Miley Cyrus poses almost nude for racy book cover

Miley Cyrus has posed nearly nude for the front cover of photographer David Lachappelle's new coffee table book.

The 24-year-old, who has ditched her former wild, provocative image for a down-to-earth makeover of late, appears to be completely naked in the image, but she is actually wearing an extremely sheer bodysuit embellished with strategically placed clusters of pink Swarovski crystals around her breasts and privates to protect her modesty.

In the picture, which appears on the cover of LaChappelle's upcoming book Lost + Found, Miley looks like a pixie as she has butterfly wings sprouting out of her back. The singer, who wears a super curly blonde wig and heavy blue and pink eye make-up, is stood on the branch of a tree which has grown inside a prison cell.

Lost + Found, which marks his first publication in 10 years, will be published by Taschen on 1 December (17) and also contain more than 150 previously unpublished photographs of celebrities including Naomi Campbell, Lady Gaga, Kanye West and late stars Amy Winehouse, David Bowie, and Michael Jackson.

Miley has never been shy about stripping off and was known for her racy outfits and her raunchy performance with Robin Thicke at the MTV Video Music Awards in 2013.

She recently spoke to Billboard about her new image and said she wanted to be able to reach out to her more conservative fans but didn't think they would take her seriously when talking about politics if she was wearing her old outfits.

"I like talking to people that don't agree with me, but I don’t think I can do that in an aggressive way," the singer said. "I don't think those people are going to listen to me when I'm sitting there in nipple pasties, you know?"

Miley returns to the VMAs on Sunday (27Aug17), when she will perform her new single Younger Now, from her upcoming album of the same name.