Driven by the dazzling success of literary and cinematographic sagas such as that of 50 Shades of Greythe erotic book genre has experienced a renaissance in recent years. Or maybe it has always been there, operating in secret, hidden among other works as a guilty pleasure to be enjoyed alone, late at night. Since the end of the 18th century,e century and the novels of the Marquis de Sade, erotic books have undergone multiple metamorphoses, evoking with these transformations the changes in the way of telling and living amorous passions.
Popular while retaining a slight whiff of scandal, they now dominate the top spots in bookstores and become franchises prized by readers. As the new adaptation ofEmmanuelle with Noémie Merlant, GQ wanted to offer you a selection of the best erotic books to read to add a little spice to your days and evenings.
Justine or the misfortunes of virtue by the Marquis de Sade (1791)
The Marquis de Sade is responsible for some of the most controversial, subversive and highly erotic works ever written in French literature. Justine or the misfortunes of virtue is no exception to the rule, even if it is not his most violent or shocking. The novel tells the story and sexual disappointments of Justine, a sweet and naive young woman who guides her life according to her morals. More than two centuries after its publication, Marquis de Sade’s novel remains a monument of erotic literature, which masterfully mixes the scandalous with the sordid.
Gamiani or two nights of excess by Alfred de Musset (1833)
Riding the “mommy porn” wave that is sweeping bookstores, La Bourdonnaye, a young publisher from the digital world, has republished classics of erotic literature. In prose and verse, they are signed by the greatest names in French literary heritage. Musset (Gamiani), Verlaine (Men), Maupassant (At the pink leaf, Turkish house)… His texts, which are over a century old, often turn out to be more salacious than the latest American productions. Even disturbing as The Eleven Thousand Yards by Guillaume Apollinaire, in which pleasure flirts with pain. The Manual of Civility for Little Girls for Use in Educational Homes by Pierre Louÿs would be banned outright today in view of its borderline title and its explicit text: “When you tell all your filthy stories to the good priest who is listening to you, don’t ask him if it makes him hard.”
Lady Chatterley’s Lover by DH Lawrence (1928)
A classic of erotic literature, often copied but never equaled, Lady Chatterley’s Lover has been the subject of many adaptations (still in 2022 on Netflix with Emma Corrin). But it is always better to return to the original work. The novel tells the story of a young married woman, Constance, Lady Chatterley, whose husband has become paralyzed and sexually impotent. To escape this monotonous life, Constance begins a fiery affair with the gamekeeper, Oliver Mellors. First censored in its home country before becoming a real bestseller, Lady Chatterley’s Lover tells with great virtuosity and passion a budding love story and the meeting of two bodies in search of intimacy. A must-read for any fan of this kind of book.
Story of O by Pauline Réage (1954)
Published under the name of Pauline Réage, the pseudonym of Dominique Aury who would recognize the work almost 40 years after its publication, Story of O follows a woman, taken by her lover to a castle where she submits for love to various men. She is humiliated in many different ways: whipped, publicly delivered to other men, even to the point of being branded with the initials of her “owner”. She enjoys this absolute submission. Banned at the time of its publication and sold clandestinely, the book took advantage of its stormy reputation to become one of the most popular erotic novels of all time. In 1955, Story of O was awarded the prestigious Deux Magots prize.
Crash! by JG Ballard (1973)
Wonderfully adapted for the cinema by David Cronenberg in 1996, Crash! by JG Ballard remains one of the wildest and most sensual novels of the 70s. The book tells the story of people whose sexual fantasy is the car accidents that happen every day. Analyzed in detail, the accidents and the injuries they cause are admired by these people who look at the crumpled metal like malleable bodies. A fascinating novel about the connection between men and technology, the thrill of excitement and the fear it can simultaneously provoke.
Orgasm by Chuck Palahniuk (2014)
In OrgasmChuck Palahniuk, author of Fight Clubspoils the rather wise plot of 50 Shades of Grey. We find the white goose (Penny) and the billionaire (Maxwell). He tests on her sex toys very different from those of Grey. High-tech gadgets or enema bulbs replace the branded whips. “All the sexual secrets of the old world, he was about to sell them to the modern woman,” notes the heroine… Except that this billionaire has a Machiavellian plan. His products contain nano-robots which, in addition to causing serial orgasms in their users, make them slaves to whom he can sell anything. To foil his plan, Penny will have to face him in a sexual duel somewhere between The Empire of the Senses And Kill Bill. A funny, subversive novel that is ultimately more realistic than the bestseller with its “nuances.” No, powerful men who want to sexually enslave innocent young women are not necessarily motivated by pure intentions.
Little girl’s story by Sacha Sperling (2016)
Sacha Sperling published his first novel at the age of 19. In 2009, in My illusions overlook the courtyardhe recounted the cocaine parties and sexual games of the students of the prestigious Ecole Alsacienne (renamed Ecole Lorraine, but that didn’t fool anyone). In 2013, in I lost what I lovedit was about prostitution in the Parisian golden youth. Change of scenery with this Little girl’s story (the male imagination certainly doesn’t change much over time) the story of the rise of a porn star who “has the bank account of Donald Trump and the mouth of Donald Duck.” And above all who “has a plan” to become famous. Clinical and heartfelt (Sperling seems to know Los Angeles well, where his half-brother Alexandre Aja is a filmmaker), his novel turns the usual clichés on their head by telling the Machiavellian story of a porn star who abuses men.
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