Fifty Shades of Grey: Book One of the Fifty Shades Trilogy [Paperback]

This review is from: Fifty Shades of Grey (Paperback) First, a disclaimer. I am a male senior citizen, a semi-retired gynecologist whose customary literary fare is spy novels and military techno-thrillers. I have never read a romance before, except perhaps for junior high's "A Tale of Two Cities" (or was that a classic?) But after the recent hullabaloo over James' "Fifty Shades," I opted to give the genre a glance. The book's protagonist is college student Anastasia, who has never had sex or even "touched herself." I had to suspend disbelief at the social and sexual naivete of this twenty-one year-old, but I guess this implied vulnerability makes her more attractive as a romantic heroine. Yet it doesn't take her long to rectify this situation, and soon she is having orgasm after orgasm at the behest of her "dominant" partner, Mr. Grey. At my age, my arthritis flared up just reading about Ana's sexual gymnastics. And for some reason, I kept thinking about her contracting genital warts. Soon, however, Ana's endless pyrotechnic climaxes resembled repetitively watching porn: after a while, it leaves me bored and yawning. That said, there was a definite infectiousness to the plot; and taking Viagra to stiffen my resolve, I persevered. James' strong suit is her ability to elicit sympathy in the protagonist. I wanted to find out what happened to Anastasia, and that lent the story a compelling, page-turning quality. James is a polished novelist. Her dialogue is crisp, her prose poised, and her paragraphs well-parsed. The author's considerable skills notwithstanding, would I pick up an erotic romance like this again? Probably not. But that's just me.

Fifty Shades Darker: Book Two of the Fifty Shades Trilogy [Paperback]

This review is from: Fifty Shades Darker (Kindle Edition) I really wish I could manually add a 6th star to Amazon for this book. I never would have believed it was possible but Fifty Shades Darker is even better than Fifty Shades of Grey. Hard to believe, but true. Reading this book reminded me of a quote that I love by Alan Cohen, "Scared and sacred are spelled with the same letters. Awful proceeds from the same root word as awesome. Terrify and terrific. Every negative experience holds the seed of transformation." Reading Fifty Shades Darker is like witnessing metamorphosis in action. What I love the most about this book is the way the events and characters change and develop. I love that Christian Grey transforms from utterly immovable to flexible. Every negative emotion he feels eventually becomes something positive, or at least something he can learn and grow from. He learns the delicate balance between give and take. He learns to open his heart and to accept love--and he learns to give it as well. Everything cold becomes warm, and everything hot--well that's about the only thing that stays the same, still hot. These two characters are so contradictory and conflicting, and yet complement each other so well. Each trial, every obstacle, every hardship the two experiences are overcome and ultimately strengthen the relationship. This is truly one of the most amazing love stories I've read. I would like to add one more thing regarding a popular misconception about this book. I've read a lot of comments from readers saying it is too far out of their comfort zone because of the BDSM elements. I would like to address this because I don't think readers should shy away from it for that reason. EL James has a way of writing that brings out the heat in a love scene (I literally get butterflies sometimes while reading) but in my opinion she does it in a very tasteful way. I've read other BDSM novels and I think these books should really be classified as mild erotica, which contain some MILD elements of BDSM. There is a well defined plot with well developed characters. The romance is both sweet (I love the emails between the characters) and steamy, and to me the sex scenes do not feel gratuitous. It really is just an amazing and beautiful love story, and I think the BDSM elements are an integral element the plot in this novel.

