Is It Ever Just Sex?

About the book

'Insanely readable! I loved it' Slavoj Žižek

A delightfully thought-provoking study of why we have sex, from award-winning psychoanalyst Darian Leader

'It was just sex.'

It's a familiar claim. But is it really possible?

The old idea that sexuality is a smouldering, animalistic force within us, desperate for release yet restrained by social forces, has little to support it. Bodies aren't just sticks that make fire when you rub them together, and the pain, heartache, and regret that can accompany the highs of sexual excitement show us that much more is at stake.

So, what are we really thinking about when we think about sex? And what are we really doing when we do it?

As acclaimed psychoanalyst Darian Leader argues,...