Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: Code Red
AUTHOR: N.R. Walker
NARRATOR: Nick J. Russo
PUBLISHER: Self-published
LENGTH: 11 hours and 27 minutes
RELEASE DATE: October 26, 2021
BLURB:
Maddox Kershaw is the main vocalist of the world’s biggest boy band. He’s at the top of every music chart, every award show, every social media platform, and every sexiest-man-alive list. He’s the bad boy, the enigma, the man everyone on the planet wants a piece of.
He’s also burned out and exhausted, isolated and lonely. Not in a good headspace at the start of a tour.
Roscoe Hall is Maddox’s personal manager. His job is high-flying, high-demand, high-profile, and he loves it. Maddox has consumed his entire life for the past four years. Roscoe knows him. He sees the real Maddox no one else gets to see.
He’s also in love with him.
When the tour and stress become too much, when the world begins to close in, Roscoe becomes Maddox’s lifeline. But as Maddox knows already, and as Roscoe is about to learn, the brighter the spotlight, the darker the shadow.
REVIEW:
After nearly a decade at being at the mercy of the label/management company it’s clear that Maddux is at the end of his rope. He’s not in the right headspace AT ALL to start a tour in support of the new album, but of course he’s committed. He’s not going to let anyone down – not the fans, his bandmates, himself. But he’s spiraling. The one thing that’s keeping him from crashing and burning is Roscoe – his personal manager that has been watching this happen as they prepare to leave for the tour.
Roscoe is responsible for Maddux – he’s his personal manager. He’s also in love with him which makes keeping his distance difficult. When Maddux starts to have panic attacks and he reaches out to Roscoe, he can’t help but reach back. He’s concerned – on a lot of levels. He doesn’t want to cross a line – which is explicit in his employment contract. But he also realizes that he’s the only one who really sees Maddux – not just the star – and he’s worried that if he doesn’t step in something terrible could happen.
The longer the tour goes, the more dependent Maddux becomes on Roscoe. And then when the fans get wind of it – based only on some innocuous photos, then security becomes an issue. The management team wants to separate them, but Maddux is not happy. And the more pressure he feels, the less he sleeps, the more anxious he gets and eventually, he does get sick. And when he collapses, it’s clear to everyone that he and Roscoe are more than management and talent. His bandmates aren’t too happy that he didn’t tell them, but he makes the case for protecting Roscoe’s job and keeping a lid on it for the sake of security. But Maddux doesn’t care what the Management company wants or says and he will do whatever he can to make sure that he and Roscoe are together because he’s holding on by a thread.
So I think the actual audience for this story is skewed a bit younger than me 😉 I am a little too old to really be part of the Boy Band era. I was already a working adult by the days of New Kids on the Block and I was in my 30s by the time NSYNC and Backstreet Boys were popular 😀 That being said, this was a somewhat enjoyable story about a boy bander who is at the breaking point. I liked both Maddux and Roscoe and their story was believable. Based on what little I’ve seen of how the guys in 1Direction have had to deal with the craziness, I could completely see how the world would be terribly isolating. I’m sure that they didn’t know what was real and what wasn’t since they had to live in such a bubble. Eventually I can imagine it just gets to be too much when you want to move on with your life. The spotlight on the mental health issues was really timely as well. Between the isolation of fame, the isolation of the pandemic, the lack of real connections with real people has got to take a huge toll.
Nick Russo performed his usual magic with this story. His Maddux was vulnerable, flirty, angry, playful and determined at various turns. His Roscoe was strong and caring and insightful and supportive. I believed that he’d do whatever it took to make sure Maddux felt seen and understood and cared for. The other guys in the bad are funny and believable. The security team and the management team came across as professional and caring – even if they pushed the boys harder than they should. I also loved the doctor who really helped Roscoe take care of Maddux. All in all a really touching and believable performance. Definitely recommended – especially for Boy Band fans 🙂
RATING: 
BUY LINKS:
Audible