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Olivia Twisted #1
Olivia Twisted
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.
Thanks to Z, Olivia's about to get twisted.
352 pages, Paperback
First published November 5, 2013
32 people are currently reading
1839 people want to read
About the author
Vivi Barnes
7 books208 followersVivi Barnes was raised on a farm in East Texas where her theater-loving mom and cowboy dad gave her a unique perspective on life. Now living in the magic and sunshine of Orlando, Florida, she divides her time writing, working, goofing off with her husband and three kids, and avoiding dirty dishes.
Find her on twitter: https://twitter.com/ViviBarnes
Find her on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/vivibarnes.au...
Find her on twitter: https://twitter.com/ViviBarnes
Find her on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/vivibarnes.au...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 132 reviews
December 4, 2013
*Khanh strums her guitar, begins to sing (off-key)*
Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy,
But you might have drugged me
And hacked into my foster care records
And almost killed me by riding recklessly on a motorbike
*Khanh falters midnote*
...But I still love you, baby?
Wow, that sounded even worse when I verbalized it.
This book is a modern-day retelling of Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist. I don't know about you, but by the Dickens, I find Dickens to be boring as fuck, so I'm just going to take the book at its face value and I'm not even going to bother analyzing its accuracy relevant to the original story. Because really, the last thing I want to do now that I'm out of school, is revisit Dickens. Some people enjoy Dickens' writing. I stick to my once-yearly (TV) viewing of A Christmas Carol, and screw the rest. I appreciate his contribution to literature (and he's given us quite a few quotable sentences), but personally, Dickens just puts me to sleep.
Back to THIS book: just on its own merit, the book didn't work for me. The protagonist (Olivia, "Liv") is wishy washy, difficult to like, and as a friend so succinctly put it "You sure are naive for a foster kid.” Yep, here we go again, another supposedly street-smart foster kid who's as dumb as a rock. Speaking of parents, NONE! I've often laughed about the high mortality rates of parents in YA fiction since often, a parent (or both, and the sister, brother, dog, and hamster) dies. Well, dun dun DUN. You guys are in for a treat. We have not just one orphan in this book, but three. THREE major orphan characters (and that's not to mention the rest of the kids playing side characters)! It's not a stretch of the imagination, I suppose, I mean, this is a retelling of Dickens that we're talking about here. Orphans everywhere, and not a single fucking brain in between the fucking lot of them all.
As for the premise, it's weak and completely stretches the boundaries of credibility. I know that this is a work of fiction, I am willing to give all fiction a reasonable amount of wiggle room, but for a story to be believable, it must have some basis of credibility, and this book completely stretches my reasonable accomodaties for a feasible plot. My eyebrows were permanently stuck with one raised well above the other during the act of reading this book.
Summary: Olivia is an orphan, 16 years old. She has been bounced around the foster care system since she was a child. Even so, she's a brilliant student, and a supposedly good "hacker." She has been placed with a new foster home, in which the foster father is oddly cheerful, and the foster mother is a strict, unrelenting alcoholic bitch. At her new school, she befriends some new kids, who sees her 1337 h4x0rz skillzzz during computer science class (Sam and "Z"), and wants her to join them. The hacking team is headed by a sinister man named Bill, and they're pulled into some sort of plot. Blah blah blah.
:|
The point is that Liv and Z fall in love. Whatever.
The Plot: Just ludicrous, really. It's a stretch of the imagination to call Liv a "hacker." Her hacking ability, for the majority of the book, is limited to looking at her teacher's hand as she types in order to get her user name and password for the school's administration system so that Liv can change her name in the system from "Olive" to "Olivia. " She also told us she's previously "hacked" into an old friend's Facebook account to fuck with her user information, make her private messages public. Her hacking attempts are more of the data mining attempts than real hacking. For example, she hacks into a the bank account of "Sam Calderon" by pretty much Googling his information and answering his secret questions. Fucking seriously? There's just no way. I do online banking myself. I know it's more complicated than that to reset a fucking password. The "hacking" Liv does within this book is fucking laughable because there's no evidence of anything fucking remotely technical about it. It's a neophyte's idea of hacking.
And then we have the ragtag band of orphans. A HOUSE FULL OF ORPHANS. It's like a halfway house for kids, run by a sinister man named Bill---of whom I'm not even remotely scared because he never ever ever ever makes a fucking presence in the book. A shadowy whisper of a name is not going to fucking scare me, and I don't really understand the extent to which he has his teenaged hacking crew terrified. The idea and the presence of Bill is so lacking, that he makes for a completely boring villain.
As for the ragtag crew of hackers---they see themselves as Robin Hoods. They're not. They do not steal from the rich to give to the poor. They steal from the rich (big corporations) to give to themselves. Sam drives a Camaro. Z drives a Ducati. 17 years old with Ducati. That's TOTALLY UNDER THE RADAR. These kids are dumb as fuck. They don't know what riding low is unless it has something to do with Flo Rida (bad pun, I'm so sorry, but you guys should be used to it by now ^_^).
These people believe that the big corporations are Big Bad Wolves, and therefore it's ok to steal from them because it's not like they're taking food away from the mouths of hungry old ladies. Fuck you. I'm not a fan of big corporations either, but these companies are employers. They employ hundreds of thousands of people. And guess who's going to be hurt by theft. You fucking seriously think the Big bad executives are going to dock their own multimillion dollar salaries to compensate for the theft? No, they're going to fire some entry-level janitors who need their job to feed their starving family. Fuck you, you fucking dumb as shit Robin Hood Wannabes.
They all live in a gigantic fucking stone mansion. Seriously, there are like no fucking police presence in this novel because they all think the police are fucking morons.
Listen, I'm as distrustful of authorities as the next person, but they get stuff done. These people have no trust in the police. Like when something bad happens to Liv, and she has the evidence ON DVD. Let me repeat. Liv has the evidence on a DVD. Neither she nor her friends contact the police because they do not believe the police can do anything about it.
Fucking dumb kids.
The Characters: Liv is weak as hell. She is a dumbass and naive, despite being a supposed tough foster kid. She is so easy to manipulate. She is talked into shoplifting by a Robin-Hood Wannabe because she doesn't want to lose her newfound friendship.
Here's where I don't get Liv. She never goes for help when she needs it. She gets into a lot of dangerous situations, and she just completely chooses not to contact the authorities. At the beginning of the book, someone drugged her drink. She nearly got date-raped. She refuses to go to the police.
The Romance:...do absolutely fucking NOTHING. Fuck you, Z. He claims to love Liv. It's a fucking twisted (no pun intended) kind of love. Liv tells him about the DVD, he doesn't go to the police because the police might bust open their entire hacking organization. Money before love, right?
Liv suspects Z of slipping her the date rape drug. And she trusts him anyway.
Liv knows Z is a player who runs around using and discarding girls. She trusts him anyway.
Liv almost got killed when Z takes her for a spin on his Ducati, driving dangerously fast and evading the police. She trusts him anyway.
Liv knows Z hacked into her school record and changed her grade from an A to a C. She trusts him anyway.
Liv knows Z hacked into her foster care records, knows of her sexual abusive foster parents. She trusts him anyway.
Liv doesn't even know Z's real name because he doesn't even fucking trust her enough to reveal that. She trusts him anyway.
There's a reason I don't read New Adult. There's a reason I avoid it, it's because of fucking asshole alpha males like Z and the dumb bitches who love them. I should never have read this book.
Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy,
But you might have drugged me
And hacked into my foster care records
And almost killed me by riding recklessly on a motorbike
*Khanh falters midnote*
...But I still love you, baby?
Wow, that sounded even worse when I verbalized it.
This book is a modern-day retelling of Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist. I don't know about you, but by the Dickens, I find Dickens to be boring as fuck, so I'm just going to take the book at its face value and I'm not even going to bother analyzing its accuracy relevant to the original story. Because really, the last thing I want to do now that I'm out of school, is revisit Dickens. Some people enjoy Dickens' writing. I stick to my once-yearly (TV) viewing of A Christmas Carol, and screw the rest. I appreciate his contribution to literature (and he's given us quite a few quotable sentences), but personally, Dickens just puts me to sleep.
Back to THIS book: just on its own merit, the book didn't work for me. The protagonist (Olivia, "Liv") is wishy washy, difficult to like, and as a friend so succinctly put it "You sure are naive for a foster kid.” Yep, here we go again, another supposedly street-smart foster kid who's as dumb as a rock. Speaking of parents, NONE! I've often laughed about the high mortality rates of parents in YA fiction since often, a parent (or both, and the sister, brother, dog, and hamster) dies. Well, dun dun DUN. You guys are in for a treat. We have not just one orphan in this book, but three. THREE major orphan characters (and that's not to mention the rest of the kids playing side characters)! It's not a stretch of the imagination, I suppose, I mean, this is a retelling of Dickens that we're talking about here. Orphans everywhere, and not a single fucking brain in between the fucking lot of them all.
As for the premise, it's weak and completely stretches the boundaries of credibility. I know that this is a work of fiction, I am willing to give all fiction a reasonable amount of wiggle room, but for a story to be believable, it must have some basis of credibility, and this book completely stretches my reasonable accomodaties for a feasible plot. My eyebrows were permanently stuck with one raised well above the other during the act of reading this book.
Summary: Olivia is an orphan, 16 years old. She has been bounced around the foster care system since she was a child. Even so, she's a brilliant student, and a supposedly good "hacker." She has been placed with a new foster home, in which the foster father is oddly cheerful, and the foster mother is a strict, unrelenting alcoholic bitch. At her new school, she befriends some new kids, who sees her 1337 h4x0rz skillzzz during computer science class (Sam and "Z"), and wants her to join them. The hacking team is headed by a sinister man named Bill, and they're pulled into some sort of plot. Blah blah blah.
:|
The point is that Liv and Z fall in love. Whatever.
The Plot: Just ludicrous, really. It's a stretch of the imagination to call Liv a "hacker." Her hacking ability, for the majority of the book, is limited to looking at her teacher's hand as she types in order to get her user name and password for the school's administration system so that Liv can change her name in the system from "Olive" to "Olivia. " She also told us she's previously "hacked" into an old friend's Facebook account to fuck with her user information, make her private messages public. Her hacking attempts are more of the data mining attempts than real hacking. For example, she hacks into a the bank account of "Sam Calderon" by pretty much Googling his information and answering his secret questions. Fucking seriously? There's just no way. I do online banking myself. I know it's more complicated than that to reset a fucking password. The "hacking" Liv does within this book is fucking laughable because there's no evidence of anything fucking remotely technical about it. It's a neophyte's idea of hacking.
And then we have the ragtag band of orphans. A HOUSE FULL OF ORPHANS. It's like a halfway house for kids, run by a sinister man named Bill---of whom I'm not even remotely scared because he never ever ever ever makes a fucking presence in the book. A shadowy whisper of a name is not going to fucking scare me, and I don't really understand the extent to which he has his teenaged hacking crew terrified. The idea and the presence of Bill is so lacking, that he makes for a completely boring villain.
