Lock In by John Scalzi, 4-4.5 stars [bwf]

[NancyJ]

I really enjoyed this science fiction thriller about a fictional Hayden’s disease which leaves some of victims in a permanent locked in state. They appear to be in a coma but their minds are active. The main character got the disease as a young child, but was able to move around and talk to people with the help of an expensive technology. Now as an adult, she is still locked in, but she has gone to college, and is now working as an FBI agent. She interacts with the world through her “threep” ( imagine C -3PO from Star Wars). Technological advances go even farther, as she discovers during her first week on the job. I delayed reading this book because I was so disturbed by real life examples of people who experienced a similar lock-in state during surgery. This sci fi version wasn’t as disturbing. It’s a lively and engaging thriller that I think many here will like.

My audible book came with a bonus novella Unlocked, which describes the history of the fictional Hayden’s disease, which was named after its most famous victim, the First Lady of the United States. This is a wonderful piece of world building which adds a lot to the story. Much of the information is presented gradually throughout the book, but if I knew it was there, I might have read it before The thriller.

[Cora]

Which narrator did you listen to? I assume it was Amber Benson since you refer to Chris as a she/her. I want to try reading the version with Wil Wheaton one day to see how it compares.

[NancyJ]

Cora wrote: "Which narrator did you listen to? I assume it was Amber Benson since you refer to Chris as a she/her. I want to try reading the version with Wil Wheaton one day to see how it compares."

Yes, I listened to Amber Benson. She has not yet learned how to de-emphasize repetitive phrases such as “I said”, or “Van said.” It was very distracting, but it was better when I sped up the playback. I think Will tends to be more humorous even when he’s snarky. I think he narrates the next book.

[Jgrace]

He narrates both books. The author deliberately left Chris’s gender identification up to the reader. So there are two audio versions of the books. I listened to the Wheaton version so I imagine Chris as male.

[NancyJ]

Jgrace wrote: "He narrates both books. The author deliberately left Chris’s gender identification up to the reader. So there are two audio versions of the books. I listened to the Wheaton version so I imagine Chr..."

Is Van male or female? I was picturing female, I don’t know if that was identified either?