Book Review: Ghost Station by S.A. Barnes
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Science Fiction, Horror
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Nightfire (April 9, 2024)
Length: 377 pages
Author Information: Website
My first introduction to S.A. Barnes was with her debut Dead Silence which, to be honest, I enjoyed but did not love. But because the reasons had less to do with content and more to do with the book’s structure, I was much more optimistic about the author’s next novel Ghost Station and was ultimately glad I decided to pick it up.
Once again, readers are plunged into the chilling atmosphere of a sci-fi horror adventure, but this time we trade the haunted confines of a space-faring luxury cruise liner for an abandoned facility on a remote planet. The story follows Dr. Ophelia Bray, a psychologist burdened with a complicated past with ERS, a syndrome linked to space travel that manifests as hallucinations and violent outbursts in the afflicted. As a result, she has dedicated her life to studying the condition, but when she is assigned to the tight-knit crew of an exploration ship, she faces immediate resistance. Used to working in the most isolated parts of space and depending only on each other, the crew is resentful of Ophelia’s presence, some of them reacting with outright hostility and skepticism that ERS even exists.
However, Ophelia is undeterred, recognizing the psychological challenges that might arise with her new team members. They are still trying to come to terms with the recent loss of one of their own, not to mention that the previous crew assigned their mission had vanished without a trace, leaving behind an unsettling mystery. The destination planet itself is a wasteland littered with the ancient ruins of a forgotten civilization, leading to even more questions about what might have happened to the station’s previous occupants and Ophelia’s concerns that they may be walking into the same trap.
The thing I love most about space disaster stories is the atmosphere, which Barnes has proven skilled at crafting. This book has it all: a derelict station, creepy alien ruins, the unforgiving coldness of space, and of course, the terror and claustrophobia that arise when things go wrong. The prose perfectly captures the feelings of suspense and tension that draw me to these kinds of stories, and I am driven to keep turning the pages in order to unravel the truth.
That said, effective dread is something that takes time to build. This results in the slow-burn nature of the story, which works surprisingly well here, transporting the reader alongside the crew as they uncover the station’s disturbing secrets—and the secrets amongst themselves. The narrative also takes its time developing the characters, especially Ophelia’s perspective which gives insight into her backstory, her thoughts and motivations, though she does keep certain details of her life close to the vest, making her an unreliable narrator at times and adding another layer of mystery to the plot.
Unlike Dead Silence, which employed a dual-timeline approach split into two halves of the novel, Ghost Station unfolds in a more linear fashion. This allowed for tighter focus on the immediate events and the escalating danger as the crew faces more challenges and threats, creating a sense of horror that builds more organically.
Overall, I enjoyed Ghost Station which kept me hooked with its interesting characters and mysterious plot, though the novel’s true strength lies in its tantalizing atmosphere steeped in psychological suspense. This is a much more solid showing from S.A. Barnes, which makes me excited to see what she does next.
The BiblioSanctum 
Nice Review. This sounds like a great story but I’m not keen on horror so not sure if this one is for me or not.
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It can get pretty intense so…yeah definitly for horror fans 🙂
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I’m glad you enjoyed this. I thought Dead Silence had a lot of potential so I’m happy to see you feel this book lives up to that expectation.
But not for me. I’ve complained enough about Barnes, so I won’t go off again 😉
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Haha, she’s redeemed herself somewhat with this one for me, so I guess I will keep giving her books a read 🙂
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I love this particular type of horror and can’t wait to pick it up!
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Definitely my kind of sci-fi horror as well. Hope you can get to it soon!
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Cool review… this book sounds like a wild ride of sci-fi blending with horror.
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My favorite sci-fi subgenre 😀
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I’m finishing this up today, and it’s so good! It’s very creepy and making me itch, though😬
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Ooh yes, there were a lot of those kinds of scenes, lol!
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I’m so glad to learn that this new novel fulfills its promise: from your review it sounds as if the pacing and narrative have improved from Dead Space (which still was a solid story), and I’m quite eager to read Ghost Station myself 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
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If you enjoyed Dead Space, I think you will have a fantastic time with Ghost STation indeed!
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I think that book would make me so anxious Mogasy!
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I was definitely feeling on edge for a lot of it!
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This sounds like an interesting read, I particularly love the unreliable narrator aspect. Although space horror isn’t something I’ve really read before.
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The unreliable narrator element was utilized to great effect, I have to say. Raises the tension to a whole other level 🙂
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Great review, Mogsy! I’ve enjoyed Barnes’ space horror before – but right now, I’m not in the mood for it. Though when Life gets a bit fairer, I might well give this one a go.
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I hear ya – horror is something I have to be in the right mood for as well. It’s just I often find myself in the mood, lol!
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You always find such interesting sci.fi
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I actually haven’t had the best luck lately, but this one was a good one.
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Now I know which book of theirs to try first. I’d hoped this would be a good one, mainly because I love that cover and always want books with great covers to be great reads. But this also sounds like my kind of story, a slow build atmospheric sci-fi horror story.
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Oh definitely, DEFINITELY this one first. Dead Space wasn’t bad, but its structure involves a very risky decision by the author that I don’t think all readers will be able to get on board with. I know I wasn’t crazy about the halfway switch. This one was much more enjoyable for me.
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This sounds like it delivers that wonderful creepy atmosphere that is a wonderful possibility with space stories.
Lynn 😀
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My favorite kind! I need more space horror like this.
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Sounds much better than the first one! I’ll have to keep an eye on it for when I have time and tendency for something horror-y. Glad you enjoyed it!
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Yep, a solid improvement over Dead Space – which wasn’t all bad, but I did not care for the mid-book surprise.
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