Grey out in New Zealand NOW: Excited Fifty Shades of Grey fans rush to buy racy novel

The much-anticipated novel is finally out down under and fans are MORE than a bit excited to open it

IT'S OUT IN NZ!

As Fifty Shades of Grey fans here in Blighty wait anxiously for midnight to roll around, New Zealand have already got their hands on the new book.

E.L James' latest novel, entitled Grey, has finally been released down under, and it's kick-started the countdown for the rest of the world.

To celebrate the eve of the big release date, fans have shared a snapshot from the very first page - and it's enough to send the world's pulses racing.

It simply reads: "Ask me for you panties, baby.

It's all we needed to see to get a sense of how this book is going to go.

Based on "unprecedented" pre-order figures, it is thought the book could achieve a similar level of success to the first novels, with more than 20m copies sold worldwide.

There are a number of scenes in the first book which fans are begging to be told by Christian's perspective, including his first meeting with Anastasia Steele and the night he randomly turned up at a night club to save her after she drunk dialed him.

It is thought the book will be darker than the previous three with the chapters delving into the mind of the dominant character who was abused as a child and later adopted.

On Thursday, the day the book is released, author E.L James will appear on The Today Show to talk about the novel and the reaction from die-hard fans across the world.

Meanwhile, one reader just couldn't wait and a copy was reportedly stole the book just days before its release, although Penguin Random House are yet to comment "due to an ongoing police investigation".

According to the Daily Mail: "It is feared thieves may be planning to release pirated versions of the novel, or sell extracts to media outlets."