Blog tour: Oliver Twisted - J.D Sharpe

I have a wonderful guest post today by J.D Sharpe, the author of the fabulous 'Oliver Twisted'.  This was a fantastic read combining all the things I loved about Dicken's original novel with a fresh and unique new twist.

 
Me, Dickens and London

London was Dickens’s greatest inspiration. He knew its backstreets and alleys better than anyone. The slums that populated the city may have long-since been torn down for tube stations, but his vivid descriptions remain with us, a living, breathing history. Dickens often walked the streets, for hours on end, plotting his novels and observing the lives of men, women and children around him. With his words he conjures up for us the sights, smells and sounds of a bygone London.

As a born and bred Londoner, the city has a lot to do with how I define myself as a person. I love its busyness, its craziness. I love its glitter and grittiness. Living in London is like living in Technicolor, you have to be switched on and aware in a way that just isn’t quite the same anywhere else.

I no longer live in London but if you opened up my veins I think I would bleed a Central Line red with a bit of Piccadilly Line blue.

To write Oliver Twisted, I did quite a lot of research on Dickens. He had his frustrations with the city - he hated the poverty he saw and the bureaucracy of government that had its seat in London but when all is said and done he loved the city as much as I do.

So, as we are both such fans of big smoke, here are some of my favourite London haunts/memories and some of Dickens’s as well.

Favourite Theatre
CD  For Dickens his favourite theatre may well have been the Lyceum Theatre. A stage adaptation of A Tale of Two Cities was performed here with Dickens overseeing rehearsals. It is said he might have even directed the play!

JD  One of my favourite theatre experiences has got to be Accomplice. It is part show, part tour, part mystery and all of awesome. You can buy tickets at the Menier Chocolate Factory but London is really your stage for this event!

Favourite Restaurant
CD Rules is one of the oldest restaurants In London, it began its life in 1798. Dickens used to eat here often as have many other actors and literary greats including HG Wells and Charlie Chaplin.

JD Abu Zaad – A fantastic Syrian restaurant in Shepherds Bush. Great kebabs and fabulous fruit juices.

London Childhood Home
CD Dickens spent a chunk his childhood in Camden, at 16 Bayham Street to be precise although this building has now been torn down. He lived here while working near Covent Garden more of that later.

JD Hornsey. Home of Alexandra Palace Ice Rink, thespian Crouch End with lovely cafes, and the awesome Stroud Green and Harringey Library where I spent many an hour immersed in books when I was younger.

Toughest London Job
JD Working in a McDonalds, near the old Arsenal football stadium, when I was 16. Let’s just say that football fans + hungry does not = a pretty picture.

CD. Working just off the Strand, sticking labels onto pots of paste blacking used for boot polish when he was just 12 years old.

Favourite way to see London
CD Walking

Dickens would walk anything from 10 to 20 miles a day. He did this for exercise, recreation and thinking time. These series of apps capture his walks brilliantly.

JD Tube. I love writing on the tube, something about the movement helps me to think. Also it’s a great place to people watch [not in a creepy way] and is a marvellous vehicle of discoveries.

So, the next time you’re at a loose end, get a travel card and get off at a stop you’ve never been to before. I love doing this. I remember the first time I headed south of the river and went to Elephant and Castle because it sounded so cool.

I don’t know what I was expecting but it wasn’t that rather forlorn pink elephant on top of the shopping mall . . .

Review and Giveaway: Oliver Twisted - JD Sharpe

Oliver Twisted by JD Sharpe, published by Electric Monkey on 6th February 2012 

Goodreads synopsis:
The world according to Oliver Twisted is simple. Vampyres feed on the defenceless. Orphans are sacrificed to hungry gods. And if a woe-begotten catches your scent it will hunt you for ever. When a talking corpse reveals that Oliver will find his destiny in London, he sets out to seek the truth. Even if it means losing his soul.

Review:
'Oliver Twisted' is one of the first offerings from Egmont's new young adult imprint Electric Monkey.  Published to tie-in with the bicentenary of Charles Dickens, 'Oliver Twisted' puts a fresh spin on the Dickens classic while remaining true to the spirit of the original. 

I'm a huge admirer of Dicken's work so I was immediately intrigued about this title.  Much like the author JD Sharpe, I've always loved 'Oliver Twist' and enjoyed the story of an orphan boy whose life eventually takes a turn for the better after enduring hardship and adversity.  I was curious to see how the author was going to reintroduce this story to a whole new audience of readers while injecting it with a modern twist.  The introduction of vampyres, zombies and werewolves does the job quite nicely!

Familiar characters are not forgotten and are cleverly interwoven into the story, including faces such as the Artful Dodger, Nancy, Bill Sykes and the wicked Fagin.  It was fun to see Dodger turning himself into a wisp of smoke and Fagin having a magical hold over his boys.

