Rating 4.5/5

Wow, I almost don’t know what to say. This is a book that I think will have a lot of people talking with a lot of varying opinions. This will sound like an odd thing to say because I found this book amazing but at the same time, I didn’t really like it.

The concept is phenomenal, in the vein of The Handmaid’s Tale, it is a scary dystopian future where women are only allowed to speak 100 words a day and are only allowed to be homemakers. In a world that does seem as if it is indeed at times going backwards this definitely resonates because it feels as if it wouldn’t take much of a tipping point for something equally as bad to happen in real life.

I was seething at the injustice and the fact that so many people didn’t act, that they were able to brainwash the kids and have everything in place before anyone even noticed what was happening. It is scary to think that such extremists could get into power and cause irreparable damage to a nation.

I was interested in how it got to that point and enjoyed the flow of information as it goes back and forth between Jean’s present experience and how it led there. I also enjoyed as we started to see how people were fighting back, and how Jean copes with suddenly being able to talk and work again, although some of the science went over my head.

The writing was engaging, a bit drawn out in places maybe but the one thing that let it down for me just a little bit was that I didn’t really connect with Jean the way I thought I would, she is probably the most realistic portrayal of how most women would end up but I kept thinking that she would have more fight and that I’d be rooting for her, I think that is totally a personal thing though.

I do think that this is the kind of book that you have to immerse yourself in to find out how you feel about it. I loved it and didn’t want to put it down but I also didn’t like it, just how mad I felt when I was reading and it definitely gave me a lingering sense of foreboding, but I suppose it is all part of the book’s genius.

Vox by Christina Dalcher is my favourite book of the year so far. It strongly reminded me of The Handmaid’s Tale which is high praise coming from me as The Handmaid’s Tale is my all- time favourite book.

The average human speaks sixteen thousand words a day but in Vox women and girls are limited to just 100 words a day. Jean is one of those women and though she is unhappy with her lot there is nothing she can do or say to change it until one day a powerful man asks for her help.

“If anyone told me I could bring down the president, and the Pure Movement, and that incompetent little shit Morgan LeBron in a weeks’ time. I wouldn’t believe them. But I wouldn’t argue. I wouldn’t say a thing. I’ve become a woman of few words.”

Via Jean we learn that every woman and girl have to wear a ‘bracelet’ with a word counter on. Once it passes one hundred the wearer receives a shock. The message is clear that women should be seen and not heard.

Reading about Jean’s experiences is enough to make anyone angry thinking about the type of society they live in, but it was the experiences of her young daughter Sonia that really made my blood boil. Sonia also has a counter and it never goes above 40 a day. Then one day someone demonstrates what happens when the wearer exceeds their count and the next day she wins a prize at school for using the fewest words. She is rewarded for her silence.

“…if the three R’s weren’t now reduced to one: simple arithmetic. After all, one day my daughter will be expected to shop and run a household, to be a devoted and dutiful wife. You need math for that, but not spelling. Not literature. Not a voice.”

Jean is a very strong character and one the reader will empathise with. It’s the little things that got to me when reading about her situation, things like being unable to read her daughter a bedtime story or comfort her when she had a nightmare.

There were signs prior to the change in the status of women, things like women no longer being able to obtain a passport. Signs Jean didn’t notice until it was too late to escape. Jean’s old friend Jackie had tried to warn her and others before it happened, but she had thought she was overreacting.

The most infuriating character for me was Jean’s husband Patrick. On the surface he was harmless enough because he didn’t agree with the system, but he certainly didn’t do anything to fight against it either. He was compliant and thought his wife should be too to make things easier.

Women in Vox don’t have access to books or writing materials anymore as part of the system.

“It’s the little stuff I miss most. Jars of pens and pencils tucked into the corners of every room, notepads wedged in between cookbooks, the dry erase shopping list on the wall next to the spice cabinet. Even my old refrigerator poetry magnets, the ones Steven used concoct ridiculous Italo-English sentences…Gone, gone, gone. Like my e-mail account.

Like everything.”

Jean struggles in her new life to adjust to the way the men in her life have reacted to the change in circumstances.

“I don’t hate them. I tell myself I don’t hate them.

But sometimes I do.

I hate that the males in my family tell Sonia how pretty she is. I hate that they’re the ones who soothe her when she falls off her push-bike, that they make up stories to tell her about princesses and mermaids. I hate having to watch and listen.

It’s a trial reminding myself they’re not the ones who did this to me.

Fuck it.”

During the course of the book we see Jean commit small acts of rebellion with very little fear of the consequence because she knows that they won’t kill her for it.

