"You'll want to scream,

but you'll be gagged.

You'll want to cry,

but you'll be blindfolded.

You'll want to run away,

but you'll be tied up.

You'll have no way of begging me,

I'll do what I want with you."

"Submission," the controversial novel that, according to "The Sunday Times" (London), "sent tremours through the French establishment," is bound to leave American readers breathless.

Sexual obsession, domination, and dangerous desire drive the story of Elodie, a young married Parisian lawyer who finds herself swept up in a cycle of sadomasochistic lust.

A handsome stranger Elodie meets in court issues her a series of instructions that she feels compelled to follow. He introduces her to sex clubs hidden in dark alleys, toys that enhance physical pleasure as well as pain, and couples whose appetites are as voracious as his. What at first seems out of character for Elodie -- she has a small child at home, after all -- quickly begins to shape her self-identity. As the violence of their encounters escalates, these acts become an addiction she can't bear. But how far can Elodie go . . . and how much of her life will she risk in the process?

This sophisticated and captivating novel exudes the sensuality that only the French can deliver.