Review: Vox

Vox by Christina Dalcher
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I reviewed this book back in late May on Goodreads, for First to Read. The book has released as of August 21 and I have finally decided to provide the book with a rating. Sadly, my fondness for the title did not improved with time. From May:

The premise of silencing female dissent posed by this dystopian book is fascinating given the current popularity of "A Handmaid's Tale" and I'm sure it will be optioned for screen adaptation. While the opening chapters were quite gripping, as the plot developed I found myself extremely disappointed in the poorly conceived scientific plot of the book, which is both implausible and poorly executed. It was clear that Dalcher made few efforts beyond appearances to attain authenticity for the medical research portions of the story. (Sorry, but I'm a PhD chemist and my stepmom is a neurologist, so I regard science in fiction with a serious eye.) Research into actual *medical* neuroscience, beyond the term Wernicke's Aphasia and its symptoms, seems to have been overlooked here, even if Dalcher certainly has the theoretical linguistic bona fides. This was a missed opportunity. Looking at authors like Mira Grant, Richard Preston, or Michael Crichton, I know full well that there *is* scientifically accurate and gripping fiction out there.

Looking beyond the plot, looking at the characters, I found the central character someone who I struggled to root for at times. While she is justifiably angry at her government, her husband's role in it, her personal situation and her oldest son, I often found her straight-up unlikeable. Some of the secondary characters like Sharon were interesting but others, like Jackie (she's that angry bra-burning feminist who's a lesbian and who shouts a lot on TV!!!), seemed almost like they were caricatures upon which portions of the storyline were built. I wanted more from them and more of a feeling of the relationship between Jean and Patrick. Or even just more backstory on Jean/Gianna and how her parents feel about her being trapped in an America that has silenced women.

Edited August 25, 2018: After much thought, I'm sorry to have to review this book as a 2 star novel. I felt disappointed by the evolution of the plot and the poor quality of the science. If we are going to have a feminist dystopian trend, let it be a trend grounded in best efforts.

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