Latest ‘Grey’ book breaks records before it’s even published

Unbelievable, it is now very apparent that sex truly sells. The series that began as self-published erotic fan fiction now holds the No. 1 best seller spot on Amazon.

“Grey,” the fourth installment of the “Fifty Shades of Grey” series, retells the saga from the perspective of Christian Grey. The book was released at 12 a.m. on June 18 — Grey’s birthday. Before its release, it had become the top Kindle preorder book for 2015.

The 557-page book is selling for $7.99 on Kindle and $9.89 in paperback on Amazon.

Author E.L. James, a London resident and mother of two, began the series as fan fiction inspired by the young adult vampire series “Twilight.” James began publishing her work online in 2010 under the series title, Masters of the Universe, then self-published “Fifty Shades of Grey” as an e-book. After the book sold about 30,000 downloads in 2012, James signed a seven-figure contract with Random House to publish the complete trilogy, which includes “Fifty Shades Darker” and “Fifty Shades Freed.”

James was named the top-earning author of 2013 by Forbes, raking in $95 million.