Author: Peter Leggatt
Publisher: Matador
Publication Date: 28 January 2021
Pages: 204
Format: eBook - PDF
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Source: ARC via NetGalley
"Sex, death, flowers-rivers, seas, sleep. They all have beds. This was my very first thought."
The first part of this story is told from the perspective of a sex doll. The second from the perspective of the man who owns her.
Peter Leggatt's debut novel opens with the thoughts of a sex doll as she comes to consciousness inside her crate, about to be delivered to the apartment of her owner, J. There, J opens her. What ensues is a very modern love affair, teetering between tragedy and the darkly comic, and written in prose of hallucinatory beauty. At a moment when debate over gender and identity is increasingly fraught Doll affords a provocative new perspective on love and objectification.
Doll is certainly an original work, and that caught my attention from the start. I think the aspect that worked best was the two-perspective telling, as it was intriguing to see how the two characters viewed certain moments differently. Overall, this was a fascinating exploration of love and what it means, told in a manner at times visceral and at other times stark. Perhaps it's not a book I would rush to reread again and again, but it's one I am glad I read once, as it was certainly thought provoking. I would be keen to read more from this author in the future too. For me, it's a 4-star read.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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