The Pleasure Chateau [Old Edition]

Jeremy Reed proves he can write decadent fiction with "The Pleasure Chateau Omnibus." Imagine Huysmans writing a contemporary novel, that is Reed at his best. Between sumptuous set pieces that are marvels of decadent description (Leanda's banquet in "The Pleasure Chateau", Sade's various chambers in "Sister Midnight", and all of "The Purple Room") there are ferocious passages of savage eroticism. Bondage, whipping, orgies, excess, and luxury all combine in a cognac of the highest eroticism. This is literate porn at its most literate, since Reed chooses to extend the literary tradition of masters like Sade, Sacher-Masoch, Huysmans, Baudelaire, David Bowie, and Rimbaud. He is part of that tradition and that traditionalism is what makes the trilogy so radical. There is introspection and emotion, but definitely not of the "Bridges of Madison County" variety. If you like philosophy with delicious dollops of unbridled sexual frenzy, this is the novel for you.