“They won’t kill me for the same reason they won’t sanction abortions. We’ve turned into necessary evils, objects to be fucked and not heard.”

The author has a clear message for the reader, for women in particular – use your voice, use your vote or lose the right to complain about the situation you find yourself in. Jean didn’t vote for this new order, but she didn’t vote at all.

I read the entirety of Vox in just a few hours because it was so good. I can’t wait to reread it.

There are many words that come to mind at the close of this book alongside a host of emotions. For one, I feel both unsettled and angry. This is a profound and scary read with a potential realism that should make any woman or man, for that matter, look over their political shoulder. I am a political animal so this book took my worries about misogyny and ran them to worse-case scenario.

Imagine a world where a misogynistic man is voted into power in the US (hold on, that sounds familiar) and over a relatively short period of time women are silenced. That is all I am going to say to the context of the story because it makes great, chilling reading.

The heroine, Dr Jean McClellan, a neurolinguist finds herself at home, running the house and so damn angry. Angry at her husband, her son and most of all at the powers that be. It is an utterly fascinating tale, a little imperfect at wrap-up but nonetheless absorbing. The parallel story of Jean's son, Steven was one of the most powerful elements of this story for me about how impressionable children/young people could potentially be brainwashed. I really liked where this particular element ended up.

There are some strong male characters in the book, some good, some bad and some weak but trying to be better. I appreciated the mixture and it felt real.

So, if you want to be challenged, if you like a story that mirrors contemporary times and moves it on fantastically, then this might be a read for you. In the meantime, I'll be creating a new genre over here called dystopian-realism.

I voluntarily read an early copy of this book.

Reviewed for JoandIsaLoveBooks Blog.

I really, really enjoyed this book. I thought it was scary and compelling and a really great modern-day take on the Handmaid's Tale. I was worried at first it would just be a reworking of Margaret Atwood's classic but it's a fantastic story within it's own right and is really poignant in today's political climate. I loved it and have already recommended it to everyone who'll listen.

'Vox' was on my most anticipated books list for 2018, and boy did this exceed my expectations and blow my mind! The premise is such an intriguing one which chimes with current trends such as the recent television series 'The Handmaids Tale' by Margaret Atwood, and in some ways this is the modern, updated version of that story. This absolutely deserves to be read in the context of the global political situation we are currently experiencing. This is thrilling dystopian fiction that not only has the reader riveted but also touches upon some weighty issues in the process, and I always appreciate that. Despite the serious topics broached, it doesn't feel at all preach-y and ultimately is a utterly compelling story that I devoured.

It is so well written and the prose flows effortlessly. I couldn't seem to get through it fast enough and read it in a single sitting as a consequence! Having raced through it, I was then sad it had ended - the sign of a throroughly addictive book, in my opinion. As the story twisted and turned its way to its conclusion, it gradually got more and more exhilarating to me. Moreover, it remained believable and realistic throughout, it's also feels possible which is a wholly terrifying notion. I hope Ms. Dalcher carries on writing these types of groundbreaking, topical tales, I can't wait to see what she produces next. I will definitely be on the lookout for more of her work in the future.

An incredible read that I found imaginative and completely original. I have no hesistation in highly recommending this to fans of 'The Handmaids Tale'. dystopian fiction and stories that seem extremely relevant to the time and place the world is currently at. I hope it is a hugely successful book, it certainly deserves to be. A well earned five-stars from me.

Many thanks to HQ for an ARC. I was not required to post a review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

'Vox' was on my most anticipated books list for 2018, and boy did this exceed my expectations and blow my mind! The premise is such an intriguing one which chimes with current trends such as the recent television series 'The Handmaids Tale' by Margaret Atwood, and in some ways this is the modern, updated version of that story. This absolutely deserves to be read in the context of the global political situation we are currently experiencing. This is thrilling dystopian fiction that not only has the reader riveted but also touches upon some weighty issues in the process, and I always appreciate that. Despite the serious topics broached, it doesn't feel at all preach-y and ultimately is a utterly compelling story that I devoured.

It is so well written and the prose flows effortlessly. I couldn't seem to get through it fast enough and read it in a single sitting as a consequence! Having raced through it, I was then sad it had ended - the sign of a throroughly addictive book, in my opinion. As the story twisted and turned its way to its conclusion, it gradually got more and more exhilarating to me. Moreover, it remained believable and realistic throughout, it's also feels possible which is a wholly terrifying notion. I hope Ms. Dalcher carries on writing these types of groundbreaking, topical tales, I can't wait to see what she produces next. I will definitely be on the lookout for more of her work in the future.

