I’m not normally a big sci-fi reader, but this book made me think I might need to give more a try! I love a good mysterious horror book, and there were lots of great tidbits scattered throughout this story that were very spooky. The only thing I didn’t enjoy was the ending; it felt very rushed and honestly unsatisfying, given how much was built up. However, I did enjoy reading this book and promptly read S.A. Barnes other book after this!

Psychologist Ophelia Bray joins an exploration team journeying to an abandoned planet. Soon, strange discoveries cause the crew to question if they're really alone after all.

I really enjoyed the detailed descriptions that added to the tense atmosphere of the story. Each crew member also had a distinct personality, and I was deeply invested in their survival. Ophelia's character development, taking charge of her past, was also a high point. I would have loved a bit more explanation of the planet's previous occupants, but I realize that was not the main focus of this story.

Overall, a very entertaining and thrilling read!

I love the premise of this book. It was thrilling and stressful. Main character Ophelia is a psychologist and can be frustrating in that she falls into some pretty obvious therapist stereotypes. I was nervous about how it would wrap up considering how dire things were up until the very end, but it managed to land the ending pretty well. Very Alien/Aliens inspired. Overall, I really enjoyed it.

I loved this one! Another hit again. Space mystery and horror is becoming a favorite of mine. I can’t wait for more to come.

S.A. Barnes returns with a new space horror that will leave you guessing and creeped out. I love space horror for its isolated settings and the terror of nature and the unknown.

In this future world, planets are owned by different corporations. They send teams to scout them and gather samples. These Reclamation and Exploration teams are isolated and close-knit. When Psychologist Dr. Ophelia Bray is added to the crew of Resilience, she is met with opposition.

Ophelia is desperate to make a difference, she’s running from a controlling family and a mistake she made in her past. Focused on proving herself and her research, she tries to help the crew through the loss of their former teammate.

On the planet, things are not as expected. The previous crew left the station in mysterious condition, and things are anything but routine. Is it madness? Is it something worse?

The world-building is excellent, subtle, and three-dimensional. I completely understood the economy, politics, and business choices of big corporations owning planets. I loved the crew, the mysteries, the terrors of space. I highly recommend it!

A sci-fi thriller taking place on a deserted space station with a dysfunctional crew. This story is a page turner, once I started, I just couldn’t put it down as Barnes’ sets the stage for a creepy space adventure.

Thank you NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I devoured this book!

I was immediately gripped by the atmosphere and events. I fell in love with all of the crew and their varying personalities. There’s some fantastic banter between them throughout the story.

I did struggle in the beginning to grasp some of the politics and character backstory with Dr. Bray and her family. But it didn’t take long for me to get a better understanding and become invested.

I loved learning about how humans have expanded their interstellar reach, built colonies on other planets, found proof of other intelligent life having existed, the way that governments have structured, and all the new technological advancements. This is one of the most fun parts about reading a sci-fi book like this one - all the different ways we can imagine ourselves and our lives in the future.

The character development is crafted exceptionally well. The pacing was immaculate. We got to know the characters and ride along with them on their mission. Everyone has secrets in their pasts. And as the story progresses, we learn more and more about these tragic, terrible events.

The creepy and sinister plot elements slowly build and kept me guessing. I was feverishly turning the pages to find out what happened next. There are eerie, disturbing things and ominous tension throughout.

Because some of the horror elements are psychological, we have the added unreliable narrator elements that I always find so intriguing. Not only are their individual arcs for the characters within themselves, but the relationships between the characters are equally well-developed.

I love that we get to read from a psychologist's perspective. It was interesting to experience the discussions about the interactions between deep space living/travel and the human psyche. It gave us unique insight into what everyone was going through and how it could be affecting them.

This is one of those books that will have you sleeping with a light on. I was absolutely absorbed into this story from start to finish. It’s just so freaking good. It’s everything you could want from a sci-fi horror. I just don’t even have the words to express how much I enjoyed this. You have to read this one!

This is Barnes’s best yet! They always say that the second book is the hardest to write but you wouldn’t know it from this one. Officially an auto-buy author for me now, I will read everything she writes. Easily going to be a favorite read of the year for me.

Space exploration can be exciting, it can be dangerous, it can be lonely, it can feel claustrophobic, it can be exhilarating, and it can be deadly. Ghost Station has that trapped feeling which I enjoy in books. I found this book to be enjoyable and I can see this being made into a movie.

Ophelia Bray is a psychologist who signs up for a mission hoping to make a difference. She has spent her entire life trying to escape her past and the crimes her father committed. When she and her crewmates arrive on the planet, they have been sent to obtain artifacts, Ophelia is uneasy. The previous crew appears to have left in a hurry and have left some personal items behind.

