Fanny Hill, or Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure - John Cleland

Once again, I have underestimated the potential smuttiness of a classic book. To be honest, I knew nothing about this book going in, although the title and the cover tipped me off. But much as with Lady Chatterly's Lover, I assumed the book would be tame by modern standards. I couldn't have been more wrong - this book is very frank, particularly for something written in the early to mid 1700s. In fact, its raciness got extremely tiresome after a while, because it's so pervasive - the entire book is one encounter after the other. There's some bonus homophobia to boot, which is rather hypocritical and irritating. On the other hand, the writing itself is emblematic of its epoch, and isn't bad, overall. I can see why people consider this a classic, even if it's not something I would normally read. So if you're looking for a racy 18th century novel, this is your book!