FRIDAY FREEBIE: Laura Greaves’ ‘The Ex-Factor’

Posted on March 20, 2015 by ausromtoday in Friday Freebie // 1 Comment

Friday Freebie/Laura Greaves

What inspired this book?
I’m kind of sorry-not-sorry to confess that The Ex-Factor was inspired by my fascination with celebrity gossip. In particular, I’m captivated by ‘celebrity-civilian’ relationships. Why is it that celebrities seem to exclusively date other celebrities? And why do those that do dare to fall for regular old non-famous folk tend to be unable to sustain those relationships?

I also find it really interesting when the media refuses to ‘let go’ of a celebrity’s previous relationships, and that plays a big part in The Ex-Factor. Like the whole Brad-Jen-Angelina triangle, which isn’t even a thing because, hello, Brad and Jen broke up a decade ago – I think it’s okay if we all move on now!

Who are the main characters and why will we love them?
There’s supermodels and A-list actors aplenty in The Ex-Factor, but the true star is Kitty Hayden, a dog trainer from Sydney’s Northern Beaches. Kitty is a pretty feisty gal who doesn’t put up with nonsense from anyone – not her idle younger sister, Frankie, nor her eccentric best friend, Adam. She’s not about to cut sexy movie star Mitchell Pyke any slack, either.

Mitchell is stratospherically famous – picture the most famous celebrity you can think of, and then imagine a man quadruply well known. (Is quadruply a word? It is now!) But even being The Most Famous Man in the World couldn’t spare Mitchell from heartbreak, and he’s still smarting after being very publicly dumped by his Brazilian supermodel girlfriend, Vida Torres.

You’ll love Kitty because she’s real and relatable. She messes things up, just like we all do! But she has a wonderfully kind heart and will do anything for those she loves – often to her detriment. Kitty is also a certified Crazy Dog Lady, with four rescue mutts of her own.

You’ll love Mitchell because, while he may be a huge celebrity, he’s really just a normal, decent guy who’s looking for love. Also, he’s completely gorgeous and ridiculously sexy – think Sex and the City star Jason Lewis. Yum!

For you, what’s the best thing about Fridays?
Aside from the obvious only-one-day-until-the-weekend thing?! Well, at the moment I’m loving Fridays because a wonderful babysitter comes to look after my one-year-old daughter on Friday mornings so that I can write. For the past 12 months I’ve had to squeeze my scribbling into her naptimes, so it’s such a treat to know I have a block of uninterrupted writing time once a week.

What’s coming up next for you?
I’m excited to share that, as well as The Ex-Factor, I have another book coming out this month! I’m one of six Australian chick lit authors who has contributed a short novella to an anthology called Autumn Leaves. I’m really thrilled to be slipping between the covers with Carla Caruso, Georgina Penney, Samantha Bond, Sandy Vaile and Katie Spain. Autumn Leaves will be released as an e-book on March 23, and the best bit is it’s completely FREE!

The Ex-Factor
Laura Greaves

Talented, gorgeous and hopelessly in love, American movie star Mitchell Pyke and Brazilian supermodel Vida Torres were Hollywood’s most talked-about couple. They seemed destined for ‘happily ever after’ – until Vida left Mitchell for his best friend, and Mitchell publicly vowed he would never love again.

Sydney dog trainer Kitty Hayden has never even heard of Mitchell Pyke. Still reeling from the loss of her mother, Kitty is too busy cleaning up the various messes made by her indolent younger sister, Frankie, and trying to find a girlfriend for her terminally single best friend, Adam, to keep up with celebrity gossip.

When her work takes Kitty to Mitchell’s movie set, their worlds spectacularly collide. The chemistry between them is undeniable – and it’s not long before Kitty is turning her life upside down to be with her leading man.

But as Kitty quickly discovers, when someone as famous as Mitchell Pyke tells the world he’ll never love again, the world listens. And the vindictive Vida is never far away. With constant reminders that she’s merely a consolation prize, how can Kitty compete with such a tenacious adversary – especially when she starts to suspect that Mitchell isn’t over Vida after all?

Destiny Romance | Amazon.com | Amazon.com.au | iTunes | Kobo

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