Fifty Shades Of Grey: Book One of the Fifty Shades Trilogy (Fifty Shades of Grey Series, 1)

While many may criticize E. L. James for her lack of proper "professional" style writings, as others criticize this as some "fairy tale" from the fantasy dreams of a teenage girl, is it REALLY so hard to imagine that a man, ESPECIALLY, who had such a supposedly horrible & tragic childhood trauma thrust upon him at such a very early stage in his life, who is then truly rescued by a doctor & her husband (as she is the first kind person he encounters in the ER when he is finally "rescued" from the nightmare of a life he has lived til the day his mother dies) when they adopt him and raise him to be the very BEST he can by showing him all the world can offer IF he is able to persevere, commit his time and energy , and work diligently to reach, and maybe even EXCEED, his goals and expectations, a man like this could achieve INCREDIBLE success, at a younger age than someone of less traumatic events in their past and less opportunities than "Christian" was given, and NOT have learned an INCREDIBLE amount of information & skills that others might not because they ALSO were not approached by a "wolf in sheep's clothing" style pedophile in the form of a close family friend, INCLUDING how to take care of a woman's sexual needs & desires in an expert manner, again at an early age, and ALSO be driven to the point of obsession to be an OUTRAGEOUSLY SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS MOGUL so he is NEVER, EVER at another human being's feet to be controlled like a slave??? Now, given ALL of that, is it REALLY TOO HYSTERICALLY CRAZY & IMPOSSIBLE to imagine, after all that happening in ONE man's life, that by sheer irony & strange LUCK, he would NOT suddenly, and inexplicably to HIM, come across such an individual as "Anastasia" that at first meeting, seems to be a "submissive-type girl" and is instead realized to be a woman who is quiet but more confident and self-assured that even SHE realizes?! AND, in this chance, and quite possibly FATE-FILLED, introduction and continued interaction between them, given her quite imaginative and creative mind, and her own deep but unfulfilled desires, is it REALLY so hard to believe that such a woman would NOT be able to orgasm as easily as she seems to in this novel, especially when there is that hint of danger and the "forbidden fruit" tantalization to what Christian is asking of her, and truly seems to NEED from her, even when she knows how psychotic and deranged it all sounds to her rational and protective parts of her brain?! Let's be honest with ourselves and easy other and ACCEPT that no matter how weird, crazy, incredibly outrageous, and downright INSANE & DANGEROUS this alternate lifestyle SEEMS to be, it has been MISUNDERSTOOD, MISJUDGED, AND VILLIANIZED FOR FAR TOO LONG!! Having friends and acquaintances who live this way, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, there is MUCH, MUCH, MUCH MORE to D and s, BDSM, and whatever else you want to call it, than 75-90% of the WORLD'S inhabitants will EVER even TRY to understand or REMOTELY COMPREHEND in THEIR lifetimes!!

So, given this limitation of the human being, individually and collectively, it is no wonder that so many have tried to shoot down this bold and brave expression, and baby-steps introduction, of this alternative way of life that so MANY people around the world, 99.9% of the time EXTREMELY SECRETIVELY, LIVE OUT EVERY DAY, IN UNLIMITED WAYS, every moment they possibly can to be who they truly are in the HEALTHIEST AND SAFEST WAYS POSSIBLE!!

At the core of this alternate lifestyle is a FIRM BELIEF AND "CODE", if you will. Simply said, "Safe, Sane, and always CONSENSUAL!!" Basically, it means that there must ALWAYS be safety measures involved to protect EVERYONE from PERMANENT, IRREVERSIBLE HARM, both physically and psychologically, and EVERY INDIVIDUAL TAKING PART MUST be of sound mind in making the deliberate CHOICE to be a part of any relationship in this realm, meaning they are ABLE, LEGALLY AND OTHERWISE, to GIVE CONSENT, without being given undue pressure, coersion, and/or trickery, to being involved in any aspect of this lifestyle. If you are not certain you WANT to give permission, because of alarming behavior, improper PRESSURE to ignore something you see or hear that is a warning, or just an unknown but strong gut feeling, GET AWAY AND DO NOT RETURN until you are clear and confident that in giving consent to ANYTHING, whether in THIS lifestyle or any other area of your life, you are certain that you are safe, being watched over properly and sanely, and that you ALWAYS have an option to LEAVE ANY SITUATION, willingly & without reprisal, AT ANY TIME!! This goes for EVERY SINGLE ASPECT OF ANY PERSON'S LIFE ~ Business, Personal, Family, Friends, etc. ~ so that ALL have the freedom to be who they are without fear of being persecuted, or WORSE, for determining the course of their OWN LIFE JOURNEYS!!

