Lock In

In John Scalzi’s latest sci-fi novel—following the Hugo Award–winning Redshirts—we’re introduced to a world where Haden’s Syndrome has swept the planet, leaving many people locked in to their own bodies, essentially conscious vegetables. A new class of citizens and technology form, allowing the locked-in to transport their consciousness into other Haden’s victims or robots (threeps) so they may interact with the real world. When murder and terrorism hint at a larger conspiracy, it begins a fast-paced adventure in which a colorful cast of characters must find a killer who could be anywhere—or anyone. Scalzi’s created a world of people and tech full of contradictions, giving credibility and excitement to the story. It’s not simply the types of technology Scalzi dreams up but how characters use it that reveals the author’s understanding of and commentary on our own tech-driven society. This near-future setting seems like a plausible extension of the threats and wonders we face as a globally connected society, and Scalzi takes more than a few digs at the big bads of current events—NSA, Big Pharma, corrupt politicians and net neutrality. This is great storytelling filled with imaginative tech and science grounded in reality, which hits current social issues from every angle without slowing down.