The Juliette Society

By Sasha Grey

Four out of Five Stars

I was initially drawn to this book by its title. Realizing it was a work of erotica, the name ‘Juliette’ immediately took me to the infamous novel, Juliette written by the Marquis de Sade; the society in Sasha Grey’s first novel is named after Juliette, the wicked alternative to the Marquis’s other infamous female character, Justine. Having just used the Marquis as inspiration for my latest novel, a thriller, I was intrigued.

While Sasha Grey has been out of the adult movie business now, longer than she was in it (based on an interview I read about her), it seems it has to be mentioned she is a former adult actress in pornographic films. While she has branched out into mainstream movies, and now writing, it really shouldn’t have to be stated, but she can take solace in the fact that both Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are still referred to as ‘Ex-Beatle...” despite the fact they’ve done so much more since then (and, yes, I know, their time as Beatles was significant).

Enough said about Grey’s past. What she’s asking us to do now is spend time with her book and the characters within. The Juliette Society follows Catherine, a college film student in a difficult and troubled relationship, who, out of frustration, and after meeting a sexually promiscuous fellow student named Anna, is dealing with her sexual fantasies and desires. Catherine is the narrator of the novel and is quite open about her sexual desires and thoughts, even to the extent of spending one chapter ruminating on male ejaculate (‘come’ not ‘cum’ in her estimation), which, surprisingly works, giving us further insights into this young woman’s thoughts.

Before I read The Juliette Society, I have to admit I did something I don’t usually do and read a few of the current reviews out there. I found a lot of criticism regarding Catherine’s literary or film references, as if the author was using them as a means of saying, “I’m intelligent...see, I’m intelligent.” I disagree, the Catherine in the book is a college film student, and if any of you have known any first or second year film students, you know they’re quite pretentious, no doubt parroting back the observations of their film professors, often to the point of being annoying. So, in this regard, it’s just good character development, and the references themselves, are excellent and used sparingly enough.

I read criticism that the book is called The Juliette Society and the Society doesn’t appear until halfway through it, and while that is so, and it doesn’t feature as prominently as I might have liked, that didn’t take away from the enjoyment of the book. I’d also read an interview in which it was mentioned Grey may be working on a sequel, so in that regard, I’m sure we’re in store for more – and I will definitely read that sequel as well.

The bottom line is, as a quick read, an erotic and explicit read, which I’m not overly familiar with, or just really isn’t my go-to genre, I enjoyed The Juliette Society. Grey is an excellent author and she has written a highly accessible read. She has a great style and I felt she had developed the character of Catherine wonderfully throughout the novel, as well as added in some interesting and colorful characters for her to interact with.

The Juliette Society didn’t satiate my interest in The Marquis de Sade, but because of that brief reference, it, or his legacy, did lead me to a book I thoroughly enjoyed and in asking me to spend any time with it, Grey has delivered on her part of the bargain by entertaining.