Is it an abandoned planet or is something out there? Psychologist Dr Ophelia Bray decides to expand her study of the debilitating (and dangerous) ERS disease by joining an expeditionary team in exploring a seemingly empty station on the seemingly empty planet. But then one of the crew is found dead. When everyone this far out in space has something to hide, who can be trusted?
There’s a complicated and layered plot with some hijinx, gore, and romance thrown in for good measure. It’s slightly muddled but enjoyable. After reading it, I saw the book described as a sci-fi horror, but it truly isn’t scary. Or at least not the type of scary that keeps me up at night! I don’t enjoy horror but I did enjoy this book and look forward to more from S. A. Barnes.
My thanks to the author, the publisher, and to #NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to an advance copy of the audiobook in exchange for this review.

Thank you to NetGalley and S.A Barnes for allowing me to listen to this book via audiobook!

Let me just say that I have some serious feelings about this book. FIRST, n o o n e should've let Ophelia become a psychiatrist, and I mean NO ONE. The fact that she pursued that field without getting help for her problems is extremely selfish of her. She was never the best option for this job. Like I get it, you want to destigmatize and bring awareness to ERS, but girl you have too much trauma to be dealing with and trying to help with other people's.

Secondly, wtf was with her and Ethan, that weird one-sided romance was just...so unnecessary and goes back to my first point. She can't even handle her feelings to her supervisor and PATIENT. Did she blush when Julius gave her this kind of attention? Why was Ethan, taking care of a team member suddenly causing her to develop a crush? This did nothing to further the story, and was just like a here! Do with it what you will.

Thirdly, I dislike how not fleshed out this book was in terms of world-building, or worlds-building. So much more information could've been provided about the universe as it is now, and the literal planet that they visited. This book would've been so much more fun if they explored the planet instead of contracting the "disease" the first time they stepped outside. I guess that defeats the point of horror (which this was not), but I dunno, I needed more.

I think, being who I am, I will continue to read books by S.A. Barnes because I like sci-fi horror/thriller, it's just so much fun. Even if the books are not that great.

Ghost Station follows our female main character Ophelia Bray. She is a psychologist on a mission to help a team with their mental health and avoid the ever pressing condition known as ERS. That’s not Bray’s only mission though. She’s also trying to prove to herself that she is not just a name. Bray is one of the wealthiest families and Ophelia is the black sheep. With a trouble past and a tough start to her career, her only goal is to not leave this mission the person everyone expects her to be. The team is sent to an abandoned planet for further exploration and they are doing their best to put the loss of a teammate behind them. Bray being the transplant that she is, along with the career field she represents, doesn’t start off on the right foot with the team. As they continue to disregard her, strange things start to happen and it’s in everyone’s best interest to find out why before there’s no way for them to make it home.

As captivating as my synopsis of this story was, the book wasn’t. All of the characters are flat and have zero growth during the entire book. The FMC is whiny and extremely immature. She’s a doctor but acts like a high school student! She lets every comment bother her and is shocked by her own reactions to things like, “I’ve never acted like this.” *gasp* The “scary” parts of the story are swept away or written off and it’s “all in her head”. I’m not sure if this is a common element in horror, but this very weak, half baked “romance” is just cringy in this book and literally added nothing to the story.

I’m so disappointed right now. This was one of my most anticipated reads for 2024 and all I got was a soggy bread story. Even the “plot twist” made me mad. Like, that’s it?? Go back to the 2000s with this regurgitated plot. 2/5 stars.

The ONLY saving grace for this book was the narrator. That’s truly the only reason I trucked through it. The narrator made me feel emotion that the words on the page weren’t giving. She deserves 5 stars.

Enjoyed this one just as much as Dead Silence. Please never stop writing space horror!

Tysm for the ARC!

I loved Dead Silence by this author and I was so excited to receive this audiobook through #NetGalley.

Listening to this heart-pounding thriller was such an experience! The action and the story pull you in right from the start and the pace does not let up through the entire book. I did not want to stop listening once I started because I just had to know what was going to happen next.