This novel, the 1st in the "Fifty Shades" trilogy, is a first step inside this "alternate life path" that has been in the dark for far too long!! IF a reader, with no previous FACTUAL knowledge about this way of life, makes a judgement against this book and what it is trying to help people understand better, BEFORE getting additional, alternative sourced FACTS and background, then it is the READER who is in error, NOT E.L. JAMES!! There is so much complexity and HEALTHY psychology involved that to pass it off as "CRAZY, UNHEALTHY, AND JUST PLAIN TOO DANGEROUS FOR ANYONE" does a criminal injustice to the multitude and variety of healthy, QUITE SANE, and simply ordinary looking people who find happiness, joy, and completeness of self in living this path. In fact, I would be willing to bet, if you were able to get EVERY SINGLE PERSON involved in this "lifestyle" to abruptly, and all at the same second in time, publicly declare their involvement in, and satisfaction from, this unique way of existing that goes WAY, WAY, WAY BEYOND JUST SEXUAL CONNOTATION AND ACTIVITY, ALONE, every one of us would be completely STUNNED & INCREDULOUS when we learn that the quiet church-going, community service volunteer we sat next to at church services last Sunday, is, in reality, the Dominant female in a D/s and/or BDSM relationship with the President of some Fortune 500 company!! We probably ALL interact with AT LEAST ONE PERSON, every day, that is keeping that part of themselves EXTREMELY PRIVATE & WELL HIDDEN from 98% of the people in their lives.

So, if you looked into the true realistic potential of the HUNDREDS of allegedly "impossible and/or outlandish" aspects of each character in this book, I suspect you would ALL be shocked at how POSSIBLE they really could be, in REAL LIFE!! And to those naysayers who refuse to believe that ANY woman could orgasm THAT EASILY, think about this next bit of info I learned from a friend in the lifestyle. She had been trained, over a series of months, maybe even a year or more (I can't recall the exact time it took), how to make herself orgasm ON HER MASTER'S IMMEDIATE COMMAND, within LESS THAN A MINUTE OF THE DEMAND!! If the right circumstances were in play, it could happen in LESS than 10 SECONDS after to demand was made!! Now, it took time to learn this skill, and not everyone is capable of doing it, no matter how long they attempt training to do it. BUT, it IS possible for some, and I would NOT have believed her if I had not witnessed a display, PERSONALLY!!!

As for the other supposed flaws in the main and background persons in this story, SERIOUSLY?! is it so DIFFICULT to imagine that these flawed characters could actually exist in any real life place in reality? After all of the odd, deranged, and previously believed to be nonexistent personalities that have been brought to life in the form of politicians, business men/women, celebrities, and even men of religious power and prestige, that have been shown to have very different sides to them, and very hidden aspects of their character which VERY FEW, if any, truly had knowledge of, is it REALLY THAT IMPOSSIBILY DIFFICULT to believe that THESE UNIQUE, AND AT TIMES UNBELIEVABLY PERFECT, PEOPLE could EVER exist in ANY REALITY, WHATSOEVER, and could ONLY EXIST AS SOME WEIRDLY SUCCESSFUL (YET so unique, they could NEVER be a real person) AND EXTREMELY DEPRAVED character is some fictional novel?! Seriously folks? Given the facts in life that have turned out to truly be "stranger than fiction," I must say that I am disappointed in the reader of this, or any other seemingly "impossible to ever in exist in any realistic place and/or time" character or even setting in ANY fictional novel or storyline, for being so small-minded and extremely limited in imagination and/or intellectual flexibility so as to accept that while we might WANT everything & everyone to be neat, tidy, easy to understand, and of good "moral fiber," like we feel WE are (most of maybe), VERY FEW, IF ANY, OF US EVER FIT THOSE UNREALISTIC & FANTASY-BASED IDEALS, EVER!!!

