This confirms my Little Life Theory of Literature (with the disclaimer that I didn't read LL, understand that some people find value in it that's valid, etc): the lit critics are so starved for kinky/iddy/plotty/sf stories and have so little understanding of their own need that when a book that's otherwise clumsily or overbearingly retreads the kinky/iddy/plotty/sff genre beats is written by a lit author, they mistake their own strong emotional reaction for the book's literary value, and it gets passed on.