Fifty Shades Freed by E.L. James

This is the final book in the "Fifty Shades of Grey" series by EL James. I've read
the other 2 "Fifty Shades" books, and I'd have to say that this is the weakest in
the set. As another reader of these books said to me before I started, this book
reads like a soap opera.

Here's the setup for the series - a rich, handsome billionaire named Christian
Grey begins to romantically pursue the wallflower protagonist - Anastasia Steele
- after she has to interview him when her journalist roommate is ill. The twist is
that Prince Charming, Grey, wants to do things with Ana that are very out of step
from the usual romance novel, things that would be more suited to a Penthouse
forum or the diary of the Marquis de Sade. But through Ana's love, Christian
modifies his tastes and becomes more normal and "vanilla." By the time this book
starts, the pair are married and on their honeymoon. Christian is still very
controlling and protective of his wife, but she constantly defies him, eventually to
her peril. Crazy ex's, bad bosses, and some scary times in vehicles occur before
the pivotal kidnapping scene, but all resolves happily, and as the novel closes,
we find the couple lounging with their son, awaiting the birth of their daughter.

What makes this book and the whole series wildly popular is the sex. James ­
writes the sex scenes well, and there are A LOT of sex scenes. But I shudder to
think of all the sweet, young things who might pick up this book, thinking this is
how their first sexual experience/partner will be. While titillating, Christian and
Anastasia's constant need for sex and each other, despite Anastasia's
inexperience with men (she is a virgin when they meet), speaks more to their
youth and James' need for a salacious page turner than to reality. James makes
each sex scene modern and different, and there is none of the awkwardness that
a reader finds sometimes in other bodice-rippers on the market. In this book,
Christian's sexual needs have become more vanilla, and Anastasia has
developed a taste for the kinky, so they have finally found some middle ground.

It is fascinating watching Christian's journey back to normal from where he
started in the first book, and I'm glad that I read this in order to complete the story
arc in my head. For new readers, however, this should not be the first book they
read in the series, and anyone who has read the other two like I have will be
more than relieved when this one ends that there are no more books in the
series. At least this will be the easiest one for filmmakers to adapt, because its
plot twists are very similar to many TV shows.

Submitted by Gerti