Noughts & Crosses

Uh...did I read the same book as everyone else? This has pretty stellar reviews on Goodreads, which made me really excited to open it. This was probably one of the books I was most looking forward to reading this year. It's a dystopian YA that features a world where black people (Crosses) are the ones in power, while white people (noughts) are heavily discriminated against and treated like dirt. We follow a Cross named Sephy and a nought named Callum who struggle with their relationship as the prejudice and violence mounts against noughts.

The biggest fault I had with this book was the writing. I REALLY didn't care for it. The plot really takes its twists and turns, yet reading these portions felt like more of a “recap” of the events rather than a detailed account of the events. The writing was often very bloodless and relied quite a bit on dialogue, which didn't help me connect to the world of the book much. The writing just generally felt very childish and way too simplistic for the subject matter. There was awkward humor interspersed in would-be serious moments.

I noticed that a lot of reviewers chalked the writing up to the fact that it's for teenagers, not adults. Anyone who has read even one YA book knows that it doesn't have to be dumbed down for children to understand. Noughts and Crosses dealt with some very important issues, like racism and what it's like to be a minority, but the writing was so awkward, rushed, and immature that it overshadowed any serious discussion or character development. I will not be continuing the series.