An incredible read that I found imaginative and completely original. I have no hesistation in highly recommending this to fans of 'The Handmaids Tale'. dystopian fiction and stories that seem extremely relevant to the time and place the world is currently at. I hope it is a hugely successful book, it certainly deserves to be. A well earned five-stars from me.

Many thanks to HQ for an ARC. I was not required to post a review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

An intriguing and interesting concept, I found the book fascinating.
It tells the story of the USA as an ultra-conservative and funadamentalist Christian country (more than it already is!) where women are silenced and second class citizens to men.
Unable to work, and unable to communicate with her children beyond her allocated 100 words a day, Gianna (Jeanne) is frustrated, remorseful and angry. She can see that she missed the signs and her opportunity to object. When she is given a chance to change things she takes it. The book then becomes a thriller where our heroine is fighting back.
While not likely to become a feminist classic, it is a novel and thought-provoking book that all women, including older teenage girls, should read.
Thank you for the opportunity to read this #NetGalley #VOX

Forcefully pertinent, upsettingly relevant - a Handmaid-esque world to shock and appal.

"I hope it makes you a little bit angry. I hope it makes you think." The author concludes her book with these words - and by gum, there was possibly no truer word ever spoken. If Atwood's dystopia frightened you, this takes one more baby step into hell and twists the knife.

The basic plot is stunningly simple: women have been silenced. A Presidential executive order has put a counter on every female's wrist, counting the total number of words they speak. A daily allowance of 100 is allowed; past this, punishments apply... "Consider the average human utters something like sixteen thousand words each day. One hundred words is... Nothing."

The whole of American society has changed, just as in Atwood's classic, this one country has had a regime change that the rest of the world is watching, dumbfounded. It appears that the President (and his wife) are based on current political figures, thus making the story a piece of speculative 'what if' fiction that seems all too close.

At the heart of the story, and it turns out, important for her knowledge of language, is Dr Jean McClellan, a cognitive linguist barred from her work due to her gender. Raising three adolescent boys and a 6-year-old daughter with a medical member of White House staff, we see this horrific society through her pained eyes. Allowed no passport, no email account or bank account, not even to read... this is the new world.

The world is stunningly fashioned, with details thrown in that pull you up short every time.
"Actresses are allowed a special dispensation while they're on teh job. Their lines, of course, are written by men..." "No one ever thought of the foolproof way of getting gays in line: take away their kids."
And yet it all seems like it isn't too many small steps away from reality.

I loved the direction the story took, the fact that 1984 is namechecked, that science is core to the story - education and communication. Knowledge - and words - really are power.

Jean takes us back to a time when she saw the world changing and remained unconcerned, concentrating on her own studies and life, regretting not protesting, not fighting back, when she could. Various characters show the ways people might react to such a situation, both Jean's generation and that of the younger one. All are hard to bear.

I would love to ask the author more about her motivations in writing this. It scared the heck out of me, upset me, moved me, has stayed with me. I have two sons, but Jean's daughter had me in tears, empathising with her new life.

One thing I found didn't get answered in the story - if women are silenced, and are the homemakers and raisers of children, within a generation, sons as well as daughters would be growing up with no concept of language as mothers would not be singing with, reading to them as young babies, they would hear no words, develop no language skills themselves in those crucial years. This occurred to me as I was reading - surely this by itself would mean a regime such as Jean's would fail?

I read recently a YA novel, All Rights Reserved, in which all members of society wear armbands that record spoken language and charge per word for the copyright on each. A similar concept maybe, and interesting when read in close proximity with this - language again the key to controlling masses, just as Winston Smith himself found it in Oceania.

Read it, read it, read it. By being shocked, disturbed and upset by books such as this are we more prepared to resist when we see it coming close.

This is superlative dystopian fiction, it hits home. One of my reads of the year.

With thanks to Netgalley for providing an advance reading copy.

Synopsis

Silence can be deafening.
Jean McClellan spends her days in almost complete silence, limited to a daily quota of just one hundred words.

Now that the new government is in power, no woman is able to speak over this limit without punishment by electric shock.

But when the President’s brother suffers a stroke, Jean is temporarily given back her voice in order to work on the cure.

And she soon soon discovers that she is part of a much larger plan: to eliminate the voices of women entirely.

