Ah yes, “new adult,” the entire genre created so that YA can continue to pretend teenagers only have fade-to-black sex (off the page a la The Fault In Our Stars or Everything, Everything), or that they don’t have it at all (To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before). We know that 18+ adults make up over half of YA's readership , and I’m certain new adult was born out of that grown-up readership’s thirst for enjoyable sex scenes in YA stories. New adult books are for the protagonists fresh out of high school and ready for fun sex lives and nourishing romantic relationships! Just kidding; sex is the star of this genre.“New adult is also extremely sexy, often bordering on erotic romance, so strong sensuality is definitely a huge part of the genre’s appeal,” a senior editor for Harlequin told Publisher’s Weekly. With all these open-door sex scenes, as they’re known in the publishing industry, the books often lack emotional maturity and authentic physical intimacy.