As for the ragtag crew of hackers---they see themselves as Robin Hoods. They're not. They do not steal from the rich to give to the poor. They steal from the rich (big corporations) to give to themselves. Sam drives a Camaro. Z drives a Ducati. 17 years old with Ducati. That's TOTALLY UNDER THE RADAR. These kids are dumb as fuck. They don't know what riding low is unless it has something to do with Flo Rida (bad pun, I'm so sorry, but you guys should be used to it by now ^_^).
These people believe that the big corporations are Big Bad Wolves, and therefore it's ok to steal from them because it's not like they're taking food away from the mouths of hungry old ladies. Fuck you. I'm not a fan of big corporations either, but these companies are employers. They employ hundreds of thousands of people. And guess who's going to be hurt by theft. You fucking seriously think the Big bad executives are going to dock their own multimillion dollar salaries to compensate for the theft? No, they're going to fire some entry-level janitors who need their job to feed their starving family. Fuck you, you fucking dumb as shit Robin Hood Wannabes.
They all live in a gigantic fucking stone mansion. Seriously, there are like no fucking police presence in this novel because they all think the police are fucking morons.
Listen, I'm as distrustful of authorities as the next person, but they get stuff done. These people have no trust in the police. Like when something bad happens to Liv, and she has the evidence ON DVD. Let me repeat. Liv has the evidence on a DVD. Neither she nor her friends contact the police because they do not believe the police can do anything about it.
Fucking dumb kids.
The Characters: Liv is weak as hell. She is a dumbass and naive, despite being a supposed tough foster kid. She is so easy to manipulate. She is talked into shoplifting by a Robin-Hood Wannabe because she doesn't want to lose her newfound friendship.
If I don’t do this, I risk alienating the only friend I’ve made since moving here.Morals. TOTALLY OPEN TO DEBATE.
“It’s not like I’m asking you to break open the cash register. When you make better money, maybe you can come back and buy something for real.
Here's where I don't get Liv. She never goes for help when she needs it. She gets into a lot of dangerous situations, and she just completely chooses not to contact the authorities. At the beginning of the book, someone drugged her drink. She nearly got date-raped. She refuses to go to the police.
He gave me the soda and I drank it all; he must’ve slipped something in it. Maybe I should call the police, but I don’t know what they’ll ask. It’s probably too late for that, anyway.And that's not to mention the despicable DVD event. Someone secretly installs a surveilance camera and tapes Liv. She sees the DVD. She runs into her lovers' arms...who then proceeds to....
The Romance:...do absolutely fucking NOTHING. Fuck you, Z. He claims to love Liv. It's a fucking twisted (no pun intended) kind of love. Liv tells him about the DVD, he doesn't go to the police because the police might bust open their entire hacking organization. Money before love, right?
Anyone who cared about her would call the police. But it would alert them to Monroe Street.I've said it in the very beginning. The romance is fucking unbelievable.
Liv suspects Z of slipping her the date rape drug. And she trusts him anyway.
Liv knows Z is a player who runs around using and discarding girls. She trusts him anyway.
Liv almost got killed when Z takes her for a spin on his Ducati, driving dangerously fast and evading the police. She trusts him anyway.
Liv knows Z hacked into her school record and changed her grade from an A to a C. She trusts him anyway.
Liv knows Z hacked into her foster care records, knows of her sexual abusive foster parents. She trusts him anyway.
Liv doesn't even know Z's real name because he doesn't even fucking trust her enough to reveal that. She trusts him anyway.
There's a reason I don't read New Adult. There's a reason I avoid it, it's because of fucking asshole alpha males like Z and the dumb bitches who love them. I should never have read this book.
October 19, 2016
I stay cool on the outside, but inside I'm whooping and giving myself high fives.
I bet that every one of you has some kind of guilty pleasure books. Well, mine is a good high school drama where mysterious/bad boy falls in love with a 'loser' girl. Don't judge me! I know I am not the only one.
Olivia Twisted is exactly one of those books. But don't be mistaken by my categorization. It's much more interesting because of its story background. Olivia (main character) has to impress her crush Z (not a nickname - it's really his name) by her hacking skills. Even if it means to get into trouble. Bigger troubles than she can imagine.
15 hours.
That is how long it took me to read this book in its entirety.
This book sucked me in after finishing first chapter. It's full of clichés but I didn't mind. I like both main characters. I felt attraction between Olivia and Z and I couldn't wait for their first kiss!
They always fall for him. Just like you did.
It was a quick, easy read and I enjoyed every page of this book! It's definitely not my last book by Vivi Barnes.
I recommend it to all people with the same guilty pleasure like I have.
Now excuse me, I need to continue with Olivia Decoded.
***
I received a free copy from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
March 1, 2013
I'm her agent so it is obvious that I think it is cool. But holy hot boy, holy hacker mania, and JESU BATMAN THE INTRIGUE!
May 7, 2025
”It’s not a game anymore.
It was never a game. You just thought it was.”
Synopsis: A hacking recruitment house for orphans that doesn’t actually do any hacking recruits the dumbest special snowflake alive to be their new protégée.
Biblio-Babble
Dumber Than a Bag of Rocks: It is a truth universally acknowledged in YA that it probably contains a ‘special snowflake’ trope. You know, the stereotypical ‘chosen one’ who magically manages to do the thing that no one else seems to have been able to do. Unfortunately, Olivia Winfeld is not one of them, no matter how hard the author tries to convince you that she is, indeed, special. Put very politely, Olivia is about as dumb as a bag of rocks. She shows off some very basic hacking skills that the more experienced hackers at Monroe Street House can’t seem to be able to do, but where her stupidity truly shines is in her life experience. Nah, don’t pull that ‘I’m a foster kid, so I have street smart things’ on me, honey. She willingly lets people manipulate her to the point that I was beginning to seriously question her judgment. From letting her new ‘bestie’ convince her to shoplift to hacking into people’s accounts willingly because ‘fitting in’, Olivia did nothing to convince me that she knew what she was doing, whether it was with her human interactions or her hacking.
Stop Kissing De Girl: At some point in this novel, it became less of a mystery/hacking thriller graduated to becoming just one, big, make-out session. I kid you not. Starting about the half-way point, Olivia and Z (yes, that’s his name), share their first little canoodle and never seem to stop. Lock and Mori had this same exact problem. Mysteries were to be solved, but kissing took priority. Hacking is supposed to be done here, but we have to get the kissing in there first because… look, teenagers have different priorities than us curmudgeonly adults, OK? I enjoy reading about a nice make-out session (or two. Or three.). But to have it overwhelm the book as it did here completely killed the actual premise of what it was trying to do.
Twist and Shout, Twist and Shout: Through the novel, a big deal is made about ‘Twisting Olivia’, which is how the author justified in the fact that this is an Oliver Twist retelling. Not having read Oliver Twist, I can’t even begin to tell you whether it stays true to the book or not. Hell, I can’t even tell you what these hackers actually do, because nothing is explained. By twisting, I assume they mean getting Olivia to join their hacking team, but that’s about it. If this is all the author thinks she can do in trying to convince the readers that this is a retelling of one of Dicken’s greatest works, she didn’t do a very good job pulling the wool over my eyes. Speaking of which….
You Had One Job: Ah yes, the old ‘why aren’t they doing their job’ trope. It usually can be seen with assassins. An assassin is given a target but can’t go through with it because they fall for their target. Well, this is kind of the same situation this book is in; just replace assassinating with hacking. There’s just enough hacking for one to read about that they don’t become entirely suspicious, but not enough that it can claim to be another Mr. Robot for young adults. And their justification around it is entirely unreasonable. Basically, it’s like Robin Hood; orphan teen hackers steal money from rich people’s bank accounts. But unlike Robin Hood, they keep all the money to themselves. Hey, at least Robin Hood was generous with the money he stole, ya know? So if you’re going to have a novel about hacking with hackers, you need to have hacking in it. Duh!
Should I Be Laughing at This?: The writing in here is laughable. There were so many instances of lines of dialogue where I just lost it and laughed out loud because it was so ridiculous. I don’t usually include quotes in my reviews anymore because they got to be too cumbersome, but here are a few gems for your entertainment.
*******************
From seriously questionable morals, horribly written dialogue, semi-toxic romance and lack of actual hacking (which is what I came here for), this book was pretty much a disaster. Not being a huge an of Dicken’s, I wasn’t expecting much, but my paltry expectations were met. And yet I kind of want to know what happens next?!! I’ll probably regret it big time, but being the eternally optimistic person I am, maybe (maybe?) my questions will get answered, things will get cleared up, and it won’t be as bad.
I think.
It was never a game. You just thought it was.”
Synopsis: A hacking recruitment house for orphans that doesn’t actually do any hacking recruits the dumbest special snowflake alive to be their new protégée.
Biblio-Babble
Dumber Than a Bag of Rocks: It is a truth universally acknowledged in YA that it probably contains a ‘special snowflake’ trope. You know, the stereotypical ‘chosen one’ who magically manages to do the thing that no one else seems to have been able to do. Unfortunately, Olivia Winfeld is not one of them, no matter how hard the author tries to convince you that she is, indeed, special. Put very politely, Olivia is about as dumb as a bag of rocks. She shows off some very basic hacking skills that the more experienced hackers at Monroe Street House can’t seem to be able to do, but where her stupidity truly shines is in her life experience. Nah, don’t pull that ‘I’m a foster kid, so I have street smart things’ on me, honey. She willingly lets people manipulate her to the point that I was beginning to seriously question her judgment. From letting her new ‘bestie’ convince her to shoplift to hacking into people’s accounts willingly because ‘fitting in’, Olivia did nothing to convince me that she knew what she was doing, whether it was with her human interactions or her hacking.
Stop Kissing De Girl: At some point in this novel, it became less of a mystery/hacking thriller graduated to becoming just one, big, make-out session. I kid you not. Starting about the half-way point, Olivia and Z (yes, that’s his name), share their first little canoodle and never seem to stop. Lock and Mori had this same exact problem. Mysteries were to be solved, but kissing took priority. Hacking is supposed to be done here, but we have to get the kissing in there first because… look, teenagers have different priorities than us curmudgeonly adults, OK? I enjoy reading about a nice make-out session (or two. Or three.). But to have it overwhelm the book as it did here completely killed the actual premise of what it was trying to do.
Twist and Shout, Twist and Shout: Through the novel, a big deal is made about ‘Twisting Olivia’, which is how the author justified in the fact that this is an Oliver Twist retelling. Not having read Oliver Twist, I can’t even begin to tell you whether it stays true to the book or not. Hell, I can’t even tell you what these hackers actually do, because nothing is explained. By twisting, I assume they mean getting Olivia to join their hacking team, but that’s about it. If this is all the author thinks she can do in trying to convince the readers that this is a retelling of one of Dicken’s greatest works, she didn’t do a very good job pulling the wool over my eyes. Speaking of which….
