Reviews

Unlocked: An Oral History of Haden's Syndrome by John Scalzi

erhwang's review against another edition

adventurous reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

mmorris114's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

a_blerdandhisbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional funny inspiring reflective relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

bookph1le's review against another edition

4.0

I read Lock In long before I read this, so even though I was already familiar with the series' world, I really enjoyed this prequel because it made that world even more vivid for me.

The other highlight of this book is that it poses a lot of interesting philosophical questions with implications for today's culture.

I highly recommend both this book and Lock In, and I am anxiously awaiting the next Lock In book.

sshabein's review

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

I'd had this novella kicking around on my kindle for a long time, and it did make me interested in the novel that follows. Weirdly, I've followed John Scalzi on Twitter and now Bluesky, but I hadn't actually read anything by him until now. He writes about a pandemic in a way that we now know, 10 years after this came out, is not unlike how people would behave in real life. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic

llamalluv's review

5.0

I'd recommend reading this novella before starting book one.

noirverse's review

4.0

This hits different with COVID.

friendleghost's review

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

jesschaney's review against another edition

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

3.5

loverofeels's review

5.0

i did not realize this was part of a series when i started reading it but i enjoyed it very much. fascinating reflections on disability near the end