Dodge & Twist

By: Tony Lee

Narrated by: Matt Lucas, Stephen Mangan, Michael Socha, Kara Tointon

Length: 4 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's Summary

It’s rumoured that Dickens wanted to return to his classic novel Oliver Twist, to bring him back into a later book as an older character, but he never managed this before he died. However, if Oliver had returned, what would he have been like? Would the scars of his childhood affect the man he would become? And what of ‘Dodger’, sent to a land halfway around the world, his friend, mentor and master dead because of Oliver? 

Dodge & Twist is that story. The tale of two boys, 12 years later, returning into each other’s lives - for both good and bad.

Featuring: Matt Addis, Ben Addis, Tom Michael Blyth, Will Brown, Trevor Cooper, Alexandra Donnachie, Lauren Drummond, Nigel Fairs, David Gooderson, Tom Goodman-Hill, Harry Hepple, Will Howard, James Joyce, Anthony Keetch, Mack Keith-Roach, Matt Lucas, Nick Lucas, Stephen Mangan, William McGeough, David Menkin, Harry Myers,Matty Norgren, Greg Patmore, Miles Richardson, Richard Rycroft, Andy Secombe, Michael Socha, Sheila Steafel, Kara Tointon, Lizzie Waterworth-Santo and Sarah Whitehouse.

©2018 Audible, Ltd (P)2018 Audible, Ltd

Excellent performance, pretty dismal story

First the good. The voice work is excellent. It was fun to listen to. There are also some fun Easter eggs for Dickens fans.

Now the bad. The story comes off as some amateur piece of fan-fiction. The idea of revisiting the characters in Oliver Twist is exciting, but executed very poorly. Oliver's motivation for acting as he does is non-existent. None of the characters (except maybe for Noah and Charlotte) act consistently. And the suspension of disbelief required to accept all of the coincidences in the story's conclusion is laughable, even by Dickens standards. Overall, very disappointing.

54 people found this helpful

The writing needs polish, acting is phenomenal.

Sometimes the dialogue is highly inconsistent which is incredibly confusing, as if the characters have forgotten about their own previous interactions, but there voice acting is incredibly well done and each character is distinct.

8 people found this helpful

Maybe not dickens but an exciting ride!

I didnt care for the ghost of Fagin so much. it seemed too much amature psychologist, and didn't manage its first purpose: to humanize and explain some of Dodgers worst impulses. The plot itself was ingenious and when the writer brought in other characters from Dickens other novels that was masterful in my mind. Also the way the writer carefully aged each of the characters from the sketches in Dickens originalvwork was very well done. The actors did a superb job of bringing the story to life. Thanks for this very entertaining listen.

15 people found this helpful

Oliver and Dodger team up once again

I didn't expect to like this as much as I did!

It's a fun romping adventure with an older Artful Dodger and a less naive Oliver Twist. The plot held together well and while I was dreading Dodger being a criminal adult, he really lost none of his boyhood charm. I also liked the little "shout outs" to other Dickens works like A Christmas Carol and Great Expectations.

The ending tied up all the loose ends, but still left room for more adventures. Please! I'd love to see a sequel!

7 people found this helpful

Interesting concept

It’s like Ocean’s Eleven but set in Victorian London.
The story is decent, but it runs a little slowly. The repetition of some phrases becomes irritating after a while.
The performances were great and helped support visualization of the characters.

20 people found this helpful

If Dickens had written it

I was not sure what to expect with this. So often attempts to recreate a classic fall short and leave the reader disappointed. That was not at all the case with this story. Tony Lee wrote this incredible story in Dicken's voice. The characters were true to their nature and the story line very entertaining. The only minor criticism is that Dodger appears to be omnipotent, able to manipulate events throughout England and always achieve his desired effect. But that is a small , easily over looked item. Over all I found this to be a very entertaining return to Dicken's world. I particularly liked the way he worked scrooge and marley into the story.

4 people found this helpful

EXCELLENT !!

This was a wonderful production . I truly enjoyed every suspenseful minute. The ending had a very nice twist. Thank you.

G. CAFFEY

3 people found this helpful

A story that Dickens himself would approve!

