Book Review: Code Red

‘Code Red’ by N.R. Walker focuses on Maddox and Roscoe - musician and manager exploring their pseudo-forbidden love and pining for each other as they embark on a tour with Artrous, the boy-band that Maddox has become the public face of. The story begins with and is told from Roscoe’s perspective throughout, who is the personal manager of Maddox, one of five men in the band Artrous. 

Walker is usually quite innovative in her series: from a cattle rancher in Australia to architects in New York, she has written about men both in the wild and in metropolitan spaces. What’s not new here is how Walker explores the line between the personal and professional. There is great popularity in the trope where characters get involved in a professional context, especially when there’s a power dynamic involved. While this is no different, the story follows the development of a romantic relationship between two people who have already been friends for years beforehand, and are familiar with each other. There is no learning how to be comfortable with each other. It is rather more of learning new things about each other, settling into that familiar comfort when lines blur and feelings overtake the mind. The development of their relationship, while accelerated, is sustained and strengthened due to this already existing familiarity. We get to see Roscoe and Maddox grow as people and as a couple in a high-stress environment as Artrous kicks off their international tour with 23 performance stops. Tagging along on this journey, we as readers spend two months with the couple - a transition in the passage of time which is handled quite well by Walker. 

It is revealed quite early on in the book that Maddox, being the face of the band, had pressures and anxieties that are exclusive to him and not the rest of the members, despite all of them being an equal part of the band - an equality that is emphasised on throughout. Being the face of the band, his every move is scrutinised. Through this special kind of pressure, we see how Maddox comes to rely on and specially trust Roscoe. This reliance and trust is a great contributing factor to how they see each other’s roles develop, and what they mean to each other. Walker makes it abundantly clear that Roscoe becomes an intimate caretaker when it comes to Maddox, and their relationship dynamic is explored through this lens. For all those who are fans of the daddy/boy trope, this is where you know the book is for you. 

If we are to talk about the realism within the book, certain things do come up. The issues existing within the entertainment industry are explored in depth. Comments and conversations are had on the exploitation of artists by the music industry; the invasion and violation of privacy from the side of the press; and the underlying, always-accompanying paranoia of danger that follows celebrity. There is an element of disbelief as we see these five young men make a pact in their teenage years which safeguards them from substance abuse, and allows Walker to not deal with the complications of characters overcoming substance abuse. On the other hand, there is a certain veracity in the way the safety protocols for celebrities; the darker, more obsessed side of fanbases; and the desperation of the paparazzi are explored. How Walker balances these perspectives is through Roscoe - he is middle management placed in such a way that he experiences the anxieties of the band-members firsthand while also being aware of office politics and tensions. This dual perspective of both worlds is masterfully used by Walker to give us a holistic insight into the world of ‘Code Red’. 

Walker then explores different relationships and dynamics as well. For a great deal of the novel, Maddox and Roscoe choose to keep their relationship a secret from their team members, despite the many red herrings that Walker inserts about how everyone already knows. As an author, she gives great weightage to truth-telling and secret-keeping. She considers the consequences of the relationship in real-time, how it impacts co-workers, the band, and professional relationships with upper-management. Walker executes this very well with the descriptions of social media posts and evolution of in-person and online relationships. Each scene with emotional punches, each invasion of privacy was viscerally felt and had strong impacts. Walker thus keeps us entrenched and emotionally involved with the well-being of the characters at each turn. 

Another way Walker effectively keeps the reader engaged is through vocabulary. With terms such as “NDAs”, “pappzz”, and more being used, we can see Walker’s effective and well-researched worldbuilding at work. The anxieties of the stars, the hierarchies, the processes of security as well as the teams required to make things happen are very well described and thought out, keeping all of us as readers embedded in the story, giving us a worm’s eye view as the narrative progresses on. 

All in all, ‘Code Red’ was a read that took my heart on a journey and kept it at the end as Roscoe and Maddox got the happy ending they deserved.