E.L. James is rewriting Fifty Shades of Grey from Christian Grey's point of view


Just when it looked like the Fifty Shades of Grey saga might be over, E.L. James has announced a new novel set in the Fifty Shades-iverse: Grey.
Well, "new" might be a little too generous. Grey isn't writing a sequel about Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele starting a loving family together, or a prequel about Christian Grey's life as a young S&M enthusiast. It's a full retelling of the original novel — but from Christian's perspective instead of Anastasia's. "Christian is a complex character and readers have always been fascinated by his desires and motivations, and his troubled past," said James in a statement. "Also, as anyone who has ever been in a relationship knows, there are two sides to every story."
Those with long memories might recall that this is exactly what Twilight author Stephenie Meyer once planned to do (write Twilight but from Edward Cullen's perspective) — and don't forget that Fifty Shades of Grey began life as a piece of Twilight fan fiction. How many years can you get away with imitating before it stops being the sincerest form of flattery?
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Grey will be published on June 18.
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Scott Meslow is the entertainment editor for TheWeek.com. He has written about film and television at publications including The Atlantic, POLITICO Magazine, and Vulture.
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