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A review by prismatical
Annie Bot by Sierra Greer
challenging
dark
reflective
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
4.0
This book is basically a barrel of content warnings, especially for domestic abuse. Second of all, while I liked this book it does have an abrupt ending and an extreme lack of Doug being hit by a bus. It's got more of a slice of life kind of vibe. By that I mean it doesn't have perfect closure on every single plot point because you don't expect to get closure on things that happen in your day to day life either.
Doug is a horrifyingly accurate representation of a "liberal" man who doesn't see his own prejudices but still thinks he's a good guy because he knows that saying "I hate women/BIPOC/LGBTQIA+ people/etc" is bad. He's the poor sap who got cheated on so really, he's the victim here! It's totally OK if he punishes his romantic partners for things his ex did! It's totally OK for him to punish his romantic partners for not being able to read his mind and avoid upsetting him! It's also very very normal that he modelled Annie after his ex but lightened her skin to the point that Roland even points it out. I spent the entire book wanting to strangle this man, which was obviously intended. I would have loved to get Gwen's side of the story because I'm betting Doug is a very unreliable narrator, but unfortunately she never actually appears in the book.
I can see how people might think that Doug getting "better" can come off as something like "see, you just need to try harder to fix him" but I don't know if I agree. Annie fucking RUNS the first chance she gets after Doug finally sets her free even though he's acting like he's about to give her all the things she thought she wanted: freedom, acceptance, happiness, love, a family, and so on. To me, that plot point comes off as "yeah, he might not be a total monster, or at least not anymore, but that doesn't mean you have to stay with him," which I think is a useful message. It's saying that it's still OK to leave even if things have gotten better, and to not feel guilty about it. It does take Annie a long time to leave but that's also true to life; on average it takes someone seven times to leave an abusive relationship for good so I'd say she did pretty damn well considering the circumstances.
Doug is a horrifyingly accurate representation of a "liberal" man who doesn't see his own prejudices but still thinks he's a good guy because he knows that saying "I hate women/BIPOC/LGBTQIA+ people/etc" is bad. He's the poor sap who got cheated on so really, he's the victim here! It's totally OK if he punishes his romantic partners for things his ex did! It's totally OK for him to punish his romantic partners for not being able to read his mind and avoid upsetting him! It's also very very normal that he modelled Annie after his ex but lightened her skin to the point that Roland even points it out. I spent the entire book wanting to strangle this man, which was obviously intended. I would have loved to get Gwen's side of the story because I'm betting Doug is a very unreliable narrator, but unfortunately she never actually appears in the book.
I can see how people might think that Doug getting "better" can come off as something like "see, you just need to try harder to fix him" but I don't know if I agree. Annie fucking RUNS the first chance she gets after Doug finally sets her free even though he's acting like he's about to give her all the things she thought she wanted: freedom, acceptance, happiness, love, a family, and so on. To me, that plot point comes off as "yeah, he might not be a total monster, or at least not anymore, but that doesn't mean you have to stay with him," which I think is a useful message. It's saying that it's still OK to leave even if things have gotten better, and to not feel guilty about it. It does take Annie a long time to leave but that's also true to life; on average it takes someone seven times to leave an abusive relationship for good so I'd say she did pretty damn well considering the circumstances.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Body shaming, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
Minor: Cancer, Infidelity, Racism, and Vomit