Is Bigfoot erotica the next big book trend?

A congressional candidate has accused her opponent of being into “Bigfoot erotica,” and the internet lost its mind.

The heretofore obscure literary genre of Bigfoot erotica has become an unexpected issue in a contentious congressional race. Will bestseller lists be next?

Leslie Cockburn, the Democratic candidate for representative for Virginia’s 5th District, accused her Republican opponent, Denver Riggleman, of being a “devotee” of racy fiction starring Sasquatch.

Cockburn’s accusation seems to be inspired by a since-deleted Facebook author page featuring a self-published book called “The Mating Habits of Bigfoot and Why Women Want Him.”

Riggleman told the Washington Post that it was an “anthropological book sort of based on parody and satire,” and denied having any lewd and lascivious interest in the mythological creature.

And while he admitted to a longstanding interest in Bigfoot, Riggleman told the New York Times he wasn’t aware that Bigfoot-themed pornography even existed.

“I didn’t know there was Bigfoot erotica, even with all my Bigfoot studies,” Riggleman said. “I thought this was such a joke that nobody would ever be dumb enough to think that this was real, but I guess her campaign did.”

Cockburn’s accusation set the internet on fire, predictably, with Twitter users quick to post their takes on the sexy controversy:

The interest in Bigfoot erotica has boosted the genre on Amazon. Carrie High’s “Bigfoot Knocked Me Up: The Complete 10 Book Set” — one of the very few erotic Sasquatch books with a title that can be printed here — was ranked No. 175 in the horror erotica subcategory early Tuesday, soon climbing to No. 83 in erotica/science fiction, No. 86 in erotica/interracial and No. 51 in the Kindle store subcategory of erotica/transgender.

Meanwhile, Chuck Tingle, the prolific erotica provocateur, has a new ebook available on the site — “Don’t Vote for Virginia Congressional Hopeful Denber Wiggleman Because He Is Full of Hate, Not Because Bigfoot Makes Him Hard.” It’s the No. 1 new release in erotic horror.