You Had One Job: Ah yes, the old ‘why aren’t they doing their job’ trope. It usually can be seen with assassins. An assassin is given a target but can’t go through with it because they fall for their target. Well, this is kind of the same situation this book is in; just replace assassinating with hacking. There’s just enough hacking for one to read about that they don’t become entirely suspicious, but not enough that it can claim to be another Mr. Robot for young adults. And their justification around it is entirely unreasonable. Basically, it’s like Robin Hood; orphan teen hackers steal money from rich people’s bank accounts. But unlike Robin Hood, they keep all the money to themselves. Hey, at least Robin Hood was generous with the money he stole, ya know? So if you’re going to have a novel about hacking with hackers, you need to have hacking in it. Duh!
Should I Be Laughing at This?: The writing in here is laughable. There were so many instances of lines of dialogue where I just lost it and laughed out loud because it was so ridiculous. I don’t usually include quotes in my reviews anymore because they got to be too cumbersome, but here are a few gems for your entertainment.
”His lips are so close to mine we might breath the same air.”I had to read this sucker about five times before I could grasp the concept. You’re sitting right across from each other. You’re in the same room. OF COURSE YOU’RE BREATHING THE SAME AIR. IT’S BASIC SCIENCE!!!
”He cradles my head again as he crushes his mouth hard against mine for such a long, desperate moment that I wonder if I’ll ever breath again. Or if I’ll even want to.”Seriously, what is with this author and breathing? You mean to tell me that this Z guy is so hot and so studmuffinly that you would willingly give up the oxygen you breath? I can’t think of one guy who I’d do that for, even Aidan Turner (apparently I love him a lot, cause everyone went nuts when I changed my profile pick!)
*******************
From seriously questionable morals, horribly written dialogue, semi-toxic romance and lack of actual hacking (which is what I came here for), this book was pretty much a disaster. Not being a huge an of Dicken’s, I wasn’t expecting much, but my paltry expectations were met. And yet I kind of want to know what happens next?!! I’ll probably regret it big time, but being the eternally optimistic person I am, maybe (maybe?) my questions will get answered, things will get cleared up, and it won’t be as bad.
I think.
October 3, 2013
Read this in one late-night sitting (which I'm regretting a bit this morning as I pour that third cup of coffee)! Updating Oliver Twist so that the group of orphans are now cyber-thiefs is such a great tw--(okay, can't do the pun) ANGLE on Oliver Twist. To be honest, I don't remember all of the plot points of the Dicken's story to know how closely it aligns with the original, but I was thoroughly entertained regardless, and I LOVED Z's character and how much he wrestled with luring Liv into his ring. Holy hotness!!
April 4, 2014
OLIVIA TWISTED has stolen a special place in my heart, because the characters are all delinquents, and lord knows I love a good descent-into-delinquency story. Loosely based on OLIVER TWIST, OLIVIA TWISTED is faithful in all the best ways to the original while branching out into modern-day territory with startling ingenuity. I really liked the way the author handled the split perspective between Olivia and Z as it reveals enough to the reader while still leaving enough ambiguity to make page-turning an imperative.
The bad guys are finding-bugs-in-your-bed-sheets level of creepy. The good guys are like tarnished silver--beautiful in their imperfection. Not one character has escaped the ravages of a thoughtless society, so even though you might disagree with their actions, you can still totally understand where each is coming from. Well, except for that one guy. There’s no excuse for that guy. *shudders*
In any case, I highly recommend OLIVIA TWISTED, especially to anyone who likes their good guys kind of bad. BONUS: For teachers and parents of “reluctant readers”—tell your kids not to read this book, because it will teach them how to become wealthy, badass criminals. (They’ll be reading within the hour.)
The bad guys are finding-bugs-in-your-bed-sheets level of creepy. The good guys are like tarnished silver--beautiful in their imperfection. Not one character has escaped the ravages of a thoughtless society, so even though you might disagree with their actions, you can still totally understand where each is coming from. Well, except for that one guy. There’s no excuse for that guy. *shudders*
In any case, I highly recommend OLIVIA TWISTED, especially to anyone who likes their good guys kind of bad. BONUS: For teachers and parents of “reluctant readers”—tell your kids not to read this book, because it will teach them how to become wealthy, badass criminals. (They’ll be reading within the hour.)
February 1, 2024
I picked this up randomly at a thrift store (aka how I get many of my books). It was surprisingly cute. Not super deep, but I more or less enjoyed myself nonetheless.
November 8, 2013
Olivia 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.
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.
November 4, 2013
I fell in love with the concept from the first time I heard it. The idea of Oliver Twist with hackers instead of pickpockets? SOLD. Throw in a gender twist on the main character, and I'm in heaven.
Liv's voice is captivating from the start. And Z is intriguing as well as HOT. :) I LOVED the chemistry between them.
I wasn't sold on the Oliver Twist quotes at the beginning of each chapter, but other than that, I have no complaints. This is an excellent book, and I highly recommend it!
Liv's voice is captivating from the start. And Z is intriguing as well as HOT. :) I LOVED the chemistry between them.
I wasn't sold on the Oliver Twist quotes at the beginning of each chapter, but other than that, I have no complaints. This is an excellent book, and I highly recommend it!
November 6, 2013
I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. I was sent an ARC by Entangled, that I trust because they are in charge of Jennifer L. Armentrout’s books and goodness, those books are AMAZING. So I was definitely intrigued on reading Vivi Barnes novel. Because I received an advanced e-copy of it, I definitely knew this was a book that I had to read.
There’s also been this urge to read some good contemporary novels. Sure, there’s the whole hacking angle of this novel but there’s no fantasy or dystopian or science fiction in it. Those are all my favorite things to read but I’ve really needed a break, and I was so glad to be able to dive into this book.
I think that Vivi is able to write an incredibly compelling and real story, wrapped around this sexy nature of computer hacking. She makes the idea of getting on a computer and hacking into someone’s profile or bank account seem like an extremely fun and sexy thing to do. And this is coming from someone’s identity has been hacked several times. Its a way of making a talent out of something that may not seem like it. To be able to do this requires strategy, intelligence, forward thinking and thinking outside of the box and I think she shows that. I think, with the ending she provides, it also encourages using those kind of skills for good though haha.
The love story is very sweet too. Olivia and Z have a sort of rocky romance, due to both of them having their own problems, especially when it comes to issue of trust. Both have lived in foster homes, have been left to their own devices, and its hard to trust anyone, no matter WHO they are. But the gradual build up was enough to leave any reader panting for more. When their relationship does develop, and they begin to trust and care for each other, its just super sweet and beautiful. Plus, Z just fits my typical fictional crush. I love the distant, aloof, hilarious, sarcastic bad boys and he fits that profile so beautifully that the minute he showed up on page, I knew I was going to be in love with by the end of the book.
I also want to commend Vivi for really addressing this sort of orphan/foster kid story. The idea of an orphan in a YA novel is nothing new. Most of the time, in these kind of novels, they are orphans. But she really addresses it, the effect that it can have on these children, how they can feel abandoned and mistreated and abused. I know that the story was a sort of re-telling of Oliver Twist (which, admittedly, I’ve never read) so there was a parallel there but I appreciated it nonetheless. It really calls your attention to this problem. Sure, Harry Potter is an orphan but there aren’t kids out there being killed by evil dark wizards, and that sort of thing. Parents with drug addictions, kids forced into foster homes, and shuttled from one home to another, this is so real, and its such a problem that I think people don’t think of. If there was one thing that someone got from that story, it would be that this is problem that we need to continually tackle.
This book is fun, a super fast read, and full of romance, action, humor and drama, and is a commendable debut for Vivi Barnes. I eagerly await future stories from her and I wish her a TON of luck in the future!
There’s also been this urge to read some good contemporary novels. Sure, there’s the whole hacking angle of this novel but there’s no fantasy or dystopian or science fiction in it. Those are all my favorite things to read but I’ve really needed a break, and I was so glad to be able to dive into this book.
I think that Vivi is able to write an incredibly compelling and real story, wrapped around this sexy nature of computer hacking. She makes the idea of getting on a computer and hacking into someone’s profile or bank account seem like an extremely fun and sexy thing to do. And this is coming from someone’s identity has been hacked several times. Its a way of making a talent out of something that may not seem like it. To be able to do this requires strategy, intelligence, forward thinking and thinking outside of the box and I think she shows that. I think, with the ending she provides, it also encourages using those kind of skills for good though haha.
The love story is very sweet too. Olivia and Z have a sort of rocky romance, due to both of them having their own problems, especially when it comes to issue of trust. Both have lived in foster homes, have been left to their own devices, and its hard to trust anyone, no matter WHO they are. But the gradual build up was enough to leave any reader panting for more. When their relationship does develop, and they begin to trust and care for each other, its just super sweet and beautiful. Plus, Z just fits my typical fictional crush. I love the distant, aloof, hilarious, sarcastic bad boys and he fits that profile so beautifully that the minute he showed up on page, I knew I was going to be in love with by the end of the book.
I also want to commend Vivi for really addressing this sort of orphan/foster kid story. The idea of an orphan in a YA novel is nothing new. Most of the time, in these kind of novels, they are orphans. But she really addresses it, the effect that it can have on these children, how they can feel abandoned and mistreated and abused. I know that the story was a sort of re-telling of Oliver Twist (which, admittedly, I’ve never read) so there was a parallel there but I appreciated it nonetheless. It really calls your attention to this problem. Sure, Harry Potter is an orphan but there aren’t kids out there being killed by evil dark wizards, and that sort of thing. Parents with drug addictions, kids forced into foster homes, and shuttled from one home to another, this is so real, and its such a problem that I think people don’t think of. If there was one thing that someone got from that story, it would be that this is problem that we need to continually tackle.
This book is fun, a super fast read, and full of romance, action, humor and drama, and is a commendable debut for Vivi Barnes. I eagerly await future stories from her and I wish her a TON of luck in the future!
November 4, 2013
I will start with the first major difference between Oliver Twist and Olivia Twisted. The plot setting. In Oliver Twist, the children are pickpockets on the streets. In Olivia Twisted, the children are computer hackers. They find their ways into accounts of corporations and give back to the people who need it. When two of the teenagers discover Olivia's knack for computers and hacking, they begin attempting to recruit her to their world.
When we first see our heroine, Olivia, she is being dropped off at, yet another, foster home. This time things seem like they might work out. It's a nice family, though very strict, who genuinely seem to care about her. However, as the story progresses, we learn some things about the family that are very unsettling.
Which leads me to my first qualm with the book. There were two plot lines completely rushed and dropped from the story. At one point, Olivia goes to a night club and something happens to her drink. She assumes she knows who the culprit is and she confronts him, only to believe his story. This problem, as well as that particular character, almost become non-existent. The other plot line is the foster parents. The secret the foster father holds becomes a major story changer, yet it seems to almost disappear without a good resolution. I could argue that these two problems alone cause the story to fail, but Barnes writing and character development keep the plot moving forward and it is almost possible to overlook these faults.