This book was gripping and succeeds in creating the trapped something-is-not-quite-right feeling. This book had an eerie, cold, and unsettling feel to it. I thought S.A. Barnes did a great job setting the stage and creating the mood in this book.

This book is a slow burn, which I normally do not work for me, but for some reason that did not bother me with this book. I found myself transported with the crew to the planet. I felt like a fly on the wall watching as they discovered some troubling things. Readers get Ophelia's POV and a glimpse into her thoughts and motivations. We got to know some crewmembers better than others but none as well as we got to know Ophelia.

Things in this book become horrific but are never scary (at least to me). I enjoyed Dead Silence and was highly anticipating reading another book by S.A. Barnes. I found this book to be enjoyable, gripping, and dark.

Atmospheric, chilling, horrific and gripping.

This book took me several days to complete once I picked it up. The beginning was slow but does draw you in once you've arrived on planet and the power hierarchy begins to settle in its order. There were several scenes where atmospheric horror took center stage, and others that relied on the trauma of the past to push the main character. Something about this style of writing didn't sit well with me but for other fans of this author, this is absolutely a ballpark hit.

capitalism you strike again. personally, as someone who just finished taking a global licensing class, I found the little tidbits about planetary rights being renewed or sold hilarious because of course!! in the capitalistic society it'll translate planets over. the psychology student in me also thrived, I liked Ophelia's character she was closed off and guarded and we later find out why - and it makes sense. i felt unnerved reading this, a sort of twisting in my stomach as we went on. I wish we got more information on the planet they were on, there are implied answers for some of the mysteries but i really wish the characters addressed them considering the impressions it had made on them. i also wish the ending lasted a little longer, the epilogue of the book felt rushed despite how much of a slow burn the rest of the book was. regardless, it sucked me in and i really enjoyed it.

thank you to netgalley for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was fine.

It definitely wasn’t an exciting read and certainly didn’t feel like there was anything really new about it.

Much of the story is more sad than thrilling or scary. I also didn’t like many of the characters – kind of hard to worry about them when I didn’t care about them.

The plot largely kept my interest and I was definitely curious about what was actually happening – it’s just that the overall reason for everything, once revealed, was a bit of a letdown.

Will try the author again.

• ARC via Publisher

Ghost Station is set on an abandoned space station, with a dysfunctional crew. There are some truly creepy parts in the book, after all who wants to be on an abandoned space station? If you like science fiction give this book a try.
Thanks to NetGalley and Tor Publishing for my advanced review copy all opinions are my own.

5 of 5 ⭐️
I can see this book as a movie. Amazing!

Imagine being stranded on a planet with people who slowly are going insane... and add your own family issues to the mix.
Explosion of goodness!

Enjoyable and easy to follow space story with fast pacing. I will be recommending this one to my customers.

A creepy, deserted space station. A disjointed team. Secrets around every corner.

This was my first book by this author and it won’t be my last. While I get the “horror” side of things this was less scary and more intriguing for me. I found the characters to be interesting and the concept pulled me in.

I wasn’t a huge fan of the amount of introspection by the MC but she is a psychologist and I think that played into it.

By the end I was hooked though and it made the read enjoyable.

Watching: Quite a bit of language in this one.

My rating: 3.8*

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Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this gifted copy, all opinions are my own.

In Ghost Station, Ophelia Bray volunteers for her first extended mission in space in order to escape her family and their manipulative shadow. She is a therapist (future space therapist, but still a therapist), and she is sent to join a group that is mourning a recent loss. As in Dead Silence, the crew finds themselves in a secluded and mysterious location. Although they have their own job to complete, they are forced to piece together what happened to the previous crew that caused them to abandon the station.

This is where Barnes excels at creating tension and fear. It's incredibly creepy to watch the characters essentially walk through a graveyard without knowing how or why (or even if) anyone is buried there. Barnes does a lovely job of creating tension by giving you hints toward this mystery at the exact moment you want them. The horror aspect of this book is at its peak in the dread that you will find out the answers and the conflicting fear that you will not.

As in her previous work, Barnes makes the most of the setting in terms of horror. I think it is most effective in Ghost Station because of the balance. She makes the location feel claustrophobic and stifling as well as unfamiliar and exposed. She counterweights the danger of unknowable and eldritch enemies with familiar, recognizable humans within their own ranks.

