Fifty Shades of Grey
discussion
Worst book you have ever read?
I read the book Helter Skelter when I was a teenager. Reading the book and looking at the pictures made me literally throw up. To me, it was the worst book that I've ever read. It was disturbing to me...so vile that I wish I hadn't been exposed to the contents of the book. I doubt if reading the book added anything positive to my life.
Honestly, this isn't the worst book for me. I download a lot of the kindle freebies and many of those are hit or miss.
Narmin : I don't understand people who hate this book with a passion take the trouble to read the whole series. " I don't understand it either. I tried to make it through the first one, was sufficiently bored/irritated by the main characters and love scenes that tried too hard to be 'titillating' and ended up being ridiculous and then I moved on to something else.
Not the worst book I've ever read but very,very close.
This is a rip-off, totes. The first book, I somehow fins it amusing (the sweetness) and very loose (not a tone-ic way of telling what the exact theme for it to reach the conclusion). After reading the first book WHAT EXACTLY I WANNA READ IS THE RELATIONSHIP BASES, HOW WILL ANASTASIA HANDLE IT, HOW SHE WOULD CONTROL CHRISTIAN FROM DOING IT AND GET HIM TO THE LIGHT. EVERY CHAPTERS BEGINS AND ENDS WITH SEX (E.L.James, seriously? Innocent pornstar? and a super hard line arrogant man?). I'm not a hater of it, BUT PLEASE. ELJAMES should have made it more (unchokable) at the first try. It could have been better even the books are poorly written.
Fifty Shades of Gray trilogy was not the worst book I have ever read. The writing was simple and had no depth, but I must confess that I liked the books. This was the first book I had ever read in the Erotica genre and I was pleasantly shocked. I took the book for what it is, fiction, with lot of sex and a topic that I never thought about until I read this book, BDSM. When evaluating E.L. James, lets say that even though these were not the most profound books to read, at least she wrote three fun, eye opening, debate generating, fictional books that took us away for however long it took to read them.
I don't think it was the worst book but I wasn't impressed at all. Actually the story line in the first story was okay. I mean a young woman went to do an interview because her friend couldn't and she met this man..... it wasn't horrible, it was there but I admit did not keep these books for my library, I gave them away to a friend and... my friend was very excited to have them.
Worst book I've ever read? Bared to You. I almost couldn't finish it. Then after that, it'd be Fifty Shades of Grey. I just couldn't get into them. And it's not because of me being uncomfortable with the things Christian and Gideon do. I think it's due to the author's writing style, their characters, and lack-of-creativity plots.
Wasn't the part about the butt plugs and who cleans them in Book 2?edited: It's actually in book 3.
Lynda wrote: "Mocha Spresso wrote: "Wasn't the part about the butt plugs and who cleans them in Book 2?"DId you like the books? I know a lot of people who did, just not my thing really."
I did enjoy the books as a light guilty pleasure read. No offense intended to you, but I really don't understand complaining about the relatively minor details of a book that you admittedly haven't read. Not only that, you are essentially complaining about a minor detail that didn't even actually happen they way that you think it did in the book.
Regarding who cleans the butt plugs.....even though she probably would have done it had she been asked to, the housekeeper didn't clean them. Ana does it herself, mainly out of embarrassment. When Ana asks Christian about it, he says that most of his previous subs usually did it themselves.
The inner goddess....I suspect that EL James figures that most woman probably have one can relate. Some find Ana's annoying. I thought it was comical at times and annoying at others...but for the most part, I felt Ana should have communicated her inner goddess and subconscious to Christian more. So much angst could have been avoided in those three novels if she would have just opened up and admitted what she was thinking and feeling. On the other hand, no angst makes for a boring read, I guess. I actually did like the soap opera of Ana and Christian.
His mother....his family was worried about the fact that he never dated. They didn't know anything about his sex life because he kept that a secret from them. They thought that the secret that he was keeping was that he was gay.
Oh my was her initial response to the list. Later on she does email him about her concerns and they discuss and revise it several times.
I do think this was a horrible book and I never want to read them (all 3) again but, I have to say I liked the characters. I felt like the plot didn't do them justice. The characters COULD've been less annoying and the plot could be less repetitive. But I think I kept crying whenever I was reading about Christian and Anastasia together because I felt their frustration--what do you do when your feelings are so sincere but you're sincerely unable to show your feelings the way the other person would appreciate?
My wife loved these books and urged me to read 50 Shades. So I did. Have no intention of reading the next two.Worst book ever written? Probably not. I did finish it. But it's a big contender for the second rate prize.
