The Wall Street Journal reported this weekend that E.L. James’ Fifty Shades trilogy is on track to hit 20 million copies sold in the United States, after just three months on bookstore shelves (it has been available digitally for about four months).
Here are some stats to make your jaw drop even more: It took three years for Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy to sell that many copies. And according to Nielsen BookScan, one out of five “adult-fiction physical books” sold in the United States were part of the trilogy.
Given these massive numbers, there’s a good chance that if you’re reading this blog post, you’ve already fallen under the spell of James’ unlikely couple, college grad Anastasia Steele and billionaire Christian Grey.
Did you read the trilogy, love it and are looking for something new? We recommend Bared to You by Sylvia Day, which is also about a 20-something woman who falls for a billionaire entrepreneur. (I’ve read both Fifty Shades of Grey and Bared to You, and would venture to say that the latter is actually a better read, with more realistic dialogue and equally steamy sex scenes.) By the way, Bared to You may not have sold 20 million copies, but it’s not doing too shabby, either. It’s currently #4 on the New York Times trade paperback bestseller list.
I interviewed Day about her novel and the popularity of erotic romance. You can read her answers here.
If you enjoy erotic romance, you probably don’t need anyone to explain the genre’s popularity. (Perhaps you’ll nod your head at Vintage’s new marketing slogan for the Fifty Shades trilogy: “Reading for pleasure has a whole new meaning.”) If you don’t get the appeal, however, perhaps this excerpt from my Q&A with Sylvia Day will help you understand the phenomenon:
How do you sustain such explosive chemistry between Gideon and Eva for hundreds of pages? Is there a secret to writing sex scenes that continue to excite (rather than bore) readers over the span of a novel?
Emotional resonance—it’s absolutely necessary to writing erotic romance. Sex for sex’s sake is porn. Reading “Tab-A into Slot-B” scenes would be boring and repetitive. Each sexual scene has to further the story and character arcs. There has to be a goal to the interaction and a resolution (aside from physical climax!). For many of my characters, they lack the ability to communicate effectively verbally, so they show how they feel through sexual interaction. There’s a story in the way they communicate with their bodies and that’s what makes the sex hot. [Continue reading . . .]
Are you a fan of the Fifty Shades trilogy? What books would you recommend to someone who loves E.L. James’ books?
I couldn’t agree more with the article! I love Fifty Shades of Grey and read the whole series in just under 3 weeks! And I just finished Bared to you in 3 days! haha! The storyline is amazing just like Fifty Shades of Grey but I agree… the dialogue between characters is more realistic (compared to Fifty) and I find the backgrounds of all characters are highly detailed and very unique and very real! I also love how secondary characters have just as many dark secrets as the main characters do; making this story line more believable as well.
I highly recommend this book and I’m excited for the sequel this october! 
I also finished bared to you in 3 days!!! 50 shades in about 3 weeks also. Now what till October lol??????
Hi! I hope i can find bared in my country. I finished 50 shades in 4 days!
My summer reading is not to great. I did enjoy Girls in White dresses and Blue nights.
i agree with the article. i finished bared to you in one day and now am eager for october for the sequel to be released. i believe it is more realistic and life like than fifty shades but i do love fifty shades still. i also advise reading the marriage bargin, it is a great read i think thou it is a short book.
another book i recommend is beautiful disaster im totally into it right now.
is it like beard to you
i would say that Bared to you and reflected in you ( the NO2) are better and cant wait till the 3rd, but Beautiful Disaster was a good story of obsession and passion.
I read the Fifty Shades Trilogy in 6 days… Now I am going to take the advice of this site and read Bared to You. Thanks for the advice!
I also read Bared to You after the Fifty trilogy and really liked it. Another book I found even more intriguing is The Billionaire’s Desire by Ashley Blake. The sex scenes are steamy but not graphic, and the interaction between the main characters Joshua and Sarah is so captivating. Waiting for the last book to be released!
I’ve read Fifty Shades, which I loved and Bared to You shortly after…a bit too similar, but enjoyed it all the same. I’ve since read Gabriel’s Inferno by Sylvain Reynard and the sequel Gabriel’s Rapture – loved both of them. Well worth a read! It lacks in ‘smutt’ but has a lovely romantic storyline. Beautiful Disaster is also good, but frustrating at times with ‘will they won’t they get their act together?’. The Bride Stripped Bare by Nikki Gemmel, dispute the raving reviews I thought was terrible! Really did not like the writing style… So give that a miss! Ive also read 80 days yellow, very erotic, but lacks a good storyline and I wasn’t much for the characters in it. Overall, i would recommend Gabriel’s Inferno…
Just finished bared to you. When is the sequel coming.i got so wrapped up into the charecters i cant wait to know what happens.cked web site cant find any info.please dont keep us waiting too long.im pulling for gidion and eva
No, I didn’t read it.
(1) I don’t read first person present tense stories.
(2) I don’t read badly-written books.
(3) I never read anything that isn’t better than anything I’ve ever written, not that my writing is excellent, it’s just entertaining.
(4) If I want to be excited erotically, I talk to my wife. There is nothing like the real thing.
And I never read best sellers, especially from The New York Times, once bitten…
I read Gabriel’s inferno after 50 shades! Deffinately a great read!!!!
I really enjoyed Killing Time by Elle Chardou. Very hot book (better than 50 Shades as far as I am concerned) because it had a plot. It’s a murder mystery but has steamy sex, a very sexy mysterious BDSM club owner who falls for a hot journalist with brains (imagine that). I thought it was unique and well written. I read 50 Shades but this novel blew me away.
If you loved FSG and Crossfire series. you must read ‘This Man’ Jodi Ellen Malpas a great read
Oh check out Fire After Dark book 1 and Secrets After Dark book 2 by Sadie Matthews
I just read the most amazing book in a while, its brand new, it’s called ‘I am HER…’ by Sarah Ann Walker. The book was so good, I read the whole thing yesterday and all night through. I strongly recommend it to anyone. Its totally sexy, but really, really dark in parts. I was even a little uncomfortable, but the ending shocked me totally. I can’t find anything else on this author, but her book was AWESOME!! I strongly suggest it to anyone who likes steamy, and funny, but with a really intense story line!! Oh, and its written really well!
Wait till the Glass Towers Trilogy comes out December 10th! Ran across the website promo ….coming out December 10, 2012! http://www.glasstowerstrilogy.blogspot.com
Sounds Hot!!! Can’t Wait!!
On Dublin Street by Samantha Young was very good! Great storyline!