So, in closing, I strongly urge anyone passing unfair, and/or downright mean/cruel, judgement on this novel, its characters, the storyline, the author, or any other connected aspect, to take some extra time out of your "busy" lives and learn the FACTS in psychology, medicine, and alternative lifestyles of ANY kind. Once you know the WHOLE story and the supporting FACTS, THEN come back and reexamine this book along with any others you may have misjudged far too quickly in the past. Once you know more, you will most likely find that your negative perceptions of any reality-based potential characters, settings, events, etc., are probably incorrect and quite possibly INAPPROPRIATELY HARSH AND/OR MEAN!! As a society, we have ALL been guilty of taking the "shortcut" and not looking more deeply into something we are not realistically familiar with, personally. In doing so, we do ourselves an injustice, as well as society and the author or presenter of the original story, plot, and related characters/participants. Once you know the REAL story, and not just what the media, your church, or any other major influences over what you think, feel, and how you react to ANYTHING in your daily lives, you are now armed with the proper knowledge to have a better understanding of what you were initially introduced to. In being armed this way, YOU now can make up YOUR mind with better support to your deductions and overall perceptions. THAT is what I strive to do, at every possible opportunity, so I do NOT improperly but intentionally make a bad decision and/or judgment based on limited or potentially FALSE and/or MISLEADING information I received from past "reliable" sources in my life. I'm not perfect, so I don't always achieve what I strive to do, but at least I am trying to learn from my errors and personal character flaws. If you can say the same, BRAVO!! If not, go back and start this novel trilogy over again, once you have taken the time to learn as much TRUTH as you can about whatever topic, etc., that you originally judged as implausible or too "perfect" to ever be real!! As I alluded to earlier, "Fact is sometimes stranger than fiction!" Remember this and it will help you keep an open mind until you have received as much information as you can, from more than one or two sources you've checked in the past, which will allow you to see not just what other believe you SHOULD see and feel, but what YOU know, see, and now feel is a more proper perception of ANY topic!!

As for my opinion on this first of three books, I enjoyed them immensely, and especially appreciated the way E.L. James ended the first novel on such a cliffhanger type situation!! I won't spoil it for those who have not yet read it, but it set the stage perfectly for the second book to pick up from and RUN WITH!!

No, her writing would most likely not please a high school English/Writing teacher in that she is not always terribly creative as she might have been and may need a little assistance with certain syntax, etc. Overall, though, I found it to be a story that could happen at any given moment across the globe, but most likely in the USA, and the characters were, to me, believable, imperfect despite an expression of "alleged perfection," and a story I STILL enjoy reading again now and again, even though I could almost recite the story line by heart by now!! Step outside of the "normal, average, and at times, BORING" routine we expect from the average American every day. Only then can you truly follow and enjoy the nature and spirit of this incredible adventure surrounding Christian & Anastasia "Ana" and their path through life, separately and together!!

originally posted on GoodReads.com:

I had to think pretty hard before giving this review. It baffles me to see a book with such high ratings get so many conflicting reviews here on GoodReads. Maybe some of those that gave it a high rating were too scared to give their reasons why. I was thrilled to give my five stars, but as I read through some of the reviews, I kind of got embarrassed. I also saw the same disgust on the discussion board for this book. Was I not supposed to like this? Does it make me look like a freaky nympho? But then I thought about E.L. James and how she must have worried what will people think of her at some point. She had some serious guts to write this book. So courageous to share her vision of this story with the world. So here I am, gladly giving this book 5 stars and I will also be courageous in giving my reasons why. If you found the book horrendous, then judge away. I do not mind.

Let me start with...There are some spoilers. I'm not super direct with them, but if you are sensitive to spoilers, please proceed with caution. I don't spill what happens in the end. And If you have read some spoilers, don't worry, it's still very worth it, get the book. The sex scenes sell!

I couldn't relate to Ana much at all, but found myself jealous of her. What really kept the pages turning for me was Christian. What a crazy awesome character! The mystery behind him had me intrigued - where he came from, his early life, how he came to be who he is, why he does what he does. Christian had a really hard early childhood and it really has messed with his head and has ruined his chance at having a relationship in what society sees as normal. I've seen it asked several times by the folks who haven't read this book, yes, there is a lot of sexual BDSM in great detail. It's all Christian knows and it fulfills his need. It seems like a lot of people that were put off, don't really understand the lifestyle. Although I haven't been in this type of relationship before, I can understand most of it, especially all that Christian is into. He's a powerful man in many ways and many women love powerful men. He's ridiculously rich and is used to having anything and anyone he wants. He gets it with a snap of his fingers. What he wants is Ana, and she defys him. She plays games and it drives him crazy. He can't easily have what he wants all of the time. That makes the desire greater....so much so that he tries so hard to change for her to keep her. All of a sudden, there is a shift in power. Even though she doesn't realize it, she makes the rules and he bends over backwards to make sure she's happy.