Now, onto the characters themselves. Olivia and Z have amazing chemistry for a YA novel. Many young romances in novels are cringe-worthy, as the characters rarely know one another and spend the entire book doing things they really shouldn't do, in order to be together. The love we see between Olivia and Z is not like that. The entire book is spent focusing around Z trying to bring Olivia into his world, while still protecting her. There is very little affection until much later in the book and even then it is subtle and sends a very good message to the young readers about waiting and getting to know someone before rushing into serious relationships.
I don't expect much from retelling of classic stories. Normally, they are very disappointing and not worth reading. However, that is not the case with Olivia Twisted. Barnes has taken a story known to the ages and modernized it for the younger generation. It's a glorious retelling of a magnificent story that opens up the world for a whole new group.
When we first see our heroine, Olivia, she is being dropped off at, yet another, foster home. This time things seem like they might work out. It's a nice family, though very strict, who genuinely seem to care about her. However, as the story progresses, we learn some things about the family that are very unsettling.
Which leads me to my first qualm with the book. There were two plot lines completely rushed and dropped from the story. At one point, Olivia goes to a night club and something happens to her drink. She assumes she knows who the culprit is and she confronts him, only to believe his story. This problem, as well as that particular character, almost become non-existent. The other plot line is the foster parents. The secret the foster father holds becomes a major story changer, yet it seems to almost disappear without a good resolution. I could argue that these two problems alone cause the story to fail, but Barnes writing and character development keep the plot moving forward and it is almost possible to overlook these faults.
Now, onto the characters themselves. Olivia and Z have amazing chemistry for a YA novel. Many young romances in novels are cringe-worthy, as the characters rarely know one another and spend the entire book doing things they really shouldn't do, in order to be together. The love we see between Olivia and Z is not like that. The entire book is spent focusing around Z trying to bring Olivia into his world, while still protecting her. There is very little affection until much later in the book and even then it is subtle and sends a very good message to the young readers about waiting and getting to know someone before rushing into serious relationships.
I don't expect much from retelling of classic stories. Normally, they are very disappointing and not worth reading. However, that is not the case with Olivia Twisted. Barnes has taken a story known to the ages and modernized it for the younger generation. It's a glorious retelling of a magnificent story that opens up the world for a whole new group.
October 12, 2013
Thrilling, romantic,and very twisted, Olivia Twisted was a fantastic YA retelling. I really enjoyed reading this awesome book.
Going into this book, I was a little unsure. I didn't know how a retelling of Oliver Twist would work. But, it turned out to be pretty awesome. The author managed to turn an old classic into a modern tale.
Olivia was a lovely heroine. She hasn't had the best life, from her druggie mother, to her hopping from foster home to foster home. But, she was still a genuinely good person. She had values that she couldn't compromise, which I think made her an admirable character. I really liked her.
Z was complicated. He delights in his criminal activities, seeing absolutely nothing wrong with them. To his perspective, it's basically like Robin Hood, taking from the rich and giving to the poor. And, he's manipulated people into the web, then left them to fend for themselves. But, he wasn't a bad person. At least, not once he met Olivia Olivia reminded him of...goodness, I guess you could say. She made him rethink his life and see it from a different perspective. He was a morally shaky character. But, I still really liked him. I thought he was great.
The romance was fairly light. It was very sweet. Even though Olivia and Z barely touched each other, besides a few kisses, the feelings were constantly there and it was really adorable. I thought these two were lovely together.
The plot was fast paced. I was kept interested the entire way through, but I was never completely hooked. However, I still really enjoyed the story and I thought the ending was perfect.
Olivia Twisted was a wonderful YA retelling. It was thrilling, romantic, and a really enjoyable read. YA lovers, if you want something that will keep you on the edge of your seat, then you should give this book a try.
*I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Going into this book, I was a little unsure. I didn't know how a retelling of Oliver Twist would work. But, it turned out to be pretty awesome. The author managed to turn an old classic into a modern tale.
Olivia was a lovely heroine. She hasn't had the best life, from her druggie mother, to her hopping from foster home to foster home. But, she was still a genuinely good person. She had values that she couldn't compromise, which I think made her an admirable character. I really liked her.
Z was complicated. He delights in his criminal activities, seeing absolutely nothing wrong with them. To his perspective, it's basically like Robin Hood, taking from the rich and giving to the poor. And, he's manipulated people into the web, then left them to fend for themselves. But, he wasn't a bad person. At least, not once he met Olivia Olivia reminded him of...goodness, I guess you could say. She made him rethink his life and see it from a different perspective. He was a morally shaky character. But, I still really liked him. I thought he was great.
The romance was fairly light. It was very sweet. Even though Olivia and Z barely touched each other, besides a few kisses, the feelings were constantly there and it was really adorable. I thought these two were lovely together.
The plot was fast paced. I was kept interested the entire way through, but I was never completely hooked. However, I still really enjoyed the story and I thought the ending was perfect.
Olivia Twisted was a wonderful YA retelling. It was thrilling, romantic, and a really enjoyable read. YA lovers, if you want something that will keep you on the edge of your seat, then you should give this book a try.
*I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review
October 16, 2013
Are you ready for a classic tale with a “twist”? Welcome to the world of Olivia Twisted, a modern day telling of Oliver Twist, with a “twist”!
Vivi Barnes' debut YA novel is a new age romance that introduces us to a timid orphan named Olivia as she is adjusting to a new foster home and a whole new life, for what seems like the millionth time. I liked Olivia because she made the very choices you would expect a normal teen in her situation to make - at least in the beginning anyway. She is put in some seriously bad situations throughout the book. Toward the end I was a little disappointed to find her still making the “good” choice as opposed to what a real teen in her shoes may have chosen, but the fact that she does choose that route definitely makes Olivia a positive influence on young adults reading this story.
Olivia meets Sam and Z at school. At first, it is easy to dislike Z though I personally adored him from the very beginning. He had my favorite kind of “book character attitude”. Z is smart, funny, mysterious and not exactly nice. Sam, on the other hand, quickly befriends our Olivia and though she may not be the best influence she is definitely the kind of friend Olivia needed.
Olivia Twisted ended leaving you with a feeling of resolve and finality. I felt content with the story and enjoyed every moment of it.
Vivi Barnes' debut YA novel is a new age romance that introduces us to a timid orphan named Olivia as she is adjusting to a new foster home and a whole new life, for what seems like the millionth time. I liked Olivia because she made the very choices you would expect a normal teen in her situation to make - at least in the beginning anyway. She is put in some seriously bad situations throughout the book. Toward the end I was a little disappointed to find her still making the “good” choice as opposed to what a real teen in her shoes may have chosen, but the fact that she does choose that route definitely makes Olivia a positive influence on young adults reading this story.
Olivia meets Sam and Z at school. At first, it is easy to dislike Z though I personally adored him from the very beginning. He had my favorite kind of “book character attitude”. Z is smart, funny, mysterious and not exactly nice. Sam, on the other hand, quickly befriends our Olivia and though she may not be the best influence she is definitely the kind of friend Olivia needed.
Olivia Twisted ended leaving you with a feeling of resolve and finality. I felt content with the story and enjoyed every moment of it.
October 3, 2013
Told in alternating chapters/voices, Olivia Twisted, is the story of Olivia and Z and exploring legal boundaries. Both Olivia and Z are foster children – but while Olivia is shuttled from one bad home to another, Z uses his computer knowledge to hack his way into the bank accounts of unsuspecting people and steal money for himself and organization. When Z leans of Olivia’s computer skills he decides to enlist Olivia into the money making scheme but Olivia has boundaries she’s not willing to bypass – even for wealth. Along the way Olivia and Z begin to have feelings for each other and this makes both of them rethink their values. A great read from a debut author.
September 2, 2016
Really love the chemistry between Olivia and Z - it's seriously engrossing, but that's not the only reason that this modern retelling of Oliver Twist is impossible to put down. The twists and turns and danger at every turn are incredible. I definitely didn't see some of the events coming. Also, for someone who absolutely loved Hackers when it came out, this reminded me of it in all the best ways.
November 4, 2013
I can honestly say I'm obsessed with this modern day version of Oliver Twist. Obsessed. And It probably helps that Vivi Barnes is an amazing person too.
I would recommend this book to anyone that I had the opportunity to. A must read stand alone! Which is always refreshing after reading so many series.
I would recommend this book to anyone that I had the opportunity to. A must read stand alone! Which is always refreshing after reading so many series.
March 3, 2013
Terrific debut from a talented author! Great mix of romance and suspense.
November 7, 2013
NOTE: 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.
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.
August 22, 2015
Thoughts on the Overall Book: I love thief stories and I love retellings so I had to try this one out (also I got to meet the author!) And while it still was a little more teen romance than I usually like to read I did expect that, and I did end up enjoying the book quite a bit.
Cover--Yea or Nay: Meh, it's okay. Not really how I pictured either of the characters though.
Characters: Olivia actually surprised me as a character. Because I was expecting her to be some sort of kick-butt female heroine with attitude, but she was actually rather quiet and shy, and I liked her better for that. She was a little standoffish, but it's totally understandable due to her position and the fact that she has a hard time trusting people because people always betray her not because she woke up one day and decided trusting people was stupid. So I actually liked her more than I expected to, to be completely honest. Z was okay, he was a little too much approaching the brooding YA hero for me to love him, but the fact that he had a nerdy side did help and he even if he was a bad boy type, he wasn't a total cocky jerk either. He did so some questionable things, but he was remorseful of them, plus, in his position, he probable would have been killed if he hadn't. Self preservation is typical thief mentality, so I could deal with it. Sam was a good friend though, even though she kind of was trying to get Olivia in bad situations. As I character, though, I liked her. I wished we had gotten to know some of the other kids better though. I didn't like Olivia's foster parents, I knew "Call me Derrick" was bad news as soon as he walked onto the page. Creepo. And then Bill who was in charge of Z's group was also creepy. I was almost afraid he wouldn't be as bad as he turned out to be and was almost disappointed but then with what happened in the climax, he came through as a baddie quite nicely.
The Romance: Z and Olivia's romance does make up quite a bit of the plot line. Thankfully, it's not insta-love, and while there are a lot of kissing scenes, it's not every other page like most YA romance. Things do get done. Still a little much for me, but I expected it so I was ready for it.
Writing Style: First person present tense. Nothing overly special, but it was descriptive and good writing, I could easily visualize what was going on, even in the hacking scenes which was awesome. Usually I am totally lost in hacking scenes I have read before, but these were explained pretty well. I liked how it went from Olivia's and Z's POVs it kind of kept it interesting. I also liked how there was a quote from Oliver Twist on every chapter heading. Anyone who knows the story of Oliver Twist will definitely see the connections with this story; it isn't just like it, it is still a retelling, but it's enough to have a little nod here and there which is always fun.
