I’m standing under a washing line of neon lacy knickers in the aptly named ‘smut hut’ corner of a bookstore, having a chat with a 24-year-old civil servant. I’m keen to find out why she’s travelled from her home in Ireland to Notting Hill in London to visit Saucy Books, the capital’s first shop devoted to romantic and erotic fiction.

In the not-so-distant past, a bookstore offering romance-only titles would have conjured up images of swooning maidens and swarthy scoundrels in the hayloft. What a long way readers of romantic fiction have come.

Today, Saucy Books is the go-to destination for all your sexy requirements, whether it’s dragon riders, raunchy cowboys or queer awakenings. The store, with its bright neon signage, tiki parasols and smut hut dedicated to erotic titles, is at the forefront of a new literary phenomenon.

As a historical fiction writer, this isn’t my natural habitat, but perhaps it ought to be. Earlier this year, I did a book signing for my latest novel at Waterstones in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey. I sold a reasonable number of copies of The Wartime Book Clubbut my signing line wasn’t exactly snaking out the door.

‘What’s selling well?’ I asked a sales assistant. ‘Smutty dragons,’ she replied.

For those, like myself, not fully acquainted with romantasy (a portmanteau of romance and fantasy), it features female protagonists in magical worlds. Series such as Rebecca Yarros’s Fourth Wing and Sarah J Maas’s A Court Of Thorns And Roses (known by fans as Acotar) are leading the way on this, fuelled by BookTok. Expect fantastical worlds with fairies and dragons woven into classic romance plotlines, plus a hefty sprinkling of spice. When protagonist Feyre in A Court Of Thorns And Roses is taken prisoner by a High Fae Lord, the sexual tension builds until they are ‘a tangle of limbs and teeth’ and she ‘felt the full force of the wild, unrelenting High Lord’s power’. Needless to say, the aforementioned authors are treated like rock stars at book signings.

Romantasy is selling, and selling big. Last year, the surge in sales pushed UK fiction revenue above £1 billion for the first time. But this isn’t romance as you might recognise it. Forget heaving bosoms, today’s romance is what critics are calling ‘fairy porn’, but what millions of devoted fans defend as brilliantly written escapism. To understand why the new wave of titles is so compulsive and get a feel for whether I could turn my hand to the genre, I spent the day as a bookseller at Saucy Books (dispatches from the smut hut, if you will).

I arrived for my shift on a day when London had a deserted air to it. Not in Saucy Books, though. An excited crowd spilled around the shop entrance, with people taking selfies. On hand to greet me was the brains behind the store, entrepreneur Sarah Maxwell, 39, a former tech executive from California who has previously worked for Uber. She told me she was surprised that a romance-only bookstore like this didn’t already exist in England. In America, bookshops with names like The Ripped Bodice proliferate.

Maxwell says she has experienced snobbery about romance books, especially those written by female authors. ‘There’s an inherent misogyny behind it. The thought of women having pleasure and agency over what makes them feel good puts men at risk. Romance books also help readers explore love, relationships, identity and joy. I feel strongly about women having a space to express themselves, recognising talented female authors and giving the books the respect they deserve.’

The store is a destination on the BookTok scene and part of a bigger cultural and commercial trend. In the few months since it opened, Saucy Books has had thousands of customers, many of whom have travelled from all over the UK and even from as far away as Australia and Dubai.

‘My customers are intelligent, strong women who work hard and are desperate to unwind,’ Maxwell adds. ‘These people are ravenous for romance. There is such a hunger to escape.’

She’s not wrong. The first person I serve is Nikki Wilkinson, a 33-year-old theatre usher from Bromley and a self-confessed romantasy addict. In the time it takes to say swoon, she’s snapped up five titles. I ring them up and hand them to her in a cute Saucy Books tote bag.

‘For a long time I didn’t read, then seven years ago I discovered A Court Of Thorns And Rosesthe first in the Acotar romantasy series, and my reading spiralled,’ Wilkinson says. ‘I can read six books a day if I hyper-focus and start at 10am then read nonstop until midnight. Last year I read 300 romance books.

