The first line, “For long minutes, there was considerable doubt as to whether the child would survive to bear a name at all.”.

Brit, the twelve year old leader of the orphans Olivia supports.

Olivia’s suitor, Maxwell Grimwig, still makes me really mad with his sentiments about poverty stricken children. Just as rumor had it, the kissing scenes were spot on.No working through the “boring parts” to get to the action. He was perfect, and for once, the hero was introduced almost from the beginning, and stuck around through the whole plot. Jack Dawkins, the Artful Dodger, Jack MacCarron, whatever you call him.So, I guess I’ll be grabbing a copy of Oliver Twist soon. Turned out I wasn’t quite aware of the story lines largely left out of the musical. I had several roles of utmost importance: “the choir”, “the orphans”, “people at the pub”, and also a stomach-somersaulting-crush on the boy who played Oliver Twist (Dodger was played by a girl. I thought I knew the original story well, having starred in the musical when I was younger. Why is a society girl helping a bunch of homeless orphan thieves? Even more intriguing, why does she remind him so much of someone he once knew? Jack finds himself wondering if going legit and risking it all might be worth it for love.įirst of all, I’d like to admit to something: It is hard to write a meaningful review when your face is still twisted (pardon the pun) in a goofy grin from finishing this remarkable retelling of the classic Dickens’ story, “Oliver Twist”. When Jack encounters Olivia Brownlow in places he least expects, his curiosity is piqued. Little does society know that MacCarron is a false name for a boy once known among London gangs as the Artful Dodger, and that he and his “aunt” are robbing them blind every chance they get. Jack MacCarron rose from his place in London’s East End to become the adopted “nephew” of a society matron. But she can’t seem to escape her past … or forget the teeming slums where children just like her still scrabble to survive.

When she is taken in by her uncle after a caper gone wrong, her life goes from fighting and stealing on the streets to lavish dinners and soirees as a debutante in high society. Born in a workhouse and raised as a boy among thieving London street gangs, she is as tough and cunning as they come.

Olivia Brownlow is no damsel in distress.

Olivia Twist by Lorie Langdon