A new backstory is invented for Oliver who is still an orphan but now also becomes a pawn who the infamous and evil Brotherhood want to use to defeat the Knights of Nostradamus.  I thought this was an interesting subversion of the original plot and meant that the story actually became far darker and creepier than the classic we all know and love.  Before starting this book I did worry that it might be a bit too gory for my tastes but in actuality I found that there were just the right amount of thrills and spills to make this a compulsive and exciting read.

'Oliver Twisted' is an inventive take on a much loved classic and one which will have widespread appeal for both a male and female readership.  I really enjoyed reading it and look forward to more books by JD Sharpe in the future.  

To celebrate the release of 'Oliver Twisted' I'm giving away a paperback copy of the book.  The giveaway is international but you must be a follower of my blog to enter.  Just fill out your details on the form below.  Good luck!    

Giveaway rules.

• There will be one winner.
• Open to International entrants.
• Please fill out the form completely - especially the required details.
• You must be a follower to enter.
• Deadline for entries will be on 22nd February.
• Winner will be drawn by random.org
• Winner will be contacted via e-mail, and will be given 48 hours to response. Otherwise, a new winner will be drawn.
• Any details will be deleted after use and will not be passed on to any third party.

Review: Desert Angel - Charlie Price

Desert Angel by Charlie Price, published by Corgi on 2nd February 2012

Goodreads synopsis:
Nowhere is safe...

Angel is on the run. Her mother is dead, her body buried in a shallow grave by her latest boyfriend, Scotty, a ruthless, illegal hunter who is prone to violence and who wants Angel dead before she can talk to the police.
Angel has lived through more than a young girl should have but she's determined to stay alive.
But in the scorching heat of the open desert, where can she hide?

Review:
Dubbed as a 'cat and mouse thriller', I thought that 'Desert Angel' was going to be a gripping and exciting read.  Although some parts of the story were pretty tense, it didn't quite live up to my expectations.  Angel is on the run, being chased by Scotty, the man who murdered her mother and then tried to kill her too.  Only fourteen years old she's wise beyond her years but is now caught in a desperate struggle for survival with a dangerous killer. 

There is a claustrophobic feel about the story and you get the sense that no matter where Angel goes, Scotty will hunt her down and find her.  However, whereas I thought that Angel was going to have to rely on her wits and survival instincts alone and that most of the story would take place in the middle of the desert, in reality, Angel soon meets a number of people who are willing to help her, including Rita who becomes like a proper mother to Angel.  This changed the dimensions of the story quite significantly and meant that the story was rather more sedate in places than it could have been.  In particular, I found that the passages which took place in the local school were rather at odds with the main plot and slowed down the overall flow of the story.

Scotty was a sinister figure throughout, particularly because some of his actions against Angel are never spoken aloud but the implication of what he's done to her are explicit never the less.  He also comes across as an insane and unhinged individual who is ruthless in his single-minded pursuit of her.   

I found the ending of the book quite abrupt and after the inevitable showdown everything seemed to be wrapped up quite quickly, leaving some parts feeling slightly underdeveloped.  Although I had high hopes for 'Desert Angel' it just didn't deliver on its earlier promise.     

Review: The Storyteller - Antonia Michaelis

The Storyteller by Antonia Michaelis, published by Amulet Books on 1st January 2012 

Goodreads synopsis:
Anna and Abel couldn’t be more different. They are both seventeen and in their last year of school, but while Anna lives in a nice old town house and comes from a well-to-do family, Abel, the school drug dealer, lives in a big, prisonlike tower block at the edge of town. Anna is afraid of him until she realizes that he is caring for his six-year-old sister on his own. Fascinated, Anna follows the two and listens as Abel tells little Micha the story of a tiny queen assailed by dark forces. It’s a beautiful fairy tale that Anna comes to see has a basis in reality. Abel is in real danger of losing Micha to their abusive father and to his own inability to make ends meet. Anna gradually falls in love with Abel, but when his “enemies” begin to turn up dead, she fears she has fallen for a murderer. Has she?

Review:
I thought I was going to love this book.  The synopsis sounded entrancing and the cover is beautiful and eye catching.  I also nearly always adore books which combine elements of fairytales so this one sounded like the perfect read.  Sadly, even taking all that into consideration, this book didn't compel me as I imagined it would and I had problems with the subject matter and some of the topics which the author touched upon in the story.  This is a very heavy read and for this reason I would probably only recommend it to the slightly older teen age bracket.  It's not your typical romantic fare and is much darker than I was anticipating at the start. 

