The Greatest Erotica Books of All Time

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This list represents a comprehensive and trusted collection of the greatest books. Developed through a specialized algorithm, it brings together 759 'best of' book lists to form a definitive guide to the world's most acclaimed books. For those interested in how these books are chosen, additional details can be found on the rankings page.

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Rank Book Authors Year Country Language Actions
196 Lady Chatterley's Lover D. H. Lawrence 1928 British English
239 Tropic of Cancer Henry Miller 1934 American English
834 Story of O Pauline Reage 1954 French French
889 The 120 Days of Sodom Marquis de Sade 1904 French French
929 Our Lady of the Flowers Jean Genet 1943 French French
1046 Justine Marquis de Sade 1791 French French
1095 The Swimming-Pool Library Alan Hollinghurst 1988 British English
1132 Fanny Hill John Cleland 1748 British English
1282 The Plum in the Golden Vase Unknown 1610 Chinese Chinese
1731 Delta of Venus Anaïs Nin 1977 French English
1839 The Child Of Pleasure Gabriele D'Annunzio 1889 Italian Italian
1968 Kama Sutra Vātsyāyana -400 Indian Sanskrit
2116 Querelle of Brest Jean Genet 1947 French French
2402 The Poems Of John Wilmot, Earl Of Rochester John Wilmot 1680 British English
2406 Lust Elfriede Jelinek 1989 Austrian German
2424 Platform Michel Houellebecq 2001 French French
2628 Valley of the Dolls Jacqueline Susann 1966 American English
3221 Aphrodite Pierre Louÿs 1896 French French
3405 Fifty Shades of Grey: E. L. James 2011 British English
3814 Dark Lover J. R. Ward 2005 American English
4056 Bad Behavior Mary Gaitskill 1988 American English
4064 A Feast Unknown Philip José Farmer 1969 American English
4722 Venus in Furs Leopold Von Sacher-Masoch 1870 Austrian German
5030 The Sluts Dennis Cooper 2004 American English
5097 A Hunger Like No Other Kresley Cole 2006 American English
5723 The Rosy Crucifixion Henry Miller 1949 American English
5983 Shanghai Baby Wei Hui 1999 Chinese Chinese
6004 The Story Of My Life Giacomo Casanova 1822 Italian French
6004 Madame Edwarda Unknown 1941 Unknown French
6891 Bared To You Sylvia Day 2012 American English
6968 The Duchess Bertrice Small 2001 American English
7149 Tempting The Beast Lora Leigh 2003 American English
7164 Beijing Comrades Bei Tong 1998 Chinese English
7615 Dirty Havana Trilogy Pedro Juan Gutierrez 1998 Cuban Spanish
7887 The Vampire Queen's Servant Joey W. Hill 2007 American English
8052 Neon Gods Katee Robert 2021 American English
8284 The Other Side Of Desire Daniel Bergner 2009 American English
8376 Belong To Me Shayla Black 2011 American English
8384 A Seditious Affair KJ Charles 2015 British English
8660 Beyond The Velvet Rope Tiffany Ashley 2013 Unknown English
8725 In Praise Of Older Women Stephen Vizinczey 1965 Canadian English
8774 Eroticism Georges Bataille 1957 French French
9287 Brutal Prince Sophie Lark 2020 Unknown English
10973 World Of Sex Henry Miller 1941 American English
11173 Philosophy In The Boudoir Marquis de Sade 1795 French French
13600 The Margin André Pieyre de Mandiargues 1967 French French
14232 The Joy of Sex Alex Comfort 1972 British English
15590 Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Sex David Reuben 1969 American English
15902 A Spy In The House Of Love Anaïs Nin 1954 French English
17126 The Position Meg Wolitzer 2005 American English
17126 Hate To Want You Alisha Rai 2017 American English
17126 Lover Awakened J. R. Ward 2006 American English
17011 Quiet Days In Clichy And The World Of Sex Henry Miller 1956 American English
17079 Sexus Henry Miller 1949 American English
17126 Eleven Minutes Paulo Coelho 2003 Brazilian Portuguese
17126 The Pleasure Dome Judith Liederman 1981 Unknown English
17126 The Unsinkable Ship Of Fools Jonas Goonface 2025 Unknown English