-headed woman who might slightly resemble Rebecca. This is mainly out of spite and a neurotic condition she suffers, which enables her to obsessively despise beautiful red-haired women. Will Zavannah suffer the same plight as her mother when she is discovered by Annabelle? Or will she uncover a denser plot underneath the surface of Annabelle’s infamous reputation?

There are other characters who come into play during the course of the novel. Josh, is one of those characters, who unavoidably becomes Zavannah's love interest. Apart from him, most of the other characters are forgettable almost as soon as they disappear from the story.

The writing style leaves some room for improvement, as it mostly describes the bare minimum and leaves most to the imagination of the reader. The lack of quotation marks makes the novel quite incomprehensible, as all the dialogues of the characters blend into each other like a long and endless essay.

I liked how the novel combined vastly different characters into one story. One can find witches, witch-hunters, gypsies, pirates and dream-walkers. I also liked that the novel was fast-paced and did not dwell on unnecessary details.

I am sorry to say that the novel does not seem to be professionally edited. Almost every page contains a number of spelling, grammatical and typographical errors. It was also disheartening to see that the names of the characters themselves are misspelled at times. The novel will drastically improve if it undergoes a round of thorough editing.

With all these reasons in mind, I would rate the book two out of four stars. The errors and writing style are the main reasons for the deduction of two stars. I believe this novel will be appealing to young adults who enjoy fast-paced romances, with a touch of the mystical.

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Zavannah
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[Chimdi_3]

Great review.I hope Zavannah will escape Annabelle so she can enjoy her life.

[Claris L]

It's unfortunate to hear that almost every page has so many spelling, grammar and typographical-related errors. The story sounds interesting, but I don't think I will be able to enjoy reading this book given all of these mistakes. I hope the book gets professionally edited.

[Tonika632]

This book sounds interesting. I love the plotline; it seems like we are getting to know the author itself, but I easily get distracted by errors and mistakes. Great review!