ANSBR: My Thoughts on 50 Shades of Grey

One of my users is a bookworm (I'm using the word in a good way) and she recommended me this way back. It was prior to the influx of fans who fell head over heels over a book that I could not even read halfway.

When I was in high school, the time when most girls begin to imagine romantic things, watch Dawson's Creek and memorize 80s songs* we also formed a habit of reading pocket books. Yes, yes, as embarrassing as it is, I've read Precious Heart Romance pocketbooks and other pocketbooks both foreign and local I can get my hands on. I think it was worth 5 php a day of rent, or if I'm lucky, a classmate would lend me one. You could say for a time my image for a guy was within the boundaries of what pocketbooks describe. I admit, I fell for the trap of imagining I'm the heroine. And that my dear readers, is the only reason why Twilight worked.

BTW I stopped reading this when I became a college student. A few years later, the covers are badly photoshopped images of real actors combined in one photo. Yuck. Who gave that brilliant idea?!

So why am I mentioning Twilight in a 50 Shades of Grey post?

From a reliable source, a.k.a. my user, 50 Shades of Grey is previously named Masters of The Universe (MOTU), which was a fanfic of Twilight. When MOTU garnered that much viewers, names and some parts were changed and then printed onto a book which in turn made it more accessible to more readers which in turn now rumored to become a movie and made a previously fanfic writer a multimillionaire. Sounds very much like Twilight huh?

So I tried to read it. I did try. Page after page I was trying to fall in love with the book. I was trying to put myself into Ana's shoes. I was trying to imagine my boyfriend being Grey. But it's just so wrong. It's just so highschool. It's just what I've already read before.

We start off with an absolutely naive woman who gets an interview with a brooding handsome rich guy that lives in all the romance pocketbooks in the entire universe. That alone and I know deep inside I've outgrown this kind of stuff. Or maybe the presence of my bf made the difference? I was trapped in Twilight before. I was not the screaming 16 year old girl but I did in all fairness imagine myself in Bella's shoes. Until I was doused with a cold water of awareness. FSOG was harder because I've encountered that same old characters so many times ago I just can't develop the same feelings like before.

Stop messing with good actors. (Currently rumored as Grey)

I can still remember how I tried to surreptitiously read the part when the rules of Grey and Ana's relationship was laid. It was something new and taboo in my eyes it was just hard to read on after that. After their first bed scene (or two) together (don't judge me, my user was right that almost every page has s e x** on it) I closed it and have not gotten back to it yet. Not sure if I'd ever again though. I have a friend who loved the book and I can't just say flat to her face how I'm finding it hard to read it.

Oh Hermy, err, Emma, don't. Just don't. (She's currently rumored to play Ana)

Call me innocent or whatever, it's just that BDSM is just too sick for me. Not to mention that the writing is so... what, typical? You'd know a good writer when they don't repeat the same adjectives/adverbs lavishly. Inner Goddess? Come on! The theme is also so typical in romantic novels I've no idea what made this book such a hit. Hasn't anyone read any book like that at all? And what type of  woman with any self respect, and a virgin at that (in the story, Ana has no experience at all) just throws herself to a guy with sick fantasies? Enlighten me please. Enlighten me.



*I'm that without the Dawson's Creek part. I was more of a Charmed girl.
** I'm not sure if Google Ads allow this word so I wrote it this way. Sorry.

NOTE: All images are still linked to their sites :-D