Grey: Fifty Shades of Grey as told by Christian Paperback – 18 Jun. 2015

Reviewed by Sharon Thérèse Nuttall on behalf of Kindle Friends ForeverI’m sure you've all read FSOG, FSD and FSF. Otherwise you wouldn't be reading this review, would you? Nevertheless, for those of you that are hemming or hawing about whether or not to one-click, the essence and thoughts of one of the most desired book lovers since Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice or Mr. Rochester in Jane Eyre, is in present day, Grey. I would never endeavour to compare Christian with these classic characters. Far from it; however, I'm simply stating an actual fact. James’ books took the book world by storm and broke boundaries; book virgins succumbed to her devilish penmanship which left us in awe! Us ladies thanked her for “letting the cat out of the bag” and wondered how on earth we’d managed to get by since the subject seemed to be such a taboo one. Up until, of course, her liberating first publication! By breaking down these boundaries, she’d indirectly done so many of us a huge favour. How many authors have sprung up; henceforth offering us outstanding reads? Becoming successful writers regardless of whether or not their books were or still are being self-published, simply means they have the guts to take the plunge and have enough confidence to do so. And for those few lucky authors that now have a publisher, does actually enter into the equation, because there is a before and after.How many of you have read the above mentioned books twice, too? And I’m absolutely sure that if you did, it was just before the movie was released. Demand for Christian’s point of view was rife and the author has given us exactly what we'd asked for. So folks, this is my honest and down to earth opinion about Grey. My candid viewpoint regarding the author’s writing, too.I would be fibbing if I didn’t admit to having doubts about Grey’s stance in the first half of the book. Only my buddy reader’s advice who was one step ahead of me, seemed to slow and calm me down, make me savour this read more. Text messages flew quicker than you can say Bob's your uncle and I am forever grateful for her patience. I can honestly say that this read is a fan-freakin’-tastic one, and I really did enjoy it more than the first three books. It’s more refined, more polished and the more I advanced, the more I loved it. Mundane chores were literally put on standby. And all these goings on were pm’d to Rachel. Forever unbiased regarding books.Christian. Humph! He does repeat himself a tad but I really think he’s trying to convince himself that his with relationship Anastasia, for want of a better word, could work. He suffers so damn much that you have to have a heart made of stone for his feelings not to affect you.Christian: ~ "Oh baby, don't give up on me. Give it a try."In fact, I wasn't so worried about Ana as she was always given a choice. She wants what he can’t give her, he wants what she can’t give him. And here we have a catch twenty-two situation. What I adored more than anything was the spunky banter between the two of them. At times, the emails fly between them like grease lightening; Ana always revealing her innermost feelings. Since confessing them face to face with Christian could perhaps be the cause for his ire, she's wisely treads softly by texting him. Softly but with humour and innuendos that left me grinning from ear to ear.Ana: ~ "I don't remember reading about nipple clamps in the Bible. Perhaps you were taught from a modern translation."She is a dilemma. She is like nothing he has ever encountered and his confusion is therefore ten-fold. Although he wants her absolute submission, it takes time for him to admit to himself that just maybe Ana won't be that woman. You know his wants are to say the least, "particular". Nevertheless, when the crux of the matter is presented on a silver plate, he oversteps the mark resulting in an omnishambles because deep down, he thought she was his to have.Christian ~ "Anastasia, you should steer clear of me. I'm not the man for you."The author’s descriptive writing is nothing less than awesome. Her characters’ personalities come alive so much more than in her previous books. And to say all their physical appearances are vividly portrayed would be putting it mildly. I didn't see Jamie or Dakota either. I saw Christian and Anastasia.Christian: ~ "Do I dare to hope ? Damn it. Yes, I do."Two beautiful people trying their hardest to reach each other’s souls; reach a happy medium. Now then, the bedroom scenes! Did I say bedroom? Well, they may not be doing what two lovers do in the most conventional of places but that is neither here nor there as they are hot, hot, scorching hot and I can't remember getting my knickers in such a twist in FSOG? No…I truly can’t! And below is our reaction after reading the last two lines in Grey.Sharon texting Rachel: Noooooooooo! No, no, no. Cursing in English, Spanish, French. Shitte! Mierda, Merde. She can't leave it like this. Okay, my ratings gone up 'cause the ending was so flabbergasting; frustrating! 4.5.Rachel texting Sharon: Just say it!! F--- noooooooooooooo, there; that's how I felt, can't hold back.(Smiley winking at me which I could have gladly punched in the face!)Sharon texting Rachel: Double f---!Rachel texting Sharon: She has to write Darker from his POV! Be fab as Leila comes into that one.Sharon texting Rachel: Thank god for that! Yeah, she's been very canny with the ending.The reason I got myself so wound up towards the finale; and I do admit to loving an ending that makes me want to vent my frustrations, was the unexpected cliffy. "Unexpected you say?" "But we all know the story!" I hadn't, for one minute, done my calculations correctly. Finishing where it did and how it did, knocked me backwards. That last three-quarters of an hour's read sold me! I liked Grey beyond words Ms. James. So one word from a humble reviewer who was itching to get her thoughts on paper as soon as she’d finished texting her buddy reader... BRAVO!Fav quote.Anna: ~ "So you're not going to punish me?"Christian: ~ " No. I'm an in the moment kind of guy."

Absolutely loved this version of Fifty Shades of Grey from Christians perspective. It’s been years since I read the books from Ana’s perspective but this did not spoil my enjoyment. Loved this so much, now to start on Darker.

Up until a quarter of the way into this book I was unexpectedly shell shocked at how underwhelmed I was at experiencing the phenomenon that was FSOG from the POV of Mr Grey. It's a given for me to always revel in the delight of reading a story from the male character's prospective, and the idea for E. L James to do this story from Christian Grey's POV, had me chomping at the bit to get stuck in, and get inside the head of the real Mr Grey. However, to my initial dismay, compared to the first time when I read the first instalment from Anastasia Steele's POV, where from the get-go, I was caught up in the whirlwind of the seduction of the story, on this occasion, I didn't immediately find a connection. The main reason for my dislike was the constant annoying inner voice of Grey himself to which E L James decided to opt for a copy cat approach she adopted in the original series with Anastasia.... "Get a grip Grey"... "Getting a ahead of yourself Grey"Would the the extraordinaire that is, Mr Grey really say things like that? It was bad enough, and barely tolerable with Ana's 'inner Goddess'. When having to read 'the one and only' Mr Grey's inner voice it came across somewhat lame and was unfitting to his perceived magnetism and allure that E. L James successfully achieved in the original trilogy.Fortunately, things really began to change for the better after a quarter of way through. Somehow the story was no longer on its axis, and righted itself. Just when needed, I was once again catapulted into that familiar place I remembered from the first FSOG reading experience, where I was in awe of Christian, and was immersed in their journey, his complexities and his budding love for Anastasia Steele.Despite the annoyance of Christian Grey's ill-fitting inner voice with which continued to prevail throughout the book, one big noticeable difference to this book compared to original was the improvement in the prose. Notwithstanding the aforementioned, I found E L James' depiction of Mr Grey executed with flair and proficiency.Where I initially thought I wouldn't be interested in reading any potential sequels to Grey that E L James may decide to write, I'm now hopeful that she does and I can't wait!!!!Grey is a must read for all FSOG fans - albeit with a little initial perseverance!