In 'Head On,' Killer Robots, Dogged Gumshoes ... And A Very Important Cat
John Scalzi returns to the world of Lock In -- where people incapacitated by a strange disease can reenter the world through robot avatars — for a murder mystery that turns on a cat named Donut.
I love that the entire plot of John Scalzi's newest novel, Head On, hinges on a cat.
I mean, it's a stupid idea. It's a gimmick that's been played straight, played crooked, played backwards and forwards in so many stories that there's just no trope-life left in it. Cat as McGuffin. Cat as material witness. Cat as embodiment of damsels in distress. It's the literary equivalent of Scooby Doo and the gang pulling the rubber mask off old Mr. McGillicutty the groundskeeper because he
