Fifty Shades of Grey

Book One of the Fifty Shades Trilogy

By: E. L. James

Narrated by: Becca Battoe

Length: 19 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

More than 150 million copies sold worldwide.

When literature student Anastasia Steele goes to interview young entrepreneur Christian Grey, she encounters a man who is beautiful, brilliant, and intimidating. The unworldly, innocent Ana is startled to realize she wants this man and, despite his enigmatic reserve, finds she is desperate to get close to him. Unable to resist Ana’s quiet beauty, wit, and independent spirit, Grey admits he wants her, too - but on his own terms.

Shocked yet thrilled by Grey’s singular erotic tastes, Ana hesitates. For all the trappings of success - his multinational businesses, his vast wealth, his loving family - Grey is a man tormented by demons and consumed by the need to control. When the couple embarks on a daring, passionately physical affair, Ana discovers Christian Grey’s secrets and explores her own dark desires.

This audiobook is intended for mature audiences.

Look for E L James’ passionate new love story, The Mister, coming April 16, 2019.

©2011 E L James (P)2012 Random House

Critic reviews

• Finalist, GoodReads Choice Awards, Best Romance

Production values seemed lacking

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I enjoyed the books but the audio version sounded amateurish. The narrator was likely selected because she sounded young, and that makes sense, because the heroine starts out as a college aged, innocent and unsophisticated girl. But, Christian, the hero, is anything but innocent. He is powerful and very rich businessman, under rigid control, very confident and privately tormented by his past. This does not come across at all. The sexual tension, the slow buildup of emotion, the growing trust all have a single value in this version of the book. I was disappointed and will not buy the rest of the series in an audio format.

If this started it all...?

Mature content for a child to be living...
if this started it all .... I get it because I've read WAY better stories than this.... that included the Dom/Sub life, and those that didn't It's not as shocking as others I've read, or as erotic. A beginners course...
Becca sounds just like the "inner goddess"(child) Anna was.... I got real tired of the goddess.... grow the hell up!

My point of View

Would you listen to Fifty Shades of Grey again? Why?

Yes

Who was your favorite character and why?

Christian Grey. Because he is handsome, kind hearted, and sexy.

Have you listened to any of Becca Battoe’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No I have not. I think she did a good job as one person portraying so many characters.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes

Any additional comments?

When reading the 1st book of "Fifty Shades" I was not that impressed at first. I thought some of the writing was childish and immature. Indeed I did have a few laughs and wondered if I would continue with this audio. As I continued to read and started on the 2nd book I feel I developed a deeper understanding of the characters and where the plot was going. Anna Steele starts out as a 21 year old, that has no real since of the world or life. That's how it is when we're 21 years old, you say and think silly things, you're still growing emotionally. Christian Grey, our main character, experienced trauma as a child. What happens to us as children can stay with us for a lifetime. His issues were very realistic. I think that throughout the 3 novels, paragraphs of brilliant writing presented themselves between the eroticism, love, humor, and mystery.Oh the eroticism Oh what can I say. Sex, porn, love - whatever one chooses to call it. It was wonderfully portrayed between two consenting adults, boyfriend and girlfriend, then husband and wife. If in realty we could sustained that type of want and love in our relationships, amidst the passing years, the children, life getting in our way - wow.In my final analysis - This audio made me realize I want love in my life, after denying that to myself for so long. Nothing else replaces love and being truly connected when making love.

Loved every minute of it!

To all the nay sayers, this book is an EROTIC ROMANCE novel. If the romance genre doesn't interest you, don't read this book; you won't be satisfied. If you find erotic novels offensive, you're going to be offended by this book. I've read a lot of reviews from people who aren't into romance books or erotic novels. I'm wondering what these people thought they would be getting???

That said, for those of us who are romance readers..it's amazing. I loved every second of it. I found the characters compelling and loved watching as their relationship developed. This isn't really about BDSM. It's about two people learning how to love each other. Lots of fun for those of us who like this kind of book.

I've listened to thousands of audiobooks. I actually have two Audible accounts just so I can purchase more credits at a time. The Fifty Shades novels are among my absolute favorites. I love to relisten to them while I'm deciding which book from my library will be my next listen. It's guaranteed fun and I pick up something new every time.

Thank you E.L. James!!

Excellent Experience and Title for My First Audio

Where does Fifty Shades of Grey rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

The first and best

What was one of the most memorable moments of Fifty Shades of Grey?

Captivating storyline.

What does Becca Battoe bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

She translates Ana's innocence well.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

yes.

Any additional comments?

The frequent use of certain words in the story was a little irritating. Like: palpable, oh my, hooded, thin line.

Don't miss this .

Loved it. Was my third time listening to it. a Wonderful LOVE story. Need more.

A must read book!!!!!!

My friend told me that I must read the books sense I have loved the movies so much. My friend said that the books are so much better and have way more details in them, that I will not want to put it down!! And of course my friend was right, I couldn't stop!! I can't wait to start on book number two!! I just got to know what I have missed that wasn't in the movies!!!!
Everything was definitely a 10 out of 10!! I also give Becca Battoe a 4 star, she did a fantastic job. I will be listening to the next book with her doing the reading for sure!
I can not really say what my favorite part of this story was because it just kept getting better and better as the story went on. so I guess the book it self is my favorite part. I will have to read/listen to the other books to compare them!
I want to think "E. L. James" for such an amazing story!

so glad I bought it

it made my traveling awesome and less boring. time few by and it was so much better to use my imagination

Spellbound

At first I thought it was poorly written and kind of juvenile, but then I could not stop listening to it. The story will captivate your heart and make you want "more", this is to say nothing of the sex scenes.

Good reader, irritating persona

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I constantly get irritated about Ana saying "holy sh*t" to EVERYTHING! It is very old, and I don't think it is coherent to her overall persona

Would you recommend Fifty Shades of Grey to your friends? Why or why not?

I would maybe recommend fifty shades of grey to some of my friends, and only because it is hot reading and very sexy - not because of the story-line in such.

Have you listened to any of Becca Battoe’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

i have not

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

maybe