My review

I was both excited and nervous to read this book because of the synopsis and how relevant it is with current events. I really enjoyed reading Christine Balcher's debut novel. The story unfolds through the eyes of our main protaganist, Jean - a cognitive linguist who along with a group of other Scientists was on the verge of a breakthrough treatment in finding a cure for specific types of brain injuries (that controls language) before her life as she knows it is cruelly ripped away from her. Fast forward to the where the story takes place and Jean finds herself (along with the rest of the female population) living under male rule in the US governed by the 'Pure Movement'. Under this rule all females are equipped with a 'bracelet' which captures their daily word count (along with cameras almost everywhere) and harsh punishments follow for those who don't stick to the daily 100 words rule count. The female population are no longer allowed to work and must stay at home and 'make house' and be subservient to the male/s in the households. People (troublesome women, anyone who is in a same sex relationship, females having sex before marriage etc) who don't fall in line or fit into the Pure Movement plan are given varying sentences ranging from terrible prison-like living conditions, work camps, to murder.

Jean like many others, ignored the warning signs and stayed silent to changes that were happening. Effectively living within a 'bubble' and believing it 'couldn't happen to her'. This is despite eerily accurate warnings from a close friend who provides insight into what it's like to live outside of that bubble. By the time Jean does realise, it's too late to use her voice, because by this time women have been effectively silenced. Jean's family life demonstrates the gender differences i.e. her daughter barely speaks etc, while the male children in her household thrive.

A small chance of hope appears when Jean is asked/forced to use her medical knowledge and expertise to find a cure for the ailing President's brother (the mastermind behind his campaign) brain injury in the Wernicke’s area—the part of the brain that controls language. If she agrees she gets both her and her daughter's bracelet temporarily removed. These events trigger the beginning of Jean's fight for freedom, not just for herself but for her daughter and other females. The question is asked 'how far would you go for your freedom and for your family'? and Jean has to answer it.

I loved reading this dystopian tale! While the subjects were heavy, depressing and sometimes awful, there was also hope, strength and determination to change. The story flowed along right up until the end and gave an insight into the turmoil Jean felt about her life, her family, her lover, but mostly what her silence had cost her and others, and a reminder that feminism should be intersectional. There was quite a few character surprises throughout the book so you're never really sure if a person is who they say they are. These twists and turns. along with secrets being revealed keep the suspense levels high as the book picks up the pace towards the end. I did feel that the ending was rushed and the conclusion felt glossed over in comparison to the rich storytelling throughout the book. Still a brilliant read and a favourite for 2018.

This novel provides a cautionary tale as to what can happen and the synopsis may sound more fiction than non-fiction. However the story mirrors some current events of how the 'Pure Movement' systematically came about - the difference being ethnic minorities and gay people being targeted instead of mainly the silencing/oppression of women.

Thank you to Christina Dalcher, NetGalley and the Publishers HQ for this ARC.

Holy f***ing s***balls. That was one hell of a f***ing rollercoaster ride. I’ve read a lot of books so far this year,some which have been pretty damn epic, but I don’t think I’ve read a book like this for a damn long time. It’s not impossible to imagine this happening. I would not be able to stick with 100 words. It takes me 100 words just to get my child out of bed sometimes!

I didn’t want to read it down to how scarily similar it was to some things in some countries in today’s world but I needed to know what happened. Some of things in the book made me unbelievable angry for the women, for the children, and for some of the men. I don’t think that what happens in the book is far off what some insane people think. And if it was to happen, god forbid it ever fucking does, it would happen in America. But then again, it could happen anywhere. No one is safe from religious or sexist extremism like this.

But, the book, the harrowing genius of a story. Genius but completely a terrifying, addictive reading. I’ve seen it being compared to The Handmaiden’s Tale (which I’ve never read and only watched one series) and I can see why. Women are being pushed down into society, silenced, being made to submit. Children taken away from their family, boys being taught that women do not, and will not, have any equal thoughts.

I felt a lot for Jean and her family, I really did. To be put in that situation must be difficult, especially with a young impressionable family. I liked how we got the details from the past in little pieces here and there, with details coming to attention that made me cringe and actually value the world we live in.

I can’t really explain why the book is so good without actually saying just go and read it. It’s everything. It’s got a sense of what I would call ‘Morbid Fascination’. I didn’t want to know but I just had to find out about it. I just had to keep reading.

I’ve given this book a very loud 5/5, it truly does deserve it.

Thank you to Harper Collins/HQ for sending a copy of Vox for review and for letting me take part in VOX blogger day!

Content warnings: cheating, racism which is sometimes challenged (including the use of the word "coloured"), child abuse, domestic abuse, homopobia (people get put in camps for being gay), slut shaming that isn't called out. I think there's probably more that I missed let me know if you need to know!

Imagine the US government went from the small percent of women it has now to 0 women. Imagine extremely "traditional" Christianity had a huge rise in the states at the same time. Imagine the government made it illegal for women to work and speakmore than 100 words a day. Welcome to the world of Vox.