I'm so disappointed to see readers hate Christian like he's a villain. I thought he was more than fair. First, he tells her he is no good for her in hopes she will run away. She does not leave. After that, he tells her straight up front that he is a dominate man and explains that to her. She does not leave. He shows her the playroom. She does not leave. He gives her the contract to read. She does not leave. He tells her to take a week to read over it. She does not leave. He tells her she can negotiate the majority of the contract. She does not leave. Then he says the contract is not even legally binding and she can leave whenever she wants. She does not leave. He changes so much for her and tries so hard at giving her "more," which is what she wants. She knows he has a past that makes him the way he is and he works hard dealing with it. So......why is he the villain to readers? She kept going for it. She asked for it. So he likes to tie her up, spank her and have his way with her. He never tortured her or peed on her or anything like that. In fact he told her he'd never really hurt her, never break or damage the skin. She had safe words to yell at any time. Did she use the safe words? No. So I guess I can't really wrap my head around him being a bad guy. He worked so hard to earn her trust. He asked her if she trusted him every single time before he would tie her. She said yes every time.

Honestly, it's been a couple days since I finished this book, and even though I've started a different book (I'll read the 2nd book of the trilogy next week), I still can't get Christian out of my head. This book was super hot and his commands to her are like Whoa! Biting her bottom lip really got some delicious sayings out of him. I was turning pages so fast, wondering what he was going to do to her next. There is sex on almost every page, and it can be easy to focus just on that, but I do realize there is a bigger story here. The shift in power between both of them was awesome to witness, watching a powerful man crumble to her feet in order to keep her. He'd do anything to make her happy. It's hard to see through his dominating ways, but he's smitten, for sure! Totally unexpected.

Now on to what I didn't like....Ana. Ugh, she was annoying to me. As I talked about above, she never left after all the things he warned her about in the first place. She was a stupid girl if she didn't want this. When he was there, she was in love, but if he left for work, she would cry her eyes out and hate him. He's a CEO of a huge company...I'm sure he has to work once in a while. Her inner dialogue was ridiculous. The questions she asked herself. For example, Christian could tell her he absolutely adores her, kisses her passionately and has to leave for the day. Five minutes later, she's sure he does not like her one bit. This goes back and forth the entire book. She also did some childish things along the way. And what she did the morning at the end of the book more than pissed me off. Stupid girl! She acts like she's a young teen! She asked for it. Hello safe words!!!

But you know, Christian more than made up for all the parts that Ana pissed me off about, so the book definitely got 5 stars for me. I look forward to 2nd and 3rd books, and what else E.L. James has in the future. No, I didn't mind the repeated phrases that many people complained about.

How do I differ from Ana? Call me demented, sick, twisted or whatever you want, I would have already been digging in my purse for a pen before reading the contract and sprint for the playroom. Christian can do with me what he wants...whew! Once again, I'm frustrated that a fictional man is not really real. Is it hot in here?

I know there are a lot of people (men & women both) that do not understand why on earth anyone would say the loved these books. I've read a lot of comments where people wonder what kind of person loves these books, or read them in one weekend as if they were just one long book. Well, I am that girl.

I didn't know a whole lot about these books before I read them. A friend of mine from college had read them and based on other books we had read in common and both liked, I thought, why not? After I downloaded them, and before I started reading Fifty Shades of Grey they started talking about the novels on the radio. I heard these books referred to as "mommy-porn" but didn't really think about what it entailed. I mean, there are some steamy scenes on TV I would say could be called the same thing.

I will mention it took me a few chapters to get into the book. There are some phrases that threw me off a bit, and the fact that the writer uses words or phrases quite frequently was a bit annoying at times and it was distracting. I kept thinking, didn't she have an editor? Why wouldn't they persuade her to change some of this? But the further I got into the story, the less I cared about it (not to say I didn't still see these things, I just didn't care anymore).

People are complaining that there is no way the character could be a 21 year old college girl who hasn't had sex. I guess that's not saying a whole lot about our culture, that we expect every young woman in college is out there giving it up on a regular basis. For me, this was not an issue as I myself was a 21 year old virgin. In fact I was a 27 year old virgin and had many of those uncomfortable conversations with many different guys that I dated over the years. Some thought it was awesome (for some of the same reasons Christian did) and some couldn't imagine it and bolted. Maybe this helped me identify with her character better than other people can, but be assured this does happen. Something should be said for the girl who waits until she meets the right guy. I did, and now he's my husband.

