Want readings as hot as the temperature? We have selected for you the five best erotic novels of the moment, for a muy caliente summer ...
The most SM: Return to the Manor, by Emma Cavalier
It's a bit our Fifty Shades of Gray to us. Manoir is a Franco-French saga, written by Emma Cavalier since 2011. We follow Pauline, a young archivist in all respects, who discovers the practice of sadomasochism through her employer, the seductive Julien. A couple as glamorous and sulphurous as their alter-ego across the Atlantic Anastasia and Christian, whom Emma Cavalier stages again in Légendes du Manoir in 2015 and therefore today, in Retour au Manoir , third part of the trilogy.
No real need to discover the first two novels upstream. You will discover in this volume Pauline, struggling with another female character: her sister-in-law Caroline. A woman who totally rejects the idea of sexual submission and therefore doesn't look favorably on the relationship between her brother and Pauline. But why such rejection? Rivalries, revelations, family secrets... A great summer saga as we like them, with a little spicy touch that you can't refuse.
Most ? Humor, too rare in erotic novels, and which allows us to take a step back from the SM practice described in these pages.
Return to the Manor , by Emma Cavalier (Blanche Eds). Released June 23, €19.95.
The most “beginner”: The cellist who invented erotic crosswords, by Hélène Elizabeth
Buying your first erotic novel is sometimes a disturbing experience. A bit like when you buy your first sex toy . We look everywhere, anxious not to meet our boss or our mother-in-law. Starting with a book depicting fetish and orgy parties can therefore be counterproductive.
For a gentle introduction to this literature, The cellist who invented erotic crosswords by Hélène Elizabeth is a perfect introduction. We follow Héloïse, a young cellist who, to make ends meet, agrees to write erotic crossword puzzles for a women's magazine. A well-written book, very sensual but modest, which also nourishes a beautiful reflection on the place of women in erotic literature .
Most ? The real quizzes, crosswords and erotic anagrams of Hélène, to be carried out at the end of the book!
The cellist who invented erotic crosswords , by Hélène Elizabeth, already available, €13.90.
The most LGBTQI+: The Queen of Itaewon, by Sandrine Holin
If the erotic novel has already met the thriller ( Basic Instinct being the absolute reference), La Reine d'Itaewon by Sandrine Holin is in the same vein. Here, appearances are deceiving and identities are double. A City employee in London, Anna no longer thrives. His trip to Seoul is an opportunity to start from scratch. To spice up her stay, she pretends to be a journalist in charge of writing an LGBTQI+ guide to the South Korean capital. Her meeting with Anna, one of the greatest matchmakers in the city, will plunge the young Englishwoman into a terrible spiral where vices , pimping and narcotics will mix. A breathless story, from which we come out shaken.
Most ? In addition to the unmistakable eroticism of this novel, Sandrine Holin draws up an interesting x-ray of Seoul 's binary society .
The Queen of Itaewon , by Sandrine Holin (L'atelier des Cahiers, Literature collection). Released July 12, €18.
The most exotic: An Elevator for Zanzibar, by Éric Deciror
Exit Ibiza or other St-Tropez . Zanzibar becomes The place to be this summer. With its paradisiacal beaches , the archipelago inspires tourists in search of exoticism... but also novelists. In the aptly named Lift for Zanzibar , Éric Deciror sets the scene there. But it is not so much Tanzania that will be discussed here (we are not on a Guide du Routard!) as a virtual exchange between a man with unbridled sexuality , François, and five women met on dating sites. 27 virtual letters end up constituting a text of a new genre, with obvious erotic power. We travel (a little) and we shiver (a lot).
Most ? Un Ascenseur pour Zanzibar is presented in the form of an alphabet never vulgar, and punctuated with musical and cinematographic references.
An Elevator for Zanzibar , by Éric Deciror (Ex Aequo, Alcove collection). In bookstore. €14.
The most playful: Womanizer, by Baptiste Pizzinat
Womanizer isn't just a Britney Spears hit . It is also (and above all) a sex toy that has changed the lives of many women. Starting with that of the wife of the writer Baptiste Pizzinat , who makes it the heart of his latest book, Womanizer . A small collection of poems where the author and his wife talk about their sexuality upset by the arrival of this small magic object in their home. “ A brand new premium version Womanizer that changed my life ,” writes Baptiste Pizzinat . Because, as the novel says: “ How many guys still take themselves for the center of the world, incapable of imagining that their partner can also have an autonomous sexuality, can want to buy a sex toy without creating a scandal at the home ? ”. Playful and resolutely feminist , we love it!
Most ? Seeing a man who gradually deconstructs his archaic ideas about coitus is already a pleasure in itself!
Womanizer , by Baptiste Pizzinat (The Iconoclast, Iconopop collection). To be released September 15. €13.
But also …
Emmanuelle , the cult erotic novel by Emmanuelle Arsan published in 1959, adapted for the cinema with Sylvia Kristel in 1974, will be brought to the cinema again… with Léa Seydoux ! Audrey Diwan ( Lion d'Or for L'Evénement ) will direct the film, assisted in the screenplay by Rebecca Zlotowski ( Grand Central ). The opportunity to reread the tribulations of this icon of sexual freedom, seated, why not, in the cult chair that owes its name to it?
Emmanuelle , by Emmanuelle Arsan, 1959, ed. Harper Collins.
Also discover: The novels to absolutely slip into your suitcase and The literary prescription of the editorial staff .
