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4321: Based on the Screenplay by Noel Clarke
When four girls meet to discuss their weekend plans, little do they know quite what excitements lie before them.Soon they are embroiled in a brilliant diamond heist, trans-Atlantic flights, various romances and a lot of high-octane adventure in London and New York.Based on Noel Clarke's new film of the same name ,with countrywide summer 2010 release, this novelisation keeps the reader on the edge of their seat as the girls embark on a weekend they will never forget.
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First published January 1, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
June 9, 2010
4 girls, 3 days, 2 cities, 1 chance
This book is based on the original screenplay for the film 4.3.2.1 which was released this month and is written and produced by Noel Clarke who wrote, produced, starred in Kidulthood & Adulthood and Novelised by Jim Eldridge.
The book is a nice quick read it is divided into 6 sections the first is the introduction of the 4 girls then the next 4 sections are the stories of Shannon, Cassandra, Kerrys, Joanne, then the book rounds up in the section called The Bridge.
Each of the girls in the book are going through a tough time in their lives and all accidently become involved in a diamond heist that is going on within a gang of boys in their area.
All the girls stories start at the same point in time and end at the same point in time so you get to see the same story through the lives of the individual girls, which I thought was very interesting because you would read one of the girls stories and I would think to myself why is the other girl acting like that and then when I would come to that girls story I would then find out why she was behaving that way.
Shannon: She is going through the toughest time out of them all she has family problems her mum has left home leaving her a note which contains her explanation of why she has left, but the note gets lost and Shannon is left not knowing why her mum has just walked out without so much as a word, she gets depressed and tries to turn to the other 3 girls for support but they all have problems of there own, she then accidently ends up involved in the diamond heist then it moves on to the next girls story.
Cassandra: She is the rich girl out of the four she has wealthy parents and money to burn, all the other girls envy her lifestyle but treat her no differently from each other. Her story was quite fun to read it was the shortest of the four and ended up quite amusing, her story is based in New York where as the other girls are in London. She becomes accidently involved in the heist but is the least involved.
Kerrys: she is the toughest of the 4, she is a lesbian with attitude, and does not stand for any rubbish, she has problems with her family accepting she is gay and also does not get along with her half brother who is involved in the diamond heist, I enjoyed Kerrys story she was shocking and funny I think her was one the best stories.
Joanne: she seem the quite normal compared with the rest not much going on she had lost her dad and her mum remarried, along with that marriage came a step sister who she is not keen on but puts up with her, the family are struggling financially because of her step father injuring himself at work and so Jo ends up having to work over night in the local supermarket with a nightmare of a manager, it becomes apparent that something is going on at the shop and the whole diamond heist unravels in Jo’s story making her story the other one I most enjoyed.
The Bridge: All the girls come together and the story round up BUT I am sure this is not the end and that there will be a sequel as the ending is kind of left open, concluding that this book is just the start of things to come.
I read this book very quickly and enjoyed it a lot I am going to watch the film this weekend with my fiancé and I am looking forward to seeing the book in action, and I cannot wait to read the sequel.
4321: Based on the Screenplay by Noel Clarke
This book is based on the original screenplay for the film 4.3.2.1 which was released this month and is written and produced by Noel Clarke who wrote, produced, starred in Kidulthood & Adulthood and Novelised by Jim Eldridge.
The book is a nice quick read it is divided into 6 sections the first is the introduction of the 4 girls then the next 4 sections are the stories of Shannon, Cassandra, Kerrys, Joanne, then the book rounds up in the section called The Bridge.
Each of the girls in the book are going through a tough time in their lives and all accidently become involved in a diamond heist that is going on within a gang of boys in their area.
All the girls stories start at the same point in time and end at the same point in time so you get to see the same story through the lives of the individual girls, which I thought was very interesting because you would read one of the girls stories and I would think to myself why is the other girl acting like that and then when I would come to that girls story I would then find out why she was behaving that way.
Shannon: She is going through the toughest time out of them all she has family problems her mum has left home leaving her a note which contains her explanation of why she has left, but the note gets lost and Shannon is left not knowing why her mum has just walked out without so much as a word, she gets depressed and tries to turn to the other 3 girls for support but they all have problems of there own, she then accidently ends up involved in the diamond heist then it moves on to the next girls story.