Vox is definitely one of the most interesting and thought-provoking books I've read this year, though I don't know if I really wanted to think those thoughts because now I hate men more than I did when I started and this book isn't real.

I've not read The Handmaid's Tale, I know, shocking. But I've seen a lot of comparison of this novel to it and from what I've heard of The Handmaid's Tale it definitely feels apt. This is a story about how much of a mess men could turn the world into.

What was really chilling about this novel was just how realistic it was. I have to believe something like this could not happen but honestly, I could see it happening. None of us thought Trump would actually become the president so as far-fetched as something like this might seem, it could so easily happen to us. I saw some criticism about how this book was dangerous because it villainises Christianity and honestly... when you see how the church, both Catholic and Protestant sides have acted historically... they've done that villainising themselves. Not once in this book does it say Christianity is evil, it's the people who use that to take advantage that are.

The clear message of this novel, despite all the messiness of the dystopian world is "use your voice". Speak up, never be scared to stand up for what you believe in. The main character couldn't be bothered to go march and thought that her fears were never going to happen. But they did, and she regrets not at least trying to do something about it. That felt like a really important message for me. You see so many people saying "what's the point in marches? what's the point in speaking up? it's not going to do anything". Even if you make a small difference you are making a difference.

Whilst this book was from the POV of a white woman and was mostly focussed on being a white cis straight woman there were little nods to the way the world had changed for minorites, like the MC being aware that it was only a matter of time before they started breaking up interracial relationships and the hardship that people in same sex relationships faced (being broken up, having their kids taken away, being sent to camps). I do wish there had been more of that, I felt like Dalcher could have dived so much deeper into that instead of being so focused on white straight issues. And honestly there could've been so much more about trans issues.

My other critique is that the pacing wasn't the best. I was in this book from the beginning, the way it was written was very addictive, but I could still tell that the beginning was super slow compared to the end. There was a lot of time spent on the world building with not a whole lot happening plot wise. Then the last 20% rushed by and all the big drama at the end was a bit messy, because half the time I couldn't tell what was happening. I felt like more care needed to be taken towards the ending, like maybe tidied up or a little bit more drawn out.

I can't say I liked this book because how can you like a book about this kind of thing? But it was a good book. I read it very quickly, which I haven't been doing much of recently because of work, and I think if this is your kind of thing you should read it, though be careful with all those content warnings. It had some important messages I think we could all use reminding about from time to time. But I wish it had delved a little deeper beyond the main characters life.

An insightful story of what could happen if extremist governments are allowed to erode the diversity that we recognise as our right. Told in the first person from Jean's point of view, this story explores the systematic removal of women's human rights and the consequences of this. The story's premise is alarming but not unimaginable. How could such a substantial, motivated percentage of the population be stripped of the right to speak? Some may say this couldn't happen, but history tells a different story. Anything is possible given the right set of circumstances.

The author paints a frightening future, but Jean is a mother. She will protect her daughter at all costs. There is, of course, a thinly veiled message in this story, which guarantees it publicity and controversy, but the story is complex and absorbing and worth reading purely for its readability.

The themes discussed are topical and not new, but this story is well- written and makes its presence felt.

I received a copy of this book from HQ via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Vox by Christina Dalcher

It’s one thing knowing that you’re not able to speak more than 100 words in a day without a severe punishing electric shock, but it’s another thing entirely knowing that your young daughter is also not allowed to speak, just at the time when she should be enjoying the discovery of new words every single day and shouting them out loud to her parents and brothers – brothers who are allowed to say just what they like and are growing used to a world in which women have no rights at all. Jean McClellan will do anything to fight for her daughter’s future, to fight against her silence.

I love the premise of Vox – a dystopia set in America during the very near future in which an extreme rightwing president has decided to end the rights of women. The ‘bracelets’ that women wear to limit their words to 100 a day are just the most visible sign of their oppression but it is making itself increasingly known in every area of life. Jean used to be Dr McClellan, a leading linguistic scientist in the fight against aphasia, a brain condition that – rather ironically – leaves the victim speechless. Now Jean is her husband’s chattel. But she is given a way out due to her background and she won’t be going back again.

Vox is told in the first person, present tense by Jean, and this is undoubtedly part of what gives the story its impact – Jean’s fury and frustration, contrasting with her tender love for her children, especially her daughter, make it all seem horrifyingly real, even possible. It also gives us a heroine we can get behind. Jean also tells us about other silenced women she has known, as well as the men, including her own husband, and what they are doing about it – if anything at all.

