UNLIMITED COMBAT DOLLS

by Kay F. Atkinson

Dragonfly's body is not her own.

Dragonfly is a combat doll: a living machine bound to a life of endless bloodshed, gripped until death by cruel engineering that rewards violence with pleasure, and threatens those who abstain with a fate far worse than death.

She doesn’t regret her existence. With some luck she’s found a life that gives her a measure of peace, fighting alongside like-minded dolls to change the world for the better. The dream, however, is fleeting.

When her beloved mentor falls to the constraints of her design, Dragonfly is in search of someone to blame, and she finds it in Torvei: a doll whose strange faith seems to poison the air around her.

She expects her revenge will be a simple matter, masterful killer that she is. But as Dragonfly sets out, she quickly finds that Torvei’s connections run deeper than she thought possible, and she may discover this is a rock she will regret turning over.

426 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 10, 2026

About the author

Hey! I'm Kay, and I write stuff.

I'm a disabled trans woman who writes predominantly speculative fiction and horror with a focus on queer characters and themes, drawing from my own experience, and my own frustrations with mainstream media in general.

I hope you enjoy anything you read!

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Set in a far-off future where humanity has been erased by constant war, the only things left over are automated weapons factories, producing Combat Dolls over and over and over again. Implanted with the memories of trans women from before the downfall of society and programmed to hurt or be hurt in turn unless they want to risk ego death, a few of the women manage to form a group and hope to improve their chances of survival through that. But their routine is soon disrupted when a different type of soldier arrives on the scene, one which they cannot touch and bring with them death, violence worse than anything the Dolls knew before and revelations that will leave anything the Dolls believed in before crumbled to dust.
Dragonfly is the main narrator in this story, trying to cope with her memories of Sal, whose body she inhabits, as she begins to form her own personhood. Unsure of what her purpose is in this world, but driven by her programming to kill, she has become quite pragmatic about everything, because she has to be. Still, she clings to the thought that she can minimize the killing to only the times when it is really, truly necessary. Through this story her convictions will soon be tested. The other people in her group have found their own ways to cope, some by becoming aggressive in their pursuits of threats, others by choosing a pacifist route and satisfying their urge for pain by directing it inward, others again have found a faith-based belief system to cling to. I loved how unique the characters were and how despite their tensions it made sense why they would work together and care for each other. Despite the horrors of the world, transfem community is shown to be a necessary protection and a source of comfort in the darkest times.
Similar to other of Kay F. Atkinson’s works this novel explores trans women’s dysphoria and the ways in which transmisogynist societies exploit, fetishize and dehumanize them through the lens of the cyborg as a being uniquely vulnerable not just through their status in society, but also their programming. One aspect that I found particularly horrifying there is the connection of violence and being hurt being programmed as something that sparks sexual pleasure for the Dolls, something that feels deeply violating to Dragonfly, but they are incapable of touching each other in sexual ways, prohibited from sharing pleasure freely and consensually. Another part that I found well done is the way forced medical treatment was shown as another source of trauma and violation, especially in the context of how to recover a feeling of security in a body that you are told over and over is not yours to control. It adds to the very uncomfortable setting of the story and I found it fascinating to see how the characters did (and did not) manage to cope with this additional layer of dysphoria.
All in all, this is another great addition to the genre of the transfeminized cyborg and I had a blast reading it, even as the story unsettled and enraged me and the revelations of the world made some things feel a lot worse as the story progressed. It gets incredibly dark at points, showing some of the messed up ways people cope with trauma and how to keep going after you’ve lost everything. If you enjoy mechsploitation, dystopic sci-fi or stories about seeking bloody revenge there is something truly interesting here for you.
As other readers have pointed out in their reviews, this is only the first part of this story and while I personally was prepared for that and am already excited for the sequel, it’s important to be aware of that or the ending will feel abrupt. I liked the way the story and characters developed towards it and found this to be really interesting read and am looking forward to seeing how the story continues!

Tw: cnc, csa (past, mentioned), death, dysphoria, ego death, grief, gore, gun violence, injury, mass death, medical trauma, murder, self-harm, sexual assault (fade-to-black), suicidal thoughts, transmisogyny, transphobia, violence, war

[Ava · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book deeply. From the opening moments it’s clear this premise is perfect for exploring a lot of very heavy themes with interlocking aspects of identity, trauma, longing and despair (and perhaps even hope?)
Kay reached into my heart and pulled out serious feeling as we went along Dragonfly’s story.
I finished it in 2 days because I Could. Not. Put. It. Down.
If any bit of the setting or concept speaks to your imagination, do yourself a favor and get this book.

[Nina Fairweather · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story broke me in half. The world is bleak, with the edges of our societies' prejudices and fascination with LLMs simmering below the surface. There is also so much beauty here, though. It's in the names, the grit of our heroines, sometimes in the violence, and certainly in how the story is told. I ordered a physical copy for my shelf.

Also, don't be so distracted by Tithi Luadthong's work on the cover that you miss the text noting this is book 1 of 2.