Novel
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YOU’RE
SAFE HERE
Wellness, motherhood, and technology converge in a near future California, as three women’s seemingly innocuous decisions have further-reaching consequences than any of them could imagine in this timely, clever, and white-knuckled thriller.
In 2060, the WellPod is the latest launch from the largest tech company the world has ever seen—a fleet of floating personal paradises scattered throughout the Pacific Ocean, focused entirely on health, solitude, and relaxation. Created by an enigmatic founder who will stop at nothing to ensure her company’s success, it is the long-awaited pinnacle of wellness technology. For newly pregnant Maggie, the six-week program is the perfect chance to get away…especially since the baby isn’t her partner’s.
Noa Behar isn’t a perfect fiancée. She’s too distracted, too focused on her work in helping program the WellPod to give Maggie the attention she deserves. But when she discovers something rotten beneath WellPod’s shiny exterior—a history of faulty tech and dangerous cover-ups—she knows one thing: she’ll do whatever it takes to keep Maggie safe.
The problem? The malfunctioning WellPods are already at sea. And there’s a storm coming.
The problem? The malfunctioning WellPods are already at sea. And there’s a storm coming.
“[D]ramatic dystopian debut…seamlessly interweaving a chilling tech dystopia, a corporate thriller, and a rocky romance. It’s a heart-pumping ride.” — Publishers Weekly
“Stephens' debut novel is dystopia at its best… You’re Safe Here is a brilliant book which explores several themes at once, never losing a beat while doing so.” — Booklist Review
"Part psychological thriller and part wry social commentary, You’re Safe Here is a fresh and timely debut that deftly explores the potential—and betrayals—of a world bursting with unbound technological innovation. The complicated, yearning women in the novel navigate a treacherous landscape, all while coming to terms with their own ambitions and desires, ultimately forcing readers to ask themselves: What does safety mean to me? How far would I go to achieve it? With deliciously paced storytelling sprinkled with secrets galore, Leslie Stephens’s debut promises to guide you through uncertain waters with grace and authority." —Thao Thai, author of BANYAN MOON, a #ReadwithJenna pick
"This wildly imaginative speculative thriller kept me guessing from the first page to the last. Full of spooky technology and even spookier mommy issues, it's a sapphic rollercoaster that takes you to places you'll never expect." — Gabrielle Korn, author of YOURS FOR THE TAKING and former Editor-in-Chief of Nylon Magazine
“For connoisseurs of speculative fiction who enjoy detailed worldbuilding.” — Kirkus Reviews
"Leslie Stephens' debut is a gripping and unsettling novel that deftly combines elements of thriller, satire, and relationship drama. The near future of You're Safe Here is a fully realized place, one that feels close enough to touch—and far enough to fear. A pitch-perfect exploration of the creeping terror of a fully optimized life." — Jessie Gaynor, author of THE GLOW
"Breathtaking, unique, and urgently prescient. This queer literary sci-fi thriller asks vital questions about what it means to be human in the face of unprecedented technological advancement. Stephens' attention to detail is second to none, rendering a thoroughly believable near-future world floating on a sea of red flags." — Georgia Clark, author of ISLAND TIME
“Leslie Stephens’s near-future debut is a thrilling ride that explores what happens when we trust the tech industry with our wellbeing. Toggling between the experiences of the tech’s creators and users, You’re Safe Here is both an intimate character study during ecological crisis and a complex and deliciously readable jigsaw puzzle, fast-paced and full of surprises.” — Katie M. Flynn, author of THE COMPANIONS and ISLAND RULE
“Leslie Stephens delivers a debut with a punch: a near-future, Silicon Valley psychological thriller that takes the wellness industry to its dystopian extreme. YOU’RE SAFE HERE forces us to reexamine the costs of love, safety, and reality in a world where climate chaos has battered the land and biotechnology has pervaded every crevice of human life. And get ready for a ride, because even in a future where Big Tech has made secrets a luxury of the obscenely rich, Leslie Stephens serves up twists on twists on twists, building to an ending that no amount of AI-powered computing could ever hope to predict.”—Nick Fuller Googins, author of THE GREAT TRANSITION
A CrimeReads Pick for Speculative Crime Novels Coming Out In 2024.
“Stephens' debut novel is dystopia at its best… You’re Safe Here is a brilliant book which explores several themes at once, never losing a beat while doing so.” — Booklist Review
"Part psychological thriller and part wry social commentary, You’re Safe Here is a fresh and timely debut that deftly explores the potential—and betrayals—of a world bursting with unbound technological innovation. The complicated, yearning women in the novel navigate a treacherous landscape, all while coming to terms with their own ambitions and desires, ultimately forcing readers to ask themselves: What does safety mean to me? How far would I go to achieve it? With deliciously paced storytelling sprinkled with secrets galore, Leslie Stephens’s debut promises to guide you through uncertain waters with grace and authority." —Thao Thai, author of BANYAN MOON, a #ReadwithJenna pick
"This wildly imaginative speculative thriller kept me guessing from the first page to the last. Full of spooky technology and even spookier mommy issues, it's a sapphic rollercoaster that takes you to places you'll never expect." — Gabrielle Korn, author of YOURS FOR THE TAKING and former Editor-in-Chief of Nylon Magazine
“For connoisseurs of speculative fiction who enjoy detailed worldbuilding.” — Kirkus Reviews
"Leslie Stephens' debut is a gripping and unsettling novel that deftly combines elements of thriller, satire, and relationship drama. The near future of You're Safe Here is a fully realized place, one that feels close enough to touch—and far enough to fear. A pitch-perfect exploration of the creeping terror of a fully optimized life." — Jessie Gaynor, author of THE GLOW
"Breathtaking, unique, and urgently prescient. This queer literary sci-fi thriller asks vital questions about what it means to be human in the face of unprecedented technological advancement. Stephens' attention to detail is second to none, rendering a thoroughly believable near-future world floating on a sea of red flags." — Georgia Clark, author of ISLAND TIME
“Leslie Stephens’s near-future debut is a thrilling ride that explores what happens when we trust the tech industry with our wellbeing. Toggling between the experiences of the tech’s creators and users, You’re Safe Here is both an intimate character study during ecological crisis and a complex and deliciously readable jigsaw puzzle, fast-paced and full of surprises.” — Katie M. Flynn, author of THE COMPANIONS and ISLAND RULE
“Leslie Stephens delivers a debut with a punch: a near-future, Silicon Valley psychological thriller that takes the wellness industry to its dystopian extreme. YOU’RE SAFE HERE forces us to reexamine the costs of love, safety, and reality in a world where climate chaos has battered the land and biotechnology has pervaded every crevice of human life. And get ready for a ride, because even in a future where Big Tech has made secrets a luxury of the obscenely rich, Leslie Stephens serves up twists on twists on twists, building to an ending that no amount of AI-powered computing could ever hope to predict.”—Nick Fuller Googins, author of THE GREAT TRANSITION
A CrimeReads Pick for Speculative Crime Novels Coming Out In 2024.