[12] Princeton professor April Alliston wrote, "Though no literary masterpiece, Fifty Shades is more than parasitic fan fiction based on the recent Twilight vampire series.

[15] However, The Telegraph criticized the book as "treacly cliché" but also wrote that the sexual politics in Fifty Shades of Grey will have female readers "discussing it for years to come".

"[17] The New Zealand Herald stated that the book "will win no prizes for its prose" and that "there are some exceedingly awful descriptions", but it was also an easy read; "(If you only) can suspend your disbelief and your desire to – if you'll pardon the expression – slap the heroine for having so little self respect, you might enjoy it.

[20] Jessica Reaves, of the Chicago Tribune, wrote that the "book's source material isn't great literature", noting that the novel is "sprinkled liberally and repeatedly with asinine phrases", and described it as "depressing".

asked Los Angeles Times writer Carolyn Kellogg, while a New York Daily News headline read, "Civilization ends: E.L. James named Publishers Weekly's 'Person of the Year'.

"[25] Zap2it's Andrea Reiher expressed frustration at Roiphe's depiction of the series, stating that "[b]eing submissive sexually is not tantamount to being the victim of abuse" or that they're "giving up their power or their equality with their partner".

"[29] Writing in The Huffington Post, critic Soraya Chemaly argued that interest in the series was not a trend, but squarely within the tradition and success of the romance category which is driven by tales of virgins, damaged men and submission/dominance themes.

Instead, she wrote, the books are notable not for transgressive sex but for how women are using technology to subvert gendered shame by exploring explicit sexual content privately using e-readers.

Instead of submission fantasies representing a post-feminist discomfort with power and free will, women's open consumption, sharing and discussion of sexual content is a feminist success.

"[32] Amy Bonomi, a Human Development and Family Studies professor argues that the relationship portrayed is non-consensual: "Unable to bear the thought of being alone, Christian employs strategies to "trap" Anastasia, including keeping his violent tendencies private, limiting Anastasia's availability of help and support from her friends and family through his nondisclosure agreement and through verbal and nonverbal intimidation, and attempts to convince Anastasia that she finds his punishments pleasurable" [33] In March 2012, branches of the public library in Brevard County, Florida, removed copies of Fifty Shades of Grey from their shelves, with an official stating that it did not meet the selection criteria for the library and that reviews for the book had been poor.

[35] In Macaé, Brazil, Judge Raphael Queiroz Campos ruled in January 2013 that bookstores throughout the city must either remove the series entirely from their shelves or ensure that the books are wrapped and placed out of the reach of minors.