Customer Reviews

Fifty Shades Darker

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OK I confess ... I read 50 Shades of Grey and thought it was pretty poor so quite WHY I bought this book I'm not sure (you know how it is - supermarket shopping, sun shining, wanted a light 'garden' read).

The sex scenes are amongst the least erotic I've ever read - Not only was there no 'muscle clenching south of my navel' going on (my libido was busy running as fast as it could in the opposite direction)I found myself being more interested in seeing if there was a page without at least one of the following phrases: 'Oh My', 'Holy Crap', 'Oh', 'Inner Goddess', 'Subconcious', 'Foil Packet' and 'Shattered (there isn't).

The characterisation is two dimensional and cliched, the plot is as diaphanous as one of Ana's (designer obviously) nightgowns, the language is repetitive, un-realistic and irritating and the writing is beyond poor.

I've never read the Twilight series - Oh My, how I wish I could say the same of the 50 Shades books.

Having downloaded all 3 books in this series I read 50 Shades Darker, having already read 50 Shades of Grey. Again just repetitions of the same old sex scenes. I definitely will NOT be reading 50 Shades Freed.

I have read the whole trilogy and none of the three books have delivered for me. I agree with a lot of the other reviewers, Ana's identity lurches from American to English as we read, it just isn't one thing or the other. Ok there's plenty of sex in this but to call it a Romance is rather stretching things. I had it in my mind that Ana would be Christian's salvation, that they would end up having some great emotional connection. Instead it seems she became his 'thing' enjoying what he did to her, greedy for it in fact! Then there was the eye rolling and lip biting, the sooners baby, the e-mails, the detail in the contract he expected her to sign. All of these just began to annoy after a while. But worst of all was the thin, predictable plot and how can a young girl share a flat with a friend with a healthy sex life and not know ANYTHING about sex??? I really wanted to enjoy this, but found it totally wanting.
Of course, many readers are posting reviews saying how great these books are and in the end it's all down to indivudual taste. Sadly for me, I thought the story had great potential but this seemed to be lost in page after page of descriptive sex. Sorry but it has to be said, this whole thing is a triumph of hype over substance.

I think it is interesting to note that (at the current time) there are 915 reviews for 50 Shades of Grey but only 100 for this one! I read the first one and despite the poor writing skills and the almost laughable repetition of words and phrases, I quite enjoyed it. The character of Christian is quite well defined and I actually found myself fancying him (although I don't think we needed to be told how 'beautiful' he is on every single page). On the other hand the character of Ana is as wet as a lettuce.

This second book is just 300+ pages of soft porn mixed with Mills & Boon mush! Once again the level of repetition is beyond belief - I strongly recommend that the author buys a thesaurus. However, let's be honest, no one is buying this book for its literary appeal. The sex scenes are pretty much constant in this book but once you have read one you really don't need to read the rest. I actually found myself skipping huge sections because I was just so bored of their shenanigans. The best bits of both books are the emails between Christian and Ana.

I cannot face the 3rd book so I have have a run down of what happens from a friend who has read it!

To be honest - three books on the subject is a bit too much. By book 2 I was getting pretty bored with the sex scenes and lack of real content and am probably more fed up with the foil packet than Christian Grey! I am starting to wish the stalker would do the decent thing and finish them both off!! Having said that, people will read them anyway - just to see what all the fuss is about. Don't.Say.You.Weren't.Warned.

I loved Fifty Shades of Grey, despite what everyone said about the repetitious nature of the prose and the parlous dialogue. All of which was true. The story however, was fresh and interesting and sexy enough to keep me intrigued. I liked the fact that Christian and Ana's relationship was quite complex, and psychologically reasonably interesting. I finished the book and immediately bought the two sequels because I really wanted to know how Christian and Ana's relationship played out.

I wish now that I hadn't. The sex is slightly less vanilla in this book, but that is all that has changed, and what was intriguing has now become dull and predictable.

OK, here's the thing. I don't ask a lot from my books. Just to have a half decent story and be reasonably well written. I read (and quite enjoyed) the Twilight Saga for Pete's sake! That's why I wasn't exactly expecting a literary masterpiece from the 50 shades book, but I admit I'm a bit of a sheep and wanted to see what the hype was about.
I genuinely don't understand how anyone of average or above intelligence can see these books through! The repetativeness of it is actually shocking. If the constant oh my, whoa, or holy crap/cow/moses didn't have you wanting to tear out your own eyes I don't know what will.
Cocking heads. Think back to the last time you ever saw someone actually cock their head. Poor Christian must have whiplash the amount of times that guy cocks his head in a day! Moving on, calling each other by surnames. Who actually does that? Yes it might be comical to call the other half by their surname when being formal now and then but every day? Really? Go home tonight and start calling your partner by their surname and see how long it takes them to ask you why your being "weird".
Next, the sex. I admit I was looking forward to this bit having no experience of bdsm myself. For a book that is supposed to be about something so taboo, you would assume the author would figure that the audience would be over 10 years old and would therefore refrain from referring to Anas vagina as her "sex". I'm willingly reading a book about bdsm. I think I can handle the word vagina.
I get that Mr Grey is the hottest guy alive. I was told every page in the first book his eyes are smouldering gray (ah, and his name is Grey, look how that worked out!) But I don't care who you are, it is impossible to have earth shattering orgasms every time a certain man looks at you.
Oh the fullness! Whatever love.
Finally the sickeningly lovey love in the second book. I love you, I love you too, dont leave me, I won't leave you, you might leave me, well you might leave me, I'd die without you, well when we broke up (for 5 days ffs) I nearly did die, please don't leave me, I will never leave, you own my body and soul (because people actually say things like that) always, I love you always. I think I threw the book at the bus driver at this point.

