Apr 23 2014
How much sex do you want in #romance novels?
I’ve had a file sitting on my Kobo for a couple of years. It’s quite a popular book in the gay romance genre, and the plot involving sports and a closeted athlete is right up my alley. So what’s the problem? Well, according to multiple reviews the sex is fade to black, with only kissing on the page. One reader commented on how “clean” the book is.
No sex, no service
Every so often I pull this book up on my ereader and think I should finally give it a try. (I did this past weekend, and stared at the cover for a few minutes before choosing something else.) It’s not that I don’t believe all those glowing five star reviews, and I’m sure I’d enjoy the story. But it’s almost 400 pages. And there’s NO SEX? It’s a roadblock for me every time.
I’ve read countless books of that length or longer that didn’t have sex in them, but the key is that they were not romances. With a romance the rest of the plot is secondary and the main thrust (if you will) of the story is the connection between these characters. When I’m investing in a couple, I want the sex. It’s not just about titillation, although that is part of it. Certainly I do read (and write) erotic romance because it’s hot and I enjoy it.
Show me the money feelings
But the major issue for me with off-page sex is that as a reader I’m missing out on a vital aspect of the couple’s relationship. I want to see them connect in every way — not just in the physical aspect of sex, but the emotional facet. I want to see the tenderness (or roughness), and hear what they say to each other, and know what they’re thinking, and how they’re feeling.
When they kiss and then wake up the next morning with cuddles, I feel cheated. It’s like the author invites us into these characters’ lives, but then shuts the door in our faces when we get to the bedroom. I don’t want endless sex with no meaning, as that just gets boring. I think there’s certainly a happy medium. The sex doesn’t even have to be explicit. An author doesn’t need to use frank language to get across how the characters are feeling while they have sex.
Of course this is my personal preference to always show sex in romances, and to each their own. I know there are plenty of authors and readers out there who don’t want to write or read sex in their romance novels. How about you?
