I survived reading through the first book Fifty Shades of Grey, after which I decided to take a little break from Ana and Christian's kinky romance just for few days. I finally recovered and was ready to take on the second book in the trilogy, Fifty Shades Darker. I was very pleased after reading a few chapters to realize that this book had far less violence in it that the previous one.
The author E.L. James did a very good job when it comes to adding a little more depth to her main two characters. She does this cleverly by slowly revealing to the readers some important details from their past. I actually noticed that my feelings towards Ana and Christian began to change for the better the more that I learnt about their pasts.
In this instalment the whole dynamics of their relationship changes, Ana becomes a much stronger woman and he in turn becomes more romantic. He is in love with her and he is willing to change to keep her, although this is clearly difficult for him to do.
Without giving anything away, I would say the best part of the book for me, was the one intense moment Ana and Christian shared, which ends with the two of them breaking down together. In my eyes, the use of the the word 'Darker' in the title refers to how Christian's past is exposed within the book and not their twisted love and sex life. This book is better read than first one, mostly because the shock factor is subdued and the author concentrates more on developing their love story.
The progression of the story from the first to the second book is very natural. However, after reading this book I now understand why Christian is who he is. Seeing him begin to let Ana into his 'world' is very pleasing. James does an awesome job with the twists in the plot and this made it very difficult to put the book down. I have to admit though, that I still have a few issues with their BDSM lifestyle. My only criticisms would be the amount of repetition, especially with the sex and the often monotone nature of Ana.
Is Fifty Shades Darker worth reading? I definitely would say, yes. The writing leaves much to be desired but the book itself is very exciting. The storyline is actually starting to improve and I can see them making a movie out of this trilogy. Kudos to E.L. James for being able to make the second book even more enjoyable than the first one. I am really looking forward to the last book in the series, Fifty Shades Freed. Bring it on!.
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