People are complaining that Christian is too young to be this successful (hello, Mark Zuckerberg) and that even if he was there is no way he falls for a girl like Ana. I guess my answer is two-fold, and simple. We see couples all the time where we think in our heads, "I wonder how they got together." Love is love why put limits on what kind of person someone else can fall in love with. The second part of my answer would be to remind people, this is a work of fiction. Of course it's not real! Christian Grey and Ana Steele do not actually exist. People don't want to watch movies that are based on real life, that's why we go see Romantic Comedies. This is no different. Enjoy it for what it is! Why can't Cinderella fall in love with Prince Charming?

As for the characters, I could absolutely find things to identify with both of the main characters. Anyone who is part of a relationship knows that everyone comes with some sort of "baggage." Sure Christian's baggage is more than the average person but isn't the message really that everyone deserves to love and be loved regardless of what they bring with them to the table? I wanted to see this couple work things out and be together and I felt myself (or my inner cheerleader) rooting for them to make it. (Incidentally, I know these characters are supposed to be based of Edward and Bella, but through most of Twilight I wanted to slap Bella around, I found her annoying, this was not the case for me with Ana and I enjoyed Christian much more than Edward).

It's the unfolding of their love and watching as the "baggage" becomes irrelevant that kept me wanting more. Yes there is drama, and yes there is fighting and making up to the unrealistic degree but again, this is the same thing women go to the movies to see. Unrealistic romantic gestures and happily ever afters. It gives people hope that their happily ever after is out there or makes them realize it's really right in front of their face. Let's remember a business tycoon fell in love with a hooker in one of everyone's favorite movies. Why can't we have that in this book? Vampires don't really exist and yet they are raking in the big bucks with those books and movies, right?

Yes, they have sex...a lot...and well...it's not always "vanilla" but think about when you and your first love started having sex. There was probably more then than there is now, right? And while it's not for everyone and I did have trouble understanding at first why anyone would consent to some of these things my husband reminded me that just because it's not my normal, doesn't mean it isn't someone else's and we shouldn't really judge what makes other people happy. Again, I didn't know what this book entailed when I started reading it and if I had known it was sometimes classified as Erotica, I probably wouldn't have read it - but then I would have been the one who lost out because I really enjoyed this story. I haven't felt this way about a couple since Noah & Allie.

Mostly, I just think it comes down to you like it or you don't, and while I am one of those people who obviously liked it (I'm almost done reading it a second time and my husband now refers to this series as my "drug of choice"), I accept that not everyone will. So for those that don't, I think just accepting that some people do is just as important, and maybe people will just have to agree to disagree and just not understand why. I mean I love Football and Baseball and even NASCAR, but you couldn't get me to watch Golf for all the tea in china.

Anyway, this is just one girls opinion, I suggest read it and see for yourself.

On a side note, the idea of the movie scares me and I don't think they'll find a Christian that will make everyone happy, but that's just my opinion...like everything else here!

First things first. What is seriously lacking here are reviews from guys on this book. Therefore, I'm going to provide one. This will probably be the best review you have ever read, but that is just an added bonus.

Second - this is not "hard core porn" as some reviews have stated. Stop it. What rock have you been living under? If you think this is hard core porn, then you are missing a heck of a lot.

So - Before getting into the meat of this thing, I must first delight you with a short story of how I encountered a copy of 50 Shades of Gray at one of the local adult novelty shops. So there I am doing my daily shopping and what do I see on the counter? A paperback copy of 50 Shades of Gray. "Hey" I say to the woman working the night shift behind the counter of an adult novelty shop... "I see you have 50 Shades of Gray." She responded by telling me that she had begun reading it herself and that she had many customers coming in to buy items mentioned in the book.

"Really..." I respond, "I hear that the book is very popular. Especially among women."

"Yes" she replies and ads that she thinks every man should read it. She goes on to tell me that one of her friends has her "biker" boyfriend reading the book. I found it interesting that she chose to distinguish a regular "boyfriend" from a "biker boyfriend"... perhaps a topic for another day...

At this point, another woman comes over to take a look because she overheard our conversation. She is middle-aged, really rough looking, and has some sort of insertable egg vibe in her hand. She looks at the display copy of 50 Shades like it is a strange alien artifact. She hesitates and then lightly touches it - almost like she is afraid that the book is an old manuscript that will flake away if she is too harsh. Then she carefully peels back the cover a bit as though there would be something interesting to see in there...a motion similar to that of picking up a dead bird by the wing before flinging it into the neighbor's yard. All this while casually holding her egg vibe in the other hand as though it was just a garden tool. "Gonna go dig me some carrots!"

