Review: Head On

Head On by John Scalzi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the second Lock In novel I've read and I enjoyed it immensely. The combination of police procedural and near-future SF worked very well, and the snappy dialogue and sharp writing made it all a great weekend read.

In Lock In we were introduced to the Hadens. Victims of an illness that leaves them fully conscious yet "locked in", unable to move independently, technology has offered a solution of sorts with the Threeps, mechanical bots the Hadens can rent or own and transfer their consciousness into the machine.

Chris Shane (and we still don't know Chris' gender...which is fabulous!) is partnered with the non-Haden but delightfully snarky Leslie Vann in the Haden Affairs division of the FBI. They're investigating the death of an athlete during a Hilketa match, a violent game only played by mechanically outfitted Hadens. As Hadens lose some of their federal benefits and protected status there's money to be made in expanding or exploiting their options, and this can result in theft, fraud...or murder.

While this is billed as a stand-alone novel, I highly recommend reading Lock In #1 first to get the full flavor of how master storyteller Scalzi spins a SF tale that's exciting, funny, and all too real.

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