Hotels.com has discovered that more than two fifths of women admit that they judge a man not by what he is wearing, but by his book cover - as 43% of women say they find a man less attractive if they don't rate his choice of reading.

Hotels.com's summer research has revealed that for women it really is all in the mind, and men who want to impress should think carefully about what they choose to read by the hotel pool. Moreover, almost one third (31%) of men say that they will take into account what a woman is reading when posing by the pool in making a judgement about their attractiveness.

Male fans of horror novels should be particularly wary about reading away from the privacy of their own rooms, with 95% of women listing this as their least desirable genre. Science fiction novels came a close second as 94% of women admitted that they would be turned off a man if he were seen reading the latest Trekkie blockbuster.

Women, on the other hand, should avoid showing their love of romance or classic novels in public, with 88% of men admitting that they find these genres unattractive. It seems from the Hotels.com research that the safest route for both sexes is to pick a neutral genre such as crime fiction - in each case, over a third of both men and women (37%) admit this is their favourite holiday read and the one they find most attractive.

Alison Couper, communications director for Hotels.com, said: "Reading is a great way to unwind on holiday, but it seems that men in particular need to take extra care when working out which page turners to take away as the wrong choice could spell disaster when it comes to attracting a holiday mate."