‘He needs scales, leathery wings, the works’: Why ‘monster sex’ fiction is booming

There was a time when the rageful and tortured antihero of Heathcliff in Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights was viewed as the most monstrous of characters, while the most shameful literary union was perhaps found between gamekeeper Mellors and the eponymous aristocrat in D.H. Lawrence’s 1928 Lady Chatterley’s Lover.

Yet how very tame these brutish characters and illicit love affairs compare to the modern literary craze of – wait for it – monster erotica.

As the genre title suggests, these books, which are reviewed and promoted on #BookTok [TikTok’s literary subgenre] feature protagonists who are, well, monsters; some alien, some minotaurs, some fanged and furry, winged or tentacled, but all monsters. 

But more important than what they are, is what they can do: inevitably, the beasts come with several enormous and multifaceted appendages equipped with ridges and spurs, and numerous textured tongues to aid female pleasure. Some have tails – no, not for balance – but in this case, extra penetration. 

Essentially then, these ghastly, scary creatures double up as living sex toys, but they are thrown into plots which explore both power and danger. 

A typical trope will see maidens sent off as sacrifices to dragons, or alien abductions where a race can only be saved by orgasmic orgies, or sadomasochistic encounters with giants in the woods. The female characters are often mystically changed by the act of sex, with the monster coming to be their ally – a classic empowerment fantasy. 

As one TikToker, author Charlotte Swan, said of her particular wants: “I want an actual creature. I need him to be diabolical. I need scales. I need leathery wings. I want him flapping. I’m talking sharp teeth, extra-long tongue. I need the works.” 

So far, so spicy. But the popularity of this genre does beg the questions: Why are we (chiefly women) sexually attracted to monsters – a field otherwise known as teratophilia? And what does this say about us?

Jane Nutter is marketing manager at Kensington Publishing, the company behind the bestselling Souls Trilogy by American author Harley Laroux, which features demons stealing womens’ souls, while enjoying serious kink. 

“People can explore the idea of being seduced by someone wild and dangerous, engage with more sexually taboo desires, and think it’s OK as it has been legitimised in a book,” she tells The Telegraph. “These dark and powerful creatures often approach romance and sex differently to normal humans. How does a demon have sex? It’s a dark taboo but it’s sexy. 

“But it’s also worth saying that the kinks are also a little bit removed from reality as these are mythical creatures. The characters aren’t real men behaving in this way. So I think it’s a safe way to explore behaviours that may warrant a red-flag in real life, whether the reader recognises that or not.”

Nutter points out that although monster erotica is seen as a relatively new phenomena, it has a long tradition.

Let’s not forget that Greek mythology features Zeus who, while in the form of a swan, raped the Spartan queen, Leda. Dracula, Bram Stoker’s interpretation of the vampire myth, a creature who seduces and feeds off women, was published in 1897. More recently, Anne Rice’s The Vampire Chronicles, Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series and Charlaine Harris’s Southern Vampire Mysteries, which were turned into HBO mega series True Blood. The vampire, she says, is the prototypical godfather of all these sexy, magical creatures. 

Nutter points out that the incredible popularity of these novels and offshoot films and TV series has meant older Gen Zs – now in their mid to late 20s – are comfortable with monsters being framed as sexually attractive. 

“Most buyers of this genre – younger women – grew up with fantasy romance,” she says. “And BookTok means people find it easy to talk to each other and find new things. 

“Many of these books were originally self-published and then picked up by traditional publishing houses. And now older readers read them too. 

“I think readers like what they like and are not as beholden to the traditional gatekeepers of publishing anymore, such as traditional publishers. 

“And I think independent authors can push the boundaries of what they want to write without having agents and publishing houses push them in a certain direction.”

These kindle and Amazon reads are undoubtedly the catalyst for the surge in popularity. One title, for instance, Moan For Bigfoot made its author Virginia Wade (a pseudonym) some £18,000 a month when released a decade ago. 

The promotion of this world on TikTok has only added to the craze. Some 4.5bn people have viewed #SpicyTok, while #monster romance is tagged in 78,000 posts. 

Annabelle Knight, sex and relationship expert at adult content site Lovehoney, which has researched this phenomenon, says: “TikTok has become a safe haven for those looking to explore their sexuality and new desires.

“And as for its appeal, while generic pornography is historically geared towards the male gaze, erotica is typically focused on female pleasure and often written from their point of view. 

“There’s also an emotional depth in erotica that lets the reader’s imagination run wild, and this intimacy makes it far easier for these fantasies to come alive in your mind’s eye.”

In her view, the enjoyment from the books is less about how the creature looks and much more about how they make the female main character feel.

Many of the monsters, she explains, are often overprotective and dominating, and could kill the female protagonist in one stroke. But they also have a near-impossible knowledge of the female anatomy and its pleasure points, and are often happy to be vulnerable and simpering with their ladies. 

Knight adds: “In a world where the male gaze is primarily catered for, women just can’t resist it being all about them for a change – regardless of what the pleasure provider looks like. And there is also the attraction of when larger-than-life creatures take (consensual) control of you.”

She points out that there is also a link between those reading and watching erotic fantasy and real sex lives. “We know there was an uptick in searches for dragon-themed sex toys following the release of House of the Dragon – a prequel to Game of Thrones,” she says. 

Previously, in 2001, American academic Harold Leitenberg found that women who read romance or erotic novels had 74 per cent more and better sex with their partners than those who don’t. 

Relaying his findings in the The Journal of Sex Research, he wrote this was because women fantasise more frequently and have more intense and realistic fantasies when they read suggestive content. 

This rise in monster erotica however should be put into context; this being that all of erotica is becoming increasingly popular. 

According to the stats from sales data experts, Nielsen BookScan, the science fiction and fantasy market rose nearly 93 per cent in value between 2018 and 2023. 

Over the same time frame, the romance market increased in value by almost 150 per cent.

Part of this was down to an increase in the cost of a book, with the average paperback in this genre now selling at £6.05 – the first time the category has ever crossed the five pound mark.

Katie Fraser, of trade publication The Bookseller, adds: “Both romance and fantasy are becoming more popular, so it’s no wonder subgenres like monster romance are too.

“We are also seeing an increase in the merging of genres, such as Romantasy. And readership is blurring too. For instance, more and more adults seem to be reading Young Adult fiction.”

Back to monsters however, and there are a few more theories as to why they seem so appealing. 

Australian author Nikki Gemmell has previously said: “These books are transporting. They help us to feel. They are powerful and they take us to another world and show what we are thinking and feeling isn’t necessarily wrong.

“Often, the secret life goes to the core of our erotic selves. And if the author gets it right, I think for a lot of women, erotic fiction is about living vicariously through the words of others.”

But for therapist Danny Zane, at Therapy North London, as well as escapism, he believes the books may provide their readers with a sense of empowerment.

“Readers may fantasise in different ways while engrossed in these books,” says Zane. 

“Men might picture themselves with giant genitals of all shapes and sizes, women may picture themselves sexually satisfied and taming the beast. Both can bring a feeling of strength and power.

“Or it may also be that some fans may relish these intense love stories because they have never experienced their own.

Of course, some in our society may find it strange as Brits are still quite prudish about sex. This might not be the case in other cultures. But I think the interest in these books touches on a healthy interest in sex, and bats away shame. If you want to explore purple vaginas with teeth, why not?”

But he did offer a warning to readers. 

“Like any sexual desires, these books can probably become addictive,” he adds. “One minute you’ve stumbled into an exciting erotic story, the next you are deep in a five-penis fantasy every day. The problem is, this may end up not being that fulfilling because you will probably never find a human with five penises, at least not to my knowledge.”