I read Boulder by Eva Baltasar after hearing booktuber Jack Edwards say it contains the best sex scene in all of literature.
I liked the book a lot but I guess my definition of great sex scene is very different to his. I kept waiting for it and I still don't know which scene he's exactly talking about.
That makes me wonder: in your opinion, which book contains the greatest sex scene in literature?
by Purple_Paperplane
11 Comments
The Name Of The Rose, maybe?
Certainly not anything by Ken Follett. I enjoy his books but the sex scenes are absolutely cringe-worthy. They generally go something like this:
“He lifted up her tunic and she was oh so wet. He threw her on the haystack and entered her, and she immediately had the greatest orgasm of her life.”
Every. Time.
Madame Bovary
Belinda blinked – Rocky Flintstone
“Story of O” has lots of sex scenes, not sure if consider D/S “Great.”
This is going to very person to person but this is why booktok is pretty popular. A spicy book is a fun book.
I’d recommend Fourth Wing as at least a fun romantacy with spice but it’s not what I’d consider a spicy book. It has a few solid scenes throughout the series.
Your dad will do by Katee Robert or really anything by her is spicy with a tiny bit of plot if that’s what you’re looking for. Birthday girl by Penelope Douglas more plot but definitely spicy.
I think the Outlander series has a lot of good ones.
Love in times of cholera has a sex scene where one of the main characters has sex with a woman who liked to suck on pacifiers when she orgasmed. I thought that was funny.
I think Clive Barker knows how to write sex scenes.
It really depends on what is meant by “literature”. That usually excludes any genre fiction, including romance or erotica.
I really like a lot (not all) of the sex scenes in ASOIAF. In particular the post wedding non sex scene between Sansa and Tyrion, where Tyrion is grappling with his responsibility to the house, his moral reticence to commit marital rape and his primal lust. I just think that’s a great scene which contains sexual themes, really shows you a lot about the character and is very honest characterful writing.
Then my personal fave is the scene between Sam and Gilly on the boat in AFFC. I just thought that was great, really tapped into the humanity and agency of Gilly as a character where she realised she would have to force the issue before Sam ever would. I just like how raw and unfiltered and awkward it all is. I like a writer who is able to capture the complexities and awkwardness of sex as well as the excitement and intimacy. Sex is not just about sex, it’s about what we do with vulnerability and who we are in private.