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2.94 AVERAGE
2.94 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Well, I can see why this was banned for so long - it's explicit even by our standards. These old-timey depictions of sex can be pretty funny, though.
On the other hand, Fanny is only 15-18 during the events of the book, which can be pretty squicky for the modern reader. I'm going to include a trigger warning for 18th-century human trafficking, rape, attempted rape, and dubious consent. But I was surprised by how well it handled BDSM. There was a discussion of boundaries and concern about consent, which is way more than you can say for 50 Shades of Gray.
I found this vintage paperback edition at a thrift store. It's apparently the first legal publication of Fanny Hill in the United States.
On the other hand, Fanny is only 15-18 during the events of the book, which can be pretty squicky for the modern reader. I'm going to include a trigger warning for 18th-century human trafficking, rape, attempted rape, and dubious consent. But I was surprised by how well it handled BDSM. There was a discussion of boundaries and concern about consent, which is way more than you can say for 50 Shades of Gray.
I found this vintage paperback edition at a thrift store. It's apparently the first legal publication of Fanny Hill in the United States.
challenging
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
After reading the back cover (you start where you want), you might think you will read a whole erotic story longer than those inserted in magazines placed high up in bookstores.
Close your gaping mouths, put your two hands on the table, and open your gutters wide (and your legs then, if you like, all that is none of our business).
Before getting to the heart of the matter, we have over 100 pages (out of 220) of introduction to this Fanny Hill's memories.
Yes, it gives the most extended foreplay in the history of the erotic book, without a doubt!
Close your gaping mouths, put your two hands on the table, and open your gutters wide (and your legs then, if you like, all that is none of our business).
Before getting to the heart of the matter, we have over 100 pages (out of 220) of introduction to this Fanny Hill's memories.
Yes, it gives the most extended foreplay in the history of the erotic book, without a doubt!
Considering this was recommended to me during a lecture on Romantic eroticism, I didn't go into it expecting a swoon-at-explicit-sex-scenes novel (thank God). I liked Fanny - while she definitely wasn't a femme fatale figure, she was free with pleasure and unashamed by her natural impulses. By this point in my life I have had enough of moralistic heroines who consider themselves defiled because of a kiss, which made the women in this novel a breath of fresh air. The plot was mildly annoying despite how realistic it doubtless is. A woman of Fanny's age, station and talents would rely on being a mistress/being desired, which translates to relying on men, so understandably she does not decide she'd be better off without her biological counterparts, which was a complaint I came across when I was reading other reviews. Keeping in mind the time period in which this novel was written, it is remarkably forward thinking (whether or not it condones or endorses Fanny's lifestyle). A major drawback to this story, however, was the language. Most of the time it was passably acceptable, but during the sex scenes Cleland's scientific imagery just couldn't be overlooked. He made what should have been an erotic novel read like an instruction manual, and if you don't actively engage with the content it is so easy to grow bored. Because of issues with the language, which was a serious problem for me, I've only given Fanny Hill three stars.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
adventurous
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Fell a sleep listening to as well as reading.
I think this was one of, if not the first, smut rags. It's actually pretty boring, even though there's porn on every page.
I read this mostly out of curiosity. The story itself was not terribly engaging, mostly there to tie the sex scenes together as is the way with porn. The sex scenes themselves were both flowery and gross. I admittedly had a hard time following the excessively verbose and "poetic" descriptions of the scenes and when I could it was generally on the more messy, unsexy parts of the action. The moral of this story: Don't read 18th Century porn expecting it to be sexy...
18th century 50 Shades, with better writing. meh.