Lock In (Narrated by Wil Wheaton)

By: John Scalzi

Narrated by: Wil Wheaton

AudioFile Best Voices - Sci Fi, Fantasy, and Audio Theater, 2014

A blazingly inventive near-future thriller from the best-selling, Hugo Award-winning John Scalzi.

Not too long from today, a new, highly contagious virus makes its way across the globe. Most who get sick experience nothing worse than flu, fever, and headaches. But for the unlucky one percent - and nearly five million souls in the United States alone - the disease causes "Lock In": Victims fully awake and aware, but unable to move or respond to stimulus. The disease affects young, old, rich, poor, people of every color and creed. The world changes to meet the challenge.

A quarter of a century later, in a world shaped by what's now known as "Haden's syndrome", rookie FBI agent Chris Shane is paired with veteran agent Leslie Vann. The two of them are assigned what appears to be a Haden-related murder at the Watergate Hotel, with a suspect who is an "integrator" - someone who can let the locked in borrow their bodies for a time. If the Integrator was carrying a Haden client, then naming the suspect for the murder becomes that much more complicated.

But "complicated" doesn't begin to describe it. As Shane and Vann began to unravel the threads of the murder, it becomes clear that the real mystery - and the real crime - is bigger than anyone could have imagined.

BONUS AUDIO: Audible's audio edition of Lock In contains the bonus novella, Unlocked: An Oral History of Haden's Syndrome, written by John Scalzi and narrated by a full cast.

"I love working with Audible, in no small part because they’re committed to doing what’s right, both for my books, and the people who listen to those books. There's a really excellent reason for Lock In to have two entirely different versions, so when it came time to make the audiobook, Audible did an ingenious thing: they asked both Wil Wheaton and Amber Benson to record entire versions of the book. As the author, I’m impressed with Audible’s commitment to my narrative - and I’m geeking out that both Wil and Amber are reading my book. This is fantastic." (John Scalzi)

2 editions. 2 narrators. 1 thrilling story. You can enjoy Amber Benson's narration here.

©2014 John Scalzi (P)2014 Audible Inc.

Critic reviews

"Hugo-winner Scalzi successfully shifts away from space opera with this smart, thoughtful near-future thriller resonant with the themes of freedom, ethics, and corporate greed….This powerful novel will intrigue and entertain both fans and newcomers." ( Publishers Weekly)

"The novel--which contains plenty of action, great character development, vivid and believable worldbuilding and a thought-provoking examination of disability culture and politics--is definitely worth the ride." ( Kirkus)

"Another brilliant novel from a writer who has quickly become one of the genre’s most successful and intriguing practitioners." ( Booklist)

"With narrator Wil Wheaton attacking Scalzi's text with both vigor and nuance, this story tells about a silent minority being given voice, then having that voice threatened.... Thanks to Wheaton's skillful efforts, this production is an enjoyable melding of narrator and material." ( AudioFile)

I said, he said

What did you like best about Lock In (Narrated by Wil Wheaton)? What did you like least?

Fun story

Would you recommend Lock In (Narrated by Wil Wheaton) to your friends? Why or why not?

I would recommend they read it as it would be easier to ignore all of the I said, he said, she said...
Wil Wheaton did a great job with the narration though.

Was Lock In (Narrated by Wil Wheaton) worth the listening time?

yes

Ready for Part 2

Wow. Mind bending concept, well-written.

This is not typically the kind of book I listen to, but I followed to the hype and pre-ordered. I was pulled in! I could not stop listening to this near future tale about newly minted FBI agent Chris Shane. I am not familiar with John Scalzi's writing, this being my first of his novels, but I'm sure hoping there will be another book soon following Chris's career.
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Wil Wheaton did a great job, as usual, reading the novel. I have NOT listened to my other narrator option, but am saving her for the next listen. I think Wil fit the Chris character well. Not sure how I'm going to like a feminine voice narrator with a male main character narrator.

One small disappointment: The book itself is only 7.75 hours long. There is a "bonus" novella appended to the recording of Lock In. I was hoping for two more hours of action around the 7.5 hour mark, but then realized the story was wrapping up. The novella seems to be pertinent information about Haden's, which, I hope, means I sequel is coming!

Consistent Greatness Locked In With Scalzi-Wheaton

Some things fade with time. Not John Scalzi and Wil Wheaton. Not thus far. Lock In is their fifth audiobook collaboration, all of which I've listened to, and it is at least as good as any that have come before, possibly even the best of the bunch (close call with Android's Dream and Redshirts).

The difference this time is that unlike its predecessors, Lock In is not meant to be humorous. True, neither Scalzi nor Wheaton can help themselves, so the main character, Chris Shane, and Shane's co-investigators do get typically smarmy and sarcastic as they discuss matters among themselves and especially when interrogating people. That tone, modulated expertly to suit specific situations, only elevates the overall experience.

But this one is meant to be serious. In the near future, a flu-like virus has killed off hundreds of millions of people, left millions more physically paralyzed (though still mentally cognitive), and spawned huge new industries in giving lock-Ins (as the paralyzed are called) the ability to interface with the world, including an android-like mechanism allowing them to circulate in the world (called a threep due to its resemblance to the Star Wars android C3P0).

Chris Shane is a lock-in with a state of the art threep who has just joined the FBI in a unit that specializes in investigating crimes involving lock-ins. He is immediately thrown into a murder case that has wide-ranging ramifications. He and his partner (who is not a lock-in) and his roommate (who is also a lock-in and a technological genius) slowly peel away the layers and expose everything that is going on, all in classic Scalzi style.

The disease and its consequences -- social, political, economic -- give Scalzi a lot of leeway to comment on contemporary issues, with metaphors aplenty at the ready. But these are no more than glancing blows that just add depth to the novel. They do not, indeed cannot, ever overtake the story, which moves forward at breakneck pace, fueled by the momentum Wil Wheaton never fails to deliver as my favorite all-time narrator.

Issue with narrator

This is a review of the narrator only as I have not been able to get very far because of the narration. Wil Wheaton does not have very good range when narrating multiple characters. In chapter 1, I could not make much of a distinction between an interaction between 3 characters (1 male, 2 female) because they all sounded like Wil Wheaton. There was seemingly no attempt to make an effort at voicing a female character. Plus he is not very good in expressing emotion or other dialogue characteristics. I think they should have gone with William Dufris who narrated the Old Man's War books.

Run of the mill crime procedural

How did the narrator detract from the book?

It felt very flat, I was just listening to someone read a book out loud without any inflection or even interest in the story. It made it impossible to get sucked into the plot. I was disappointed since I love Wil Wheaton but I don't think he delivered. I wonder if I would have thought the book was better if read by a different narrator.

Any additional comments?

What's annoying about this book is that it had potential to be really good. The premise is unique and there are a lot of issues that could have been explored and developed further but were only briefly and superficially touched on. The book lacked substance felt like a sci-fi version of a predictable throw-away detective story I might buy out of desperation at an airport.