I wrote my paper on "steam" ratings after attempting to help a patron who asked for "sexy books." I found two different websites that accepted reader-submitted descriptions and ratings for both quality and sexual content. Allaboutromance.com and romance.io both have five point sensuality/steam scales that are comparable, beginning with kisses/innocent and ending with burning/explicit-and-plentiful. The websites agreed with my assessment of Colleen Hoover (however only one site had a listing for the title It Ends with Us) (a 3 rating) and of TJ Klune's The House in the Cerulean Sea (a 1 rating). Helpful!
Also, limited. With fewer contributors, fewer titles are reviewed leaving a mainstream book like Hoover's out. The other important limitation of these sites is that with fewer contributors, the ratings can skew more easily. While both sites provide descriptions of each point on their five-point scale in the interest of objectivity, contributors may disagree. On a site like Goodreads.com, there are hundreds of thousands of reviews which makes for a more reliable score than either of the romance sites, which only receive a couple dozen reviews at most. A final limitation is that the sites focus on romances, which may leave out a lot of other books that contain (or don't) steamy sex scenes. I'm reminded of the blog assignment where a patron asked for a "clean" mystery. Neither site had reviews for mystery author CJ Box, for example.
Finally, what does the American Library Association have to say about rating scales? The ALA Bill of Rights maintains that readers are to be free to choose whatever they want to read. Yes, of course. And that rating scales can be--but are not required to be--included in records with the source of the rating score identified and an explanation that no rating scales are endorsed by the ALA. My conclusion was to keep steaminess stickers off of book spines, but to keep both websites in mind when advising readers who specifically ask for a certain type of book.
On a titillating note, check out some of the titles on romance.io's site--they really go down the rabbit hole of alternative romances, including a whole fictional universe called the omniverse that has its own rules about alpha and beta personalities, and books that are so over-the-top, they made me blush more than Fifty Shades of Grey.
Hi Jenni! I like the idea of a "steam" scale for patrons who want to know (I am one of those), but agree that it doesn't belong on the book spine. I have heard discussion on no longer using the term "clean" because it implies others are dirty/bad. Another rating I've heard is open-door and closed-door romance- did you come across these terms anywhere?
ReplyDeleteHi Karis! Good point about "clean," I was thinking about books on the other end of the spectrum recently and realized that calling a book "absolutely filthy," while that would appeal to my sister-in-law, could come across as very judgey to some. I'm going to work on saying "explicit" or something like it instead. Open door/closed door were used in the romance.io scales, with closed door romances implying most of the sexual activity (I believe rating a 3) and open door (4?) more detailed. Somewhere, probably the same site, used the expression "fade-to-black," which I also liked. I don't think of myself as a prude, but I really dislike sex scenes in books and movies, so like you, I'd appreciate knowing what to expect. Someone sometime should write a paper on the omnniverse and fanfic.
DeleteI love this paper topic! I have seen a lot of discussion on spice scales because it's so subjective. I didn't realize that there were websites that rated these books though! AAR does seem more limited in selection than romance.io. The very first book I looked for on AAR I could not find. I think the rating scales would be extremely helpful! My sister-in-law doesn't like reading really explicit content so I know she will like these websites.
ReplyDeleteI really like your idea of adding other genres though. It would be helpful to know the content of a book before recommending it. Sometimes I will look through Goodreads reviews just to see if people complain about certain things when I know the person I'm recommending a book to doesn't like a certain topic. Doesn't always work for me but sometimes that can help!
Hi Jenni! I had some quotes prepped for my paper about "steaminess" in romantasy, but realized that "sexy books" are a topic all on their own! I don't think that we need an official rating system like movies, but these websites that provide fan ratings CAN be helpful for individial readers to find exactly what...tickles their fancy ;)
ReplyDeleteHi Haley! Speaking of tickling one's fancy, "Hot and Badgered" is on its way back to your branch on Monday ;-)
ReplyDeleteHi Jenni,
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you shared these resources! As someone who has trouble quantifying the level of steam/smut/sexiness of a book, these will be invaluable. I have yet to have a patron ask me specifically for a sexy book, but I think my days are numbered. I did have one patron who had many colorful remarks about Harlequin romances, though! :)
Hi Jenni, Great topic! The only rating system I have seen is the Hot Peppers rating system, which tells the spice index in the book. I think this question is even more complicated than finding the book without smut in it.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun discussion in the comments!
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