The story itself was amazing! the plot was perfect. I love Oliver Twist and always wanted a sequel, but I didnt think it would be this good! Accompanied with the voice actors and sound effects, this is a masterpiece which stands side by side with the original!

3 people found this helpful

fun little book.

fun book to listen to. I always enjoy all the different characters voices and background music and noises. it's like a movie in your mind.

3 people found this helpful

Very entertaining

It would be so easy to make this into a mini series. Very entertaining listen.

14 people found this helpful

Great fun. Love the dramatics.

Although it is not as long as a narrated book it kept me good for long enough to really enjoy.

lots of characters got a job, so expensive to produce. I hope they make money out of this, so there will be more!!

3 people found this helpful

Dramatised follow-on with 'twists' of its own

Dramatized format works wonderfully - psychologically dark, follows on nicely from Dickens.

A follow-on, in the approximate language of Dickens, that takes place years after the end of Oliver Twist. I believe it is based on Tony Lee's own graphic novel of 2011, but having not read this I cannot compare.

I can though, comment on this audio presentation. The story itself was suitably dark, with psychological elements, a few in-jokes (even a reference to the Carol Reed musical?!), with familiar characters meeting new ones that wouldn't have been out of place in a Dickens' novel.

Oliver returns to London a decade after leaving it with his guardian, his circumstances requiring him to return. He runs into Dodger of course, also back in London after being transported for his crimes, and the two form an uneasy alliance as Oliver is persuaded to help his old friend commit a crime in exchange for financial assistance.

This worked so well as an audiobook, with the whole story dramatised, no narrator slowing down the action, the characters speak their thoughts to us, converse openly, and with sound effects in the scenes, the scenes came alive. Some great voices as well, a few famous voices were recognisable and the young men playing the lead characters did sound like older versions of Oliver and Dodger, those you might imagine if familiar with either the book or the musical.

With Fagin making an unexpected but sinister reappearance as well, as well as other characters from the novel, it feels like a continuation in many respects, and a story that Dickens might well have approved of. There's a Nancy substitute who manages to feel fairly contemporary as well, and Oliver and Dodger both changed a few times in my estimation and how I wanted their stories to conclude. Some nices 'twists'.

I really enjoyed the story, the idea of it and its execution. Loved hearing this, a great production of sound and voice.

With thanks to Nudge Books for the sample Audible copy.

3 people found this helpful

Great to catch up with the characters again

Loved the book, even if I did get dizzy with all the plot twists! I'm a huge fan of the original so it was great to meet them again after all this time.
I'm not usually an audio book fan, this is only the second one I"ve made it to the end of, but I loved the production and the recording - Matt Lucas' voice is brilliant.
Off to buy Dorian now 👍

1 person found this helpful

Great entertainment for Dickens fans

An interesting and clever plot that brings Oliver Twist & the Artful Dodger back together again. The story brings back other characters from Oliver and refers to others from other Dickens novels. The cast do an excellent job of taking you back into the underworld of 1800’s London. It hints at a possible sequel, which would be lovely. If you enjoy Dickens or Dickensian stories, you’d enjoy this. It is broken up into chapters which if you’re short on time, you can listen to it in the same way as a serialised radio play without losing any impact of the action or plot. Kept me spellbound until the end!

Loved the nod to the musical stars!!

An absolute delight to listen to! a fantastic Cast! I love the way they got Ron Moody and Oliver Reed into the story! I really do hope there are more to come from Dodger and Oliver! there is so much going on not to just end it!

Really Entertaining

Loved this book, all the old characters from the original story. It was gripping and clever. I think even Charles Dickens himself would have enjoyed it. Great actors so worth a listen, totally recommend.

Enjoyable

Compelling. Imaginative and an excellent cast. A good listen. I look forward to more. Great writing.

And then I woke up and it was all a dream....

Started well but quickly deteriorated into a labyrinthine, unnecessarily complex heist story. At the end, so much was explained by dream or fever, and so many instances of 'How did I get here?' or 'Aha, but what you didn't know was...' Poorly plotted, Byzantine and dull. The bright spot is Matt Lucas' incredible acting.

1 person found this helpful

Loved it!

Loved it!!!!! Fingers crossed for more!!!!! Need more like this type of story classical based please!!!!