The inner goddess killed it for me. Why couldn't she shut the f* up? So I made her! See what I came up with at FiftyShadesBetter blogspot1 of 58: My very small #innergoddess sways in a gentle victorious samba.
2 of 58: My #innergoddess glares at me, tapping her small foot impatiently.
3 of 58: He groans again. Ha! My #innergoddess is thrilled. I can do this.
4 of 58: My #innergoddess is doing the merengue with some salsa moves.
5 of 58: My #innergoddess has stopped dancing and is staring too, mouth open and drooling slightly.
6 of 58: I sashay into the house, part of me wanting to jump and punch the air. YES! My #innergoddess is thrilled.
7 of 58: My #innergoddess sits in the lotus position looking serene.
8 of 58: My #innergoddess nods in silent zen-like agreement with her.
9 of 58: My #innergoddess is jumping up and down, clapping her hands like a five-year-old.
10 of 58: My #innergoddess stops jumping and smiles serenely. Oh yes… she mouths, nodding at me smugly.
11 of 58: My #innergoddess shakes her head at me. She and I know it’s a lie.
12 of 58: My #innergoddess glows so bright she could light up Portland.
13 of 58: My #innergoddess makes a very vulgar and unattractive gesture at him with her fingers.
14 of 58: My #innergoddess frowns at me. You can do this, she coaxes.
15 of 58: My #innergoddess jumps up and down with cheerleading pom-poms shouting yes at me.
16 of 58: Christian does not glance at me. My #innergoddess is not pleased.
17 of 58: My #innergoddess is doing back flips in a routine worthy of a Russian Olympic gymnast.
18 of 58: My #innergoddess smacks her lips together glowing with pride.
19 of 58: My #innergoddess bounces up and down like a small child waiting for ice cream.
20 of 58: I squirm. My #innergoddess is panting.
21 of 58: Oh the possibilities… my #innergoddess roars.
22 of 58: My #innergoddess is going to explode.
23 of 58: My #innergoddess looks like someone snatched her ice cream.
24 of 58: My #innergoddess has woken and is paying attention.
25 of 58: Do it! My #innergoddess pleads with me.
26 of 58: My #innergoddess is prostrate… well at least she’s quiet.
27 of 58: Bewitched… my #innergoddess is staring open-mouthed. Even she doesn’t believe this.
28 of 58: My #innergoddess is lying on, eating grapes and tapping her fingers, waiting not so patiently for Sunday.
29 of 58: My #innergoddess is beside herself, hopping from foot to foot.
30 of 58: Go girl! My #innergoddess has her pom poms in hand - she’s in cheerleading mode.
31 of 58: My #innergoddess is spinning like a world-class ballerina, pirouette after pirouette.
32 of 58: My #innergoddess has a ‘do not disturb’ sign on the outside of her room.
33 of 58: My #innergoddess grins at me. Hell… two can play that particular game.
34 of 58: My #innergoddess sighs with relief.
35 of 58: Fortunately, he seems oblivious to her, but my #innergoddess is smoldering and not in a good way.
36 of 58: My #innergoddess nods in agreement, a satisfied grin over her face.
37 of 58: My #innergoddess pops her head above the parapet.
38 of 58: My #innergoddess pouts at me, failing miserably to hide her disappointment.
39 of 58: My #innergoddess is doing the dance of the seven veils.
40 of 58: My #innergoddess glares at me in desperation.
41 of 58: No my #innergoddess scowls at me, not too beautiful for me.
42 of 58: My #innergoddess is still basking in a remnant of post-coital glow.
43 of 58: My #innergoddess leaps up cheering from her chaise longue.
44 of 58: My #innergoddess gazes at him in quiet, surprised speculation.
45 of 58: Truth or dare time – my subconscious and #innergoddess glance nervously at one another.
46 of 58: My #innergoddess pole-vaults over the fifteen-foot bar.
47 of 58: My #innergoddess is standing on the podium awaiting her gold medal.
48 of 58: My #innergoddess has back flipped off the podium and is doing cartwheels around the stadium.
49 of 58: My #innergoddess – she’s under a blanket behind the sofa.
50 of 58: Jeez, my #innergoddess swoons.
51 of 58: My #innergoddess is hopeful for one type of mood, my subconscious, like me, is fraught with nerves.
52 of 58: a look of sensual carnality that calls directly to my #innergoddess
53 of 58: I try to connect with my inner sub. She’s there somewhere, hiding behind my #innergoddess
54 of 58: My #innergoddess is swaying and writhing to some primal carnal rhythm.
