You know the movie Ghost Ship? Well, launch that ship into space and you've got Dead Silence.

That's it.

It's a fine book. The movie is awesome, so if you're going to rip it off, it's going to be pretty cool. But the book just wasn't original enough to merit any more of my favor. There's not nearly enough tech talk for spaceship fiction.

It's finely written, but the audiobook is awful. The narrator speaks with over-acted emotion and changes speed/volume with her emotional intensity which not only didn't seem to match the character but also made listening really obnoxious with the need to adjust volume/speed.

So idk, like 3stars maybe? I super love space fiction/nonfic, so this was a huge letdown. Thanks @netgalley and @macmillan.audio for an audio arc to listen and review.

**Thank you NetGalley and Greenleaf for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review**
This was a well-written, fast-paced, engaging book. I found the storyline to be extremely fascinating. Love Manhattan as a backdrop. Characters were relatable. Love the different POV's. I listened to it in one day.

I loved this book so much! I could literally sit here and gush about this for days. I love space horror even though its so rarely done well I still always give this genre a try. This story is one of the rare jems in this genre. I absolutely could not put this book down. I had to know what was going on.
This book also has so many great twist and reveals. I guessed a few of the twist but I didn't mind because just finding out more of the story was so great. This is one of those books that would love to read again and I am going to be recommending it as much as possible.

Dead Silence follows Claire (not quite a captain, more like a team leader) as she and her crew come across a luxury cruise (space)ship that's been missing for 20 years. Because finding this ship will set Claire up for life, she and her crew decide to board, unaware of the horrors that await them inside.

I almost didn't request this book because I'm pretty backlogged on NetGalley right now, but Sci-Fi Horror! Yes, please! First of all, I loved Claire. She was such a well-crafted character. Super realistic and sympathetic and overall quite likable despite her flaws. The first half of the book was on point and gave me major Event Horizon/Ghost Ship vibes (two pretty awesome horror movies). After the initial terrrors, there was a huge lull in the story, and it almost felt like it was going to go in a different direction. However, after that bump in the road it was able to bring back the creepy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ALC. This was a great book, made that much better Lauren Ezzo's low atmospheric voice. This was my first audiobook read by her, and it was amazing! She really made the story.

The best sci-fi horror I have read or even watched in a long time. Incredibly atmospheric and eerie. Even before you get to the high point of the action there are so many little things that occur that gives you a constant sense on dread.

When a crew out in the far reaches of space on the last leg of their appointed job comes across The Aurora, a luxury space liner that mystery disappeared 20 years ago on its maiden voyage, they decide to check out the ship in hopes to salvage enough to make claim to their findings. But in addition to gold plated faucets and diamond studded dog leashes that could make them rich beyond their dreams they find a multitude of horrors onboard. It is clear something terrible happened that doesn't make sense. Shortly the crew finds the same is starting too hapen to them. Can they find out what is going on before it is too late. Is it aliens? An unknown virus? Ghosts? Highly recommend to read it to find out.

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for an advanced audiobook for review.

5 Stars
Where do I start umm this book was amazing Ghost ship and unspeakable horrors Yes please!!! I got the opportunity to listen to the audiobook and thank you @netgalley and the author S.A Barnes for that.
If you get the opportunity to get listen to the audiobook do it you will not be disappointed! It was really scary and I read this book in the dark and omg I was terrified. The author did a magnificent job describing every single thing and you can really imagine everything that was going on. It read as a movie and wow that was an amazing experience

If you’re in the mood for spine tingling scifi-horror, Dead Silence does not disappoint.

You follow Claire Kovalik, an emotionally avoidant leader of a beacon repair crew who is about to be out of a job due to her employer automating her role. When her crew picks up a signal from a distress beacon and follow it to the space-equivalent of the Titanic, they end up being the ones to find out what killed the almost 700 lost souls on board— for better or for worse.

This was such a fantastic read. S.A. Barnes knows exactly how to set my teeth on edge and my hair on end. I was tense and anxious alongside our protagonist, even when I was still asking myself if I was more worried about ghosts, aliens, malicious tech or just other human beings. The twists were well executed, the plot engaging and the characters compelling-- whether they were morally terrible or just jerks. (Here’s looking at you, Voller.)

The Aurora, the luxury space-cruiser that most of the novel takes place on is a haunting setting, contrasting obscenely luxurious excess with gruesome amounts of violent death frozen in time. Like the crew, you never feel safe aboard it, and I think Barnes’ ability to make you feel like something is just… off with the setting really makes the story sing.

Kovalik is a fantastic unreliable narrator and it’s absolutely genius that this ends up being a strength of hers, rather than a setback. There was a very satisfying balance between her driving her own story and her learning to rely on others as she grows over the course of the book.

Lauren Ezzo's narration has me a bit torn. I enjoy the amount of feeling she puts into her performance, but there are moments where I feel the narration gets a bit breathy where the story itself doesn't need it. I find her secondary character voices to also be a bit strained when she does their dialogue- as if she's pushing herself out of her range and she's not quite comfortable doing so. Overall, I don't think her narration takes away from the book itself, but I don't think I liked it enough for me to specifically recommend the audiobook over the physical book if given the choice.

Narration aside however, this was a great read through and through and gave me exactly what I was looking for going into it.

Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC!

This book perfectly balances horror and suspense. It was so fresh for me because I don't usually read a lot of sci-fi but I just couldn't put this one down.
Claire Kovalic is in charge of a small space crew doing repairs when they received a distress signal. Of course they went to help and at first everything looks rosy and the crew thinks they've hit the jackpot. They've found a lost ship, the luxurious Aurora that disappeared 20 years ago. They've hit gold, but THEN, whispers in the dark, unexplainable hallucinations. AH MA GAWD!!! That's just the beginning.
🎉🎇🎇🎉
The book is so good. While it's told from Claire's POV, it wasn't lacking in coverage. Claire is also a bit of an oddity which makes her recounting of events so much more exciting.