Ghost Station is even better than the previous read I read by this author and I can't wait to read more from S.A. Barnes.

Fans of horror, thriller, or even science fiction should give this one a try. You won't be disappointed.

I didn’t trust anyone, so I was constantly trying guess what was going to happen next. I never guessed anything close to right! By the end of the book, I had made peace with several characters and enjoyed the ending. This was quite a ride! I just love the space thrillers that S. A. Barnes writes!

I had a hard time with this one. It was more sci-fi than horror and I am not a big sci-fi person. It took a while to get going. I felt like the storyline jumped a bit too much and I wasn’t following one sequence to the next.

The narrator was difficult to listen to. I had to bump it up to 1.5 speed, so she spoke closer to a normal speed. I was losing interest with how slowly she was reading and it made the book drag.

2/5 stars

Unfortunately I had to DNF this book around 25%. I liked the author's writing style and would consider trying their other books but this one was not doing it for me. The plot wasn't moving and the characters were not enough to keep me hooked. I was expecting more of everything from this book, and it just did not deliver.

I was also surprised at the quality of audio in my audiobook ARC. There was an alarming amount of sibilance coming from the narrator that I would have expected to be resolved with a pop filter and/or edited out afterwards. The entire audiobook did not come off as well edited after narration.

Unfortunately this one was a bit of a miss for me! I truly loved Dead Silence so I was super excited for another space horror. I think my biggest struggle was the pacing. The plot was a reeaaaalll slow burn for the majority of the book. It is definitely atmospheric, and there's a heavy psychological component to the horror. It's less in your face, and more - self-gaslighting/can you trust your own mind.

Because it was a slow start, it was harder for me to stay engaged with the audio. I found myself losing the plot a handful of times until about 70% in. The audio app also doesn't give you any options between 2x and 2.5x. I think that 2.25x would have been the perfect speed for this book.

This is a good book for someone interested in a low stress space horror without the gore and drama that's in Dead Silence. This one is more of a diet psychological horror.

I loved the idea of a mental health professional assessing whether the people are being affected by this strange disease that essentially causes them to hallucinate. When you can't trust any of the characters or the narrator, it makes a story fun for me to read.

Other than the pacing/slow start, this is a fun book. I usually enjoy this narrator so I will certainly listen to more books she reads. And I love SA Barnes so I will continue to binge her books too.

S.A. Barnes is quickly becoming a go to for sci-fi thriller/horror, a genre I’d really love to see a lot more of. And while I think I enjoyed her debut, Dead Silence, more, I still found Ghost Station to be an engaging adventure. In fact I not only read the ARC but also had the opportunity to listen to an advanced copy of the audiobook. Zura Johnson’s narration is quite good so I’m pleased to say you can’t go wrong no matter how you choose to experience Ghost Station. I really liked how we continued to learn things about Ophelia, instead of just getting one big info dump. Ophelia is a psychologist specializing in studying ERS (think space madness, often characterized by violent outbursts, with one case resulting in the murder of nearly thirty souls.). At the start when we meet Ophelia it’s clear she is determined to get away from home, away from most of her family (which we learn more about later on) and she joins a small crew whose on a mission to explore a planet that’s been abandoned. They’ll be taking up temporary residence in an abandoned station not far from ancient alien ruins. Her crew mates are an interesting mix of characters, with many of them not at all interested in getting to know to her, with some resenting her for she is and her family, some not at all pleased to even have her along. Ophelia senses the crew is keeping stuff from her, but what? The atmosphere and sense of isolation is well developed. And of course she has questions as to why exactly was this station abandoned? Then one of the crew is found murdered. Who did it? What is going on? Can they trust each other? Is someone suffering from ERS or is it something else? Something worse? I’d like to thank Tor Publishing Group, Tor Nightfire, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of Ghost Station and Macmillan Audio for the chance to listen to an advanced copy of the audio version.

https://www.amazon.com/review/R2L8MHBLOJL5U9/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

Great setting here. The weirdly claustrophobic feeling of space travel always makes me unsettled. I was uneasy through the entire book. Nothing is as it seems and no one is quite who they say they are. A long but satisfying read.