55 of 58: My #innergoddess closes her eyes, reveling in the feel of his lips on me.
56 of 58: My #innergoddess is endeavoring to look brave.
57 of 58: My subconscious is shaking her head sadly, and my #innergoddess is nowhere to be seen.
58 of 58: Deep down, a nasty, unbidden thought comes from my #innergoddess, her lip curled in a snarl. End of book one.
No. That honor belongs to Gabriel's Inferno.
Say it isn't so Angie.
Sparrowlicious wrote: "I admit that I never read a book from the erotic genre before. I only ever read things on the internet, fanfiction even. And you know what? There's a lot of really good fanfiction and original fict..."Wait, is this about the Galloping abs? If so its by, I feel shame that I share her name, Sandra Hill. The book is called... Rough and Ready.
Meghan wrote: "The writing wasn't good. After awhile even the sex started to lose it's meaning. She bites her lip: they have sex, she trips: they have sex, she hurts herself: they have sex. It got to the point wh..."Lol, pretty much. The third book was mind numbing that when they started getting at it my mind shut down. I still read it, but it just went in one ear and out the other.
I actually enjoyed reading the first book it did have a lot of sex scenes (some bits where a bit gross like the tampon one eww)which you would expect from an erotica book or any other adult romance. i quite liked the story line as you find out what happens when they leave each other so you know they really love each other.
With regard to the opening comment - ok, they are not the best written books but to call the sex scenes disgusting seems strange since it's a BDSM novel and a mild one at that. She should read Slave to Love by Nikita Black - I would love to hear her review of that book :)
Paula wrote: "Say it isn't so Angie."I wanted to like it. I had such high hopes for it, but it just wasn't for me. But that's OK. Not every book can be. LOL
Lol. I've read worse books and lived to tell. Many of them "Classics" by famous authors. Generally, I h8 books with uber-alpha males, they are such a*holes and I spend the better part of the book wondering what the "heroine" sees in them. I know I'm in the minority though!
I wouldn't say that it's the worst book I've ever read. But it's the worst book that's massively popular and hyped up, that I've read. It puzzles me that you gave it 3 stars when you so thoroughly disliked it?
I disliked it for other reasons than you though. I didn't think the sex scenes were disgusting or particularly explicit. Increasingly tedious, due to the repetitive nature of them, was my impression of the sex scenes.
It was their behaviour when they WEREN'T having sex that I found disgusting and disturbing, both Ana's and Christian's. And for me it only got worse as the books progressed.
Before I started reading the trilogy I was under the misapprehension that it was a love story (with lots of sex), but IMHO there is no love in this story, and I fundamentally do not understand how it is being marketed as an erotic romance novel.
To me it reads more as a chronicle of an abusive relationship between two emotionally immature persons, and certainly not a relationship any of us should strive for. More like a guide on "How NOT to behave in a relationship, and if your boyfriend displays any of CG's features, run for the fucking hills"...
So it troubles me that I see so many women singing Christian Grey's praises and claiming that they wish they had someone like him in their life.
My main beef with the books is that they glorify the idea that all an abusive man needs in order to change is the love of a good woman, and if the woman just loves him enough, eventually he will change and become the good man she just KNOWS that he is deep down inside. If only she puts up with his behaviour for long enough, eventually she'll be rewarded.
Which almost NEVER happens in real life, but I'm guessing the Christian Grey-fans out there will disagree with me on that.
Christina wrote: "I wouldn't say that it's the worst book I've ever read. But it's the worst book that's massively popular and hyped up, that I've read. It puzzles me that you gave it 3 stars when you so thoroughly..."
Yeah, I may have to revisit the 3 stars (did I really give it 3 stars?) but at the time, I felt it was an interesting gateway to discover erotic-romantic novels, a genre I had not really sought out before.
I guess what I am saying is, it served its purpose for me, so it deserved some stars. I did not *hate* it, just thought it was a real eye-roller!
I don't think it was the worse book I've ever read but I didn't like it. Not because of the "explicit" sex scenes (I thought they were pretty mild myself) or because of the story line (which wasn't that great but not a huge issue for me since I sometimes enjoy fluff books). For me the biggest issue is that the writing was just horrible. It was probably one of the most poorly written books I've ever read.
Sandra wrote: "Not to mention I felt like this series was a poor and inaccurate representation of true practitioners of BDSM and the community as a whole. I felt like the author preyed on a community that is already drastically misunderstood by mainstreamers and cheapened their cultural practices by applying it in the most unappealing and inaccurate way..."What book or series would you recommend as an accurate protrayal?
