Double Cross: Book 4 (Noughts And Crosses)

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Most of it is written through the eyes of Tobey and although we do get to hear Callie Rose at the very beginning and then at the end, it is brief. Sadly, we never hear from Sephy, which was a great disappointment. She was the original character and it would have been nice to find out how her life was turning out and if she was happy. I liked Tobey's character, but I didn't care about him as much as I had Sephy and Callum. There is also no alternating voices with each chapter, which I thought was a shame as the format had worked so well in the previous books. Then - in spite of a world that is fiercely against them - these star-crossed lovers choose each other. They've been friends since they were children, and they both know that's as far as it can ever go. Noughts and Crosses are fated to be bitter enemies - love is out of the question. It tales on tough topics like knife crime, drug addiction etc. which I think is important but the execution was terrible. Mild spoiler here but the drug addiction plotline was so poorly done and barely touched on, I didn’t feel any emotion at all it felt so shallow. I also don’t believe a teenage boy could’ve outsmarted several gangs but okay cool I guess he did. Tobey – Tobey is Callie-Rose’s childhood friend. He’s also our MC. This is the first time we’ve had his POV and at first I thought that he was more than a bit of a jerk. As much as he wants us to think that his actions are purely driven by events that happen to those around him, it’s a very selfish reason that means events snowball out of control in the first place. However I like that he tried to rectify his mistakes and that on the inside he was alright. Did I like him? I’m not entirely sure, I’m edging towards no to be honest. He did too little too late for me. He was incredibly realistic though, just the sort of person you can see getting caught up in the events of ‘Double Cross’.

Sephy is a Cross: she lives a life of privilege and power. But she's lonely, and burns with injustice at the world she sees around her. This review assumes that you have read all the previous books in the series, and thus will contain spoilers with regard to those stories. Tobey wants a better life - for him and for Callie Rose. He wants nothing to do with the violent gangs that rule the world he lives in. But when he's offered the chance to earn some extra money, how much could it hurt to just this once say 'yes'? Sixteen years have passed since Sephy Hadley first met Callum McGregor. For Callie Rose, growing up mixed race in a world where bitter prejudice divides Noughts and Crosses has meant she’s an outsider wherever she turns.Callie Rose knows all about the danger of saying 'yes'. She knows about terrible mistakes, and violence and revenge, and the fierce divide between Noughts and Crosses. 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. The characters had no distinct personalities at all, Sephy and Meggie in particular just turned indistinguishable, Callie is just Sephy 2.0 and Tobey is just another Callum. It’s so disappointing and completely severs any connection I could’ve had with them. The way they talked to each other was bizarre still, for example Callies grandmother referring to Callies uncle as ‘my son’ instead of ‘your uncle’ and everyone constantly calling either other by their full name? Just felt so off to me. At the heart of this pacy novel is a young man struggling to flourish and do the right thing rather than simply survive in a world where "the harder life got . . . the more profit there was to be made". Tobey's deepening involvement with the two warring gangs and his attempts to play them off against each other cause him to bloody his hands. He watches himself becoming what he despises with a chilling awareness that is as exciting as it is poignant.

But soon Callie is caught in a trap she can’t get out of – one which will have deadly consequences. Enter Jude McGregor. Jude teaches Callie about her real family history, and the more she learns the more he persuades her where her loyalties really lie. Dan – He’s not the biggest character in the story but he is one of the most significant. He’s a total tool. I felt that not even his redemption part was enough for me. He just didn’t seem sincere. I felt like he might’ve had his own reasons for doing what he did. But we’ll never know (hopefully. I don’t want to! I want to imagine. This is not a plea for a book 5.) He’s a shady guy, if I met him I’d cross the road. Or knee him where it hurts if he tried anything... and I think he would.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. These facts are the only things that are mine and real. So I don’t mind so much that I’m leaving it all behind. There’s nothing here worth holding onto.

Rebecca – I think she’s quite a random character to want to mention but she was actually one of the most likeable in the book in my opinion. She was the only character that didn’t feel like she had a dark secret or hidden intentions and I liked that. She didn’t deserve to be in the situation she was in. I wanted more for her. Why did you do that Malorie? 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. 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. When I heard about this book coming out I went crazy. I looked everywhere for spoilers (something I am telling you NEVER DO), and all I found out was that it was going to involve drugs and gangs. I waited months for it to come out, and read it in two days (which involved my English teacher threatening to convincate it because I stayed up to midnight reading XD). And it didn't disappoint. It was as fantastic as all the rest.

Callum is a nought: he's considered to be less than nothing - a blanker, there to serve Crosses - but he dreams of a better life. This book follows a character who is completely irrelevant in the rest of the books and his story was very uninteresting and didn't leave me with anything.

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Comments

If this had been a stand alone novel I'd have given it four stars. I'm taking away a star because it's an unnecessary part of the series. Full review in the next few days.