Here are a few things to expect:
🎇Mutha-effin ghosts in space
🎇Skeevy power hungry men
🎇Badass Claire Kovalic
🎇Dual timelines
🎇Interesting Narrator backstory
🎇Action, suspense and mystery
🎇Epic Revenge!!!
💫🎉💫🎉
This book didn't miss a damn thing, everything I wanted and hoped for was right there, the horror, the gore the mystery🥰🥰. This is a book I would pay to see made into a film, it's right up my alley. I highly recommend this one. Top of the pile for February so far.

Oh I loved this audiobook!!

This book was like if the Titanic met Ghost Ship … in space & everyone went insane. FUN! I love horror. The book was suspenseful, dark & had its gross moments.

We have what you may think is an unreliable narrator who has a sad past that will unwind as the story progresses. She’s so damaged which causes a lot of self doubt and isolation. She’s a 34yo captain of a beacon repair crew approaching unemployment, obsolescence and not too happy about returning to Earth.

Right before their return trip they get an automated cry for help. What they come across is a 20 yo salvage that could set them all up for life or kill them in a multitude of horrific ways! Of course they jump at the chance at untold riches!

Good believable MC character development. This story is all about our pseudo Captain Claire.

I received this as an Advanced Reader Copy from Macmillan Audio & NetGalley! Good audiobook! The narrator kept me engaged.

The book itself is being massively mismarketed as a horror/thriller sci-fi. Yes, that is the setting but the writing and focus definitely feel more like a YA romance than anything else (even though the characters are in their 30s). The horror elements were good I just wish I didn't have to wade through so many other things I didn't enjoy or expect to get to them and it didn't feel worth it.

Additionally, this was my least favorite audiobook performance I've ever experienced. The reader was incredibly melodramatic to the point where she would get into a certain emotional state and then everything would be said in such a heightened way that it would completely pull me out of the book and make me either annoyed or laugh. If the book is dramatic enough then it shouldn't need the extra drama. The writing will speak for itself. I am 100% sure that I would have enjoyed this book more if I hadn't listened to it.

First off, let it be known how much I love sci-fi horrors - think Event Horizon, Alien, Dead Space, etc.

I found this book quite similar to my favorite genre books/films. It is quite atmospheric and ambiently-creepy.

I thought the book was quite interesting and eerie.

I wasn't a huge fan of the narrative / character development, but I still thought it was an okay read.

The biggest issue I had with the book was how the intensity of the book dropped (at least to me) around halfway through the book.

It was still a good one.

3.1/5

Claire and her salvaging crew are days away from unemployment when they stumble upon the Aurora: the famous luxurious space-liner that disappeared over twenty years. As they walk through the place, they realize things aren’t quite right. It’s left in shambles with the dead bodies of the passengers scattered around. Hallucinations begin to plague them and they have no idea what’s real or not.

Claire deals with her own ghosts while trying to figure out the mystery behind what happened all those years ago and if they are next. It makes her an unreliable narrator which really adds to the suspense.

Titanic meets the Shining is what grabbed me and I think that was a great comparison. Barnes has a lot of vivid imagery and I this would make a great movie. The build itself is pretty slow and usually, I hate that but I thought it worked well here. I didn’t like the forced romance though, I felt like that was so unnecessary. Why does there need to be romance in space ya know? Priorities.

Strong 3.5 but decided to round up since I actually liked this for the most part! I usually end up disliking sci-fi too.

Side note I absolutely hate the Netgalley audio application. I think the narrators always sound off and robotic so I wish Netgalley would fix that asap, especially when you try to change the speeds. I feel like I’ve mentioned this before but I stopped bothering with their audios for this very reason and thought they would’ve fixed it by now.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced copy!

Atmospherically, Dead Silence was phenomenal. It offers a suspenseful build with an eeriness that blossoms into full blown terror. The horror of the Aurora, both in the past and present day, grinds away at the nerves effectively. Additionally, Claire’s backstory, along with the emotions she felt throughout, aided the story’s development nicely.

I found the pacing in this to be perfect and my curiosity about why certain things were happening and what had become of the crew was fully piqued all the way through.

While Dead Silence is original in its premise, and there were many creative aspects about the story as a whole, the only character who went beyond one dimension was Claire. The others fit strong cliches and this bothered me. Plus, although the science fiction horror blend was fully enjoyable, I did find the ending was more a stereotypical thriller with some common tropes from that genre thrown in. It’s an exciting ending, despite this. I just desired a fresher approach.

Since I listened to this on audio, I must confess that I was annoyed by the over-the-top dramatics of the narrator, but the story was strong enough on its own that I still wanted to see it through. That speaks well of S.A. Barnes storytelling skills!

Overall, Dead Silence was an enjoyable way to occupy my brain, packed full of tension and satisfyingly creepy aspects. I would absolutely recommend this for fans of the genres, but if you have a weak stomach and actively avoid graphic details, you might want to pass this one by.

3.5 stars

I am immensely grateful to Macmillan Audio for my audio review copy through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Dead Silence will be out on February 8, 2022!

Imagine the Mary Celeste….in space. Claire is working her last days on the job as a beacon repair operator when her ship picks up a distress signal. Knowing that only unemployment awaits her back on earth, Claire and crew decide to follow the beacon. What they find is a salvagers dream – the Aurora, a luxurious space ship that disappeared over two decades ago. It looks like Claire’s fortunes are looking up… until they tour the Aurora. The ship appears to be empty, but there are strange noises, muffled voices, blood on the walls. And what happened to the passengers and crew? A freakishly scary book