In general, I enjoy the way that Barnes writes science fiction. The technology and social structures of the future are present, but they aren't painstakingly spelled out for the reader. It's clear that Barnes knows the details of the world, but she does not burden us with that knowledge. I do not need to know how a doorbell is made to feel dread when I hear it ring in the middle of the night. Instead of an oversight, Barnes accomplishes making this lack of detail feel natural and realistic.

In Ophelia, Barnes achieves a believable heroine who is imperfect and flawed. However, she is still so unsympathetic for readers. The character is similar in that way to the main character of Barnes's Dead Silence. The entire cast of characters, indeed, prove to be fairly unlikable. The dynamic between Lianna and Suresh feels more natural than any of the other platonic pairings. Indeed, the two people who are meant to "motivate" Ophelia as a character are almost entirely absent from the narrative. This removes much of the urgency the reader might feel on behalf of these characters. Do I care if they make it out?

The quick romance is somewhat realistic but still frustrating. Of course I've started a new job and immediately thought a coworker was cute, but the too fast, too close, too tense connection between characters made me cringe. I feel that Barnes hits near the mark on this one but still misses. Some of the dialogue between the main couple here is realistic and charming, but some is wildly hyperaware and verbose.

Finally, Ghost Station's ending leaves something to be desired. I will not include spoilers here, but it's enough to say there are a few threads I would like to see connected. I feel that several central concepts were left hanging. I actually reread the last few pages because I thought I must have missed some menacing hint about the final outcome. I really would have preferred a wild twist or even a more sudden, up-to-interpretation ending than the epilogue offers.

All in all, I really enjoyed Ghost Station despite feeling that a few changes could have made it far better. I think it was creepy and frightening, and I want to read more by Barnes in the future. If you have any interest in the horror genre, this one is worth picking up when it releases in April 2024.

Usually, I don’t like books about sci-fi topics. This book was actually pretty good to read, and so much more detailed than I could’ve imagined. I felt like the ending was a bit abrupt, but all in all a pretty great book. As someone who tends to skip over aliens, and such, that is pretty high praise. The characters were written, beautifully and overall a great story. I would definitely like to see more from this author and I’m so grateful for the free advanced readers copy to read and evaluate.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

Ghost Station was an enjoyable read. The author is good at making you want to read one more chapter, then maybe one more…I wasn’t sure where the plot of the book was going until over half way through. Even then, the plot didn’t grip me as much as the author’s first book. I felt this book was more character driven than plot driven. I wanted to read Ghost Station because I really enjoyed Dead Silence. I will still continue to read what S.A. Barnes writes.

While this book is not my usual genre I do find I sometimes fall in love with the stories and I liked the concept of the science mission, it was an interesting choice to go with. A crew that visits other worlds to help their corporations lay claim to them. I was intrigued early about the main character early on, Ophelia, and was more curious than anything to see where the psychologist thread would go, but I wasn’t a fan of her at the start. That actually held true for at least half of the book. That changed around half way through, but I really hated her at first.

This really is a slow burner though and I usually need a book to grab me right away. It started off dragging for me, but I believe others may like the build up especially true sci fi fans.

After we get some of Ophelia’s backstory, why she’s taken a job with a competing company, and what the competition most likely looks to gain from her presence, things start to open up a bit more. While underway she figures out pretty quick that none of the crew really want her there, partly due to her job, and mostly due to who she is. Then things start to pick up a little.

From there, it felt like the story started to slowly speed up, and the final 30% or so (I keep my kindle on %!) really picked up. The tension really rose more and more as the last 3rd of the book progressed.

Without giving anything away, I wish there was more explanation for some of the very weird things to happen. That flows to the ending for me as well. I feel like the ending is because of the pacing earlier on, and maybe that’s why it felt clipped.

I do have to give props the character building. I felt like I knew someone just a particular crew member, which made me dislike him in the story even more. He had to be based off of someone the author knew.

Overall, I liked it and give it between a 3.5 and 4 stars, so I’ll bump it up to 4 simply due to the character building she did with some of Ophelia’s crew. Thank you NetGalley and Tor the arc of this book.

Thank you Tor Publishing and Netgalley for an ARC of Ghost Station in exchange for my honest opinion.

This is my first S.A. Barnes novel. I will definitely be adding Dead Silence to my TBR list. Great Science fiction novel. Kept me guessing the whole time. Kept my attention throughout the whole story.

Dr. Ophelia Bray has secrets. As the newest member traveling to another planet with a crew, she intends to keep those secrets. The crew is not very welcoming to the Dr who was sent to keep an eye on their mental health.

It doesn’t take long for everyone to realize that things aren’t right on the planet that they are on. Could the company that sent them there have known what they would encounter?