Sunny by Colin O’Sullivan
A riveting technological thriller following a woman whose life is upended when her husband and son disappear in a mysterious plane crash and she is left alone with an unnerving home robot, only to get caught up in an AI-related conspiracy.
In near-future Japan, Susie Sakamoto is mourning the loss of her husband and son to a plane crash. Alone in her big modern house, which feels like more of a prison, Susie spends her days drinking heavily and taking her anger out at the only “sentient” thing left in her life: Sunny, the annoying home robot her husband designed. Susie despises Sunny, and sometimes even gets a sinking feeling that Sunny is out to hurt her.
To escape her paranoia and depression, Susie frequents the seedy, drug-fueled bars of the city, where she hears rumors of The Dark Manual, a set of guidelines that allow you to reprogram your robot for nefarious purposes. In the hopes of finding a way to turn off Sunny for good, Susie begins to search for the manual, only to learn it’s too late: the machines are becoming more sentient and dangerous. Thrust into the center of a dark, corporate war, Susie realizes there’s someone behind the code, pulling the strings. And they want her dead.
With a darkly humorous yet propulsive voice, O’Sullivan presents us with an unsettling look at a future that feels all too real. Gripping and thought-provoking, Sunny is a haunting character study of an anxious woman teetering in an anxious time
About the author
Colin O’Sullivan lives in the north of Japan with his family. He is the author of six novels, the first of which won the prestigious “Prix Mystère de la critique” in France.
Review
‘Sunny’ is a deep introspective read that deals with how one woman’s grief takes over her life. I was utterly captivated from the get-go and raced through this in a few sittings. This is the first book of the authors that I have read but it won't be the last as I was spellbound by this book!
Susie’s life is turned upside down when her husband and young son are killed in a airplane crash and is left isolated with only a robot for company. Susie hates this robot with a passion. It's the focus of her anger and grief. As she frequents the city’s seedy bars she hears of ‘The Dark Manual’ which allows you to reprogramme the robots. Susie just wants to turn it off for good but she soon learns that it might be too late for this as the robots are turning sentient…
This is set in the near future of Japan and I can see this very easily taking place! Technology comes on in leaps and bounds and this narrative feels scarily authentic and real. But this story is not about the sci-fi elements for me. It's the story of grief that Susie is going through and that is where the real beauty of the book lies. The author doesn't hold back when it comes to the depiction of her grief and it's very raw and visceral. The standard of writing is amazing as Susie is a very complex and nuanced character who I adored reading about. It's dark and disturbing but I actually came away from it with a feeling of hope.
Let me know if you pick it up!
