Fifty Shades of Grey & Darker Reviewed

I have completed reading two of the three trilogy books in the Fifty Shades series.  I must say, these books took me by surprise.  I was expecting an older targeted audience when reading the story.  It was surprising to discover the main characters were in their twenties.  Not that there is anything wrong with being in your twenties, I just found it hard to believe a successful billionaire would be twenty-seven and as sexually mature as he was in the story.  I envision a man in his thirties to fit better in the character of Mr. Grey, but I guess twenty-seven is what sold the story as a unique tale of maturity in certain aspects and lacking in others.  There were times I struggled with the main character.  I found her to be whiny and difficult to tolerate.  I think the author depicted a young naive woman perfectly.  Ana was the epitome of self doubt.  It was quite an experience of seeing her grow up in a sense throughout the story.  I think many can relate to being young and infatuated which causes us to make stupid decisions or conjure up redundant questions of uncertainty.  The story took a surprising twist for me as it went to from erotic sexually charged to cheesey-ville on steroids.  I'm hoping the next book mulls over the gushy feelings of sunshine and unicorns as it returns to the edge that first appealed to so many who were intrigued to begin reading the series to begin with.  The sexually explicit scenes did not offer any shock value to me personally.  If you find yourself to be quite reserved and blush at the mere mention of sex then you'll want to read these books in the comfort of your own home in order to process the intensity the author is able to portray.  The sex is intense however I found areas to be comical an unrealistic.  You may walk away feeling quite inadequate after reading these books.  Forewarning, this IS a novel written for entertainment.  Entertaining it is.  A part of me wonders if this story is far from the realities of the S&M world as it appears to take on a sugar coated approach to make this story sell better for the average suburban housewife drooling over our beloved Dominant, Mr. Grey.  Overall, I really liked these books.  I found myself reminiscing areas of my all time favorite and controversial novel of it's time, Valley of the Dolls.  If you enjoyed reading Fifty Shades, I highly recommend you indulge in an older version of taboo in print and get comfortable for another intriguing summer read years ahead of it's time.  Would I recommend these books to a friend? Yes.  To my Mother? Probably not.  And if she's read them, I don't want to know. Just kidding, Mom.  LOL.