Vox Hardcover – August 21, 2018

Some of the critical reviews on this site gave me pause before downloading Vox, but I’ve always been intrigued by dystopian novels and, in this case, my curiosity outweighed my skepticism. The plot—that women wear monitoring bracelets that only allow them to speak 100 words a day before receiving electric shocks that increase in their intensity—was an original one. I’m glad my curiosity got the better of me. Contrary to the critics, I didn’t find this book to be heavy-handed politically. Politics play an integral part in any dystopian novel, and of course they will play one in a book in which there is a government conspiracy to subjugate and silence women, but the author is deft in balancing the political aspects with some fine storytelling, Strictly on its literary merits, the book is excellent and does justice to its clever plot.I did find Jean, the protagonist, a bit harsh at times and not always likable, especially in her dealings with her own family, but if the author’s intention was to create a realistic main character, warts and all, she succeeded. And Jean’s anger is certainly justified. I did find myself rooting for the character consistently, so her likability wasn’t much of an issue.A problem I did have was Jean’s relationship with her husband of 17 years, Patrick. She’s often contemptuous of him, especially in (constant) comparisons with her secret lover, Lorenzo. In the society in which Jean lives, adultery (or any fornication outside of marriage), at least for women, is a crime punishable by Heather-Prynne-like public mockery followed by complete silence and exile to a camp for so-called wayward women. So Jean is willing to risk quite a lot for this affair. In her comparisons, Patrick is always presented as weak, while Lorenzo, her guitar-strumming, brain-scientist, Romance-language, romance-novel of a lover, is presented as a savior/Superman. This is a real issue. First of all, in a book that is making a strong statement about female oppression at the hands of a chauvinistic society, I’m uncomfortable about such a one-dimensional idea of the ideal male role model. Second, fiery Jean becomes diminished by her constant reliance on this mythical strongman to bolster her. Third, I find the character of Patrick, one of a number of decent men caught up in a toxic societal situation that he’s not really equipped to change (unless he’s willing to jeopardize himself and the family he loves), is infinitely more relatable, realistic, and interesting.The Lorenzo character irks me in another way. Vox strives, mostly successfully, for a sense of realism. As in the grandfather of dystopian novels, Nineteen Eighty-Four, all the characters are constantly monitored by video cameras. With modern society’s surveillance capabilities, it’s even less of a leap to imagine this scenario now than it was when Orwell’s classic was first published in 1949. In Vox, the Pure people, a male-dominated movement that’s akin to our moral majority with an added dose of misogyny, has completely wrested power away from women and decent-but-passive men such as Patrick. The author peoples her novel with flawed characters who are sometimes unlikeable, such as Jean, Patrick, and their oldest child Steven, who’s pretty contemptible for much of the book. For a character such as Fabio—er, Lorenzo—to exist in this environment is jarring. The author, with her literary chops, had me expecting more of this book than to have it degenerate into a romantic fantasy. This type of device doesn’t turn me off because I’m a prude, but because I appreciate good, layered, believable literature. For a serious novelist, romantic fantasy amounts to nothing more than lazy plot resolution.Speaking of plot resolution, perhaps the book’s ending ties things up a bit too quickly and firmly—especially considering the bleakness of the author’s vision of this society—but we do see some character growth and the reader can take away some hope for everyone who lives in a society with a double standard of morality and a warped sense of what is considered decent.Despite the flaws of Vox, the work is compelling and enjoyable and has a strong, consistent political message that merits it a solid 3-and-a-half stars (rounded up to 4) from this reader.

In many ways, this novel was indicative of the pendulum swinging ‘way far back to another era, when women were second class citizens. Perhaps the readers haven’t lived during the time when children were seen and not heard - only able to speak when spoken to. When women were educated only as housekeepers - with emphasis on “home economics” - cooking, sewing and taking care of children. Parties always separated the men from the women when the men retired to discuss world affairs over brandy and cigars, while the women were left to talk about “womanly” things. The woman who spoke out was considered strange - an outlier - a troublemaker, unfeminine and worse! And, husbands who ‘allowed’ their wives to work were considered less desirable (and most men got all puffed up proclaiming, “My wife will never work!”So, I read Vox and saw the tale as if, in reality, that pendulum did take a mighty swing back. Right now, it seems to be a woman’s world - in politics, the boardroom, and on the front in battle - and men are pictured as being confused, depressed and uncertain of what their role in life truly is. After all, women now don’t need men to procreate - so no wonder men feel threatened! We can only hope they won’t get any ideas from this novel! And, hopefully, swinging back will never take the form of “bracelets” that count words and give a painful shock if the daily quota is exceeded!What was unrealistic about this tale was that the entire movement seemed to swirl around Jean, Patrick and Lorenzo - and their friends and scientific associates, in Washington DC. It really didn’t tell us much about what was going on in the rest of the country, so it was a bit difficult to envision a groundswell. Also, Jean and Lorenzo seemed to come up with the serum in no time flat - one would have thought that when they ‘retired’ Jean to life as a housewife, all her notes would have stayed with her laboratory. I agree that the ending was a bit complicated and abrupt - and seemed to wrap up missing some needed explanation. But, all in all, it was a page-turner, well-written and it was fun to read and think about!