I became hugely fired up reading Vox! It made me rant! The injustice and indignity of it all. The first half of the book particularly appealed to me as this new fascist America is revealed (so far the rest of the world is safe) and we witness its impact on the daily lives of men and women. It’s fascinating, even without the parallels that one inevitably draws to the anti-Jewish laws of Nazi Germany. I was engrossed.

The second half of the novel was less successful for me because in these chapters we moved into the lab, science takes over, and the scope of the story narrows. I love science in my science fiction but I think that the main strength of Vox is speculative, in the society it portrays and in the voices that have been silenced, a really enjoyable element of the first half of the book. Although one does have to wonder how plausible it is that 50% of the American population were silenced so easily and quickly.

You can read and enjoy Vox as pure entertainment, and it certainly is entertaining, but it also serves as a timely non-preachy reminder that we must stay alert.

A really thought-provoking book about what would happen if women were regarded as inferior and were only allowed to speak 100 words a day, as well as not allowed to work etc. It definitely makes me feel lucky that I don't live in a society like that.

It's amazing how few words 100 actually is and I felt so much irritation for Jean trying to save those words - she didn't have enough words to argue back, could only communicate basically and did everything she could to make sure she had words left to wish her daughter goodnight every night.

I felt really stuck between Patrick and Lorenzo. You sort of don't like Patrick at the beginning and then as the book goes on you realise there's a lot more to him than you initially think. By the end I felt so bad for him, but I did expect what did happen was going to happen.

I like that the story of every character is cleared up at the end, as it's a real bugbear of mine when you don't know what's happened to certain characters or they seem to have been forgotten about along the way.

OMG!!
This blew me away!
What if there was an incompetent president in the White House?
What if he picked an Evangelical Pastor as his most trusted advisor?
What if they decided society has gotten out of control and they need to put women (and other minorities) back in their place?
Terrifying and ultimately a cautionary tale.
All fans of Atwood would love this.

What the blurb says :

In a world where women are silenced, would you speak up? Greetings, to all Pure Women.

You should all be fitted with your new wrist counters. A symbol of your purity and devotion to your family. Life is simpler now. Just 100 words a day.

Your role is in the house. Your husband takes care of everything else.

You’re free.

Instead, you should focus on values of modesty, submission, humility and purity. Love, honour and most importantly, obey. You know the rules. Just one word over 100 and your wrist counter will send 1,000 volts through your body. Choose your words carefully.

You have the right to remain silent.

My thoughts on VOX #VOX #100words

VOX is a fast-paced page-turner that demands a binge read. Especially in these times we live in. Unfortunately, it's not that hard to imagine a dystopian future, where 'common sense' has evaporated; in the UK, we managed to sleep-walk into Brextit, and America...well, you know what I mean!

There are strong similarities between VOX and The Handmaid's Tale. VOX is set in a modern, dystopian America. A country where the Bible Belt, became more like a corset, and quickly mutated into fully body suit. For the female population, literature and the written word are forbidden , wrist counters are fitted to all from 3 months upwards, and sanctions and punishments applied to those who do not follow the rules.

Meet our protagonist and narrator, Dr Jean McClellan - feisty, intelligent, belligerent and unwilling to shut up. She is perfectly positioned to portray the full horror of this dystopia; her husband works for the government, she has three sons who are growing up being brainwashed by the 'Pure' teachers at their schools, and a six year old daughter who is learning that silence is best. And she's a kick-ass scientist, who the government reluctantly turn to in a time of need.

VOX is a very emotive book; I really felt Jean's anger and frustration throughout, but particularly in the scenes with her eldest son (a fifteen year old, brimming with the arrogance of youth and indoctrination). My heart ached for her in the scenes with her daughter.

VOX aims to make the reader think, to make them feel angry, and it's a warning that we should never underestimate politicians - even if they appear harmless.

It does all of this, and serves it up with a sprinkling of hope, and a reminder that there is power in good deeds. There will always be an underground movement, and there are always people with big hearts.

I think most readers will enjoy VOX, but there will be some who won't. Christina Dalcher tweeted the other day that she had been compared to Dan Brown, and that really made me think about the press that VOX will receive.

I would say it is a dystopian novel, but not a literary one.

Take it for what it is - a book whose premise is to make us think, to ensure we are politically aware, and to ensure we make our voices heard.

It's a darn good yarn. I really enjoyed it.

Some passages that stuck with me:

"Maybe this is how it happened in Germany with the Nazis, in Bosnia with the Serbs, in Rwanda with the Hutus. I've often wondered about that, how kids can turn into monsters, how they learn that killing is right and oppression is just, how in one single generation the world can change on its axis into a place that's unrecognizable."

