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ehuang72 t1_iuj5pc7 wrote

I don't know how I managed this - maybe my inner prude has been censoring my reading choices my entire life -- but most fiction books I've read do not have a romance component at all, never mind sex. I'm amazed that it's such a strong element of fiction that readers have to actively avoid it!

You didn't mention a preferred genre so some recent favorites: Klara and the Sun (Ishiguru), Dutch House (Anne Pratchett), The Good Omen (Terry Pratchett). I'm about to read Squeeze Me (Carl Hiaasen) - fingers crossed if there's any sex it's hilarious.

I re-read Dune recently - Paul marries, Jessica loves Leto but I don't see the relationships as love stories. They feel like part of the grand arc of the entire series.

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throwaway-clonewars OP t1_iuj72zf wrote

I do have Dune and good omens on my list.

😂 I wish my mind would censor so it wasn't so obvious. I suppose it's a bit similar to people having trigger warnings on books where its not so much a trigger but they know thet wont enjoy it-for example my mom is fine with romance, but anything like bully romance or worse she can't stand. she HATED Zodiac Academy to the point she didn't bother finishing the first book because of the level past bully romance it was.

I've read a few where it wasn't a "in your face" thing the entire time, but it was extremely heavy handed for huge sections. I'm mainly reading ya scifi and fantasy since the handful of story ideas I have are all ya new adult types and common advice is "read a lot to write better".

It is definitely prevalent in those categories, though for some you have to squint a bit to see it's there.

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