It would be impossible to speak about the connections between the series and Gayle Rubin without addressing the themes of feminine desire and sexuality. Although Dixon’ s series features a well-developed storyline with dynamic characters and plotlines, it is a romance-heavy saga where female desire is the main focus. According to Linda J. Lee’ s article“ Guilty Pleasures: Reading Romance Novels as Reworked Fairy Tales,” Lee argues that in contrast to the position that all romance novels“ present conservative patriarchal norms, the erotic romance portrays nontraditional sex roles, values, and power relationships as both natural and expected”( Lee 54). The women in the series are unafraid to communicate with their mates about what they want. Although they are assertive and women engage in sexual interactions, they are still respected and viewed as more than just objects, despite the physical power dynamic of giant blue-horned aliens vs human women.
Dixon gives her characters agency and does not shy away from depicting women who are open about their desires and make active choices in their relationships. Lee also asserts that romance novels that include sexual themes are frequently marginalized and referred to as“ trash,”“ smut,” or“ women’ s pornography.” This is notable enough for women alone, as, unfortunately, lots of women are raised with a stigma of sex. There is no stigma in the barbarian civilization as they prioritize both pleasure and reproduction. However, they have the emotional ability to separate love from sex, and the value of a woman separates from being a purely sexual being. Commenting on stigma and oppression, Rubin explains,“ Concepts of sexual oppression have been lodged within that more biological understanding of sexuality … Virtually all erotic behavior is considered bad unless a specific reason to exempt it has been established. The most acceptable excuses are marriage, reproduction, and love.”( Rubin 2206). Dixon’ s saga works outside of these lines to break free from the limitations placed on eroticism. It creates a world where readers can escape and experience outlets to express and explore sexual interests.
In recent years, novels centered around sexual themes have become far more popular, and the stigma surrounding them has, to a degree, diminished. Though, going around speaking( or writing) about speculative fiction romance novels where kidnapped human women land on an ice planet filled with barbarians and find their mates and engage in sexual relationships may result in a second glance. However, it is crucial to discuss how feminist themes are portrayed throughout all literature genres, especially within the male-dominated genre of speculative fiction.
Ruby Dixon’ s Ice Planet Barbarians saga is more than a series of twenty-two novels with aliens, cheesy cover art, and giant blue bar-
52 TEMPO MAGAZINE— SPRING 2025