Fifty Shades Freed: Book Three of the Fifty Shades Trilogy [Paperback]

This review is from: Fifty Shades Freed (Fifty Shades Trilogy) (Kindle Edition) There are so many times when the "Fairytale" ends with "happily ever after"... and of course as an audience, we are left to dream that things are wonderful between our enchanted couple. "Fifty Shades Freed", took us beyond the wedding and the "Honeymoon" period and into the life of our beloved Christian and Ana. I found myself anxious going into "Freed", fearing something bad would happen to Christian and/or Ana. What I found inside the pages of this book (Kindle..whatever) was an incredible story of fear, strength and ultimately love of these two people for not only each other but for those who share their world. James found a way to create a story (three actually) where the reader is able fall in love simultaneously with Ana (without thinking that she is allowing herself to be abused by Christian) and with Christian (without thinking he is an abusive a*s). James created charecters that were each flawed, however, they were aware of their flaws which, to this reader, made them human. Ana, while young, showed amazing strength in trying to keep true to herself while still trying to reach out to Christian to give him the unconditional love that she knows he needs. Christian, while insecure to a fault, does try to give Ana some degree of space even though it causes him physical pain. I loved each and every word written to all three books. I will be re-reading them again and again. I look forward to reading more from E.L James in the future.

The Reinventors: How Extraordinary Companies Pursue Radical Continuous Change [Hardcover]

This review is from: The Reinventors: How Extraordinary Companies Pursue Radical Continuous Change (Hardcover) Jason lives and breathes his research and his passion comes through with his excellent ability to convey a message. As usual his wonderful story telling turn business discoveries into messages that you will remember. Very simply if you are in business or planning to go in business, read this book. There are moments of 'a ha' for everyone. I especially enjoyed the reminders about the responsibilities of leadership.

Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, Book 3) [Hardcover]

This review is from: Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, Book 3) (Hardcover) This was a brilliant conclusion to the trilogy. I can only compare it to "Ender's Game" - and that is extremely high praise, indeed. When I first closed the book last night, I felt shattered, empty, and drained. And that was the point, I think. I'm glad I waited to review the book because I'm not sure what my review would have been. For the first two books, I think most of us readers have all been laboring under the assumption that Katniss Everdeen would eventually choose one of the two terrific men in her life: Gale, her childhood companion or Peeta, the one who accompanied her to the Hunger Games twice. She'd pick one of them and live happily ever after with him, surrounded by friends and family. Somehow, along the way, Katniss would get rid of the awful President Snow and stop the evil Hunger Games. How one teenage girl would do all that, we weren't too sure, but we all had faith and hope that she would. "Mockingjay" relentlessly strips aside those feelings of faith and hope - much as District 13 must have done to Katniss. Katniss realizes that she is just as much a pawn for District 13 as she ever was for the Colony and that evil can exist in places outside of the Colony. And that's when the reader realizes that this will be a very different journey. And that maybe the first two books were a setup for a very different ride. That, at its heart, this wasn't a story about Katniss making her romantic decisions set against a backdrop of war. This is a story of war. And what it means to be a volunteer and yet still be a pawn. We have an entirely volunteer military now that is spread entirely too thin for the tasks we ask of it. The burden we place upon it is great. And at the end of the day, when the personal war is over for each of them, each is left alone to pick up the pieces as best he/she can. For some, like Peeta, it means hanging onto the back of a chair until the voices in his head stop and he's safe to be around again. Each copes in the best way he can. We ask - no, demand - incredible things of our men and women in arms, and then relegate them to the sidelines afterwards because we don't want to be reminded of the things they did in battle. What do you do with people who are trained to kill when they come back home? And what if there's no real home to come back to - if, heaven forbid, the war is fought in your own home? We need our soldiers when we need them, but they make us uncomfortable when the fighting stops. All of that is bigger than a love story - than Peeta or Gale. And yet, Katniss' war does come to an end. And she does have to pick up the pieces of her life and figure out where to go at the end. So she does make a choice. But compared to the tragedy of everything that comes before it, it doesn't seem "enough". And I think that's the point. That once you've been to hell and lost so much, your life will never be the same. Katniss will never be the same. For a large part of this book, we see Katniss acting in a way that we can only see as being combat-stress or PTSD-related - running and hiding in closets. This isn't our Katniss, this isn't our warrior girl. But this is what makes it so much more realistic, I think. Some may see this as a failing in plot - that Katniss is suddenly acting out of character. But as someone who has been around very strong soldiers returning home from deployments, this story, more than the other two, made Katniss come alive for me in a much more believable way. I realize many out there will hate the epilogue and find it trite. At first, I did too. But in retrospect, it really was perfect. Katniss gave her life already - back when she volunteered for Prim in "The Hunger Games". It's just that she actually physically kept living. The HBO miniseries, "Band of Brothers", has a quote that sums this up perfectly. When Captain Spiers says, "The only hope you have is to accept the fact that you're already dead. The sooner you accept that, the sooner you'll be able to function as a soldier is supposed to function: without mercy, without compassion, without remorse. All war depends upon it." But how do you go from that, to living again in society? You really don't. So I'm not sure Katniss ever really did - live again. She just ... kept going. And there's not really much to celebrate in that. Seeing someone keep going, despite being asked - no, demanded - to do unconscionably horrifying things, and then being relegated to the fringes of society, and then to keep going - to pick up the pieces and keep on going, there is something fine and admirable and infinitely sad and pure and noble about that. But the fact is, it should never happen in the first place. And that was the point, I think.