Back to the book - So what message does a guy get from this book? If you are rich enough and good looking enough, she will do ANYTHING. Just come up with any crazy sex stuff you can think of and go for it. The main character, Ana, has no interest in the "nice" guys she meets, but when the rich, handsome, and mysterious Christian Gray turns up she goes from a virgin to a sex starved BDSM nympho in the blink of an eye.

Would Ana let anyone else do these things to her? Heck no... they don't have enough money. They don't run a company or have a helicopter. How does she justify it? A classic female mind trick - but he is really a nice guy! See, he wants to feed the poor! He had a rough childhood! Besides, he can't help himself around me... he makes me feel special... it's not his fault...

Hey - more power to the guy. That's fine with me. If I had unlimited wealth I'd probably be a freak too (or at least more of a freak anyway). My point is simply that this book basically just proves every theory men already have regarding female behavior... which is further reinforced by the glowing reviews drooling over how wonderful Gray is.

Now... now... now... I can already hear the counter arguments milling about in your mind. But Moondonkey, it isn't that Gray is wealthy or good looking... it is his attitude, how he holds himself, how he treats Ana, and his Alpha male personality. He is such "man". Uhhhhh... no. Take away the money and fame and turn Gray into just some guy at the office. Same guy. Same character traits. Does he get away with the same stuff? No. Not a chance. Now he isn't a mysterious manly man, he is just a perverted jerk. Right ladies? If any "regular" guy pulls out some Ben-Wa Balls, slips then in, then commands you to go get a glass of water, I suspect that your reaction would be different. If the guy from IT or Accounting takes you home after a date to see his Room of Pain how is that going to go over? Yeah... I thought so... Add several million dollars and a corporate helicopter... "ohhh... ok ... whatever you want...(bite your lip)..."

You can tell this book was written by a woman because she has Gray's motivation all wrong. According to the author, Gray does what he does out of a need for control. There are various psychological issues involved in that, but the nutshell according to the author is control. Ahem... speaking as a guy... it's not about control. Do you want to know why a guy like Gray does what he does? BECAUSE HE CAN. That's why. This isn't rocket science. There isn't some deep motivation or purpose. Gray is rich. Gray is handsome. Gray is powerful. As Ana's mom reminds her, men are simple. What do rich, handsome, and powerful men do with their wealth and power? They get laid, that's what they do.

Anyway - 50 Shades of Gray is really all about what is going on inside the woman's head. How do I feel? How does he make me feel? Why do I feel like this? Should I feel like this? Is it wrong to feel like this? But I like feeling like this... does that make me dirty? Am I dirty? What would people think? What do I think? What does he think? What am I thinking? He is so mysterious... he is so dangerous... why would he want me? Does he want me? Do I want him?

Blah...blah...blah... shut the heck up and get to the action already.

So why read it? Why the heck not I suppose. I read a lot of books... the majority of which are terrible. Many reviews comment on how poorly this book is written. Yeah, it is. So what? Have you read anything else recently? I bet 80% of the books out there are garbage. Therefore, why not take a flyer on something like this? Besides, the book is getting a lot of press lately so why not check it out and see what all the cackling is about.

The "action" takes awhile to get started. You have to get 80 pages in before the hot skin slapping starts. In tracking the action, I noticed that Christian Gray uses the zombie "double tap" method of sex. You may recall that in order to make sure a zombie is dead after the first shot, you should always shoot it in the head a second time (a double tap) just to make sure. Well... that is the way Gray has sex with Ana. He does her once, then goes back for a double tap soon after.

One thing that bothered me - on page 101, Gray kisses Ana after she performs oral sex on him (with a happy ending). Sorry - no dude is going to do that. Not happening. You might as well be reading a Star Trek novel at this point because traveling at warp speed through space is more likely.

Soooo... the big elephant-in-the-room question here is why this book appears to have struck a cord with women... or at least a significant number of women. Apparently, 50 Shades of Gray allows women to safely explore their inner slut (even though the book is pretty tame really - go read a Hustler and compare). Except here is the problem ladies - why do you need a stupid book to do that? Your boyfriend or husband would surely be happy to explore your inner slut, but he probably gave up hope.

In the end, I found the book sort of boring. I could write better sex scenes. Personally, I'd give the book only 2 stars. However, my wife also read the book and the results forced me to rethink my rating. I'm going to give it 4 stars - pretty much based on nothing but the "extra" benefits.

Is that worth an extra 2 stars? Heck yes it is! I don't have a million dollars and a helicopter (yet).