And the much quoted quote:

"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

Thank you to Izzy at Harper Collins for inviting me to be part of VOX Blogger Day and to #NetGalley for my advance copy for an honest review.

This story could have been incredible but it just didn't feel like it reached its potential. The characters seemed half formed and not engaging. It was too long and dragged in many places, especially the second half. I was really hoping it would be as good as The Handmaids Tale but it fell short.

‘“There’s a resistance?” The word sounds sweet as I say it.
“Honey, there’s always a resistance. Didn’t you go to college?”’

As soon as I heard the premise of VOX, I just knew I HAD to read it as soon as possible. Imagine a world where females can only speak one hundred words a day and should they go over this limit, they’ll suffer horrific electric shocks. VOX is a dystopian delight that should be recommended reading for all, especially fans of Atwood and Alderman.

The plot was interesting, I was constantly finding any spare minutes reading this in queues, whilst waiting for the kettle to boil, and of course, in bed. There were a few unanswered questions regarding the ending and characters that I NEED to know!! Be warned, this is definitely an adult book featuring profanity, sex etc. Side note - I hate it when authors use ‘my sex’ but this is just personal preference.

The schools brainwashing of the children with religious propaganda about purity etc. and gifting treats to girls for speaking zero words all day felt very scary but believable. This world felt so real and I was completed absorbed in it for a day or so after finishing.

I feel like the story was just a bit too long as it focused a lot on the neurolinguistics plot and dawdled in other areas. There were some techniques and linguistic terms that I didn’t completely understand but I personally don’t think it hindered the story in anyway.

Jean is our main protagonist and she’s highly intelligent and angry, so so so angry. I enjoyed the little moments where she wasn’t perfect and resented the men in her life because this felt so real and honest.

The secondary characters, Patrick (her husband), her colleagues Lin and Lorenzo, and her old school friend Jackie were all interesting but not gripping, I didn’t enjoy those moments as much. Reverend Carl and Morgan were THE WORST. Patronising, belittling and sexist, they believed in this Pure movement so rigidly.

Overall, this book is a warning.

3/5 stars

100 words a day. Just sit and think for a minute how that would impact your life.

A life where you walk around with a counter bracelet, ticking down every time you utter a word until you reach your daily limit. Where an electric shock awaits you if you dare speak one word more. You can’t, can you? And things for Jean and all the women in her country are far worse than that. No sign language, no writing notes, no reading. No passports, no jobs, no bank accounts and each and every decision is made by the men.

Men who may not all agree with what’s going on but for various reasons don’t stand up to make a change. Young boys who are growing up in this environment, almost brainwashed to the point where they think this treatment of women is perfectly acceptable. Little girls who aren’t allowed to learn how to read or write, who have never been read a bedtime story and for whom remaining silent all day suddenly seems like a fun competition. And people who don’t fit the mould or break the rules are sent to camps for the rest of their lives.

This incredibly frightening scenario sadly sounds all too believable in this day and age. It made me angry and it saddened me. The whole thing may seem far-fetched and yet, parts of it are extremely plausible. You may think, just like Jean, this will never come to pass but before she and other women realise, there they are. There’s a lesson here. Stand up and make your voice count. Not only vocally but by voting. As the characters in the novel say, the time to act is always now.

This is quite a hard one to review. It evokes a lot of emotions but it’s one of those books you need to read for yourself to get the full impact of immersing yourself into these women’s circumstances and hoping you’ll never find yourself in that position.

Vox is immensely powerful and thought-provoking, leaving me with a massive feeling of claustrophobia and sheer dread. It’s disturbing, more terrifying than any gruesome thriller I’ve ever read or nightmare I’ve ever had. It’ll make you think and get under your skin and like me, I doubt you’ll ever forget it.

“New research indicates there’s a biological reason why women talk so much more than men: 20,000 words a day spoken by the average woman, according to one study, versus about 7,000 words a day for the average man.” – that was my Google search. Now reduce it to 100 a day, which is what happens in “Vox” – women are allowed only 100 words per day. It’s being controlled by wrist – band counters, cosily called “bracelets” by the male part of the population, and exceeding this daily quota results in a very painful electrical shocks. No matter if you’re an adult woman or a young girl.

