A parish council has got a little hot under the collar after “salacious adult literature” was left in a village’s library box.

Hurstbourne Tarrant Parish Council asked literary lovers to stop trying to spread their passion for “inappropriate” books by leaving them in the converted telephone kiosk, which sits next to a playground and Hurstbourne Tarrant Church of England Primary School. It raised concerns children may get access to these books.

The council said: “We love our red phone box library on Church Street ... but we don't love salacious adult literature being left in there.

“So if whoever is doing so is reading this, please don't keep leaving inappropriate books - the majority of visitors to the phone box are children. And some of them are tall enough to reach the shelves where the books for grown-ups are.

“Please find another outlet for your collection.”

The red telephone box on Church Street was purchased by the council in 2019 after the village lost its mobile library service after a lack of funding from Hampshire County Council. The council used grant money to convert the phone box into a small library, with residents able to borrow the books and return them, while also adding a short review if they’d like.

When the Advertiser visited the phone box, there were a range of books on offer, from classic literature such as Jane Eyre to works by modern authors such as Kate Atkinson and Ian Rankin.

But fans of risqué novels may be left disappointed, with not a Jilly Cooper or E.L James in sight.

It is unclear where the offending books in question have been removed since the council’s post, but visitors were still able to read novels such as Hot Blooded by Nancy Holder and Debbie Viguié, whose blurb notes that one character, Katelyn, is “struggling to resist her own animal urges. Especially around Trick and Justin.”

Slightly less racy romances on offer include Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason and Patricia Highsmith’s Carol, also known as The Price of Salt.

The Hurstbourne Tarrant Telephone Box Book Exchange is located on Church Street, adjacent to the playing field and across the road from St Peter’s Church.