Another brilliant Malorie Blackman novel. Perfectly-paced and filled with dramatic tension, with a great cliffhanger. Looking forward to reading the final instalment in the Noughts and Crosses series now to see how the story ends.

Is it as good as the original Noughts & Crosses series? No. But then I'm not the target age for that series either now, compared with when I read them originally, so if I read back over them now, I'd probably feel the writing wasn't as sophisticated as I thought. But is it good? Yes. I always imagined N&C set in an alternate universe but with the latest installment I (and therefore many other people) can see clearly how it mirrors politically and societally what is currently going on in our country. It utilised news stories which further the feeling of it being set right now which makes it so much more relevant and so much more easily able to attract young people to the novel and therefore raise higher awareness of the racial problems in society today. In terms of the novel, I very much enjoyed the new characters and their backstories, although I would recommend reading a couple of re-caps for the series or re-reading it entirely (I still don't remember Tobey's story...) before jumping in to get a grips on the older characters and their circumstances. I read through this incredibly quickly and adored it, however... I am slightly miffed i have to wait for a second installment for the ending...

With the first Nought Prime Minister about to be elected, tensions are running high in the Noughts and Crosses world. However, what secrets will some hide to stay in power and at what cost? Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman was one of the most iconic books I read as a young adult; it was one of those books made an impression that has stuck with me for a long time. When I saw a chance to review the ARC of Crossfire, the latest book in the series, I jumped at the chance and was really excited to read (what I thought) was the next instalment. Somehow, I had managed to miss 3 more book in the series though – this book is actually book 5! Missing a few books didn’t hamper my enjoyment too much – this book is focused on a new set of characters – third generation if you will. However, there are bits and certain parts of the family tree I felt a little bit lost on so perhaps it is better to pick up the other three if you can. That being said, Crossfire is an assured story – Blackman’s world is just as enthralling and powerful as in her first book, with an engaging writing style that made it so very easy to read. I enjoyed reading about the characters of Libby and Troy as well as gleaned some backstory about Callie and Tobey as well. The chapters not only alternate narrators but also timelines as well with labels of ‘Now’ and ‘Then’. This mechanic never felt confusing and the story was clearly told throughout. My main problem with the book was that it felt too much like a stepping stone. The ending was a massive let-down - it ends on a cliff-hanger so huge that it just felt like the author stopped dead rather than at least trying to wrap something up. None of the threads created came to any conclusion and there was a lot of set up for no pay off. I also didn’t like the repeated use of having a character being told something shocking which was then not revealed to the reader for a few chapters – it got a bit waring from time to time. Overall I enjoyed Crossfire and it was nice to delve back into the Noughts and Crosses world which I had not read for many years. However, you do need to make sure you read the other books first to get a full understanding of family histories and be warned that the ending is a very disappointing cliff-hanger! Thank you to NetGalley & Penguin Random House – Children’s for a chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was excited to read this when it first came out, but once I finished it, I found myself disappointed. Let me focus on the positive first, the book was gripping and I found myself wanting to read more but I still got bored at times. Sephy's character returned again for another book and I really enjoyed seeing her mature throughout the books. This edition portrays Sephy in her fifties and reading about her growing as a person throughout the series is lovely and gives me nostalgia to when I was reading Noughts and Crosses for the first time. The theme of racism and discrimination is still strong and emulates recent things that have been happening in our world, which was a nice detail. And now the bad... The writing was okay. Blackman continued to use many metaphors throughout the book which means they lose their affect after a while. The word 'regard' also made more appearances in this series. Furthermore, I was extremely disappointed to find two typos and a metaphor that made absolutely no sense ("the tension could be cut with a cotton bud") I found myself not liking many of the characters. Troy came off as spoilt, selfish and mean for the first half of the book. Tobey was manipulative and rude to Callie for most of the book, except when he wanted to have sex with her. Callie seemed stubborn and had a disregard for her own safety and her family's safety for most of the book and refuses to do the only thing that would help her situation. Lastly the book was not finished. It ended with 'To be concluded', which annoyed me, as I read an entire book for nothing, as nothing was resolved. This splitting of the book into two only made me feel more like this was a cashgrab, as well as the fact that is was published 11 years after Double Cross. Overall, if you loved the Noughts and Crosses series, like me, and you really want to read it, go for it; however, if you've just stubbled across it, I recommend all the books that came before it in the series far more than this. Crossfire could definitely go amiss if you're not as in love with the series as me and other fans. Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of the noughts and crosses series and I highly recommend the first 4 books; however, Crossfire just was not at the same calibre. I don't doubt the Blackman is a competent writer and I've loved many of her books but this book has just disappointed me.