I am pretty late on this one. I know this book came out a long time ago. I just read it recently. I wanted to see what they hype was all about. I also wanted to read it before the movie came out. It’s a trilogy so I still have to read the last two books. I will do this over the holiday season when I have a little more time. Word on the street about this book is that it is filled with lots of steamy sex, particularly BDSM.
I am not going to explain what BDSM is but you can find a synopsis of it here. I had to do my own research as well to fully understand what it is all about. There is a lot to this and you may want to look it up if you choose to get into this trilogy. One thing I will say, for me it is more than just an erotic novel. There is something about Anastasia that is very relatable. She is just a young girl head over heels in love with this powerful rich complicated man. In order to be with him she had to submit herself to him and enter his world of fantasy and role play. I think a lot of women can relate to this. You meet someone and you want to be with them. So you pretend to be into what they are into so you can get close to them. Of course, this does have a price. I won’t ruin the book for you but you will see that the price is emotional. I think this is true in any relationship where you compromise yourself in order to please the other person . What lengths will you go to win their affections? You have to weigh the emotional costs not just in the short term but in the long run. Love is a beautiful thing when two people enter into a union with the same intentions and goals. You will see that Anastasia and Christian Grey have different goals and the conflict that arises as a result
As much as I think this book has to do with sex and the BDSM lifestyle. It has a lot to do with the complexities us as human beings deal with concerning intimate relationships. It highlights that our ability to love is shaped by how we were nurtured as children and also how we experienced and perceived pleasure and sexuality for the first time. Our ability to love also lies in our past experiences and the strength, weight and burden it may carry in our present and our future.
If you decided to read this I hope you get more from it than just kinky sex tips. As ‘delicious’ ( a word E.L. James, the author, overuses in my opinion) as it may be to just skip to the steamy bits. I assure you there is more to this book. I am actually look forward to reading the last two. Of course I will tell you my thoughts. I look forward to seeing what the movie is like. I hope the actors selected to depict these two characters, Anastasia and Christian Grey, study their roles well. The subtleties of these characters requires one to really delve deep to get a true portrayal of the complex emotions conveyed by E.L. James.
Photo courtesy of: © The Things I Wish I Knew