Accuracy/ Believability: I know nothing about hacking, but I do know the author did a lot of research into it, so I'll trust her judgement ;)
Problems/What bothered me: Apart from the fact that I have a slight allergy to YA romance as a genre, and I prefer accidental or slow, sweet, romance I didn't have any problems with this. It didn't annoy me or make me angry apart from when I was supposed to be so that's a good thing. There were a couple parts that dragged a little, but nothing too major.
Conclusion: 3/5 stars. A fun read and I am glad I picked it up!
Recommended Audience: Girl read ages 16 and up, fans of modern classic retellings or thief stories should try this out!
Cover--Yea or Nay: Meh, it's okay. Not really how I pictured either of the characters though.
Characters: Olivia actually surprised me as a character. Because I was expecting her to be some sort of kick-butt female heroine with attitude, but she was actually rather quiet and shy, and I liked her better for that. She was a little standoffish, but it's totally understandable due to her position and the fact that she has a hard time trusting people because people always betray her not because she woke up one day and decided trusting people was stupid. So I actually liked her more than I expected to, to be completely honest. Z was okay, he was a little too much approaching the brooding YA hero for me to love him, but the fact that he had a nerdy side did help and he even if he was a bad boy type, he wasn't a total cocky jerk either. He did so some questionable things, but he was remorseful of them, plus, in his position, he probable would have been killed if he hadn't. Self preservation is typical thief mentality, so I could deal with it. Sam was a good friend though, even though she kind of was trying to get Olivia in bad situations. As I character, though, I liked her. I wished we had gotten to know some of the other kids better though. I didn't like Olivia's foster parents, I knew "Call me Derrick" was bad news as soon as he walked onto the page. Creepo. And then Bill who was in charge of Z's group was also creepy. I was almost afraid he wouldn't be as bad as he turned out to be and was almost disappointed but then with what happened in the climax, he came through as a baddie quite nicely.
The Romance: Z and Olivia's romance does make up quite a bit of the plot line. Thankfully, it's not insta-love, and while there are a lot of kissing scenes, it's not every other page like most YA romance. Things do get done. Still a little much for me, but I expected it so I was ready for it.
Writing Style: First person present tense. Nothing overly special, but it was descriptive and good writing, I could easily visualize what was going on, even in the hacking scenes which was awesome. Usually I am totally lost in hacking scenes I have read before, but these were explained pretty well. I liked how it went from Olivia's and Z's POVs it kind of kept it interesting. I also liked how there was a quote from Oliver Twist on every chapter heading. Anyone who knows the story of Oliver Twist will definitely see the connections with this story; it isn't just like it, it is still a retelling, but it's enough to have a little nod here and there which is always fun.
Accuracy/ Believability: I know nothing about hacking, but I do know the author did a lot of research into it, so I'll trust her judgement ;)
Problems/What bothered me: Apart from the fact that I have a slight allergy to YA romance as a genre, and I prefer accidental or slow, sweet, romance I didn't have any problems with this. It didn't annoy me or make me angry apart from when I was supposed to be so that's a good thing. There were a couple parts that dragged a little, but nothing too major.
Conclusion: 3/5 stars. A fun read and I am glad I picked it up!
Recommended Audience: Girl read ages 16 and up, fans of modern classic retellings or thief stories should try this out!
September 21, 2016
3.75 Stars
I was asked to review this book and after reading the blurb I was sent, I was hooked. It's an adaption of Charles Dicken's Oliver Twist with today's modern flare. It's truly quite an interesting book.
Olivia Twisted is told in both Z and Liv's POVs. They both are foster kids, but Z is living a slightly better life due to the "home" he now lives in. It's not Liv is living with horrible foster parents now, it's just that Z seems to be doing quite well for himself - enough that he's able to afford a Ducati. Yea, crazy for a foster kid.
Anyway - I enjoyed the plot and how Vivi built this story up. It's a slow build and shows what these characters thinking as things progress. Liv is dubbed as naïve by Z but I think she's anything but naïve - she's curious enough to question everything that goes on.
I was a little let down when it came to the big build up and what was planned for Liv, the overall book was really good. I was hooked from start to finish and the pace kept me glued to the pages.
I look forward to reading the next book, Olivia Decoded. Especially since this one didn't really end on a cliffhanger.
I was asked to review this book and after reading the blurb I was sent, I was hooked. It's an adaption of Charles Dicken's Oliver Twist with today's modern flare. It's truly quite an interesting book.
Olivia Twisted is told in both Z and Liv's POVs. They both are foster kids, but Z is living a slightly better life due to the "home" he now lives in. It's not Liv is living with horrible foster parents now, it's just that Z seems to be doing quite well for himself - enough that he's able to afford a Ducati. Yea, crazy for a foster kid.
Anyway - I enjoyed the plot and how Vivi built this story up. It's a slow build and shows what these characters thinking as things progress. Liv is dubbed as naïve by Z but I think she's anything but naïve - she's curious enough to question everything that goes on.
I was a little let down when it came to the big build up and what was planned for Liv, the overall book was really good. I was hooked from start to finish and the pace kept me glued to the pages.
I look forward to reading the next book, Olivia Decoded. Especially since this one didn't really end on a cliffhanger.
October 5, 2013
Really 1.5
Because of an arbitrary policy that no one save for the people who take book shefies understand, and the fact I'm going to refer to getting revenge on Dickens I am not listing the full review here.
To sum it up, it's by far not the worst book I've ever read. A lot of people are going to enjoy it. And you know what, that's fine. Perfectly fine. I just felt the over use of YA cliches, couple that with the improper handling of sensitive issues, with bland characters, quoting the movie instead of the book, and an already difficult book to retell in a modern YA setting, it just didn't work for me at least.
Full review is available via:
Howdy YAL
BookLikes
Because of an arbitrary policy that no one save for the people who take book shefies understand, and the fact I'm going to refer to getting revenge on Dickens I am not listing the full review here.
To sum it up, it's by far not the worst book I've ever read. A lot of people are going to enjoy it. And you know what, that's fine. Perfectly fine. I just felt the over use of YA cliches, couple that with the improper handling of sensitive issues, with bland characters, quoting the movie instead of the book, and an already difficult book to retell in a modern YA setting, it just didn't work for me at least.
Full review is available via:
Howdy YAL
BookLikes
November 3, 2013
I have never seen Oliver Twist but I like to think that if you put that and Hackers together you come up with this fantastic called Olivia Twisted by ViVi Barnes. ViVi's writing is so catching, It literally makes you not want to put the book down, I was drawn in from the very first chapter!
Liv(Olivia) is a foster kid who, like any other has been through the ringer, and when she moves in with her latest foster family she starts a new school and meets two new friends who are also foster kids but drive fancy cars and nice motorcycle and just happen to be great in computer programming class, like her. More at www.bookbesties.com
Liv(Olivia) is a foster kid who, like any other has been through the ringer, and when she moves in with her latest foster family she starts a new school and meets two new friends who are also foster kids but drive fancy cars and nice motorcycle and just happen to be great in computer programming class, like her. More at www.bookbesties.com
November 3, 2013
I received this advanced readers copy from a facebook event by Entangled publishing. Olivia Twisted is a YA book with a modern "twist" on Oliver by Charles Dickens. I found myself immediately connected with Olivia, the main character. Even though I know the story of Oliver Twist, I still found myself caught up in the tension and drama of this story. There is a big difference though in that this story has a developing romance between Olivia and Z, (the artful dodger), and there is the hope of redemption of his criminal endeavors. YA is my favorite kind of book, and Vivi Barnes has done an excellent job of writing a book I will gladly recommend.
March 2, 2013
Waiting for this thrilling, contemporary retelling of Dickens' OLIVER TWIST.
November 5, 2013
"This e-arc was provided by the publisher in return for an honest review."
Olivia Twisted is a cyber adaptation of Oliver Twist.I haven't read oliver twist or I read but didn't remember :D but the author added some quotes from oliver twist at the beginning of every chapter and it outlines the chapter. I liked it that way. Our olivia is a hacker teenage girl who lost her family at very young age , living with foster parents. Her life is very tough as you can guess. There's every kind of foster parents. Kind ones, creepy ones. Her last foster's leave her behind when they moved to hawaii. Her new foster parents seems nice (except Mrs. Carter,she gives me creeps)but they're the worst kind of person.So she's very unlucky about that. She meets with Sam and Z at the school. They're hackers too but not ethic as olivia :D They're hacking accounts for living .Z and sam looking for new additions to their group.They take notice of olivia. But they must twist and convince her to work and living with them . Olivia is an innocent girl , very nice person .She is a hacker alright but it's a hobby for her. Stealing someone's money is a crime and she doesn't want to be involved. And there's evil boss named bill who has big plans for olivia . The clock is ticking , Z wants to protect olivia from this fate but Bill gives him no choice .
At first I liked sam more than Z . But she really dissapointed me at the end , she's a total manipulator . Z is an interesting character ,he is not what it seems. Using girls for his purpose but he's doing this because he has no one , his family is this group of hacker kids and he wants to give them everything.There's little ones and Bill is an evil person with no mercy.He couldn't leave them behind.He has issues , does not believe in love or to be loved. But being with olivia opened him up , he is not a douchebag after all :D I really really liked him. Olivia and Z was so cute together.
Olivia twisted is a fun book. Very fluent.You wonder what's the next.There's some action at the end. It's not like the same old YA cliche. It's something different. I recommend everyone this book who love a good YA novel.I absolutely enjoyed to read. This book also taught me to choose my account passwords wisely lol . I'll keeps tabs on vivi barnes' next works. She is really good.
Romanımız YA türünde bir tek kitap yani seri değil.Oliver Twist'in cyber punk tarzında yeniden ele alınmışı denmekte. zira ben oliver twist'i okuduysam bile hatırlamıyorum .
Çocukluğumda okumuşumdur . O yüzden iki hikaye arasındaki bağdaştırmayı yapamadan okudum , yinede benim gibi okuduğunu hatırlayamayanlar için yazarımız her bölümün başına
oliver twist'ten alıntılar eklemiş ki o bölümü biraz özetliyor yada ona gönderme yapıyor.
Baş karakterimiz olivia bir öksüz. annesi o çocukken ölmüş , bir keşmiş ,onun yanında aşırı dozdan gözlerinin önünde ölmüş. Kızımız o zamandır sistemin içinde kaybolmuş.
Gönderildiği bakıcı aileler içinde hep hırpalanmış, tacize uğramış.İçlerinden bir aileyle yıldızları barışmış ama o ailede kızı geride bırakıp hawaii'ye taşınmış. Onuda götürmemişler.
Olivia yeni bir aileye veriliyor.Bu ailede de yolunda gitmeyen bazı şeyler var. Kadın sorunlu ve olivia'ya karşı soğuk ,ilgisiz . Adamsa fazla ilgili kızla.üstüne düşüyor.