Jean McLellan, the main character in this exceptionally good debut novel by Christina Dalcher, is a cognitive linguistic, mother of four children (three boys and one girl), wife. She used to protest against present government, she voted for another President candidate. Now she’s silenced, just like all the other females in the United States. She can’t work anymore, she’s supposed to stay at home, do her shopping, cook and, ultimately, be seen and not heard. Her husband Patrick works for the present government (the irony!), as a science advisor to the president (what science, you could ask, and it would be a very understandable questions, as everything is being controlled by the state). But then THE accident happens and Jean is approached by the President’s people – her professional skills are required. Will she help? Will she be made to help?
Jean is a very intelligent woman and after negotiating a deal she starts working but it quickly turns out that – of course – nothing is as straightforward. Is she going to win this race against time?

Occasionally I do like to read a book that doesn’t belong to my favourite genres and after seeing all the hype about “Vox” I thought that maybe I should try it and see what’s it all about. It often happens that the novels that are being so strong advertised really don’t live up to expectations but well, “Vox” is for sure not a book to be missed, guys. It’s thought – provoking and controversial and clever and not too dystopian and I really liked this book. I can understand that the book is probably going to unleash a storm of discussions, especially when it comes to religion, and I have my own opinion about it as well but I don’t want to entwine such threads into my review. I don’t want to know if it is done on purpose, the way Christianity was presented in this novel, in those times when religion is the biggest weapon, when extremity and fundamentalist are on the pages of every magazine – I went into this book with open mind and finished it without judging, and I hope you’re going to do the same, to fully enjoy it. I was only not sure when the action actually takes places. I know it was America but did I miss the timeline? I guess it was in the future, however how close or far away, this I don’t know, and it bothered me a little, as for me it was an important piece of knowledge for this book. So let’s agree on foreseeable future.

This story substitutes this saying: “Children should be seen but not heard” for “Women should be seen but not heard”. There came a moment that I was actually scared to read further – I had a very bad feeling for what can happen and I guess I just didn’t want to see my assumptions come true. But I also didn’t want to put this book down, especially when the second half started and the atmosphere of terror and not knowing what’s to come was incredibly overwhelming. And there could anything happen, guys. Anything. The characters, in the name of a “proper” religion, weren’t afraid to stop at nothing. I actually think that such kind of a country would suit some of the present dictators, and probably this is also what made the book, even though dystopian, so realistic and so frightening. The number of lunatics in this book was also horrifying, to be honest, claiming they really believe in what is said. Amazing. I can’t believe something like this could happen in reality, especially so quickly and with so many women that march in response to it but well, there is always this little quiet voice in your head asking “What if” when you read this book. But OK, that’s not the point of this novel, right – but you can see that it’s a book that is going to make you think, ask questions and wonder.

The effect of all those actions were brutally honestly showed through children. While the twins were not the most significant characters, the author mostly focused on the oldest son and then the youngest daughter Sonia. It made me frustrated to see how quickly they adapted to the new situations and regulations. The oldest son changed in a way that the “pure” expected, but also Sonia adapted, winning a competition at school – the competition was, of course, which girls speak the less words. She has managed three. It just blew my mind how you could live like that, watch your daughter not being able to vocalize, who wasn’t allowed to read nor communicate in any other way – my own six – year – old talks without taking a breath, reads books and seeing her like Sonia would be a real torture. How much did she miss!

The last part of the book was, in comparison to the whole story, very fast – paced and nothing was impossible there. It happened too quickly for my liking but I’m guessing that without this fast tempo there wouldn’t be the intentional impact on the reader – I personally was glued to the last pages. I’m not sure about the ending, though, to be honest, it was too meh for me – I don’t want to say more in case I’m going to spoil something but I’d love to hear what your thoughts are on the end.

This is not the story about “how” (it happened), it’s a story about consequences and results but I think we really don’t have to know how it happened, it’s not the important part. It is written in a very captivating way, I really didn’t want to put it down. There are some issues I had problem with, like the above mentions ending, or for some things just happening, very conventionally, the science happening just like that, the right people at the right places but overall it didn’t spoil the reading for me.

Altogether, “Vox” was a very powerful, important book about the importance of speech and political freedom, especially for women. It was heavily emphasized in this novel but it wasn’t overwhelming, so really kudos to the author for balancing it in such a great way. It showed how quickly people can get used to new situations, how quickly they take for normal this what is far away from normal. How patronizing they become and how quickly they can be brain – washed. Thanks to the author’s background in science there are some interesting and intriguing questions being asked: what would be the world without language, without words? What would happen with women after a few generations of not speaking? Not reading? What should they do with their lives? It was chilling and the bleak, dark atmosphere was so very well captured that it was actually like watching a film, hearing the ominous music and knowing that something is going to happen. It dealt with gender, sexuality, domestic violence, racism and even though in extreme, dystopian way, it somehow rang a bell. A great statement about speaking up, standing strong for yourself and your beliefs. Highly recommended!