Reviews

Noughts & Crosses by Malorie Blackman

a_lil_bit_shady's review against another edition

sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

jamishka's review against another edition

4.0

This is a book I didn't know I needed. I didn't need it because it was beautiful or heartbreaking or well written (which is all true), I needed it because it was eye opening. This is a book the world needs to read.

This series starts as a Romeo and Juliet type romance but instead of feuding families, the world is divided. It's divided by race. Malorie Blackman takes the world we live in and flips it on it's head. In this world Noughts (white) are discriminated against while Crosses (black) rule the world. This book is fiction but the examples within these pages unfortunately are not. They come from our history and our present. This book brings forth a message of equality through love. A message I think everyone needs to hear.

zoe_chichon12's review against another edition

5.0

Read this book when I was 16 and it’s still my favorite book ever. However, i’m still so heartbroken with the ending that i can’t bring myself to read the sequel.

haileym_25's review against another edition

emotional tense fast-paced

4.5

sorxha2007's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

molly28's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

sam_hartwig's review against another edition

3.0

I have wanted to read this one for ages. Many years ago I took it home and couldn't get into it, then one day the audio book version was sitting on the shelf at the library and I thought I'd give it another go. It started off good but before long I found myself getting a little bored. The idea of an alternate world where dark-skinned people govern over the pale-skinned people was really interesting and gave lots of insight into racism and prejudice in society. I enjoyed the main story line but I didn't connect with the characters and I felt they weren't that well developed. Sephy was really irritating in the beginning and she didn't get any better towards the end. Callum was likable, I think because you can really feel what he's going through.

I felt like the romance between Sephy & Callum wasn't there, there was no spark and I didn't get any of those butterfly in the tummy feelings. The adventure was also lacking, a few things were a bit predictable and usually I don't pick up on things. Overall, it was a little bit of a let down.

The ending of the book was really disappointing, I'm a sucker for a happy ending and that's not what I got. I get that maybe the book was trying to show that society can be really backward and that you can't get away with doing bad things in your past, But I wasn't expecting that ending at all. I understand what the book was trying to achieve but for me I didn't really fall in love with this.

I had such mixed feeling after reading this, I didn't know what to think then and I don't know what to think now. I'll still read the next one to see what happens next mainly because I'm curious where the story will go.

{I'm probably not the best person to review this and I hate to say anything bad about a book that an author worked so hard to write but this is just my opinion, you should still give the book a go to prove me wrong}

Also on my blog

esthersedition's review against another edition

4.0

Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman. What a book - but it just didn’t grab me the way the author intended it to grab its readers. I know its in an alternate society where black people are the majority and white people the minority but I just could mot mentally picture it like that because its so far fetched from reality that, that could never be the case. Or, maybe I am just way too entirely pessimistic.

However, the storyline was engaging with lots of surprises and plot twists throughout, so I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I do feel like the ending was not fulfilling at all but i’m know it was the only reasonable ending to the book.

I am fairly interested in reading the other books in the series but I can’t help but feeling the storyline could be dragged out and become really boring and messy.

All things considered, Malorie Blackman takes an interesting and unique take on the race tensions in modern society with an adrenaline filled storyline laced around two protagonists - Callum the nought and Sephy the cross and how the world comes against them, time and time again.

djryan's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

yellowchairreader's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad

5.0

I put off reading this for so long. I thought I wouldnt enjoy it. However, it was amazing! Engaging, fast paced, reflective, emotional and very thought provoking.