Like a previous reviewer I had purchased all 3 of the Fifty Shades' based on the story outline, and the fact that the 3 books are firmly planted at the top of the charts. The first book was just about tolerable; even with this book though I was tending to skim through the sex scenes by the end of the book. There is a limit to the number of ways which the writer can decscribe the torid sex sessions between a mentally unstable pervert and a raving nympho. Unfortunately 'Shades Darker' brought nothing new to the table whatsoever. Very thin story line and more sex sessions than you would find in the short story section of a top shelf porn magazine. OK we all allow our imaginations to take over when we read fiction, but unless Grey is popping viagra on a daily basis his ability to perform at least 2/3 times per session sometimes several times a day is just laughable. Ana being subjected to such treatment would in real life have trouble walking!!!!! Its a great shame because the initial story line gave huge scope for a complex and evolving thriller. As it is I was so bored by the end of Shades darker I really cant work up any enthusiasm to read 'Fifty Shades Freed'. Just a shame I purchased kindle editions as cant even give them away to a charity shop.

Although i found the first book only very very slightly entertaining and boring, i was hopeful enough to buy the second book(why oh why i dont know). I guess i was trying to find out what all the hype was about, i was hoping that the story between christian and ana migth offer more of an insight, but sadly i was wrong! please hear my warning, IT DOES NOT GET BETTER!!! The only development takes place at the end of the book as usual.

This book is even more boringly repetitive than the first, it actually frustrated me so much that i found myself flipping through pages, trying to find anything vaguely interesting to read. The book was once again filled with the same sexual experiences as the first book( actually almost exact, maybe even word for word). Except no real red room as ana doesnt like it, so mainly vanilla!!!

While the author included sex scene after boring sex scene, she once again left out all the depth of the actual story.

snore!!!!!!!!

Warning: If you haven't read the first Fifty Shades book but intend to do so, you probably shouldn't read this review since it will contain references to and possible spoilers for that title.

So I wrote my review of Fifty Shades of Grey earlier this month and, even to my own ears, I sounded rather reluctant to admit that I had enjoyed the read. Not that I no longer stand over what I wrote in that review - I still don't think these books will ever qualify for literary prizes for example - but I do think it is time to let go of the reluctance and just admit that I'm having great fun with this trilogy. It's time to admit that I do like the stories and yes, I do get a kick out of the S.E.X.
I guess that when you find you're bribing yourself - just one more book of the "must-read-now-pile" and then I can get to the sequel - it really is time to just pick up the book and read it. So I did.

After Ana fled away from Christian and his dark sexual needs, convinced that she couldn't be what he needed her to be regardless of how deeply she had fallen for him, she spends a miserable few days getting used to her new job.
It isn't long though before she and Christian meet up again to go to the opening of a photo show of Ana's college friend Jose. Back in each others company it doesn't take the pair long to realise that they can't be apart from each other, and Christian has a proposition for Ana. In order to be with her he is willing to put his needs and past sexual practices aside and have a "normal" relationship. Although filled with doubts, Ana agrees, knowing that she is far more miserable without him than she could ever be with him.
And so the two set off on a path to discover if they can be happy together without the aid of the "playroom". But, of course there are obstacles. On the personal front there is the ever present Mrs. Robinson who first introduced Christian to the BDSM scene, Ana's fear that what she can offer Christian won't be enough for him in the long run and Christian's still obsessive need to control Ana's life.
Outside forces seem to conspire against the pair too, with a blast from Christian's past threatening both of them and Ana's new boss turning out to be a bit of a, potentially very dangerous, creep. With the odds stacked against them, Ana and Christian have a real fight on their hands if they want to make a success of the relationship they both seem to want so desperately.

So, what can I say about this book.
To start with the obvious, there is still an awful lot of sex, mostly in rather graphic detail. This time around though, the intimacy is a lot more straightforward, if still rather adventurous.
As in the first book, the writing is nothing to write home about, but, on the other hand, not bad enough to annoy me. While there is a lot of repetition and Ana's "inner goddess" continued to irritate me, I had great fun reading this book.
In fact, the most frustrating thing about reading the Fifty Shades books is that I can't quite figure out why I'm enjoying them so much. However, I've decided that it really doesn't matter why I like the books. I've also come to the conclusion that I should never have to apologize for enjoying something I read, so I won't be analyzing that aspect of it any further.
What I did like is that James introduced some suspense-like elements into this book without actually trying to turn it into a thriller. When danger surfaces it is dealt with rather quickly, efficiently and, as far as I'm concerned, effectively.
I also liked the descriptions of Ana trying to understand Christian, his past and how that related to his compulsions as well as Christian's attempts to get over his fears and obsessions and be what Ana needs him to be.
And I do like that she ended the book on a bit of a cliff-hanger, which of course means that it won't be long before I will have to give in to temptation again and return for my third and final encounter with Ana and her Christian.