A Gideon bible or a steamy sex novel in the bedside table in a hotel guestroom?

That was the dilemma confronting the Damson Dene Hotel in England's peaceful Lake District.

Owner Jonathan Denby purchased the 40-room hotel from a Methodist church group 10 years ago. And it came with Gideon bibles in all the rooms, according to NBC News.

Given today's society, Denby decided it was "inappropriate" to place a religious book in guest quarters and was in search of a replacement.

The blockbuster "Fifty Shades of Grey," part of a trilogy by E.L. James, came to mind.

"Everyone's reading it, so we thought it a hospitable thing to do, especially if some guests were shy about buying it because of its reputation," Denby said. (Think bondage, sadomasochism and graphic sex scenes.)

Denby, who hasn't read the book, said the choice was done for fun because the novel is so popular.

The choice did not go unnoticed.

The local vicar in town was the first critic, calling Denby's action "inappropriate."

U.S. critics weighed in, too, and some suggested that the bible be put back in the rooms.

However, most guests at the bucolic inn, whose rooms feature four-poster beds and Jacuzzi baths, reportedly "have loved" discovering "Fifty Shades of Grey" tucked into the bedside table, according to Denby.

He's not disposing of the Gideons. He keeps a stack of them at the front desk for guests who want to scan the scripture.

— Gay Nagle Myers