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Aug282009
BOOK REVIEW: ‘Double Cross’ by Malorie Blackman
by Carolyn • Posted in 3.5 Star Reviews, Authors A-D, Book Reviews, Corgi YA, Malorie Blackman, Reviews by Carolyn, Young Adult
Title: Double Cross (Noughts & Crosses #4)
Author: Malorie Blackman
Publisher: Corgi Childrens
Publication Date: 6 Aug 2009
Paperback: 434 pages
Young Adult
Source: Review Copy
Reviewed by: Carolyn
RATING: 7/10 – Very good.
BOOK COVER SUMMARY:
Tobey wants a better life – for him and his girlfriend Callie Rose. He wants nothing to do with the gangs that rule the world he lives in. But when he’s offered the chance to earn some money just for making a few ‘deliveries’, just this once, would it hurt to say ‘yes’?
Once small decision can change everything…
REVIEW:
This is the fourth installment in the ‘Noughts & Crosses‘ series which focuses mainly on Tobey and his relationship with Callie and how he gets mixed up with the wrong people without really wanting to. There is no Liberation Militia in this book, only two rival gangs with Tobey in the middle. It shows how money, or the lack of it, can be the motivation for good kids to do bad things.
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.
The story, however, is still good and I really enjoyed reading it. I didn’t get bored and the momentum was steady, but it didn’t have any kind of impact on me either. To me there were no powerful scenes that touched me or shocked me, and as the other three books contained these points I suppose I was expecting it.
Verdict:
I think this book would have been better as a stand alone with fresh new voices. I didn’t like that I never heard from Sephy again and Callie Rose was only voiced at the beginning and end. I didn’t really feel as though this story was connected with the three books before it and I felt some what disconnected. I was sad that the trilogy didn’t end with ‘Checkmate‘.
This is still a very well written story and after reading all the ‘Noughts & Crosses‘ books, Malorie Blackman is a writer I will remember and would have no hesitation recommending to young adults and adults alike.
Here are my reviews to each book in the series:
#1: Nought & Crosses
#2: Knife Edge
#3: Checkmate
#4: Double Cross
8 Comments
Nice review..not sure if this is one I will pick up.
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I've never heard of this series before *will keep an eye out for it now*
I'm only familiar with Kelley Armstrong's The Summoning but after having a taste of her YA, I'm more than curious to read her adult books. Awesomeness!
The cover for reckoning is really pretty…I think I like it best out of the entire seris ^^
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Haven't heard of the Noughts & Crosses series. May have to check out the first book, as you make it sound interesting. Thanks for the recommendation!
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I'm with the others never heard of it before, but it does sound good. I'll keep an eye out for it! Thanks for the solid review!
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I have read the first three books but I haven't got around to Double Cross yet. The book trailor for it looked really good. I imagined it would follow the same format as the others. So that is really interesting! I wonder what made Malorie deviate from using the alternate voices…
Thanks for sharing.
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I was just going to ask, would this be able to be read as a stand alone story anyway? Or would you recommend all of them to be read, as I assume they should be?
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Thanks all for stopping by and for commenting.
I think this book could be read as a stand alone, but there are certain references to the other books but I don't think it would diminish your enjoyment of this book if you haven't read them. I do recommend reading Books 1, 2, and 3 in sequence though
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very nice review can't wait to read it:)) thanks
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