William by Mason Coile (2024)

William by Mason Coile (2024)

AI is the villain (in this book and in real life). 

Laura’s Rating: 1.5/5 Stars

Plot: Henry’s agoraphobia prevents him from leaving the house. He spends much of his time making robots, including William, a humanoid bot with artificial intelligence. Trying to impress his wife Lily’s coworkers, he unveils his creation and releases an unforeseen horror. 

Analysis: Henry and Lily’s relationship is icy at best. This distance is a catalyst for the story but also doesn’t make for an engaging cast of characters to root for. In fact, every person is kind of insufferable and immature.

Most of the writing felt pretty amateurish. The dialogue was stilted and the story didn’t seem to flow naturally. I will say that William is unsettling as hell. The sentient robot is cruel, manipulative, and deceitful. The book acknowledges the uncanny valley of human-like creatures that aren’t quite right and this is the most effective part of the book. Additionally, the twist is good, I will give it that.

I really wanted this to be way better than it was. Despite an interesting concept, I don’t think William is worth your time.