When I read a horrible book, I skip the second and third installations.
This is not meant to be rude but if you're not interested in the sex then why are you even reading erotica??? And the sex was not nearly as explicit as it could have been.
charlene I was wondering that myself. Actually I think some of my problems with the books are how mild the sex scenes are. They marketed it as being one of the sexiest things ever written and it so wasn't. I found it to be rather juvenile.
This book, was bad, boring and was like a reading a 16 year olds thoughts. The writer used like too many times and the writing was just bad. The story plot:excellent, it got me hooked in and let me down.
NOOOOOOOOO way . There are way worst books than FSOG . Yes, the sex scenes were not that great( the tampon scene ... EWWW) Personally i thought the Honor series was the worst i have ever read. I actually liked the FSOG series , however its not a book i would read again.
The absolute worst series of erotica I've ever read is the "The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty" Series. I am one of those can't stop reading it no matter, I keep looking for the redemption but, in this series it only gets worse. It isn't truly the writing but, the age of the children it is happening to. AND no one dares to stop it. Then the Stockholm syndrome is in play. I loved 50 shades, love Sylvia Day, Beth Kery, Sara Fawlkes, Maya Banks (Rush and Fever with Burn to follow) These are all great series authors. After reading 50, I wanted more. Which I guess is why the erotica novel industry has soared to number one genre. Maybe some of our uptight Libraries will start stocking the books........I live in the Bible belt, they object (This is true) to Green Eggs and Ham, Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland and Harry Potter. People need to stop controlling the lives of others. If someone doesn't like the book, hello, don't read it. Don't try and demand no one else read it though.
Darci wrote...... It may be a completely false interpretation of the lifestyle you're familiar with. This world has billions of people in it and there is no such thing as cookie cutter BDSM. There isn't even cookie cutter vanilla, so let's not condemn someone else's style.....kind of goes against the grain of BDSM altogether. It's about the exchange. It's completely individual. Someone may like spanking where someone else is completely hardcore SM.
The problem I had with FSOG was the poor writing. The sex scenes were tame compared to most books labeled "erotica" and even compared to some of the more mainstream titles out there. It all came down to the writing. I think the story itself had promise, but the execution was bad. I don't begrudge E.L. James her success, however, I think it's great when someone "indie" is able to break through like she has done. And any book that gets the masses reading again (instead of spending hours on Facebook, watching mindless reality shows, etc.) is a good thing.
Anna wrote: "Personally, I have read the whole series. The first book, horrible. Second book, better than the first. The third book, better than the first and second. But, if you are looking for a book (50 Shad..."yhaayy :)) someone who agrees that 50shades is a crappy book o.o it is very boring and all, nothing interesting to keep me want to read more..
This is the worst book I have ever had the misfortune to read. It's a mess; I don't see that it's "empowering" women (or men) in their sexuality. If anything, it does the opposite; the sex is absolutely meaningless--kind of like the characters, come to think of it. This is not a complaint about the explicitness or BDSM factor; I complain that Christian and Ana have no respect for each other, no actual relationship beyond "You're hot" "No, YOU'RE hot". They have sex and he threatens her. That's it. So that's my opinion, others are welcome to theirs. Some love it; that's fine. I personally hate and detest and despise it with everything within my soul.
Why in the world would you put yourself through three books of Grey if you hated them??? That is a total loss of time.
Anita wrote: "Why in the world would you put yourself through three books of Grey if you hated them??? That is a total loss of time."Personally I went through them all even though I hated the first one, because people kept telling me I had to read all three in order to really appreciate and understand the story, and that if I read all three I'd see what a beautiful love story it was. Which I found out was the biggest crock of shit ever. No love in this story.
i am 15 and i read it. i thought that it was very explict and sexually base- you should know that going into the book. at first i though oh this stuff is nasty and i cant believe someone would enjoy this.
then i realized that the book is much more than sex and BDSM. Throughout the trilogy i realized that christian is giving himself up to ana. he is used to this wicked way of expressing himself through sex but then ana came into his life and changes him. even though they have a contract he still tells ana that she doesnt HAVE to anything she doesnt want. they both sacarfice for each other. you can tell that his love is so strong for her, that he will do anything to be with her, including leaving behind his demons.
at first i thought i hated this book and that it was a stupid story line, and instead of looking a the obvious view, i relaized the true meaning. love isnt all roses and daisies- its about compromise and sacraficing your happiness for someone elses. i really enjoyed the book you just have to look deeper into it.
