This is one of those books that you either love it or you hate it. I happen to love it which is great considering the price of the trilogy! I am a big reader but will not usually spend $15 on a book! However, after all the hype, I gave in, and I am very glad that I did.

It is written in first person which most romance novels are not.

I am not into the bdsm world, but I was semi-familiar with it. The book is not as filled with sex as I thought it would be, and it's not as harsh as I thought it would be either. It has however broadened my horizons tremendously! We now own an under the bed restraint system, a riding crop, an anal plug and various other things that we didn't own before. I guess my husband has 50 Shades to thank for that.

Onto the book. It is not the next great piece of literature! However, it is a great story for someone who is looking for something different and isn't typically into erotica. There are very funny parts, suspenseful parts and some very sexy parts to this book. It follows one very naive Anastasia Steel and one very dark but sexy Christian Grey. His world is extremely different from hers. They are about as oppisite in every way that you can get. In my opinion, they both change a lot during the book. Ana goes from virgin to a light bdsm girlfriend who just happens to fall in love with one fucked up man!

There are a lot of references to Ana's sub conscience and inner goddess. Some people complained about some of those phrases being used over and over but I think it added to the charm of the book.

This is a great story, not the next great work of literature. Take it for what it is.