Olivia Twisted
By Vivi Barnes
4/5
()
About this ebook
"One of the most interesting premises of any contemporary YA book this year. Moreover, its parallels to the literary powerhouse Oliver Twist are brilliant. With Barnes’ near-flawless writing, excellent character development and a smart storyline that readers will devour, this book deserves its RT Top Pick." -RT Book Reviews
Tossed from foster home to foster home, Olivia's seen a lot in her sixteen years. She's hardened, sure, though mostly just wants to fly under the radar until graduation. But her natural ability with computers catches the eye of Z, a mysterious guy at her new school. Soon, Z has brought Liv into his team of hacker elite?break into a few bank accounts, and voila, he drives a motorcycle. Follow his lead, and Olivia might even be able to escape from her oppressive foster parents. As Olivia and Z grow closer, though, so does the watchful eye of Bill Sykes, Z's boss. And he's got bigger plans for Liv…
Thanks to Z, Olivia's about to get twisted.
The Olivia Twisted series is best enjoyed in order.
Reading Order:
Book #1 Olivia Twisted
Book #2 Olivia Decoded
Related to Olivia Twisted
Titles in the series (2)
Olivia Twisted Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Olivia Decoded Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5
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Reviews for Olivia Twisted
14 ratings6 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Olivia Twisted is a great YA novel that provides a modern day spin on Charles Dickens’ classic Oliver Twist. You don’t need to read Oliver Twist to enjoy and appreciate the story though. It’s been so long since I read Dickens’ novel about a young orphan, Oliver, who becomes entrenched in the dark underworld of thievery that I can barely remember the plot. However, each chapter starts with a quote from Oliver Twist that foreshadows the events and reminded me of the parallels between the two novels. Olivia is the protagonist who has grown up in the foster care system, and when the story opens, she’s in the process of being shifted from one home to the next. Olivia’s perspective gives readers a heart wrenching look at the significant, long-term psychological effects this social care system can often have on children who are already emotionally vulnerable because of their familial situations. It’s sad to see that, at the age of sixteen, Olivia has become so cynical about love and happiness. Her hope and trust in others has been shattered over the years, and now she keeps her emotions in check and does what she has to in order to survive and keep going. Her insightful, critical analysis of her new foster parents and previous homes reveal the underlying emotional pain of abandonment that she keeps carefully hidden away. Olivia is a strong, resilient young woman whose impressive computer skills, oppressive foster parents, and longing to find a place where she fits in make her susceptible to the wiles of Sam and Z, two of her new classmates who target her as a new recruit for their illicit computer hacker operation masquerading as a group home for unwanted children. Bill Sykes, the leader, relies upon one of his most talented hackers, Z, to find and lure other youth who have no familial ties into their secretive lair where online thievery is a way of life with no escape.Sykes is a ruthless criminal who cares only about profit and relies upon Z to make sure operations run smoothly. Z is an enigmatic character with a mysterious and painful past who has no qualms about using others to keep Bill happy and protect the group home. Once Sam identifies Olivia as a perfect candidate to bring into their world, she and Z slowly begin to slowly entice Olivia into considering another way of life that will provide her with “financial freedom”. Until he gets to know Oliva, Z has always viewed girls as a means to a profitable end and used his looks and charm to seduce them into joining their team. However, Z is drawn to Olivia and her innocence. He recognizes she is different from all the other girls and becomes deeply conflicted about pulling her into the greed-driven life that Sykes rules. This is a beautiful love story between Z and Olivia where circumstances and danger push them to make pivotal decisions that will affect the rest of their lives. The characters are richly developed, and the plot is so fascinating that by the time I finished, I wanted to hide my digital footprint from lurking online criminals. The ending was the only aspect that disappointed me because it seemed rushed and underdeveloped. Nevertheless, this is a book I’d recommend to teens and adults who enjoy the YA genre.I received an ARC of this book from the publisher for an honest review.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The author says she was inspired to write a modern retelling of Oliver Twist. And she did, with some fairly decent parallels and allusions to the Dickens classic. But it seemed to me that making it a romance with that sort of happily-ever-after took away, rather than added to, the story. I just couldn't buy into the redemption of Z via his romantic feelings for Olivia.
