Wednesday, March 14, 2018

Olivia Twist

Do you love the retelling of classics? I do and I have a couple I'm going to do for you this year (yeah, I'm looking ahead) but let's start with this one. It's a reimagined version of Oliver Twist.

Olivia Twist - Lorie Langdon

Olivia Brownlow is no damsel in distress. Born in a workhouse and raised as a boy among thieving London street gangs, she is as tough and cunning as they come. When she is taken in by her uncle after a caper gone wrong, her life goes from fighting and stealing on the streets to lavish dinners and soirees as a debutante in high society. But she can’t seem to escape her past … or forget the teeming slums where children just like her still scrabble to survive.

Jack MacCarron rose from his place in London’s East End to become the adopted “nephew” of a society matron. Little does society know that MacCarron is a false name for a boy once known among London gangs as the Artful Dodger, and that he and his “aunt” are robbing them blind every chance they get. When Jack encounters Olivia Brownlow in places he least expects, his curiosity is piqued. Why is a society girl helping a bunch of homeless orphan thieves? Even more intriguing, why does she remind him so much of someone he once knew? Jack finds himself wondering if going legit and risking it all might be worth it for love.

Olivia Twist is an innovative reimagining of Charles Dickens’ classic tale Oliver Twist, in which Olivia was forced to live as a boy for her own safety until she was rescued from the streets. Now eighteen, Olivia finds herself at a crossroads: revealed secrets threaten to destroy the “proper” life she has built for her herself, while newfound feelings for an arrogant young man she shouldn’t like could derail her carefully laid plans for the future.


This book was so good I had a hard time putting it down. You know the story of Oliver Twist, but this is so rich and full of London goodness, dare I say it's better than the original? It's in the same time period but it feels modern, like this could be a modern day retelling almost. The author does a great job with her words so you picture the scenery, the children, the other characters, you get the feel and the grit of the scenes, she just did a really great job with this book. In the back it says this has been in the works for 35 years and you can tell because it's just written so well.

I did not expect a love story between Olivia and Jack, The Artful Dodger, but love story is what we got. A slow moving, rich cat and mouse game ending in a sweet romance. This isn't a retelling so much as it is a "what happened next?", and we find Olivia and Jack off the streets and no longer orphans. Though separated and Olivia no longer disguised as a young man, she and Jack find themselves in the glittering echelon of London society. Though they are no longer orphans, old habits die hard and they are still thieving independently to further their causes until one evening when Olivia realizes why Jack looks so familiar, he's her Artful Dodger, the orphan who took her in and helped her develop her skills, so to speak. The way it plays out and how their relationship develops is fun because Jack doesn't realize how good Olivia, who used to be Ollie, has become and how she continued to pull one over him. But when he realizes who she is and their relationship develops, it is so sweet. Jack can be himself, though he doesn't feel like he deserve her but he does! And she deserves him! It's PERFECT.

I loved this one so much and it was so much better than the original for me. I really adored this one. It's a great read for the YA audience, but even my 12 year old is loving it right now so this really spans the readership groups.

   

1 comment:

Lauren said...

I love books that various ages can all enjoy. I've never read Oliver Twist, but I DO want to read this one. It sounds great!

-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net