Olivia bilgisayar konusunda kendini geliştirmiş, bir hacker . yeni okulunda bilgisayar dersinde tanıştığı sam ve Z 'de birer hacker ama onlar olivia gibi etik hacker değiller.
Z ve sam'de ailleleri olmayan ,bir bakım evinde kalan çocuklar. Kaldıkları evin sahibi bunları sokaktan yoplamış ve hacker olarak yetiştirmiş. eğer evde kalmaya devam etmek istiyorlarsa
onun verdiği hesapları kırıp para çalmaları gerekiyor. Çocuklarda bu işten kazanıyor tabi , altlarında son model araçlarla geziyorlar. Gruplarına yeni ,savunmasız ,saf ama hacker yeteneği olan
çocuklar topluyorlar. Olivia'yı görür görmez sam onun uygun olduğuna karar veriyor ve Z'ye onu kandırıp aralarına katılması için yardım ediyor. Z kızları yakışıklılığı
ve çekiciliği ile ağına düşürüyor, ne yaptıklarını gösteriyor yavaş yavaş onlara ve onlarıda kendileri gibi tabiri caizse kötü yola düşürüyor :D
Kitapta Z'nin iç çatışmalarına şahit oluyoruz. bir yandan liv'i bu pis işlere karıştırmak istemiyor bir yandanda patronun ve sam'in baskısına karşı gelmeye çalışıyor.Sonunda liv'i korumaya karar verdiğinde ise çok geç oluyor çünkü patronun liv için daha büyük planları var.
Neyse fazlada açık etmek istemiyorum. Kısacası oldukça akıcı ilerleyen sade dille yazılmış bir YA romanı. Konu klişe olmasada gençler arası ilişkiler bilindik türden. Masum kız , yakışıklı erkek,
aklını çelmeye çalışan BFF :D Buna da açıklık getireyim ,YA romanlarda hep kız dayanışması okurum ben ,yani esas kızın aklını çelmeye çalışan hep erkek kısmı olur ama burda kıza yakınlık kuran onun en iyi arkadaşı olmayı başaran sam kitabın ilerleyen bölümlerinde yaptığı davranışlarla ,düşünceleriyle beni hayal kırıklığına uğrattı. Böyle BFF olmaz olsun arkadaş :D
Nasıl hacker olunur , hesap şifreleri nasıl kırılır birkaç tüyo almak isteyenlere ve YA türünde farklı bir konu okumak isteyenlere tavsiye debileceğim bir kitap.
http://allkillerbooks.blogspot.com/20...
Olivia Twisted is a cyber adaptation of Oliver Twist.I haven't read oliver twist or I read but didn't remember :D but the author added some quotes from oliver twist at the beginning of every chapter and it outlines the chapter. I liked it that way. Our olivia is a hacker teenage girl who lost her family at very young age , living with foster parents. Her life is very tough as you can guess. There's every kind of foster parents. Kind ones, creepy ones. Her last foster's leave her behind when they moved to hawaii. Her new foster parents seems nice (except Mrs. Carter,she gives me creeps)but they're the worst kind of person.So she's very unlucky about that. She meets with Sam and Z at the school. They're hackers too but not ethic as olivia :D They're hacking accounts for living .Z and sam looking for new additions to their group.They take notice of olivia. But they must twist and convince her to work and living with them . Olivia is an innocent girl , very nice person .She is a hacker alright but it's a hobby for her. Stealing someone's money is a crime and she doesn't want to be involved. And there's evil boss named bill who has big plans for olivia . The clock is ticking , Z wants to protect olivia from this fate but Bill gives him no choice .
At first I liked sam more than Z . But she really dissapointed me at the end , she's a total manipulator . Z is an interesting character ,he is not what it seems. Using girls for his purpose but he's doing this because he has no one , his family is this group of hacker kids and he wants to give them everything.There's little ones and Bill is an evil person with no mercy.He couldn't leave them behind.He has issues , does not believe in love or to be loved. But being with olivia opened him up , he is not a douchebag after all :D I really really liked him. Olivia and Z was so cute together.
Olivia twisted is a fun book. Very fluent.You wonder what's the next.There's some action at the end. It's not like the same old YA cliche. It's something different. I recommend everyone this book who love a good YA novel.I absolutely enjoyed to read. This book also taught me to choose my account passwords wisely lol . I'll keeps tabs on vivi barnes' next works. She is really good.
Romanımız YA türünde bir tek kitap yani seri değil.Oliver Twist'in cyber punk tarzında yeniden ele alınmışı denmekte. zira ben oliver twist'i okuduysam bile hatırlamıyorum .
Çocukluğumda okumuşumdur . O yüzden iki hikaye arasındaki bağdaştırmayı yapamadan okudum , yinede benim gibi okuduğunu hatırlayamayanlar için yazarımız her bölümün başına
oliver twist'ten alıntılar eklemiş ki o bölümü biraz özetliyor yada ona gönderme yapıyor.
Baş karakterimiz olivia bir öksüz. annesi o çocukken ölmüş , bir keşmiş ,onun yanında aşırı dozdan gözlerinin önünde ölmüş. Kızımız o zamandır sistemin içinde kaybolmuş.
Gönderildiği bakıcı aileler içinde hep hırpalanmış, tacize uğramış.İçlerinden bir aileyle yıldızları barışmış ama o ailede kızı geride bırakıp hawaii'ye taşınmış. Onuda götürmemişler.
Olivia yeni bir aileye veriliyor.Bu ailede de yolunda gitmeyen bazı şeyler var. Kadın sorunlu ve olivia'ya karşı soğuk ,ilgisiz . Adamsa fazla ilgili kızla.üstüne düşüyor.
Olivia bilgisayar konusunda kendini geliştirmiş, bir hacker . yeni okulunda bilgisayar dersinde tanıştığı sam ve Z 'de birer hacker ama onlar olivia gibi etik hacker değiller.
Z ve sam'de ailleleri olmayan ,bir bakım evinde kalan çocuklar. Kaldıkları evin sahibi bunları sokaktan yoplamış ve hacker olarak yetiştirmiş. eğer evde kalmaya devam etmek istiyorlarsa
onun verdiği hesapları kırıp para çalmaları gerekiyor. Çocuklarda bu işten kazanıyor tabi , altlarında son model araçlarla geziyorlar. Gruplarına yeni ,savunmasız ,saf ama hacker yeteneği olan
çocuklar topluyorlar. Olivia'yı görür görmez sam onun uygun olduğuna karar veriyor ve Z'ye onu kandırıp aralarına katılması için yardım ediyor. Z kızları yakışıklılığı
ve çekiciliği ile ağına düşürüyor, ne yaptıklarını gösteriyor yavaş yavaş onlara ve onlarıda kendileri gibi tabiri caizse kötü yola düşürüyor :D
Kitapta Z'nin iç çatışmalarına şahit oluyoruz. bir yandan liv'i bu pis işlere karıştırmak istemiyor bir yandanda patronun ve sam'in baskısına karşı gelmeye çalışıyor.Sonunda liv'i korumaya karar verdiğinde ise çok geç oluyor çünkü patronun liv için daha büyük planları var.
Neyse fazlada açık etmek istemiyorum. Kısacası oldukça akıcı ilerleyen sade dille yazılmış bir YA romanı. Konu klişe olmasada gençler arası ilişkiler bilindik türden. Masum kız , yakışıklı erkek,
aklını çelmeye çalışan BFF :D Buna da açıklık getireyim ,YA romanlarda hep kız dayanışması okurum ben ,yani esas kızın aklını çelmeye çalışan hep erkek kısmı olur ama burda kıza yakınlık kuran onun en iyi arkadaşı olmayı başaran sam kitabın ilerleyen bölümlerinde yaptığı davranışlarla ,düşünceleriyle beni hayal kırıklığına uğrattı. Böyle BFF olmaz olsun arkadaş :D
Nasıl hacker olunur , hesap şifreleri nasıl kırılır birkaç tüyo almak isteyenlere ve YA türünde farklı bir konu okumak isteyenlere tavsiye debileceğim bir kitap.
http://allkillerbooks.blogspot.com/20...
November 24, 2013
Favorite Quote(s):
“I take it and gently fasten it above her hand, then kiss the inside of her wrist. The one thing I have that means something to me now rests on the only person who means everything to me.”
Favorite Character: Z. He has so many layers and I love every single one of them.
First Line:
“I should be used to this by now–the emptiness that fills me when I become homeless for the stretch of a car ride.”
My Musings: When I saw this novel and read that it was a loose retelling of Oliver Twist, I just had to give it a try. The synopsis gave the feeling that this would be an epic read, and I mean, just look at the cover!
Olivia Twisted follows Olivia, an orphan, as she is placed in yet another foster home. Olivia is used to it though–she believes that no one since her mom will ever love her, since the last foster parents that claimed to love her ditched her for Hawaii. So when computer-gifted Olivia attracts the attention of Sam and Z in their computer science class, Olivia is just thankful to have found a few friends. But Sam and Z are hiding a dangerous secret–they’re criminal hackers and they want to recruit Olivia into their hacking house. But as Z and Olivia get closer, Z starts to question the morality of what he’s doing–but it’s just a little too late.
“Although, I have to say, she did look damn cute, bouncing around the place in that ugly orange shirt, ponytail bobbing. Cuter than anyone has a right to look in neon. And the way she lit up with some of the customers, even those college guys she pretended to flirt with…Takes a player to know one– I knew exactly what she was doing. I didn’t like the effect it had on me, though. Damn adorable girl actually made me feel a twinge of jealousy.”
Z and Olivia are the main characters and narrators in this novel. The thing that I enjoyed about this book was how realistic it was. It’s horrible to say that having a bunch of orphans be criminal hackers is believable, but the way that it was written was very convincing and realistic. This shone through in the characters. Olivia had a tough life, between loosing her mom to drugs, the neglect of various foster homes, and even some sexual abuse. But she didn’t let that set the precedent for her life. She was smart and computer-savvy, and she was innocent to fault. Sure, under the influence of Z and Sam she made a few bad decisions, but she learned from them and didn’t let them influence her future decisions and morality. It was inspiring that she was able to hold on to her sense of right and wrong, even with all of the things that were pressing in on her.
“She peers up at me from underneath her lashes, knitting her eyebrows slightly, and I know exactly what she’s thinking. Something she’s going to say will make me want to beat the living shit out of someone. I can feel fury burning in the pit of my stomach already.”
Z was the other main character. He was intriguing to say the least. He had a hard past that he didn’t let anyone find out about except, eventually, Olivia. He was guarded. He was also sarcastic and cocky. But on the inside, he was vulnerable and sweet. He had a past that shaped him into the person that he became. But when you removed all of his outer defenses, he really was a good guy, regardless of his criminal activities. And he rode a motorcycle. Sigh.
“Nothing matters anymore. Just her.”
