Fanny Hill (Illustrated): Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure

"One of the most prosecuted and banned books in history, it has become a synonym for obscenity". *Special illustrated edition contains 14 illustrations by William Hogarth (1697 - 1764) . The plate prints from his series of paintings 'The Harlot's Progress' and 'The Rake's Progress' perfectly capture the excess and resulting moral decline of mid 17th Century England as classes rich and poor fell to vice and drink, perfectly completing John Cleland's work, herein presented index hyperlinked for ease of reference and viewing pleasure within the table of contents.. 'Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure' tells the story of Fanny Hill who, upon the death of her parents, moves to London at the tender age of 15. Intent on making her as a maid the girl is duped into becoming a prostitute by an unscrupulous madam, Mrs Brown. Intent on selling her virginity to the highest and most esteemed of bidders, Mrs Brown places her at the disposal of Lord B.. From noblemen, drunken sailors, loving lords, and all manner of sexually promiscuous classes in between, Fanny learns the forbidden arts and practices of a skilled companion enough to seduce her one true love. But will she find everlasting happiness in his arms, or will she fall deeper into the excess and depravity. With voyeurism, birching, orgies, and menage-a-many, this genre-defining master-work, written by John Cleland in 1748, will be sure to shock and delight in equal measure now as it did near three centuries ago.