Blog Tour: Olivia Twisted by Vivi Barnes @RockstarBkTours @ViviBarnes

Welcome to the Olivia Twisted blog tour hosted by RockStar Book Tours

Title: OLIVIA TWISTED

Author: Vivi Barnes
Pub. Date: November 5, 2013
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Pages: 352
Find it: Amazon, Barnes& Noble, Goodreads

Olivia

He tilts my chin up so my eyes meet his, his thumb brushing lightly across my lips. I close my eyes. I know Z is trouble. I know that being with him is going to get me into trouble. I don’t care. 

At least at this moment, I don’t care.

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…Z

I can picture Liv’s face: wide-eyed, trusting. Her smooth lips that taste like strawberry Fanta. 

It was just a kiss. That’s all. She’s just like any other girl. 

Except that she’s not.

Thanks to Z, Olivia’s about to get twisted.

Today I get a guest post from the fabulous Vivi! Let's see what she says about her favorite retellings!

It’s interesting – retellings of classic stories and fairy tales in literature and film have been around for a long time, but happily, it seems like there’s been quite an insurgence lately.  

I grew up in a Disney-loving household where I would sit for hours and listen to LP records of Cinderella and Snow White, blissfully unaware that they were reimaginings of tales much darker than Disney portrayed. Then as a teen I read Grimm’s Fairy Tales. Imagine my shock to see Aschenputtel’s stepsisters get their eyes pecked out by doves at the wedding! Not exactly the Cinderella I grew up listening to. (Of course, my boys think it’s an awesome way to end the story.)

My favorite stories are the ones that don’t just retell but completely contemporize the characters and settings of classics. The original OLIVER TWIST is a great story but not relatable for today’s times. In OLIVIA TWISTED, I “twisted” (haha) the story to fit modern times, making the gang hackers instead of pickpocketers and putting Olivia in foster homes instead of a workhouse. I thought having the two characters—Olivia and Z, who parallel Oliver and the Artful Dodger—involved in a romance would be intriguing. But in keeping with the personalities of the original characters, I kept Olivia somewhat innocent and Z—well, rather dodgy.

Some of my favorite classic retellings include:

• SPLINTERED by A.G. Howard (a fantastical take on Alice in Wonderland),
• JANE by April Lindner (a modern tale based on Jane Eyre)
• BEASTLY by Alex Flinn (an urban retelling of Beauty and the Beast)
• CINDER by Marissa Meyer (a sci-fi romantic Cinderella tale)
• CRUEL BEAUTY by Rosamund Hodge (a dark fantasy based on Beauty and the Beast)
• THE FOREVER KING by Molly Cochran and Warren Murphy (a reimagining of King Arthur that blew my mind when I read it as a teen)

I love that there are so many ways a story can be retold. I will never tire of reading—and hopefully writing—the new classics!

What’s your favorite retelling?

Awesome answers! Splintered is one of my favorite retellings! Thanks so much for sharing with us, Vivi! It's been great having you here!

Originally from East Texas (the accent comes out more often than not), Vivi now lives in the magic and sunshine of Orlando, FL with her very understanding husband and three kids. She’s an extrovert with awkward blogging tendencies. Her debut novel, OLIVIA TWISTED, comes out November 5, 2013 from Entangled Teen!

You can connect with Vivi on Facebook,Twitter, Goodreads, Pinterest. Or visit the official Olivia Twisted site at www.oliviatwisted.com.

She’s represented by Pam van Hylckama Vlieg of Foreword Literary.

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