I enjoy stories about a dystopian future. They act as cautionary tales of what could be, if we should fall asleep at the wheel. In this story, the religious right has taken over America. A weak President is the puppet of a self proclaimed preacher from the religious far right, who has distinct views on the role of females in society.Females are basically seen and not heard, as they are required to wear governmentally controlled fit bit type devices on their wrists that track the number of words a day that they speak. Females, young or old, are limited to 100 words a day. Speak in excess of that, and it will not be done pleasant for the one in violation.Females are made to be totally subservient. They are not allowed to have jobs without a special dispensation. Girls still attend school, which is a sort of Betty Crocker academy with the emphasis on home economics. Moreover, all females must be pure. You get the drift. Failure to comply calls for draconian measures taken against the offender.Dr. Jean McClellan, now known simply as Mrs. McClellan, is having difficulty adjusting to this new world order in America. A neurolinguistics scientist, she is now simply a housewife of few words. Then, her government calls upon her for her help, providing her an opportunity to be heard. The question is, what will she do about it?I enjoyed this dystopian novel. Its message certainly gives the reader food for thought, given today’s political climate. The book kept me turning its pages. The only thing that gave me pause was the ending, which I found to be somewhat abrupt and a bit confusing. Still, I liked this novel a lot. Those with an interest in dystopian novels should enjoy this provocative cautionary tale.

If you are a female you have 100 words a day that you can speak. You have no bank account. No job. No entitlement. No mail. No nothing. If you have a son, he will have more rights than you, his mother…Did I mention that as a female you are required to wear a word counter. Oh and it will give a bolt of electricity if you exceed the word count!Oh WTFlaming Hell….. I can speak 100 words and most of them crap and waffle before I have finished my second cup of coffee in the morning…This book did such a good job of building up not only the sense of injustice in a patriarchal society but there was such a heartbreaking essence to it as well. As a mother you want to chat to your children about what they did at school, yeah well forget that… Sentences have become condensed to such an extreme, yet the father and male siblings can chat away about anything, laugh and joke about things but you dare not utter a word, as that means you may not be able to Goodnight, or Love You at the end of the day.It was as if the women became an asset to be managed, a homemaker, cleaner, carer and a quiet one at that. Now we may laugh and joke about people who constantly chatter away, but the author has managed to build a world that has a scary reality to it.As I was reading through the book and getting to grips with how and why things had changed, the tone and way of the story started to change. This did initially throw me and took me a while to get my head around.Essentially women played their role in society before the enforced change. They had jobs, responsibilities, they were leaders in certain fields and had in some areas knowledge that few others had. This change of direction in the story, once I had time to get used to it actually made sense. Even though it was worked quite well into the story, it did give the book a feeling of being one of two stories.This is a book that will possibly divide readers, but for this reader worked so well. I also think it would be a great book for reading groups as there are many possibilities for discussion. I found it quite thought-provoking and there are concepts that I have not touched on as I don’t want to spoil it for other readers.Ideal for those who like dystopian read with a political aspect, contemporary fiction as well as general fiction genres I would also add that there is a psychological aspect to it. This is a book I would definitely recommend to readers who like a book with an eerily realistic feel.