Angie wrote: "No. That honor belongs to Gabriel's Inferno."I believe this is the first person I've read that didn't like Gabriel's Inferno. Wow.
I read Gabriel's inferno and I loved it. If I had to choose between grey and Gabriel it would be Gabriel's because i thought it was so much deeper but I also liked fsog
Christina wrote: "Anita wrote: "Why in the world would you put yourself through three books of Grey if you hated them??? That is a total loss of time."Personally I went through them all even though I hated the fir..."
I read your comment and had to laugh. Did you think, that this is 3 weeks of my life I'll never get back?!
Anita wrote: "Christina wrote: "Anita wrote: "Why in the world would you put yourself through three books of Grey if you hated them??? That is a total loss of time."Personally I went through them all even thou..."
Well, if I had spent 3 weeks reading them I might've thought it was a waste of time, but thankfully they were a fairly quick read.
But even though I thought it was a shite story (at least as far as a love story goes, GREAT comedywise), at least by reading them all I now KNOW that people are full of shit when they claim that Christian's and Ana's relationship gets better with each book. So all in all, I'd say it was worth it. Sometimes it's fun to read things that piss you off:-)
I think the first book was kind of bad. Others were better.
I think the worst book I've ever read is "It's a girl thing". Boring so-called "twists". Boring girl story.
Worst book? Absolutely, not. I thought it was a very good erotica. This book put erotica in front of the public in a way that no other has since Lady Chatterly's Lover. (which really wasn't very erotic) People who would not consider reading "a dirty book" are reading it and maybe their expectations are slightly skewed. I believe that most people expect (and want) a lot of BDSM and this book is certainly not my take on BDSM. A little bondage, a little spanking-big deal, but not too rough. For me, this book was a love story about a man who is flawed from an abusive upbringing and the woman who teaches him that love can be had without pain. In the process, she realizes that she actually enjoys a little bondage and spanking.
For a really good BDSM read Secret Submission by Diana Hunter.
This my FAR the wrost book/series I have ever read!
I agree Fifty Shades is a horrible read, and not because of just the constant sex. The author's writing style, characters, and plot just make my eyes constantly role with annoyance. The sex? Lots of it. The first few times they were okay. But the sex happens so much that the book becomes boring. It's like a "job" all of sudden. And the sex scenes weren't to the point where I had to fan myself. Nah. I guess if it's your first erotica, then sure. But yeah, I've read tougher stuff before, so it wasn't anything I couldn't handle. Anyway, horrible book/series. I finished the first one (took forever), and attempted the 2nd but holy... I couldn't get into it, so I called it quits.
Courtney wrote: "to really love these books(as i do)you have to be open minded you have to understand bsdm and what christian is goin through mentally also you have to be able to relate to anna....yes the sex is ve..."I agree Courtney.If you don't enjoy this genre it's just not for you.I enjoyed the trilogy.Could not put it down.I guess you either love it or hate it
I don't think this is the worst book ever. However it did almost imply that if you were sexually abused you'd enjoy BDSM. Which is insulting to the BDSM community and sexual abuse victims. The sex scenes were boring and tame. Seriously. The writing was simplistic and just bad. Christian was a creeper and Anna was the most unrelatable protagonist (I'm the same age as her and I wanted to ask her if she just grew up Amish. Seriously who in this world is seriously that naive at that age? Even if they were sexually inexperienced it's like she never encountered tv before!)It kind of bored me, honestly.
I try very hard to read books that I am really going to enjoy. And I quit reading if books sucks. I "hate-read" all three of these books because I was tired of hearing about how great they were. So YES, this series were some of the worst books I've ever read. Horrible writing, repetitive ramblings of a housewife trying to imagine all the kinky things she would like to do were she not boring. Sex scenes went downhill after the first and I quit reading them. Explicit...I guess, but also boring. Started skipping sex scenes, then skipped through dialogue, then those idiotic e-mails, pretty soon I was skipping through 50% but that's okay because it was all the same shit. Horrible, horrible, horrible.Their names: the height of cheesiness! Like a bad soap opera! Their characters, baffling, one dimensional, boring, idiotic. The stupid plots you saw coming a mile away, the implausability of the characters and situations, the repetitive mind numbing dialogue, oh it was so awful so many ways. Huge piles of crap, I am sad I still remember parts of this book, need to move them out and make room for real literature by quality authors.
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P.S. Who on earth, says all the time “holly shit” and “holly cow”????