The main character Anna falls in love with Abel who looks after his younger sister Micha and who has a bad reputation at their school.  Irresistibly drawn to him, Anna believes that Abel is a puzzle she can solve and finds herself quickly falling under his spell.  Abel is a storyteller (hence the title) and begins to weave a magical tale for his sister and Anna about an orphan queen with a diamond heart.  As Abel's story progresses and bad things start to happen, Anna begins to see similarities between his story and real life people and events.  Now in theory this sounds quite good but on paper it just didn't work for me.  It was more like a teaspoon of romance and a then a bucket full of violence, abuse drug taking and murder - themes which didn't appeal to me at all. 

I didn't click with Anna and Abel as characters either and I didn't like the violent nature of their relationship.  Without giving anything away, there's a major scene between them in the book which had me stop reading and put this book down.  I very nearly didn't pick it up again.  I found their romance hard to believe in and for me, Abel was too dark and secretive which instead of leaving me feeling intrigued, left me mistrusting him and being wary of him and his true intentions towards Anna. 

The one bit of the book that I did enjoy was the fairytale of the orphan queen, the lighthouse keeper, the rose girl and the sea lion which did have a magical quality about it and I actually found it more interesting than the main storyline which wasn't a good sign.

Part thriller and part love story, the tone of 'The Storyteller' was quite dark and sinister.  Much of the book was shocking and violent which I didn't like and actually left me feeling very unsettled.  I think the author has been brave in confronting some extremely sensitive and hard hitting subjects but unfortunately it just wasn't for me. 

Review: A Beautiful Evil - Kelly Keaton

A Beautiful Evil by Kelly Keaton, published by Simon and Schuster on 2nd February 2012

Goodreads synopsis:
When Ari first arrived in the dilapidated city of New 2, all she wanted was to figure out who she was. But what she discovered was beyond her worst nightmare. Ari can already sense the evil growing inside her—a power the goddess Athena will stop at nothing to possess.

Desperate to hold on to her humanity and protect her loved ones, Ari must fight back. But Athena’s playing mind games, not just with Ari but with those she cares about most. And Athena has a very special plan for the brooding and sexy Sebastian.

Ari is determined to defeat Athena, but time is running out. With no other options, Ari must unleash the very thing she’s afraid of: herself.

Review:
This is a stellar sequel to 'Darkness Becomes Her' which was one of my surprise favourites of last year.  The plot is significantly advanced and plenty of lingering questions are answered.  There's no danger of second book syndrome here with this fantastic read which kept me gripped from start to finish.

The story picks up with Ari wanting to rescue her father and Violet from the clutches of Athena, as well as figure out a way to break the curse which has plagued her family.  I loved her determination to save the people who matter to her and I enjoyed seeing her trying to embrace her powers, however much they scare her, so that she can take down Athena once and for all.  She's an unstoppable force when she sets her mind to something and she's often willing to sacrifice herself to ensure the safety of others which is an admirable quality.

She also has to navigate her relationship with Sebastian who continues to be charming and mysterious.  He's sexy and gorgeous, plus he has one of my favourite names of all time - what more could you want!  His character takes a major step in this book which I definitely did not see coming.  I'm looking forward to finding out how this will affect the two of them in the next instalment. 

I was pleased that we got to learn more about all the Gods and the personal history of Athena which I found really interesting.  Ari also gets to explore the Novem Library which is in a very unusual place and throws new light on what she's up against.  The mythological aspect of the series is one of the things I love best about these books, so I was glad that a significant amount of time was spent on ensuring this was interwoven into the plot.    

Seductive storytelling and full on action makes this a book not to be missed.  Fans of the paranormal romance genre should go out and grab this one now.  You won't be disappointed!

Waiting on Wednesday #52

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights eagerly awaited upcoming releases.  Head on over there to take part or to check out all the other fabulous books that people are looking forward to reading! 

Bunheads by Sophie Flack

Published on 1st March 2012 by Atom

 

 

As a dancer with the Manhattan Ballet Company, nineteen-year-old Hannah Ward is living her childhood dream. She gets to be up on stage in front of adoring crowds every night. And while she might not be a prima ballerina yet, she's moving up the ranks and surely if she works hard enough she can make it happen.

But devoting her whole life to ballet leaves very little time for anything else: friends, family, school have all fallen by the wayside. Hannah doesn't mind, until a chance encounter in a restaurant brings Jacob into her life. He's cute, he plays guitar and he's offering a whole future that Hannah never considered. And now she must choose between her lifelong dream or what could be the love of her life...

 

I am obsessed with books that are set in the ballet world so when I first heard about this title I knew I wanted to read it.  I've heard quite a lot of buzz about 'Bunheads' already so I'm counting down the days until it's released.