Trigger Warnings: Past Sexual-Abuse of a Minor, Attempted Rape, Violence Against Women
(Provided by publisher) - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Olivia Twisted is a modern-day take on Oliver Twist. Instead of pick-pockets and con men, Z and his house are computer hackers who steal from corporations to make money for Bill who runs the house. Z's job is also to recruit new hackers to live and work at the house, especially girls who are taken with his good looks and charms. In comes Olivia who is new to the school and seems like a perfect recruit. She is well-versed with computers and is an orphan living with a foster family. Problems arise when Z begins to fall for Olivia and at the same time realizes that she will never be able to accept the life of a criminal. This is a well-written take on a classic story. Z is charming and Olivia definitely changes his world.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Olivia Twisted is a modern-day take on Oliver Twist. Instead of pick-pockets and con men, Z and his house are computer hackers who steal from corporations to make money for Bill who runs the house. Z's job is also to recruit new hackers to live and work at the house, especially girls who are taken with his good looks and charms. In comes Olivia who is new to the school and seems like a perfect recruit. She is well-versed with computers and is an orphan living with a foster family. Problems arise when Z begins to fall for Olivia and at the same time realizes that she will never be able to accept the life of a criminal. This is a well-written take on a classic story. Z is charming and Olivia definitely changes his world.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5NOTE: I received the eARC from Entangled Teen via Netgalley
Sometimes I like classic book retellings. Sometimes I don't. It all depends on how good the 'new version' is and how close to the classic. Olivia Twisted grabbed my attention NOT because it's a retelling of Oliver Twist. In fact, I haven't read Oliver Twist and perhaps that was one of the reasons I requested Vivi Barnes's version at all.
I have no idea what Charles Dickens wrote in his novel, absolutely none. I guess that's why I wasn't swept into an endless cycle of comparing old vs. new and that's good. I hate it when the reading of a book goes down to comparing it to another book. All the joy is gone, and you just go through the motions to finish it. To be done with it.
Which is why I really really liked Olivia Twisted. I had nothing to compare it to, so it was its own story. It was written by a talented author, there's no doubt in that. The style was captivating, the writing was fluent, the story followed a very tight, strong plot. In other words, I was enthralled.
I'm an IT person myself, not a geek mind you, but at least I'm fluent in the tech language and coding isn't foreign to me. Which is why I was interested in Olivia to begin with. I was hooked on her story right away. I'm a sucker for foster kids' stories. I don't know why. I don't feel sorry for them exactly. I feel sad - that they won't ever experience the natural love only a true parent can give; that they will be dependent on a flawed system; that they will depend on people who are strangers to them.
But then Olivia ended up in the family of Derrick and Mrs. Carter and I thought "Well, they seem like nice people. Sure the lady is a bit reserved, but the guy seems pretty cool." And I felt happy for this poor girl who'd gone through about a dozen homes since she lost her mom.
For a sixteen year old, Olivia had a pretty well developed character. What I liked the most about her was her adamant position on the right and wrong things in life. The girl was dead honest and good to the core. I waited for her to take one wrong step and somehow fall into the hands of the villain (forgive me, Mr. Villain, I forgot your name), but she kept herself on the narrow and would rather die than fall into the hands a man with no scruples. I loved her for her strength, for how true to herself she was, how devoted to have her consciousness clean. Sure, she made a mistake or two - who doesn't? - but they didn't define who she was. And I was impressed when Mr. Villain threatened her in numerous ways, but instead of giving in, she simply kept thinking of ways to outsmart him. I loved that girl!
Z, well, what can I say about Z. Mysterious from the beginning. He pretended to be satisfied and happy where he was, with what he was doing. But it was obvious he was anything but. Mostly, he stuck around to protect the other kids in Mr. Villain's house. Z was kind of like the big brother to them all. He protected them, took the blame, recruited new kids, etc. etc. And I'm pretty sure he would've stayed in this position for quite a while because he simply didn't think he had any other options. That is until Liv walked in and swept him off his feet. He'd been waiting for his next target, hoping it would be someone who had a natural talent with coding. Someone who won't turn out like his last two recruits. But Liv is so much more than he imagined. Because she actually warmed herself into his heart and got to know him on the deepest level. In other words, Olivia changed him from the inside out. Z wasn't the same when he was with her - he had no need to pretend to be strong. With her, he could be scared, he could be unsure, he could be broken. With her, he could be Jack.
As much as I wanted to like Sam, Z and Liv's other friend, I just couldn't find it in me. She was all pretense, all business. Olivia trusted Sam, but the only thing Sam did for Liv was get her in trouble. Which is to say, not all friends are worth keeping..
In conclusion I can only say that Olivia Twisted is a very intriguing novel from beginning to end. It's something I enjoyed reading quite a lot and would recommend to all book lovers out there. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Okay, so some of you who have been following my reviews here probably know that I'm not generally the type to go for the bad guy in a book. Um, Z would definitely be the one to change that :) That may be a random way to start this review, but I seriously loved this book. Olivia was sweet and strong and I really felt for her from the very start. And the whole story was so well tied together that I just couldn't put it down. The relationship between Liv and Z was lots of fun, but the rest of the story drew me in--who doesn't like a little hacking and crazy guys controlling the lives of a host of amazing computer whizzes? Anyhow, I'm not doing this book justice, bottom line is that I highly recommend this one. It was a blast to read and I loved it!
Book preview
Olivia Twisted - Vivi Barnes
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