there's a nosy grandmother in the picture.

I'd recommend Regencies, Ginger. In general they seem to be much less with the sex, and more with the comedy-of-manners sort of thing. Georgette Heyer would be an excellent bet -- she basically started the genre, actually. And they don't have any explicit sex, while being well-written, funny, and just plain fun.

Oh, another resource would be Melymbrosia's LJ; she regularly reviews romance novels, and you may find some good recommendations there.

I'm reading Kavalier and Clay right now AIFG. I'm really enjoying it.

Second the Heyer rec--specifically, I suggest The Grand Sophy, These Old Shades, Frederica, or Arabella.

Hmmm...others with minimal explicit sex. Carla Kelly writes very good traditional Regencies, usually rather serious in tone. Look for Libby's London Merchant or One Good Turn. A lot of people like Nonnie St. George, a new Regency writer. IMO her comedy is almost too broad, but take that with a grain of salt, since I tend to prefer the more serious stories. And if you can dig up any of Mary Jo Putney's, Mary Balogh's, or Jo Beverley's traditional Regencies used, you can't go wrong, though their more recent European historicals are too sexy for your purposes.

I have to admit to not loving Kavalier and Clay. I don't know why. I loved the beginning with Josef, and I like Sammy as a character. A lot of his dialogue is great. I just got bored with it and wandered off, and haven't picked it back up. I have odd reading tastes though - I just read a book that was recommended to me 10 years ago. I tried it then, made it 1/3 of the way in, didn't like it. Tried again, same deal. Just finished it and enjoyed the heck out of it.

So maybe in 10 years I'll read Kavalier and Clay and love it.

Barbara Metzger does good, often light and comedic, Regency romances with little to no sex. But I remember them being awfully good fun none the less.

Matt, K&C was a really enjoyable book, much like a nice, fictional companion to Comic Book Nation.

Ginger, the early Julia Quinn books aren't as sexy as her latest ones, and they might be perfect, too -- she does the period well, but not with a heavy hand, and she's funny with a lot of heart. There are definitely some sex scenes, though.

Shannon Doherty's Regencies are lovely, too -- she also has a great sense of humor, but a light touch. I would also recommend Mary Blayney.

Avon has a new line of YA historical romances out specifically without explicit sense (Meg Cabot wrote one -- I believe it's called Nicola and the Viscount -- as well as a few other well-known historical authors) but the characters are teens, too, not adults, so I don't know if that would turn a 17-year-old off.

Emily Hendrickson is one of my favs in Signet regency. I'm a big regency fan. I read them alot between "heavier" stuff, or when I'm depressed and just want a diversion. But anyway, I agree, great for all ages.

Oooh! Marion Chesney! She's great too, she wrote bunches of sextets. I don't know which may still be in print, but I'd recomend any of hers for a teen.

Thanks for all the recommendations. These are for a girl who's been having a lot of problems, and her aunt, like me, is from the "when the going gets tough, the tough read books" school.

Second the rec for Marion Chesney. Those are fun.

I'm reading a fantastic book right now -- The Rift, by Walter J. Williams. It's not quite sci-fi (takes place in the present day, no fictional science in it at all), but it's shelved there because that's where his other books go. It's about a fictional major (8.9) earthquake along the New Madrid fault that essentially takes out the entire Mississippi valley, and follows what happens to various groups of refugees. I'm only about halfway through -- it's over 900 pages -- but it's one of the most satisfying reads I've had in a while.