There are so many reasons to travel: discovering new cultures, sampling exotic cuisines, scoping out gorgeous, historical scenery, and, of course, the opportunity to say that you’ve done it with someone from another country, in another country. If globe-trotting for the sake of sex isn’t in the cards for you anytime in the near future, you’re not completely out of luck when it comes to sampling what’s on the menu at the International House of Lovecakes. Laura Corn, author of all sorts of amp-up-your-sex-life literature, believes that integrating some internationally-inspired romanticisms into your oh-so domestic sex life is not only the next best thing to actually getting lucky on foreign soil, but might actually be the key to revving up an otherwise lackluster love life. Just think: Cheeseburgers are damn good, yet how sad would your palate be without the likes of sushi, Pad Thai, and enchiladas? You get the picture. 

Corn’s latest book, Passport to Pleasure, offers a whole host of sexy acts, or, as she calls them, “seductions,” for men and women, inspired by “the hottest sex from around the globe.” She says the project of gathering international sex tips that could be employed on American soil began while on a European vacation. On her trip, Corn witnessed all kinds of interesting acts of seduction and felt compelled to record them, as well as research other practices from around the globe—all in hopes of helping others bring some novel, “Who-says-Americans-have-the-market-cornered-on-sex?” practices into their bedrooms. The result: 26 “seductions” for men and 26 for women, each of which are sealed and meant to be opened once a week, offering couples a full, sexy year of erotic fun. Included in each “seduction” are the ingredients and/or props and supplies you’ll need, narrative instructions on how to go about each activity, and some sex-related “fun facts” about the country that inspired said seduction. 

I’ll admit it. I wanted to hate this book and make fun of what I was sure would be its lame, cheesy attempts to recreate and relabel run-of-the-mill sex acts as internationally-inspired. Sure, some of the “seductions” are a little corny, if not a touch cringe-worthy, but Corn really does a nice job of using global customs as inspiration for ways in which you can make your sex life a little more, well, seductive. One of my favorite examples is “Torn,” a Belgian-inspired pantyhose romp. Apparently, the Belgians love sensual fabrics, due to a luxury textile (think silk, lace, etc.) industry that dates back to the days of the great sailing fleets. Corn says the Belgians especially love hose—so much so that the country boasts numerous hose blogs (who knew?) and even a famed photographer, Rik Scott, who shoots his gorgeous models wearing pantyhose. The related Belgian seduction involves wearing a sweater, hose, and nothing more. From the accompanying “fun facts”: some interesting bits about Freud and hose fetishes, magazine titles devoted to hose and lingerie fetishes, and a Marie Claire survey citing Belgians as the people in the world happiest with their sex lives. Ultimately, the correlation behind the Belgian cultural inspiration and the act of seduction isn’t forced; it actually makes perfect, legitimate sense. And the actual seduction act—very, very sexy indeed.

All in all, the book inspired me to think globally, but act locally. If only I could get frequent flier miles every time I tested out one of the “seductions” ... Sigh.