‘I’ve been single all my life, so reading is like wish fulfilment, getting the feelings of romance and exploring in a safe way. I’ve struggled with my mental health and reading has helped me through. I’ve got quotes from the Acotar series tattooed on me. This is my fifth visit. I’ll be back,’ she says, happy with her book haul.

Next up is 25-year-old police officer Freya Rooke-Moore, visiting from Manchester. She has tailored a reunion with two university friends, teachers Clare and Charlotte, around a visit to Saucy Books. ‘It’s the perfect way to switch off from work,’ says Rooke-Moore. ‘I read for escapism. The girls and I are starting a book club. We always give each other books for Christmas, so reading is a big part of our friendship.’

While restocking the bright bookshelves (painted in Little Greene’s Orange Aurora, in case you’re wondering) I get chatting to 39-year-old nurse Emily Davies and her mum, Philippa McCoy, a 63-year-old civil servant.

‘We’ve come on a pilgrimage from Stockton-on-Tees to visit this shop,’ says Davies. ‘I used to read edgy Japanese crime dramas that would take me months to get through. Then I stumbled upon an erotic fiction book called The Charlie Method by Elle Kennedy and, oh my god, I loved it. Full-on smut from page one. I was hooked! I didn’t realise you could put stuff like that in books!

‘I’m made to feel I shouldn’t be reading “silly romance”. But it’s well-crafted and escapist with strong storylines. I work full time as a nurse and am mum to a five-year-old. Why can’t I read for pleasure? As a woman you’re conditioned to think you can’t talk about sexuality and what you enjoy. These books challenge that.’

Her mum laughs. ‘This is nothing new. When I was at school, we all used to pass erotic books around the playground. When did women start taking themselves so seriously?’

Davies turns to leave but then whispers conspiratorially. ‘It’s done wonders for my sex life, too! I’m not alone. There are lots of women thoroughly enjoying themselves thanks to these books.’

Huddled in the smut hut, under the aforementioned washing line of lacy knickers, I find Jess Tooth, 24, a London-based television production assistant and her friend Lauren Burke, a civil servant from Ireland who is also 24.

‘I found this shop and said to Lauren, we have to go,’ Tooth says. ‘We visited New York last year and went to The Ripped Bodice, so we’ve been hanging out for one to open here. I love Emily Henry. Her books are easy to read and they provide such escapism. It’s like stepping into a utopia.’ Burke adds, ‘I read a lot of serious stuff at work, so romance is a nice break from that.’

There’s something incongruous about talking to a civil servant in the smut hut, surrounded by bottles of baby oil and erotic books with titles like Kiss Of The Basilisk.

‘In the UK, sex is such a taboo subject, there’s so much stigma around female pleasure,’ says Tooth. ‘Why? I love the name Saucy Books and the smut hut. It’s not hiding and is opening up frank conversations about sex and relationships. Saucy Books is actually all about feminism.’

By 5pm, the tills having rung nonstop, the shop has taken thousands in sales, and the place is still packed. There’s a vibe in here. It’s not the hushed, almost reverential feel of a bookshop like Foyles, but a more vibrant, community feel, like a buzzy bar but with books. People don’t just buy then leave, they hang around, chatting to strangers about recommendations.

I’m still not sure I’ve got a ‘smutty dragon’ novel in me, but I do understand why these authors are so loved. In difficult, polarised times, they appeal to women desperate to escape reality.

‘Reading romance is like eating a chocolate chip cookie. It’s fun and satisfying,’ Maxwell says. Maybe we all need a bit more sweetness in our life.

The Wartime Book Club by Kate Thompson is published by Hodder & Stoughton, £9.99. To order a copy for £8.99 until 16 November, go to mailshop.co.uk/books or call 020 3176 2937. Free UK delivery on orders over £25.

TRUE ROMANTASY

‘I bit his lip in a silent command that had him growling into my mouth. With one long claw, he shredded through silk and lace, and my undergarment fell away in pieces.’

A Court Of Thorns And Roses by Sarah J Maas

‘He was on his knees, staring up at me… in sheer awe – like I was the most incredible thing he had ever seen.’

The Serpent And The Wings Of Night by Carissa Broadbent

‘I’m about to introduce you to all seven gods. When you meet them, don’t forget to tell them I’m the one you worship on your knees.’

Quicksilver by Callie Hart