Venus in Furs – a book review

I sheepishly admit that I have only recently read the iconic book Venus in Furs. Written in 1870 by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch, the novella is a FemDom staple and in fact the term masochist originates from the author’s name. I am not sure why I hadn’t read it before. Maybe I balked because it was written so long ago. Maybe I thought I already knew the story, but after learning a bit about Sacher-Masoch’s real life (he desperately wanted to be cuckolded by his wife), I decided to read it. Of course I wanted the Sardax version with all the beautiful illustrations but it took a while to arrive, so I started one of the more readily available interpretations from the original German.

The book was a quick and relatively easy read. The story, for those that are unfamiliar, is about a young man that is obsessed with thoughts of a dominant and cruel woman. Like many fetishes, Severin’s was born in adolescence when an aunt, dressed in fur, harshly punished him and from that point forward his sexuality was intertwined with that experience. He dreams of a woman he can call his own that would treat him in this manner. Hopefully the incongruity in that statement is not lost on you, as it was Severin.

Enter Wanda. After admiring Wanda from afar and transferring his fantasies onto her, the two eventually develop a relationship and Severin confides his desires. This is the classic tale of be careful what you wish for and Wanda takes Severin on a physically and mentally cruel journey that he both hates and loves. There is a quite a twist to the end of the story that I don’t want to give away – and it is worth reading to the end to observe the reckoning of fantasy versus reality. The story is not salacious. In fact the depictions of sex do not go beyond the occasional kiss or embrace. Instead it’s a journey into mental and physical domination, laced with obsession.

So I read the version by Fernanda Savage and right on the heels of finishing it the Sardax translation arrived. I thumbed through the book, enjoying the gorgeous art. Simply out of curiosity, just to see how Sardax’s interpretation compared to the other book, I read the first chapter and I was sucked right back in. I can’t quite put My finger on why I liked the Sardax version so much more. Maybe it was because the sentence structures were less archaic. Maybe it was because Sardax really understands Femdom. Regardless, it pulled Me back into the story and I enjoyed it even more the second time around.

If you haven’t read Venus in Furs, treat yourself and order the Sardax translation with illustrations.