Venus in Furs and Selected Letters

This was not only a very engaging classic, it was addicting. I could not stop reading it.
It's so interesting that such forms of submission was discussed so long ago, and it was so peculiar at the time that they had to come up with a new word for it - masochism.

Today it means someone who enjoys pain, and while there is a small mention about enjoying pain in this book, Sacher-Masoch mainly talks about submission, and how he enjoys giving up his freedom to a dominating woman.

I especially loved when he says this- 
“‘God did punish him and deliver him to a woman's hands' I repeated to myself. Well, what could I possibly do to make Him punish me?”

“If you love me, be cruel to me” 

If you're curious about the work that gave birth to masochism, it's definitely worth giving this a read. I was fascinated.