From KIRKUS REVIEWS
(The original can be found at this link.)
A debut novel delivers a romance set in the rarefied world of pop-music superstardom.
Kalynn Stearne is a newly minted superstar on the verge of her first big solo tour. She has two platinum albums, industry awards, and a huge fan base. But she also has serious problems. An experience with abuse in her past keeps her from sleeping. She feels smothered by her fame, having to be accompanied by bodyguards wherever she goes. She doesn’t get to do the normal things a 19-year-old does, and everybody wants something from her. It’s hard for her to trust men when every guy she meets, including other pop stars and even her tour director, treats her like a sexual trophy. That’s why her immediate attraction to Layne Kennett, her new tour photographer, is so unusual. Layne has his own troubles—he is on probation and has been given this assignment from his father’s media company as a last chance to go straight. Just to stir the pot, Kalynn has a stalker named Alexa/Alex sending her threatening notes. When Kalynn’s longtime manager, Mae, is found dead, the stalker takes credit for it. Now Kalynn has to work through her trust issues, worry about a creep getting to her and her adopted family, and mount the most important tour of her life. Layne has to keep Kalynn’s trust and still reveal his past as a felon. That’s a lot of stuff working against a happy ending, but this is a romance novel, after all, and a briskly moving one at that. Fairbairn doesn’t break any new ground with this tale, but it does have plenty to offer. The characters, especially Kalynn and Layne, are well-drawn and believable. Their development feels natural, even in extraordinary circumstances. There are plot points, for example, a party in Malibu when Layne sees a pop star hitting on Kalynn, in which the author avoids obvious choices and allows his characters to be more human than caricatures. And his prose is sparkling clean, with never a muddled moment.
An engaging, tightly written love story with a dash of suspense.
From Erin Coughlin
(Author of The Pop and Fizz Double Feature Movie Night Series)
The Safe List by G.S. Fairbairn is an engaging romantic suspense story set in the modern Pop music scene. Nineteen-year-old pop star sensation Kalynn is busy preparing for a national show tour when she meets Layne, the new photographer assigned to shadow her during the tour.
Their initial hate meet encounter gradually builds into a genuine, believable romance. Both Kalynn and Layne suffer from believable personal demons and hang-ups. Layne is looking to get away from his muddied past. Kalynn suffers from frequent blackouts, horrible night terrors and intimacy issues. In addition to her hectic tour preparations, Kalynn soon discovers from her security team that she is being stalked by a malicious, obsessed fan.
Together, Kalynn and Layne work to overcome their complex personal histories and misunderstandings about one another. Layne’s heroic, selfless actions make him a very likeable, romantic love interest worthy of Kalynn’s leading lady.
Author G.S. Fairbairn’s clean narrative successfully immerses the reader in the everyday lifestyle of a contemporary pop singer and celebrity. Fairbairn tackles timely issues within the music industry and #MeToo movement, including sexual harassment and assault, corruption, the uncontrollable nature of fandom, and the media’s toxic perpetuation of the images and expectations of public figures.
