Author Interview: Ivy Owens
Author Interview: Ivy Owens – I am such a sucker for a celebrity romance and I really enjoyed Scandalized by Ivy Owens – available now! Scandalized has celebrities, gossip, forced proximity & more! This post may contain links to purchase books & you can read our affiliate disclosure here.
About Ivy Owens:
Ivy Owens has been writing for fun her entire life. Scandalized was a labor of love written in the wild paradox of boredom and inspiration during the pandemic. She lives in California with her husband, two kids, and two dogs, and is rarely seen without a book in hand. You can find her on Instagram at @HelloIvyOwens.
Synopsis for Scandalized by Ivy Owens
A one-night stand between two old childhood friends turns into something more, but when a scandal threatens to tear them apart, they must decide how hard to fight for love—a steamy romance debut perfect for fans of Tessa Bailey and Kennedy Ryan.
Exhausted and on deadline with a story that could make or break her career, investigative journalist Georgia Ross is on the verge of a meltdown when a cancelled flight leaves her stuck in the airport overnight. But when a familiar face appears—the older brother of her childhood friend—and offers help, Gigi seems to have caught a break.
Alec Kim is handsome, humble, and kind—exactly the sort of man that Gigi has forgotten existed after her own painful heartbreaks. An evening of reconnection followed by a night of no-strings-attached passion with Alec feels like a gift—that is, until Gigi finally realizes that their childhood connection isn’t the only reason he seems so familiar to her.
Alec is determined to prove to Gigi that he is truly the man she thinks he is, even if it means coming clean about his fame—and his family’s connection to the story Gigi’s been working so hard to break. But as their feelings for each other grow deeper, Gigi and Alec must navigate a new reality…one where both of their hard-won careers are put directly in the path of an international scandal.
Buy Your Copy of Scandalized by Ivy Owens
Author Interview: Ivy Owens
Ivy, I’m so excited to talk to you today about Scandalized. Thank you for joining me for this Q & A!
Thank you so much for having me!
I loved your book so much! I devoured it in less than 24 hours. Can you tell me a little about the inspiration behind Scandalized?
Sure! This book was my “vacation” from writing during August of 2022 when Christina and I (I’m also known as the Lauren ½ of Christina Lauren) had just finished The Soulmate Equation and were taking a tiny breather. (There is probably much to be said about needing more hobbies when my vacation is spent writing, but it was also a pandemic so maybe it all makes sense?!). I knew I wanted to write a story about a woman running into her very first crush, the older brother of her childhood best friend—and then the two of them but the circumstances of where and how they meet up came to me one day when a friend sent me a picture of Hyun Bin sitting in an airport, reading on his phone. It’s such an unexciting photo, truly, but there was something about it that sparked the entire rest of the idea.
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I am a sucker for a celebrity romance! Can you tell readers what tropes and/or themes to expect from Scandalized?
Yes! It was SO much fun to lean into tropes on this one! We have:
- Best friend’s brother
- Celebrity + non-celebrity
- Childhood crush
- Fated mates
- Forbidden romance
- Instalove (but don’t be scared off!)
- Hot Brit heeeeee
Readers will love Gigi as soon as they meet her; I certainly did. I loved her determination. Can you tell me some of your favorite characteristics of Gigi?
I love her ambition, and I love how guarded she is but ALSO how immediately she allows the pull she feels toward Alec to take over. And I think that she’s able to do that in part because the things he says to her hit all of her vulnerable pieces: he thinks she’s beautiful, desirable, brilliant. He trusts her with a story he won’t give to anyone else. His infatuation and trust allows her to open up even after she’s been hurt and I genuinely loved writing this type of fated connection.
Alec is so wonderful, and I loved that he and Gigi reconnected. Can you tell me some of your favorite things about Alec?
Similar to what I said above, I love how real he is. He is a celebrity, but he is the dream version of that—a man who is able to maintain perspective about what is important, who is able to love fully and selflessly, who can communicate. I think one of my favorite things about Gigi+Alec is the depth of their communication.
Author Interview: Ivy Owens – Let’s Chat About Writing
I loved many scenes in Scandalized, but I really loved the game night scene. Do you have any favorite scenes in Scandalized?
Me too!! That is absolutely one of my favorite scenes. That, and the scene after, in Gigi’s bed. Those are two of my favorite chapters I’ve ever written. But I also really love the phone sex (hee), and the quiet moments they spend together in his suite.
What started your foray into reading and loving the romance genre? Any comfort reads you go back to time and time again?
I always gravitated to romance. I started with Judy Blume and graduated to Danielle Steele. Soon I was writing fanfiction and imagining love stories for every character I grew to adore. But my adult relationship with romance really began with Stephanie Perkins, Jandy Nelson, CS Pacat, Tiffany Reisz, and Kresley Cole.
Author Interview: Ivy Owens – Romance Recs, TV adaptations
I adore celebrity romances! Do you have any favorite celebrity romance books?
I recently devoured Ava Wilder’s How to Fake it in Hollywood, and I cannot recommend it highly enough!!
Scandalized is such an entertaining and binge worthy read. What are some books on your TBR?
I’m working my way through some amazing ones right now. I just finished Sarah Maclean’s Heartbreaker (loved!!), Georgia Clark’s Island Time (it’s magical), Amy Lea’s Exes and Oh’s (devoured!), Kate Clayborn’s Georgie All Along (truly the best book I’ve read in ages), and next up for me is Elle Cosimano’s third book in the Finley Donovan series (out this January), which is my favorite bookish thing these days!!
I always love talking about TV and movies. If you were to cast an adaptation for Scandalized, do you have anyone in mind for your characters?
I don’t! I’m notoriously terrible at casting my own characters. That said, as crazy as it sounds, I don’t think this book needs a movie adaptation! I’d love to see some great k drama actors in a Seoulmates (Susan Lee, 9/20/22) adaptation or an adaptation of xoxo by Axie Oh.
What are you hoping readers feel when they read Scandalized?
I hope they feel totally absorbed in the love story and can’t put it down ☺
Thank you again for taking the time to speak with me! How can readers best connect with you?
Readers can find me on Instagram at @helloivyowens!! Thank you so much for having me!
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One Comment
Deanna (A Novel Glimpse)
This was fun to read! I’m curious about this book now.