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Vox by Christina Dalcher imagines a near future where certain members of US society have gained much more influence, to the extent that women are given cuffs to wear, which count the words they speak each day and give them electric shocks if they go over 100.
It's one of those books where you think, "That's ridiculous. That would never happen." But it's an extrapolation of certain societal trends, pushed to an extreme to make a point. And for the first 75% of the book, it makes that point very well.
It owes a lot to The Handmaid's Tale, but has its own style and tone - and the plot diverges massively towards the end, perhaps not in a good way. I initially found it both chilling and compelling, but it lost me a bit in the latter stages, when it basically turned into an action thriller.
However, I thought the protagonist was an interesting, layered character, with flaws that made her more real, but not necessarily less sympathetic. A lot of the writing was really good, and some of the exploration of human nature had nuance.
It's one of those books where you think, "That's ridiculous. That would never happen." But it's an extrapolation of certain societal trends, pushed to an extreme to make a point. And for the first 75% of the book, it makes that point very well.
It owes a lot to The Handmaid's Tale, but has its own style and tone - and the plot diverges massively towards the end, perhaps not in a good way. I initially found it both chilling and compelling, but it lost me a bit in the latter stages, when it basically turned into an action thriller.
However, I thought the protagonist was an interesting, layered character, with flaws that made her more real, but not necessarily less sympathetic. A lot of the writing was really good, and some of the exploration of human nature had nuance.