Fifty Shades of Grey: Book One of the Fifty Shades Trilogy [Paperback]

 

Book Description 

Publication Date: April 3, 2012 | Series: Fifty Shades Trilogy When literature student Anastasia Steele goes to interview young entrepreneur Christian Grey, she encounters a man who is beautiful, brilliant, and intimidating. The unworldly, innocent Ana is startled to realize she wants this man and, despite his enigmatic reserve, finds she is desperate to get close to him. Unable to resist Ana’s quiet beauty, wit, and independent spirit, Grey admits he wants her, too—but on his own terms. Shocked yet thrilled by Grey’s singular erotic tastes, Ana hesitates. For all the trappings of success—his multinational businesses, his vast wealth, his loving family—Grey is a man tormented by demons and consumed by the need to control. When the couple embarks on a daring, passionately physical affair, Ana discovers Christian Grey’s secrets and explores her own dark desires. Erotic, amusing, and deeply moving, the Fifty Shades Trilogy is a tale that will obsess you, possess you, and stay with you forever.

Fifty Shades Darker: Book Two of the Fifty Shades Trilogy [Paperback]

 

Book Description 

Publication Date: April 17, 2012 | Series: Fifty Shades Trilogy (Book 2) Daunted by the singular tastes and dark secrets of the beautiful, tormented young entrepreneur Christian Grey, Anastasia Steele has broken off their relationship to start a new career with a Seattle publishing house. But desire for Christian still dominates her every waking thought, and when he proposes a new arrangement, Anastasia cannot resist. They rekindle their searing sensual affair, and Anastasia learns more about the harrowing past of her damaged, driven and demanding Fifty Shades. While Christian wrestles with his inner demons, Anastasia must confront the anger and envy of the women who came before her, and make the most important decision of her life.

Fifty Shades Freed: Book Three of the Fifty Shades Trilogy [Paperback]

 
Book Description

Publication Date: April 17, 2012 | Series: Fifty Shades Trilogy (Book 3) When unworldly student Anastasia Steele first encountered the driven and dazzling young entrepreneur Christian Grey it sparked a sensual affair that changed both of their lives irrevocably. Shocked, intrigued, and, ultimately, repelled by Christian’s singular erotic tastes, Ana demands a deeper commitment. Determined to keep her, Christian agrees. Now, Ana and Christian have it all—love, passion, intimacy, wealth, and a world of possibilities for their future. But Ana knows that loving her Fifty Shades will not be easy, and that being together will pose challenges that neither of them would anticipate. Ana must somehow learn to share Christian’s opulent lifestyle without sacrificing her own identity. And Christian must overcome his compulsion to control as he wrestles with the demons of a tormented past. Just when it seems that their strength together will eclipse any obstacle, misfortune, malice, and fate conspire to make Ana’s deepest fears turn to reality.

Fifty Shades of Grey: Book One of the Fifty Shades Trilogy

Fifty Shades Darker: Book Two of the Fifty Shades Trilogy

Fifty Shades Freed: Book Three of the Fifty Shades Trilogy