Cassandra: She is the rich girl out of the four she has wealthy parents and money to burn, all the other girls envy her lifestyle but treat her no differently from each other. Her story was quite fun to read it was the shortest of the four and ended up quite amusing, her story is based in New York where as the other girls are in London. She becomes accidently involved in the heist but is the least involved.
Kerrys: she is the toughest of the 4, she is a lesbian with attitude, and does not stand for any rubbish, she has problems with her family accepting she is gay and also does not get along with her half brother who is involved in the diamond heist, I enjoyed Kerrys story she was shocking and funny I think her was one the best stories.
Joanne: she seem the quite normal compared with the rest not much going on she had lost her dad and her mum remarried, along with that marriage came a step sister who she is not keen on but puts up with her, the family are struggling financially because of her step father injuring himself at work and so Jo ends up having to work over night in the local supermarket with a nightmare of a manager, it becomes apparent that something is going on at the shop and the whole diamond heist unravels in Jo’s story making her story the other one I most enjoyed.
The Bridge: All the girls come together and the story round up BUT I am sure this is not the end and that there will be a sequel as the ending is kind of left open, concluding that this book is just the start of things to come.
I read this book very quickly and enjoyed it a lot I am going to watch the film this weekend with my fiancé and I am looking forward to seeing the book in action, and I cannot wait to read the sequel.
4321: Based on the Screenplay by Noel Clarke
August 12, 2025
I’ve owned 4321 for at least 10+ years and finally got around to reading it. It is an easy read. The book is interesting, full of action and straight to the point. No unnecessary descriptions taking up space. I enjoyed that it was set in England!
4321 started out strong with a lot of potential. Things aren’t always as they seem. I enjoyed the red herrings, twists and turns. Without giving away any spoilers, let’s just say that by the time the paintball scene occurred, I realized I was liking the book less and less. Does the author know that you can still create interesting drama without this amount of physical violence? the regularity of violence felt too excessive and over the top. Although the violence was not graphic or gory, its frequency felt exhausting and unrealistic.
The four female main characters were easily differentiated. Yay! Nice and easy for my brain. It was a bit too obvious that female characters were written by a man, but I powered through. My main gripe with the characters is the lack of depth to the villains. Too one dimensional. Lots of describing characters as being “assholes” or “bitches”, just cause. I can understand the criminals motivations are most likely financial, but what about multiple unlikeable family members?
While I was pleased about some of the ending, it ultimately fell short. Most of the characters are inexplainably never heard of again. I would have liked to hear an update or feel more of a sense of justice. As a standalone book, I would have expected a bit more resolution after spending time with each main character’s perspective.
If you’re looking for a similar recommendation, Sarah Shepard’s ‘The Perfectionist’ is better. Like 4321, it follows a group of female friends dealing with different problems that intersect.
4321 started out strong with a lot of potential. Things aren’t always as they seem. I enjoyed the red herrings, twists and turns. Without giving away any spoilers, let’s just say that by the time the paintball scene occurred, I realized I was liking the book less and less. Does the author know that you can still create interesting drama without this amount of physical violence? the regularity of violence felt too excessive and over the top. Although the violence was not graphic or gory, its frequency felt exhausting and unrealistic.
The four female main characters were easily differentiated. Yay! Nice and easy for my brain. It was a bit too obvious that female characters were written by a man, but I powered through. My main gripe with the characters is the lack of depth to the villains. Too one dimensional. Lots of describing characters as being “assholes” or “bitches”, just cause. I can understand the criminals motivations are most likely financial, but what about multiple unlikeable family members?
While I was pleased about some of the ending, it ultimately fell short. Most of the characters are inexplainably never heard of again. I would have liked to hear an update or feel more of a sense of justice. As a standalone book, I would have expected a bit more resolution after spending time with each main character’s perspective.
If you’re looking for a similar recommendation, Sarah Shepard’s ‘The Perfectionist’ is better. Like 4321, it follows a group of female friends dealing with different problems that intersect.
January 17, 2018
3.5 rounded up. When I finished this I felt like I had accomplished something, similar to when I finished Infinite Jest. But that's not always the highest recommendation is it? Excellent characters, and consistency through the different plot lines, but was confusing when I could only read 20 minutes at a time. Try to read in big blocks of time. Interesting take on the social and political framework of the 60's, but at times to much detail which I ended up skimming. Overall, I liked this and would recommend when you are interested in reading a BIG book
April 21, 2011
I haven't seen the movie to this but the book seemed good enough so I'll definitely check it out.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews