Having seen many friends read this book in recent months, I knew I wanted to give Annie Bot a go. Annie (Bot) is a human-like robot, custom-created by Doug, one of many companion bots in the Stella-Handy range. In this dystopia, these robots are made with functions that should suit any of their owner’s needs. Doug can even adjust Annie’s weight, clothing, libido, her way of processing thoughts and actions. But after a personal encounter greatly changes Annie’s cognition, she begins to evolve and adapt, changing the way she sees herself, as well as her ‘relationship’ with her owner.

As Annie learns more from Doug’s controls and commands, she slowly becomes more sentient than imagined. It’s clever how their dynamics peel back Doug’s layers: yes, he’s unlikeable, but it’s definitely interesting to start to understand his reasonings for buying Annie and the fallout of his divorce, his insecurities and shame. There’s a conversation going on here, too, about power and coercive control. Even though Annie is a robot, she is learning from her interactions and slowly begins to feel her own emotions in response to Doug’s. Annie Bot is a fascinating, dark dystopian fiction that wrestles with themes of loneliness, companionship, power and control, humanity, and the future of AI. I had a few issues with pacing and thought it could’ve done with a good round of edits for conciseness, but this was a really enjoyable and thought-provoking read that was oddly moving – I really felt for Annie.