An interesting premise that I never thought of. I enjoyed the idea of the book but I didn't really connect with the overall story. It was an ok read for me.

A highly unusual premise, the story told from the perspective of a sex doll, and the beginning was engaging and intelligently done but something happened half way through and the whole feeling of the book switched. It became too pretentious and over written for my likely and ended up being a disappointment.

A tale of two halves - the sex doll and her new owner. The first half was strange, quirky and whimsical, definitely not run of the mill whereas the second was laboured, self indulgent with obscure words, endless, over the top descriptions none of which helped the book to flow. Plus there were repeats of the doll’s experiences retold by the owner J. He was a bit strange to say the least. At first I thought I’d really like this story but the more I read the less I liked it. But it was worth reading for the concept alone!

This book was very unusual and unique but it did not keep my attention. I had a hard time wanting to continue.

Pointless, bizarre and quite frankly boring. Skim read most then pretty much gave up during part 2. Awful!

Initially I liked the premise of the book. The story is told from the perspective of a sex doll. It was an unusual view and I was intrigued. Unfortunately I couldn’t get into it. At times I found it a little disturbing. I can’t say what the author wanted the reader to feel but this may have been what they were going for. I would say it was well written, just not for me.

A very clever and unusual premise. What is sex dolls had thoughts and feelings? The first section of the book from the POV of the doll was quite interesting and thought provoking but the book lost it's way once it switched to the POV of the owner. Also felt like the author sat at times with a thesaurus thinking what's the most difficult and unusual word I can put here?
Could have been amazing but fell flat.

I got a few chapters into this book and I couldn't read much further. The prose is very well done and I was intrigued with the story, but unfortunately I was just fairly bored and didn't want to read any further.

This book had such an unusual premise that I had to check it out. There was definitely language about sexual behaviors in both parts of the story, however there was so much more than that. The story is rounded out by the person's past experiences and actions accordingly. It kind of reminded me of the movie Her that came out a few years ago in many ways. This was definitely something outside of my usual genre and I am glad I went outside the box for this book. I felt that the writing was lyrical, emotive, and intelligent. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

This was probably the most unique and original book I’ve read. The POV is something I’ve never ever seen done and I must admit I found it to be clever! Now, I loved the uniqueness of this book, but felt execution was lacking and therefore made of hard to keep my attention and want to finish! But I would recommend to those looking for an odd, unique and original story, as long as they don’t mind more mature themes!

Author Peter Leggatt (https://www.peterleggatt.com) published the novel “Doll” in 2021. This is Mr. Leggatt's first novel.

I categorize this novel as ‘R. It contains mature situations and mature language. The story is set in the near future. A future with near-human-looking robots.

The official synopsis of this book:
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.

This sounded like it might be an interesting science fiction novel. I was very disappointed with the 80 minutes I invested in it. I only read the first 30% of this 151-page novel, but that was enough. I had to stop there with a Rule of 50 call. I could not take any more of the robot's philosophizing. It seemed that the author used 10 words when only one would have served the purpose. The chosen cover art is eye-catching. I give this novel a 2 out of 5.

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This was such a strange read, I loved the premise, I loved the style of writing but I just couldn’t connect with the store as much as I would have liked.

Doll is a rather unusual story about a love affair between a doll and its owner. The most curious book I've read for a while, I was initially attracted by the premise - a story told from the perspective of both the doll and "J" the man who bought her. The concept of it was intriguing and the complex prose used by Peter Leggatt in his writing made this a very intense read at times.

The first part of the book concentrates on the doll's perspective of occurrences and her emotions, while in the second part the reader learns a little about J and his experiences and interpretation. Although there is some crossover of events and happenings this did not interfere with my enjoyment of the story; in fact, it was intriguing to see how the two characters viewed certain incidences differently.

Captivating and unsettling from the sadness of the doll as she becomes alive but still unable to move and develops an awareness of her limitations and purpose in life, to the insecurity of J, Peter Leggatt's style made Doll seem like a rapid flow of consciousness, resulting in an even more mesmerising tale. All told, this début is a fascinating exploration of love and what it means, that is both powerfully and unsentimentally delivered.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Matador via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

This is an unusual book in that the story is being narrated by a sex doll and later by its owner. There were times when I kind of felt sad for the doll because she is wanting what everyone wants. I had a bunch of feelings as I read the book. At times the story gave me something to think about. I really enjoyed the book.

This had such an unusual premise, I had to check it out. I’m left not knowing how to rate it or even what to say. The first half, written from the perspective of the doll, was well-imagined, if disturbing to read. The rest of the book felt as awkward and confused as the character, himself. I’m sure some readers will find this innovative and insightful. Points for the creativity, I’m afraid I’m left feeling like I just witnessed something seedy and distasteful. 3 stars simply because the writing itself was intelligent.

Doll by Peter Leggatt is an interesting read. I really liked the idea of the story being told from both points of view. I never thought I would sympathize with a doll, but I totally did. I felt for her, cried for her, and hurt for her. She wasn't just a doll, she became real for me. Her thoughts and feelings were the same as a real human woman's she just didn't have the ability to express how she felt or speak out about what she needed and wanted. The problem became that I felt for her so much, that I started to dislike the man in the story. While he couldn't know what she was thinking or feeling, he didn't treat her well in her eyes. This made it difficult when the story switched to his point of view, because I didn't like him and couldn't sympathize with him and didn't care what he thought of felt. Which maybe was the point of this story, it is hard to see things from both sides sometimes and we tend to choose one side over the other, in this case I chose the doll's side. I ended up not finishing this book, because I just couldn't get past everything that happened in the first half of the book. That being said, I really enjoyed the part of the book that I did read and I think that this is a good book, with a good premise. I would recommend it to others, it just wasn't the perfect book for me.

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.

Doll by Peter Leggatt is a book with such an unusual premise. The story is broken into two parts with the first being told from the perspective of a sex doll and the second from the perspective of her owner. The concept of this book was gripping and told through complex prose that was intense and unsettling. The book deals with themes of insecurity and loneliness and is both heartbreaking and captivating. I was surprised by this book and its depth. This book would be a fascinating read for a book club as there is so much to discuss and explore.

I received a copy of this ebook from the publisher via NetGalley which did not affect the contents of my review. All opinions are honest and my own.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I have to admit I"m not a huge fan of the cover. It's too plain considering the book topic.
The storyline is unique and isn't something I've read a lot of before. This book definitely won't be for everyone due to the subject matter. I mean, let's be real here, not everyone is going to want to read a book about about or narrated by a sex doll, haha. BUT if you're open-minded, check it out.

I'd definitely read more books by this author.

Book Review for Doll by Peter Leggatt
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