top of page

When Solène Marchand, the thirty-nine-year-old owner of a prestigious art gallery in Los Angeles, takes her adolescent daughter, Isabelle, to meet her favorite boy band, she does so reluctantly, at her ex-husband’s request. The last thing she is expecting is to make a connection with one of the members of the world-famous August Moon. But Hayes Campbell is clever, winning, confident, and posh, and the attraction is immediate. That he is all of twenty years old further complicates things.

What begins as a series of clandestine trysts in various cities quickly evolves into an impassioned relationship. It is a journey that spans continents as they navigate each other’s disparate worlds: from stadium tours to international art fairs to secluded hideaways. And for Solène, it is as much a reclaiming of self, as it is a rediscovery of happiness and love. When their romance becomes a viral sensation, and both she and her daughter, the target of rabid fans and an insatiable media, Solène must face how her new status has impacted not only her life, but the lives of those closest to her.

praise for "the idea of you"

"Actress Lee, who appeared in Fifty Shades Darker, debuts with a beautifully written novel that explores sex, love, romance, and fantasy in moving, insightful ways while also examining a woman’s struggle with aging and sexism, with a nod at the tension between celebrity and privacy. A fascinating, thought-provoking, genre-bending romantic read." - Kirkus Reviews

"Not only is this romance a fun ride, but it also draws on themes of celebrity and sexism that will give you something to think about after you're done." - Bustle, Best Fiction Books, June 2017

“Lee starts the story off with a somewhat outrageous scenario: The 39-year old mother of a teenage-boy-band-obsessed daughter and the 20-year-old boy band member enter into a relationship. She makes the readers believe that not only could it be possible, but it exists and is true and real.” - RT Book Reviews

“Captures what fame looks like, and how it affects us all...a fun, juicy love story!” - Elizabeth Banks

“An O-M-G page tuner that literally sucks you in from page one to the last few words. I found myself yearning for more, needing, really, to know what happens next... it's that good.” - Gabrielle Union

"An honest and elegant book about modern love in the age of uber-celebrity and social media. - Hill Harper, author and actor

the idea of you

in paperback, kindle, and audiobook

available now

bottom of page