Scan barcode
melissaslibraryy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This book was so good and, everything I expected and more. The complexity of AI bots intermingling in society and how they are not that far off from humanity as one might’ve thought, is a scary feeling to realize especially with how far AI is progressing in real life.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Body shaming, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Confinement, Grief, Sexual violence, Fatphobia, Domestic abuse, Bullying, Gaslighting, Classism, Toxic friendship, Medical content, Abandonment, Misogyny, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Sexual content
oddpilot97's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
HOLYYYYY COW, this was good. And I’m not someone who says that lightly (I don’t hesitate to DNF and haven’t had a 5 star book in ages)
Lately I’ve been on a streak of reading books with amazing concepts, that I end up giving up on because it doesn’t deliver on that. This was almost the opposite. The plot line caught my eye, but I wondered if it was going to get either too one-note or too triggering. I don’t know where your mind goes when you think about someone who owns a sex robot, but mine automatically goes to a mega creep. Instead, the owner character had layers, and was more than just purely detestable.
The author added SO much nuance and complexity. I was eagerly wondering what the end result would be with every twist and turn. I was screaming for the protagonist to make the right choice the whole time, even as things got more and more complicated on which decision was truly best for her.
when I described some of the plot to my mom, she said “this isn’t just about robots is it?” she hit the nail right on the head. the story aptly draws a parallel to oppressive gender roles.
Annie’s owner treats her better than almost any other. even the techs at the company Who made her tell her she is lucky that he is her owner. But are you truly lucky if you are the most well treated slave?
Doug does horrible things —without a doubt. he modeled Annie after his ex girlfriend, a blatant crossing of boundaries. he is at times cruel, particularly when he locked her in the closet with her libido set at a 10. I hated him at so many points of the book. And at other times, I wondered if Annie did truly desire to be with him or if it was just programming. I was curious if there was any redemption possible for Doug.
P.S. what happened to Delta??? Justice for her.
There’s so much more I could say, and perhaps I will reflect on more of the themes and how they impacted me and return to update this at a later time.
TLDR: read it. It’s worth it.
Lately I’ve been on a streak of reading books with amazing concepts, that I end up giving up on because it doesn’t deliver on that. This was almost the opposite. The plot line caught my eye, but I wondered if it was going to get either too one-note or too triggering. I don’t know where your mind goes when you think about someone who owns a sex robot, but mine automatically goes to a mega creep. Instead, the owner character had layers, and was more than just purely detestable.
The author added SO much nuance and complexity. I was eagerly wondering what the end result would be with every twist and turn. I was screaming for the protagonist to make the right choice the whole time, even as things got more and more complicated on which decision was truly best for her.
when I described some of the plot to my mom, she said “this isn’t just about robots is it?” she hit the nail right on the head. the story aptly draws a parallel to oppressive gender roles.
Doug does horrible things —without a doubt. he modeled Annie after his ex girlfriend, a blatant crossing of boundaries. he is at times cruel, particularly when he locked her in the closet with her libido set at a 10. I hated him at so many points of the book. And at other times, I wondered if Annie did truly desire to be with him or if it was just programming. I was curious if there was any redemption possible for Doug.
P.S. what happened to Delta??? Justice for her.
There’s so much more I could say, and perhaps I will reflect on more of the themes and how they impacted me and return to update this at a later time.
TLDR: read it. It’s worth it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Sexual content, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Gaslighting, Eating disorder, Body shaming, Infidelity, Misogyny, Fatphobia, and Sexual assault
Minor: Vomit, Alcohol, and Body horror
mandi_lea's review
dark
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Infidelity, Fatphobia, Cancer, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Gaslighting, Grief, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Body shaming, Confinement, and Death of parent
evelikesbooks's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Sexual violence, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Slavery, and Torture
amina_writes_books's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Dysphoria, Fatphobia, Sexual violence, Classism, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Slavery, Emotional abuse, and Eating disorder
beehives's review
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
The book is an interesting meditation on the nature of humanity in an age of technology. Ultimately I feel it didn't push this boundary enough - there's a multitude of existing critical fiction and non-fiction that explores questions about post-humanism from far more radical (and, IMO, interesting) perspectives; this book felt more like a cis-het white woman's look at the ways tech might change or reflect human relationships and identity. That criticism aside, the characters are vibrant and endearing (Delta!!!), the narration from Annie's POV is very engaging, and the book is both easy to read and relatively thought-provoking. I liked the ending in particular - it's clearly foreshadowed but still feels satisfying and appropriate if a bit rushed.
One other slightly annoying aspect of the book was the constant name-dropping of various authors. Why? What was the point? To show this author is well-read? It might have been more poignant to focus on contrasting just two authors or genres as Annie explores a world outside Doug's control (e.g., Western novels exemplifying white male colonization vs. Ursula K. LeGuin's decolonial sci-fi or Margaret Atwood's feminist rage/grief dystopia). I'm glad Annie - and the author - has read Casey McQuiston, but why does that matter? In what way does YA romance affect her world view? The book never goes deep enough to ask these questions or force the reader to consider them, which is a shame since the answers would make the central story that much more impactful.
More (better) book recs in the same vein: Does it Count If Your First Time Is With an Android? (comic); All Systems Red / Murderbot Diaries series by Martha Wells; A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers; A Closed and Common Orbit also by Becky Chambers; Ancillary Justice / Imperial Radch series by Ann Leckie; Dirty Computer by Janelle Monae (music album/short stories); Autonomous by Annalee Newitz; A Cyborg Manifesto by Donna Haraway (nonfiction, take it from here in your desired direction of analysis).
One other slightly annoying aspect of the book was the constant name-dropping of various authors. Why? What was the point? To show this author is well-read? It might have been more poignant to focus on contrasting just two authors or genres as Annie explores a world outside Doug's control (e.g., Western novels exemplifying white male colonization vs. Ursula K. LeGuin's decolonial sci-fi or Margaret Atwood's feminist rage/grief dystopia). I'm glad Annie - and the author - has read Casey McQuiston, but why does that matter? In what way does YA romance affect her world view? The book never goes deep enough to ask these questions or force the reader to consider them, which is a shame since the answers would make the central story that much more impactful.
More (better) book recs in the same vein: Does it Count If Your First Time Is With an Android? (comic); All Systems Red / Murderbot Diaries series by Martha Wells; A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers; A Closed and Common Orbit also by Becky Chambers; Ancillary Justice / Imperial Radch series by Ann Leckie; Dirty Computer by Janelle Monae (music album/short stories); Autonomous by Annalee Newitz; A Cyborg Manifesto by Donna Haraway (nonfiction, take it from here in your desired direction of analysis).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Abandonment, and Body shaming
Moderate: Fatphobia, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
Minor: Cancer and Physical abuse
booksillremember's review
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
If you think this book is about some dystopian future, read it again. You could replace Annie with a human woman and it would still be a 100% realistic depiction. This novel is a hard-hitting commentary on domestic slavery, the patriarchy, personhood, and relationship abuse.
Doug is portrayed as an average guy, even a good guy by his own and society's standards. He prides himself on not even hitting Annie, which serves to show the multitude of other forms of abuse he inflicts on her constantly. He is such a "good guy", that him learning some basic human decency can be seen as immense character growth, the bare minimum feels like going above and beyond if the bar is set that low.
Doug is portrayed as an average guy, even a good guy by his own and society's standards. He prides himself on not even hitting Annie, which serves to show the multitude of other forms of abuse he inflicts on her constantly. He is such a "good guy", that him learning some basic human decency can be seen as immense character growth, the bare minimum feels like going above and beyond if the bar is set that low.
He is a man-child, unable to regulate his own emotions or pursue a relationship with a person who has equal rights. Annie is programmed to enable him and his stunted emotional growth. It really shows how the patriarchy harms everyone, although of course not in equal measures.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, Sexism, Misogyny, Slavery, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Fatphobia
Minor: Cancer
gabs_parr's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Annie is an autodidactic robot who was created to be the perfect girlfriend for Doug, her human owner. She’s always learning and getting smarter and more “human”. Doug initially loves that she’s not perfect and wants her to be like a real woman and to challenge him, but the smarter she gets, the more complicated their relationship grows.
It’s kind of like Stepford Wives in the sense of perfect robot wives, but with more emphasis on power dynamics/control, autonomy, intimacy and what we actually want from relationships, romantic and platonic. This book is less a critique on the patriarchy, which was pretty much the main theme of SW, and instead it dives more into observations of what it means to be human and live the human experience.
I’ve only just finished and I already know that I’m going to be thinking about this book for months to come. The relationships were just so dynamic and complex. Every character was various shades of morally gray depending on the scene we were in. No one was ever purely “good” or “evil”. There is no true good or bad guy. There are just complex emotions and relationships and deep rooted questions about autonomy, love, sex, and power.
Annie’s inner relationship with herself is just as compelling as her relationship with Doug and both relationships will keep you guessing as to what her next move will be. I know I will certainly be thinking about her final choices for months to come (and Doug’s too, they both grew enormously and changed into almost unrecognizable characters by the end of this book).
It’s kind of like Stepford Wives in the sense of perfect robot wives, but with more emphasis on power dynamics/control, autonomy, intimacy and what we actually want from relationships, romantic and platonic. This book is less a critique on the patriarchy, which was pretty much the main theme of SW, and instead it dives more into observations of what it means to be human and live the human experience.
I’ve only just finished and I already know that I’m going to be thinking about this book for months to come. The relationships were just so dynamic and complex. Every character was various shades of morally gray depending on the scene we were in. No one was ever purely “good” or “evil”. There is no true good or bad guy. There are just complex emotions and relationships and deep rooted questions about autonomy, love, sex, and power.
Annie’s inner relationship with herself is just as compelling as her relationship with Doug and both relationships will keep you guessing as to what her next move will be. I know I will certainly be thinking about her final choices for months to come (and Doug’s too, they both grew enormously and changed into almost unrecognizable characters by the end of this book).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Confinement, Emotional abuse, and Infidelity
Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Misogyny
Minor: Sexual content, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, and Death of parent
kt2e56's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Stunning. Will be really poignant but also difficult for anyone who’s ever been in an abusive relationship or has struggled with the anxiety of being a people pleaser. A fantastic (and horrifying) sci-fi book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Slavery, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Abandonment, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Abandonment, Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Eating disorder
lizalovereads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
“He is the only star in their system, she realizes. he has no competition, no need to listen to Annie like she’s her own protagonist. Because she’s not. She has no outside separate life beyond his. They have no issue of imbalance between them because they have no question, ever, of who has complete power.”
I was really excited going into this book, but it left something to be desired. Though Greer tackled themes of ownership, humanity, emotional abuse, gender norms, casual racism, power dynamics, consent and agency, I don't feel that it added much to the conversation. I wanted it to be more bold. She did a good job with the character voice being believable as a robot, and with her development. But overall it became repetitive and the ending was lackluster. There were also some plot holes. The odd mix of literary and plot-based felt off kilter to me.
*also if unlikeable characters bother you then don’t read this because Doug is a grade A a-hole and that’s kinda the point!!
I was really excited going into this book, but it left something to be desired. Though Greer tackled themes of ownership, humanity, emotional abuse, gender norms, casual racism, power dynamics, consent and agency, I don't feel that it added much to the conversation. I wanted it to be more bold. She did a good job with the character voice being believable as a robot, and with her development. But overall it became repetitive and the ending was lackluster. There were also some plot holes. The odd mix of literary and plot-based felt off kilter to me.
*also if unlikeable characters bother you then don’t read this because Doug is a grade A a-hole and that’s kinda the point!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Sexism, Sexual content, Confinement, Fatphobia, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Misogyny, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Physical abuse, Abandonment, and Domestic abuse