Jane Austen-esque ‘No-spice’ romances exchange steamy scenes for courtship, love, and respect

Today’s no-spice authors aspire to emulate Austen’s appeal.

“What stands out to me is the number of people that want to read something with their teen or tween daughter or niece,” says Ms. Kanter, the bookstore owner. Many of these books “deal with an experience of coming-of-age, of those first relationships. It’s really special and meaningful, I think, for people to read those with their family members who are going through that.”