This collection of letters offers a fascinating insight into a very intense and sexual affair in the mid 1900s between a married man and a woman in Paris. One of the things that can be appreciated about this collection is that it shows that sexual pleasures such as BDSM etc. are nothing new to humanity, no matter what books like 50 Shades of Grey might like to tell us.

However, I'm still conflicted about Berthault's interpretation of these letters. On the one hand there is definitely a sense in which all these sexual activities are continued by Simone to keep her lover by her side. On the other hand, the letters also make clear how he initially stirs these in her and she then opens herself up to that side of her sexuality. In a way these letters read as a woman becoming more empowered by her own sexuality, taking on a male role in the bedroom and loving the power that comes with that. The fact her lover seems very conflicted about this is fascinating from a Gender Studies point of view, so I will definitely be thinking about this collection from that perspective for a long time.