Books With Great Sex Writing

You might think writing a sex scene is easy, but try it and you’ll find it isn’t. Whose arm goes where? Can he really get his dick in from that position? Whoops, she now has three legs.

Read a poorly-written sex scene and you’ll know you’re reading a poorly-written sex scene. Read a great sex scene and you won’t realise you’re reading great sex until you look up from the book, feeling slightly flushed and a little horny.

Here are some books with exceptionally well-written sex scenes:

The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden

Set in post-war Netherlands, Isabel’s orderly life is upturned when her brother drops off his girlfriend at Isabel’s door. Expect realistic, sensual and gut-punching sex between the two women.

“She thought: I can hold you and find that I still miss your body. She thought: I can listen to you speak and still miss the sound of your voice.”

The Vegetarian by Han Kang

Overnight, Yeong-hye decides to give up meat, much to the frustration and dismay of her family. While trying to understand Yeong-hye’s decision, her brother-in-law draws her into his artistic world where desire, taboo and artistic vision collide.

“Perhaps the only things he truly loved were his images – those he had filmed, or then again, perhaps only those he had yet to film.”

Normal People by Sally Rooney

Connell and Marianne are in different circles at school until one afternoon they sleep together. They try to conceal it from their peers until a year later at university, they meet again. Drifting and returning to each other, Connell and Marianne’s story explores the magnitude of first love.

“Then he lifts her hand to his mouth and kisses it. She feels pleasurably crushed under the weight of his power over her.”

Hunchback by Saou Ichikawa & translated by Polly Barton

Shaka is a digital sex journalist who also posts controversial and erotic tweets. Living with a physical disability, Shaka relies on the help of carers for some of her basic needs, and one day she offers to pay a male carer to have sex with her. It’s a book about power, sex, inner desires, and showcases a sexual, disabled protagonist – something that’s missing from mainstream fiction.

“Disabled people were not sexual beings – I had assented to the definition that society had created.”

Milk Fed by Melissa Broder

When Rachel meets Miriam at her favourite frozen yoghurt stall, her appetite soars. The desire for food, sexual connection and spirituality are interwoven throughout.

“I felt that our kissing could sustain the ritual of women loving women for eons to come.”

Seven Days in June by Tia Williams

Shane and Eva meet unexpectedly after twenty years of separation. Their chemistry is undeniable as decades-long yearning becomes clear.

“’I want to be everything’, he said, his mouth against her ear. ‘I want to be the reason you light up. I want to make you laugh, make you moan, make you safe.'”

Acts of Service by Lillian Fishman

When Eve posts nudes of herself online, she meets Olivia and Nathan. The three begin a saucy, disturbing love affair.

“When you know from the beginning what’s allowed and what isn’t, what someone says they’ll want, what room is there for you to figure out what’s going to happen – or for her to discover that she wants something she didn’t realize? For the sex to actually open up something?”

Insatiable by Daisy Buchanan

Violet’s fed up with her lot in life. But when Olivia offers her a job, Violet soon realises she’s invited into Olivia and her husband’s lives as well as Olivia’s start-up.