The two of them completely complemented each other. She was the sweet, naive girl and he was the cocky, bad boy. They both had a knack for computers, and they both had tough family life. But in each other, they found solace. It was endearing to see them open up to each other, especially Z, considering the circumstances.
Now the plot. Oh my sweet baby Jesus, that book was intense. So first of all, you have the criminal hacking, which was interesting all in itself. Throw in an evil business owner, a few criminal activities, and then an epic climax, and you’ve got yourself a to-die-for novel. That climax…it had my heart pounding and the nervous jitters going. It’s just…no words. And the way it all came together in the end? It was genius. GENIUS!
Olivia Twisted has definitely made its way onto the list of my favorite books of 2013. This novel was like a thrilling roller coaster ride; it had me on the edge of my seat with its ‘twisted’ plot. An amazing retelling of the great classic Oliver Twist, it is definitely one that you’ll want to pick up!
“I take it and gently fasten it above her hand, then kiss the inside of her wrist. The one thing I have that means something to me now rests on the only person who means everything to me.”
Favorite Character: Z. He has so many layers and I love every single one of them.
First Line:
“I should be used to this by now–the emptiness that fills me when I become homeless for the stretch of a car ride.”
My Musings: When I saw this novel and read that it was a loose retelling of Oliver Twist, I just had to give it a try. The synopsis gave the feeling that this would be an epic read, and I mean, just look at the cover!
Olivia Twisted follows Olivia, an orphan, as she is placed in yet another foster home. Olivia is used to it though–she believes that no one since her mom will ever love her, since the last foster parents that claimed to love her ditched her for Hawaii. So when computer-gifted Olivia attracts the attention of Sam and Z in their computer science class, Olivia is just thankful to have found a few friends. But Sam and Z are hiding a dangerous secret–they’re criminal hackers and they want to recruit Olivia into their hacking house. But as Z and Olivia get closer, Z starts to question the morality of what he’s doing–but it’s just a little too late.
“Although, I have to say, she did look damn cute, bouncing around the place in that ugly orange shirt, ponytail bobbing. Cuter than anyone has a right to look in neon. And the way she lit up with some of the customers, even those college guys she pretended to flirt with…Takes a player to know one– I knew exactly what she was doing. I didn’t like the effect it had on me, though. Damn adorable girl actually made me feel a twinge of jealousy.”
Z and Olivia are the main characters and narrators in this novel. The thing that I enjoyed about this book was how realistic it was. It’s horrible to say that having a bunch of orphans be criminal hackers is believable, but the way that it was written was very convincing and realistic. This shone through in the characters. Olivia had a tough life, between loosing her mom to drugs, the neglect of various foster homes, and even some sexual abuse. But she didn’t let that set the precedent for her life. She was smart and computer-savvy, and she was innocent to fault. Sure, under the influence of Z and Sam she made a few bad decisions, but she learned from them and didn’t let them influence her future decisions and morality. It was inspiring that she was able to hold on to her sense of right and wrong, even with all of the things that were pressing in on her.
“She peers up at me from underneath her lashes, knitting her eyebrows slightly, and I know exactly what she’s thinking. Something she’s going to say will make me want to beat the living shit out of someone. I can feel fury burning in the pit of my stomach already.”
Z was the other main character. He was intriguing to say the least. He had a hard past that he didn’t let anyone find out about except, eventually, Olivia. He was guarded. He was also sarcastic and cocky. But on the inside, he was vulnerable and sweet. He had a past that shaped him into the person that he became. But when you removed all of his outer defenses, he really was a good guy, regardless of his criminal activities. And he rode a motorcycle. Sigh.
“Nothing matters anymore. Just her.”
The two of them completely complemented each other. She was the sweet, naive girl and he was the cocky, bad boy. They both had a knack for computers, and they both had tough family life. But in each other, they found solace. It was endearing to see them open up to each other, especially Z, considering the circumstances.
Now the plot. Oh my sweet baby Jesus, that book was intense. So first of all, you have the criminal hacking, which was interesting all in itself. Throw in an evil business owner, a few criminal activities, and then an epic climax, and you’ve got yourself a to-die-for novel. That climax…it had my heart pounding and the nervous jitters going. It’s just…no words. And the way it all came together in the end? It was genius. GENIUS!
Olivia Twisted has definitely made its way onto the list of my favorite books of 2013. This novel was like a thrilling roller coaster ride; it had me on the edge of my seat with its ‘twisted’ plot. An amazing retelling of the great classic Oliver Twist, it is definitely one that you’ll want to pick up!
December 17, 2014
I received an ARC through NetGalley.
The idea behind Olivia Twisted is pretty awesome: an orphaned, female, hacker retelling of Oliver Twist. Unfortunately, it's a disaster, and not even one that I couldn't tear my eyes away from. I did like it at first, but things went downhill fast. A lot of the plot points make no sense and caused a lot of eye-rolling and some rage, Olivia has no personality whatsoever, and parts were so boring that I resulted to skimming. Not to mention is took me over two days to finish it, which is absurd for me if I have nothing else to do. Which I didn't. Anyway, about the story: It follows sixteen year old Olivia as she's dropped off at her latest foster home. Once she starts school she meets Z in their computer class and quickly learns that they both have hacking skills. Then Z tries to recruit her to work for his group home, which is essentially a crime ring run by teenage hackers. Sounds pretty unique and interesting, but it wasn't.
My first issue with Olivia Twisted came at around the 15-20% mark. Liv goes to teen night at a club with her new friend Sam, where she gets roofied. Sam and Z take her home, and the next morning she admits what happened to her foster dad. Neither of them do anything about it. In fact, he just offers to drive her to school and be home in the afternoon so she won't be alone. Since, of course the guy who drugged her is going to be stalking her now or something. At school Liv confronts the guy who gave her the drink, he denies spiking it, and she just accepts that and starts thinking Z is the culprit. And yet instead of avoiding him because she thinks he's a bad guy, she falls in love with him. WTF is that?! Plus the whole drugged, attempted rape thing isn't brought up again until about two thirds in and by then it's totally overkill since the real culprit has done enough creeptastic stuff to begin with! Why did this need to be included?! It added nothing to the story, and there was no bigger message about how to deal with it if it were to happen. It's just a horrible plot device!
My second issue with Olivia Twisted was Z and Sam. Sam is another personalityless cardboard cut out like Olivia, and she manipulates her just as much as Z does. They both want her to come work with them, but instead of maybe hinting at it and inviting her over to see what it's all about, they do a lot of dirty things. Sam gets her to steal from the mall as some kind of test. I really don't get how making your supposed new BFF steal is suppose to build trust or interest, but whatever. Then Z uses his hottie status to seduce her, changes her grades so he can offer to tutor her and spend more time with her. Well, eventually they do invite her over and Liv is immediately interested in their hacking competitions and what not. See, befriending her, inviting her over totally worked, so everything else became unnecessary and a waste of pages.
As for the plot...what plot?! Most of Olivia Twisted is just Olivia and Z either being antagonistic toward each other or them making out. Plus Z mopes around a lot about how he needs Olivia to do the job, but he doesn't want this life for her because he loves her, but blah blah blah. It isn't until about 80% when any kind of tense plot shows up, but by this point my brain had already checked out. This part also induced a ton of eye rolling because Olivia's reactions are just ridiculous and make no kind of logical sense. Then it ends, and I was kind of glad for the non-stereotypical happy ending where the bad boy is reformed by the power of love from an innocent girl. But the epilogue happened and I had to roll my eyes some more.
So, clearly I did not Olivia Twisted at all. It was a chore to even finish, and that whole roofie arc just made me want to throw the book across the room. Although I love my Kindle too much for that, and it's not her fault that this book was rage inducing. Olivia Twisted seriously had a great premise, but it failed on so many levels. I can't even comprehend how wrong things went in this book for me. I was hoping the second half would redeem it, and that something would finally happen besides Z's annoying back and forth about Liv, but nope. Very, very disappointing.
Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.
The idea behind Olivia Twisted is pretty awesome: an orphaned, female, hacker retelling of Oliver Twist. Unfortunately, it's a disaster, and not even one that I couldn't tear my eyes away from. I did like it at first, but things went downhill fast. A lot of the plot points make no sense and caused a lot of eye-rolling and some rage, Olivia has no personality whatsoever, and parts were so boring that I resulted to skimming. Not to mention is took me over two days to finish it, which is absurd for me if I have nothing else to do. Which I didn't. Anyway, about the story: It follows sixteen year old Olivia as she's dropped off at her latest foster home. Once she starts school she meets Z in their computer class and quickly learns that they both have hacking skills. Then Z tries to recruit her to work for his group home, which is essentially a crime ring run by teenage hackers. Sounds pretty unique and interesting, but it wasn't.
My first issue with Olivia Twisted came at around the 15-20% mark. Liv goes to teen night at a club with her new friend Sam, where she gets roofied. Sam and Z take her home, and the next morning she admits what happened to her foster dad. Neither of them do anything about it. In fact, he just offers to drive her to school and be home in the afternoon so she won't be alone. Since, of course the guy who drugged her is going to be stalking her now or something. At school Liv confronts the guy who gave her the drink, he denies spiking it, and she just accepts that and starts thinking Z is the culprit. And yet instead of avoiding him because she thinks he's a bad guy, she falls in love with him. WTF is that?! Plus the whole drugged, attempted rape thing isn't brought up again until about two thirds in and by then it's totally overkill since the real culprit has done enough creeptastic stuff to begin with! Why did this need to be included?! It added nothing to the story, and there was no bigger message about how to deal with it if it were to happen. It's just a horrible plot device!
My second issue with Olivia Twisted was Z and Sam. Sam is another personalityless cardboard cut out like Olivia, and she manipulates her just as much as Z does. They both want her to come work with them, but instead of maybe hinting at it and inviting her over to see what it's all about, they do a lot of dirty things. Sam gets her to steal from the mall as some kind of test. I really don't get how making your supposed new BFF steal is suppose to build trust or interest, but whatever. Then Z uses his hottie status to seduce her, changes her grades so he can offer to tutor her and spend more time with her. Well, eventually they do invite her over and Liv is immediately interested in their hacking competitions and what not. See, befriending her, inviting her over totally worked, so everything else became unnecessary and a waste of pages.
As for the plot...what plot?! Most of Olivia Twisted is just Olivia and Z either being antagonistic toward each other or them making out. Plus Z mopes around a lot about how he needs Olivia to do the job, but he doesn't want this life for her because he loves her, but blah blah blah. It isn't until about 80% when any kind of tense plot shows up, but by this point my brain had already checked out. This part also induced a ton of eye rolling because Olivia's reactions are just ridiculous and make no kind of logical sense. Then it ends, and I was kind of glad for the non-stereotypical happy ending where the bad boy is reformed by the power of love from an innocent girl. But the epilogue happened and I had to roll my eyes some more.