I've got words where this book is concerned, so let me explain why I think it's a mixed bag (this review is spoiler-free):The premise: This novel is riding the current popularity wave of The Handmaid's Tale - no doubt about it. The premise is basically a knock-off of that classic: Religious fundies take over the USA and force women into horrifyingly submissive roles. There's the off-mention of sexual slavery for non-conforming women, but basically, women just have women's voices taken away. They can speak no more than 100 words a day, so-called criminals no words. The twist makes the premise interesting, but you can tell where the author got the inspiration from. That's not bad; it's just that the comparison is obvious. There's a further twist down the line related to this, which would have been cool if the resolution hadn't been so rushed and unimaginative.The characters: The book is written in first person limited and told from the perspective of Jean McClellan, a neurolinguist caught in a stale marriage. I have to say, I empathised with Jean. I could feel her rage, her fury. I understood her motivations and actions. She's flawed and yet sympathetic. That being said, her character development is non-existent. She does not change one iota throughout the book, and in the end, she conveniently gets a way out of all her conflicts without having to work for any of it. There are also no emotional repercussions. You'd think that after all the horror she lives through, the trauma, the mistakes she makes, there'd be consequences to her psyche. You'd be wrong. This is a problem brought on mostly by the pacing, I believe, which I'll get into in a moment. The other characters are fine, I guess, even if not three-dimensional. I'd call them plot devices rather than characters, because none of them has a purpose other than propel Jean's arc along. This becomes especially egregious where her domestic life is concerned. The author creates an interesting conundrum via Jean's actions (and her misconceptions), but there is absolutely zero conflict. The issue just peters out and is resolved via off-page deus ex machina. Suspension of disbelief was wrecked.The pacing: This, along with the world-building, is the novel's greatest weakness. The pacing is not good at all. The author rushes through the bits she obviously didn't want to write so she could get to the scenes she cared about. This becomes especially apparent during the climax and resolution. The novel feels rushed as a result, and the conclusions fall flat. To be honest, it feels a bit like fanfiction. The problem with this is that I didn't get a sense of depth for this world. I don't need oodles of exposition, but if you jog through basically all of it so you can get to the fun parts, this is the impression a reader will get. That being said, it was a quick read, and the exciting bits really were engaging. The only scene where the action became unintentionally funny is when Jean gets randomly attacked by a chimp -- yes, really.The prose: It's not perfect (there were some grammar mistakes you can't chalk up to first person narration), but it's not distracting. The only thing I have to object is the overuse of epithets. Nobody talks like that, and yet, some authors keep riddling their dialogue with them. This is more of a pet peeve, though.The themes: This book has a clear message and is not afraid to use it. I liked how religious fundamentalism was described as a deep-seated problem that crept up on society until it was too late. The problem is that because the world-building is so shoddy, it feels cartoonish and implausible. This in turn means the easy resolution at the end doesn't ring true at all. Some more nuance would have helped, especially since this comes across as tone-deaf and is sure to antagonise religious people. The author should have developed her villains better and shouldn't have the showdown happen off-screen. That made me roll my eyes pretty hard. It was unsatisfactory, to say the least, left a lot of questions, and made the threat seem toothless in retrospect.All in all, this is a kind-of-sort-of enjoyable The Handmaid's Tale knockoff that could have been a lot better if it didn't feel so rushed, the world-building paper thin, the conflict resolution improbable, and the character development non-existent. At least it doesn't get boring.

I feel like this book could have been so much more. I feel like this book could have shaken the foundations of dystopian literature but it fell prey to petty story lines.To every woman reading this: imagine you’re under a speaking embargo. Imagine you’re only allowed to utter 100 words a day with a devilish device counting every syllable, every word you speak. Imagine that this "bracelet" will send electronic shockwaves through your body as soon as word 101 has left your mouth.That is the life of every baby girl, every woman living in the US. POTUS and his staff have come up with an idea, a plan, to bring every human with a vagina under their complete control. Women aren’t allowed to read in this society. They aren’t allowed to work. They aren’t allowed to vote, to have an opinion, to write, to complain. They are forbidden basic human rights.Now imagine all that and try NOT getting angry.Gianna "Jean" is one of those women. Mother of four kids, she is expected to cook and clean as well as be an obedient wife and mother. Before the system, before the oppression, she was one of the country’s leading researchers on language impairment. That is until they took her and every other woman’s job away and gave it to a "more competent" person, a man. Having to bottle up her feelings and being denied her right to voice her opinion, Jean tries to play along. That is until the president himself seeks her out and asks her to work on a project that could save his brother’s life. A brother that supposedly had a skiing accident and who is half brain-dead now. Jean agrees on the condition to get her voice back and the 100 words embargo lifted on her daughter and herself. She shows up to work and meets an old friend. A friend she slept with all those years ago when she had already been married. But infidelity is considered as one of the worst sins by the purist movement…The premise of the book had me hooked. The first chapters had me shaking with anger and brought unshed tears to my eyes. But after the first half, the book dissolved in a puddle of the character’s personal affairs and feelings. I was missing the bigger picture. I was missing the impact. But the impact of everything was reduced to how the main character was dealing with it. The ending happened too quickly. It was too swift, too smooth, and disappointing.I would have liked the author to expand the darkness. To let the whole world suffer from the "purity movement". This book could have challenged "The Handmaid’s Tale" but it ultimately fell short. What a pity.

Sie sagt wäre gut

... aber das Ende kam zu schnell. A true page turner!!