What is it about celebrities that appeals to us?

The romance of glimpsing, just for a second, the life of the rich, famous or truly inspirational? The slap of excitement when we spot someone, whose face we recognize perhaps better than our own? The thrill of knowing the object of our fascination is, in fact, just a person?

For many, that chance encounter, opportunity to meet an icon or snatch a selfie would send us spinning off into a fangirl tailspin. But what if ‘celebrity’ was something you avoided at all cost?

This was a theme I toyed with in my debut contemporary romance novel, Recovery. And when I say toyed with, I mean turned upside down and poked at with a stick.

My heroine, Dr. Sophia King, has spent her life running from the kind of media attention that surrounds most celebrities. So to find herself not only face to face with Hollywood heartthrob, Nathan Banks, but falsely linked with the famous womanizer and romantic comedy hero is enough to leave her heading for the hills (or in this case, New Zealand’s Remarkables mountain range.)

Yes, Nathan is charismatic, has a body that would make Leonardo da Vinci weep, and an altruistic streak a mile wide, but she wants nothing to do with him, his jet set lifestyle or the worldwide interest that follows his every move.

Could love blossom between two such disparate characters?

As a romance addict and advocate of a well-placed love cliché, I choose to believe it could. After all, one of the most memorable scenes in the film Notting Hill, sees Julia Roberts entreating Hugh Grant with the line “Don’t forget, I’m just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her.”

There is hope for Sophia and Nathan.

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About Recovery

She can’t help but want him. But neither can his millions of fans.

With fame, fortune, looks and charisma, Nathan Banks may have it all. But Dr Sophia King wants nothing to do with him beyond treating him as any other patient.

A family scandal and a childhood of media intrusion have left the reserved doctor fiercely protective of her vulnerable family. But when a photo of Sophia and Nathan together strips away her anonymity and exposes past secrets, she must step into the limelight to protect her loved ones.

Intrigued by the man behind his famous persona, Sophia glimpses a life of fame and glamour she’s never coveted. But Nathan comes with baggage, and the screaming fans, the beautiful leading ladies and ruthless paparazzi are all part of the deal.

How much is Sophia willing to endure to be with the man she loves, and how much is Nathan willing to give up for the woman who has stolen his heart?

Recovery is the debut Contemporary romance novel of JC Harroway—a stand-alone story set in New Zealand, London and Los Angeles.

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JC Harroway can be found on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, and JCHarroway.com.