Science fiction, simulation machines which everyone uses to experience their fantasies, especially (

[kamas13]

Read the book around 2010. I sort of remember the word ghost either being in the title or maybe in the name of the company that makes the simulation machines, not sure about that though. Main character is a male, sex is a big focus in the book.

I think the characters you can interact with in the simulation are modelled off of real life people, and I think the main character meets one of the people in real life that he interacted with in the simulation.

Definitely a book for adults, borrowed from a library but can't log into my library account anymore to look at my loan history.

Spoiler

Near the end of the book, the guy has sex with one of the main female characters, and he chokes her as she requests and she pretends to go limp which scares him into thinking shes dead momentarily.

Comments

[fred_mouse]

The description doesn't ring a bell specifically, but it does make me think of the works of Philip K Dick. In case you haven't already found it, Goodreads has a list of 'best VR and AR novels' at https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/106036.Best_VR_and_AR_in_Science_Fiction. I'm not sure I agree about 'best', but maybe something there will be familiar.

[kamas13]

Thanks for the reply, I don't think its a Philip K Dick book as it is more recet than that, I've had a look at the list and don't think it is there either unfortunately, but will take another look later

[fred_mouse]

Good luck. I've had a brief look at the virtual reality tag at librarything, only to discover there are over 1000 books! Combining tags for 'virtual reality' and 'ghost' gets a handful, but nothing that sounds like your story.

[flowersforgraves]

[comes in late] This doesn't happen to be Permutation City by Greg Egan, does it? It's been a long time since I read the book, but it was definitely similar in terms of sex and simulation things. It was published in the mid-90s, but I don't know if that's recent enough.

[kamas13]

No unfortunately that's not it. Seems really hard to find this book

me too

[(Anonymous)]

I think I know what you are talking about! Does the guy practice hitting on the girl in a few difference "simulation runs", to try to get it right? And then finds out she actually knows that he is doing that? NO clue what it's called though.