Double Cross: Book 4 (Noughts And Crosses)

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I’m just struggling to see how we went from Noughts and Crosses to this book - they kind of feel like three very separate books connected loosely by the original world. It’s so disjointed and jumpy and the actual full outline for the series makes next to no sense. It’s such a shame because the original premise so was stellar, I think as a standalone Noughts and Crosses with a bit more work could’ve been amazing. The ‘Noughts & Crosses’ series provides us with an explicit flip and twist on both the history and current political and cultural demographic of British society – where racial politics is turned on its head and power structures are completely reversed.

The problem I think I had, which colored my reading of Double Cross, is that the third book in what was supposed to be a trilogy ended with threads woven in and it was a nice, natural close to a satisfying story. Here, the story was extended beyond its natural lifespan and it felt somewhat forced. To the narrator's alarm, Dan suggests he arms himself with a knife and the ensuing dialogue highlights escalation in weapon-carrying. The extract ends with an open-ended situation ideal for classroom speculation. Hello Yellow - 80 Books to Help Children Nurture Good Mental Health and Support With Anxiety and Wellbeing -I enjoyed this book but I think the series should have ended on the last book as this one seemed pretty unnecessary and didn't add much to the overall series. Double Cross was definitely good but it was my least favourite out of the series as it follows a pretty irrelevant character,Callie's best friend,Tobey.

The plot wasn't bad, there are so many different sociological aspects that could be examined in the context of this series, but it was quite disjointed compared to the clear lineal structure between the first three novels. Well, this is a hard one to review. Partly because I feel that this book is good and partly because I feel that being part of the ‘Noughts and Crosses’ series ruins it. I mean ruins because it didn’t have to be, this book could have stood up by itself and been counted. It didn’t need to be tagged on to a series, it’s so relevant to the youth of today and it hits hard. Putting it in an alternative reality is like taking something that’s meant to cause damage and wrapping it in bubble wrap. It needed to feel like it happens in our society for the simple reason that IT DOES. The premise is good, I mean once I’d got into the story I adored what was happening. It wasn’t a slow burner and once Tobey was drawn into the gangs I was hooked! The writing is perfect, it paints the scenes so well without adding words that don’t need to be there. I genuinely liked the story. One of Malorie’s best ideas! (That I’ve read anyway!)

This is an original, intelligent, perceptive and though-provoking series of books – and whilst squarely aimed at the Young Adult market, it clearly transcends the restrictive boundaries of that genre. Callie Rose is dealing with her guilt over the death of her grandmother, Jasmine, her mother Sephy's mother, blown up by the bomb which Callie had been persuaded to make by her terrorist uncle in book 3 of the series. She also fears that he escaped the blast given that the person killed with Jasmine is finally identified as someone she has never heard of and she blames herself for killing an innocent man. And when something happens to her, Tobey goes all out to get revenge and nullify the threats hanging over her and his family. Despite the eventual happy ending, there is still the unintended consequence that thanks to his efforts, the crime empire is now united under the control of one man. This review assumes that you have read all the previous books in the series, and thus will contain spoilers with regard to those stories.