Review: Vox – Christina Dalcher

My rating 4/5 stars

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

There is a new government in power and everything has changed, but only if you’re a woman. Women have been limited to only 100 words a day, if any more is said then thousands of volts of electricity will course through your veins. Bank accounts have been frozen and passports and jobs have been taken away. For herself, her daughter, and for every woman silenced, Jean will reclaim her voice.

My thoughts

I have seen that quite a few people have been reading this at the moment and I can see why. The concept alone is so intriguing that it would appeal to most readers, it was definitely what sold me on Vox.

I have a few dystopian reality books on my TBR list and this is the first one that I have read in a while. The scariest and most disturbing part of this whole novel was how far from reality this could be. This novel made me really think about the gender inequalities that we still have and some of the more conservative views on women and their roles within the household. Although, Vox is not a reality, the ideology of the government within the novel is not far from views that are still held by some individuals. This is what makes the novel so chilling.

It is written in short chapters which I liked and I think suited this style of writing. I am the type of person that can’t put down a novel until I have reached the end of a chapter so the fact that this had 80 chapters meant that I was never too far away from being able to finish. At points however, it did feel like the amount of chapters broke up the story and left it disjointed in some areas.

The book is written from the first person perspective of Jean who is a scientist and was forced out of her job to be the “perfect” wife. Jean is a likeable character and as a female reader I could really empathise with her frustrations. Although the characterisation in the novel is done well they are not the main feature of the novel. The real star for me was the concept of the novel rather than the characters within it.

The plot at first seemed slow and I was struggling to see how Jean would be able to fight the oppressive system. Yet, as the novel progressed it became clearer and the pace of the novel sped up. For me, the ending seemed a bit too convenient and personally, I would preferred it if the ending had been given more description and for it to be more drawn out. As the novel had a slower start it seemed strange that the end was so fast.

I would recommend this read to everyone. I think it makes the reader think about important issues within the story that aren’t too far from what we could experience to a lesser degree. Overall, it was an enjoyable read and is one that can appeal to a wide audience.

Do you have a suggestion for the next book to add to my bookshelf? Let me know in comments.