So, clearly I did not Olivia Twisted at all. It was a chore to even finish, and that whole roofie arc just made me want to throw the book across the room. Although I love my Kindle too much for that, and it's not her fault that this book was rage inducing. Olivia Twisted seriously had a great premise, but it failed on so many levels. I can't even comprehend how wrong things went in this book for me. I was hoping the second half would redeem it, and that something would finally happen besides Z's annoying back and forth about Liv, but nope. Very, very disappointing.
Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.
September 12, 2016
This was a thrilling, suspenseful romance that deals with hacking, and it's an Oliver Twist retelling. I've never read Oliver Twist, but I would love to read it now.
Characters:
Olivia has been bouncing to and from the foster home and it's taken a toll on her, especially her last home where she thought she actually fit in. But she's put in with two foster parents and a new school which is not new to her. At her new school, she meets Sam who knows a little too much about her and is very nosy and she gets the attention of hacker, Z. She knows that Z is trouble, especially something is off him. She can't put her finger on it, but she bonds with him because he knows what she has to go through. Falling for him when she doesn't puts a wrench in both of their plans. Being introduced into Z's world is one that really puts her heart and her conscience on the line.
Z is the bad boy and a few girls are bitter, because of his relationships. He's not fixated on falling for another girl, but when he meets Liv she changes him and it scares him. Getting his feelings involved with this hacking thing, may destroy everyone. He was mysterious (like the definition) a bit dodgy at times especially with Liv. Everything Z thinks that he can throw, Liv throws back harder and he's shocked and the case he needs to get finished is ticking. It was a mystery, because he something as going to go down, just NOT what. I always kept that in my mind despite the underlying issue that mystery that surrounded Z.
Final Thoughts:
It was SO good. It was a good mixture of mystery, romance and a whole lot of HACKING. I'm all about girls rocking the technology world though Liv was a bit illegal (okay, a LOT illegal). But I'm so excited for the next book in the duology.
Characters:
Olivia has been bouncing to and from the foster home and it's taken a toll on her, especially her last home where she thought she actually fit in. But she's put in with two foster parents and a new school which is not new to her. At her new school, she meets Sam who knows a little too much about her and is very nosy and she gets the attention of hacker, Z. She knows that Z is trouble, especially something is off him. She can't put her finger on it, but she bonds with him because he knows what she has to go through. Falling for him when she doesn't puts a wrench in both of their plans. Being introduced into Z's world is one that really puts her heart and her conscience on the line.
Z is the bad boy and a few girls are bitter, because of his relationships. He's not fixated on falling for another girl, but when he meets Liv she changes him and it scares him. Getting his feelings involved with this hacking thing, may destroy everyone. He was mysterious (like the definition) a bit dodgy at times especially with Liv. Everything Z thinks that he can throw, Liv throws back harder and he's shocked and the case he needs to get finished is ticking. It was a mystery, because he something as going to go down, just NOT what. I always kept that in my mind despite the underlying issue that mystery that surrounded Z.
Final Thoughts:
It was SO good. It was a good mixture of mystery, romance and a whole lot of HACKING. I'm all about girls rocking the technology world though Liv was a bit illegal (okay, a LOT illegal). But I'm so excited for the next book in the duology.
November 6, 2013
Actual rating: 4.5
(View this review on My Library in the Making.)
If there's one thing Olivia Twisted made me realize, it's that I had no idea what Charles Dickens' classic book is about. Seriously. And I dare call myself a book addict.
Okay, back to this retelling. Uh, holy mother of shizz, talk about awesome! I wanted to read this book because of the computer hacking, and you don't know how happy I am that it didn't disappoint in that aspect—not that it disappointed in any aspect. I was hooked right from chapter one, with Liv's and Z's engrossing voices.
It's hard not to like and relate to Liv. Not counting all the horrible stuff with being a foster kid—which I pitied her for—she really was just a simple girl: shy, uncertain, innocent. And prideful, too, which she showed the most when she took Z up on his hacking challenge, knowing that that was exactly what he's doing. Being a computer engineering student, I know that feeling all too well. Anyway, she did irritate me one time. It was unbelievable how Liv was so... good. Like, for someone who'd been through a lot, I'd imagine Z's job would be easy for her to stomach. Or maybe that's just me and my messed-up morality lol.
Now let's talk about Z. Oh, Z. He was a walking enigma, and with his long-ish blond hair, black leather jacket, sexy glasses, and oh, a freaking Ducati, he's as swoon-worthy as a guy can get. Plus, he's an expert in social engineering! He wasn't all tough and manly though; he cared genuinely and deeply for the other kids in the group home he was in, putting their needs and safety before his own.
Even with Z's douchebag act at the start of the story, the attraction between him and Liv was immediately palpable. And when that turned into a full-blown romance? Yowza. They were sweet and steamy (nothing R-18, don't worry) but also mature, showing just how much they'd been hardened by their experiences, and that was sad and heartening at the same time. And they were perfect for each other, really, because they both wanted a better life for each other.
Exciting and intense all throughout, Olivia Twisted is the kind of book that I would just love to read again and again. I'd say I want to read the next chapter in Liv's and Z's lives, but nah, I'm happy with how the author left them in the end. They both seriously deserved a break, anyway.
MY FAVORITE PART was the epilogue :3
(View this review on My Library in the Making.)
If there's one thing Olivia Twisted made me realize, it's that I had no idea what Charles Dickens' classic book is about. Seriously. And I dare call myself a book addict.
Okay, back to this retelling. Uh, holy mother of shizz, talk about awesome! I wanted to read this book because of the computer hacking, and you don't know how happy I am that it didn't disappoint in that aspect—not that it disappointed in any aspect. I was hooked right from chapter one, with Liv's and Z's engrossing voices.
It's hard not to like and relate to Liv. Not counting all the horrible stuff with being a foster kid—which I pitied her for—she really was just a simple girl: shy, uncertain, innocent. And prideful, too, which she showed the most when she took Z up on his hacking challenge, knowing that that was exactly what he's doing. Being a computer engineering student, I know that feeling all too well. Anyway, she did irritate me one time. It was unbelievable how Liv was so... good. Like, for someone who'd been through a lot, I'd imagine Z's job would be easy for her to stomach. Or maybe that's just me and my messed-up morality lol.
Now let's talk about Z. Oh, Z. He was a walking enigma, and with his long-ish blond hair, black leather jacket, sexy glasses, and oh, a freaking Ducati, he's as swoon-worthy as a guy can get. Plus, he's an expert in social engineering! He wasn't all tough and manly though; he cared genuinely and deeply for the other kids in the group home he was in, putting their needs and safety before his own.
Even with Z's douchebag act at the start of the story, the attraction between him and Liv was immediately palpable. And when that turned into a full-blown romance? Yowza. They were sweet and steamy (nothing R-18, don't worry) but also mature, showing just how much they'd been hardened by their experiences, and that was sad and heartening at the same time. And they were perfect for each other, really, because they both wanted a better life for each other.
Exciting and intense all throughout, Olivia Twisted is the kind of book that I would just love to read again and again. I'd say I want to read the next chapter in Liv's and Z's lives, but nah, I'm happy with how the author left them in the end. They both seriously deserved a break, anyway.
MY FAVORITE PART was the epilogue :3
October 8, 2013
Olivia Twisted – Not Twisted Enough to Keep My Interest
I am going to be honest. I did not finish this book. Try as I might, I could not get through all the YA clichés. Halfway through, I felt like I could have taken Z and Liv, put them in a dozen other YA novels as the main characters, and it wouldn’t have changed either story one bit. In a market overloaded with YA books, characters and plots have to stand out. They have to be fresh, unique, remarkable in some way. Olivia Twisted and her characters just didn’t have any affect on me.
Olivia starts out strong. An orphan being shuffled to yet another foster home. I felt bad for her, but admired her and actually laughed at her horror of the “rooster” house – mainly because all I could think was, Dear God, it’s my mother’s kitchen. But Olivia quickly becomes like so many other female protagonists out there: weak and dull, allowing Z to mess with her life while she falls hopelessly for him, though as I reader I never understood the appeal.
Z (what kind of name is that? Only J.R. Ward can get away with that) starts out like dozens of other boys in YA novels. He’s arrogant, rude, controlling, and makes Olivia fall for him even as he constantly plays hot and cold with her, treating her well one moment and terribly the next. He’s basically Edward Cullen minus the fangs and glitter.
And here’s where the book turned south for me. Olivia is a smart girl. Good grades, good head on her shoulders, then along comes Z.Z. (and yes, I added Top every time I read that stupid name) and suddenly she is in love with a boy who might have slipped her the date rape drug and then pretended to save her. He screws with her grades, shows up at her work, and basically harasses her, yet she somehow still finds herself wildly attracted to him. I am so sick of these heroines who fall for guys like this.
As Z continued to screw with her life (getting her in trouble with her foster parents, forcing her to meet with him after school under the false pretense of tutoring), I’d had enough. I disliked Z, and I lost any respect or sympathy I had mustered for Liv. I just couldn’t finish the book because I no longer cared about the characters or what happened to them.
Check out this review and others on my blog at http://ggddizzy07.wordpress.com
I am going to be honest. I did not finish this book. Try as I might, I could not get through all the YA clichés. Halfway through, I felt like I could have taken Z and Liv, put them in a dozen other YA novels as the main characters, and it wouldn’t have changed either story one bit. In a market overloaded with YA books, characters and plots have to stand out. They have to be fresh, unique, remarkable in some way. Olivia Twisted and her characters just didn’t have any affect on me.
Olivia starts out strong. An orphan being shuffled to yet another foster home. I felt bad for her, but admired her and actually laughed at her horror of the “rooster” house – mainly because all I could think was, Dear God, it’s my mother’s kitchen. But Olivia quickly becomes like so many other female protagonists out there: weak and dull, allowing Z to mess with her life while she falls hopelessly for him, though as I reader I never understood the appeal.
Z (what kind of name is that? Only J.R. Ward can get away with that) starts out like dozens of other boys in YA novels. He’s arrogant, rude, controlling, and makes Olivia fall for him even as he constantly plays hot and cold with her, treating her well one moment and terribly the next. He’s basically Edward Cullen minus the fangs and glitter.
And here’s where the book turned south for me. Olivia is a smart girl. Good grades, good head on her shoulders, then along comes Z.Z. (and yes, I added Top every time I read that stupid name) and suddenly she is in love with a boy who might have slipped her the date rape drug and then pretended to save her. He screws with her grades, shows up at her work, and basically harasses her, yet she somehow still finds herself wildly attracted to him. I am so sick of these heroines who fall for guys like this.
As Z continued to screw with her life (getting her in trouble with her foster parents, forcing her to meet with him after school under the false pretense of tutoring), I’d had enough. I disliked Z, and I lost any respect or sympathy I had mustered for Liv. I just couldn’t finish the book because I no longer cared about the characters or what happened to them.
Check out this review and others on my blog at http://ggddizzy07.wordpress.com
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