Exactly how steamy is this story?
PG
You won't find much in the way of sexy-times in Inkheart. Our main character, Meggie, is only twelve, and has no interest in dating just yet—there are, however, a few references to Capricorn's men having sexual appetites. When Dustfinger describes the village to Elinor, he says: "Nobody lives here but Capricorn and his men […] and the women who cook and clean and so on for them" (13.55). Elinor catches on to the implication of the "and so on," and she snorts "with distaste" (13.56). We do too.
Later Fenoglio makes a reference to Basta setting fire "to the house of a man who had dared to refuse his daughter to Capricorn" (30.87), so we're gathering that there's some sexual activity happening, though it's of an unsavory sort and definitely not highlighted in the book. Adult readers will catch on to this stuff, guessing that Capricorn probably doesn't want this dude's daughter for a chess partner, but it'll likely go over the heads of younger readers.