Ann Summers tycoon Jacqueline Gold says the success of saucy literary hit 50 Shades of Grey has led to sales at her chain going through the roof. T...

No one should be forced to perform sexual acts that they feel uncomfortable with. But to blame books for creating a new and dangerous generation of sexually demanding women is ludicrous and harks back to the days when novel-reading was considered an unsuitable activity for women.

Things are getting rather steamy on the literature scene right now. Wherever I go, it seems that I can't escape the endless chatter about Fifty Shades of Grey. Struggling to close my ears and fight what seems to be a sudden modern classic, I thought I might as well join the debate.

EL James's Fifty Shades trilogy has outsold JK Rowling's seven-book Harry Potter series on Amazon's UK site. James has sold more than four million ...

It's sad, but undeniably true, that our rubbish tells more about us than our art.

"Have you read Fifty Shades of Grey?" my friend Aileen was leaning in, her voice lowered conspiratorially. "No," I breathed. "Get it. It's basically porn. Huge in the States. Fabulous."