[2.75/5]
This novel follows Dr. Ophelia Bray as she makes her way into space with a crew in an attempt to study and prevent ERS.
This novel was an utter disappointment. First, our main character Ophelia has blinders on when it comes to ERS. Anything that happens in this novel is always attributed to ERS and any other factors are excluded. S.A Barnes fails to find a balance with this and almost undermines the readers' ability to discern that this is one of her main reasons for being in space. The constant repetition of ERS as a causative agent for every event truly hinders the story. This was painted as a sci-fi horror and while I wasn't expecting a chain-saw massacre, but I was expecting more than a paper cut.
That is, this book lacks any significant horror moments and truthfully isn't overly thrilling. The most thrilling aspect of this book is the 'murder' of one of her crew members. This plot component is not only revealed in the synopsis of the novel, but doesn't happen until about 60% through the novel. I'm sorry, but if you spoil the most significant event in the book and this plot point doesn't occur until well into the book, it is highly likely that your book is lacking content. Overall, this novel adds nothing new to the sci-fi horror or sci-fi thriller genre that hasn't already been done.

***Thank you to NetGalley, S.A. Barnes, and Macmillan Audio for graciously sending me the audiobook to review. All thoughts are my own.***

Nothing can convince me that space isn't one of the best landscapes for horror. Ophelia Bray is a psychologist, who specializes in ERS, which is a space condition that led mass murder. We follow Ophelia and the crew as they are assigned to explore an old, abandoned planet. immediately things are not as they seem and Ophelia and the crew must figure out a way to survive while dealing with their own trauma and secrets. The setting of Ghost Station was immensely creepy and Barnes did a good job of setting the atmosphere and having us question the reliability of the characters, especially Ophelia. The way it is written allows for the layers of the characters to be unraveled. While this is a slow burn, I enjoyed exploring the planet with the crew and slow dissent into chaos and possibility insanity. The added element of narration made some of the scenes even more intense and creepy. 3.75 stars rounded up.

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for an ALC.

Thank you to Tor Nightfire and NetGalley for the free ALC of this book which published today!

My rating 3.5 stars, rounded up.

Ghost Station is a decent sci-fi/horror read. While the premise of exploring a mysterious abandoned planet was intriguing, I found the pacing to be slow, and I struggled to connect with the main character, Dr. Ophelia Bray.

Ophelia is dedicated to studying Eckhart-Reiser syndrome (ERS) but outside of this I didn’t feel much depth to her character. However, the build up of tension and suspense is well done as the crew uncovers secrets of the planet and they face the threat of violence and mental deterioration.

Overall, this is an engaging sci-fi/horror that just fell slightly short in keeping my attention. I listened to the audio version narrated by Zura Johnson and would recommend this format if you are interested in reading this one!

Ahhhhhhhhh!

But this audiobook scared the crap out of me!

The narrator was perfect. Delivered this spooky space horror like it was her last wish.

I do not recommend listening to it at night. You will be jumping at shadows or strange noises all night long!

I highly highly recommend this audiobook.

I was a big fan of Dead Silence and was so happy to get the audio version of Ghost Station. I loved Zura Johnson's narration and it was still very enjoyable/easy to listen to at 1.75x speed.
Ophelia Bray is a multi-layered, complex character among a crew with secrets and layers of their own. Barnes does a great job balancing internal reflection and external action, pushing the story along with increasingly concerning events while also showing Bray's character development.
This was a tense, creepy, story expertly performed.

This is the second Space Horror book I’ve read this week and I’m loving the vibes. This story had an immersive, atmospheric vibe with incredibly complex characters. While the story did have a slow start, once it took off, it was go go go! I wasn’t as scared as I had expected to be, but I mean, how scared can you make me about a setting in space? 😂 I did thoroughly enjoy the characters slow descend into madness, so that definitely made up for the lack of scaries. I really hope s.a.barnes sticks with space horror, because I’m loving these books she’s writing!

Ophelia Bray is a psychologist specializing in the study and prevention of ERS, a space-based condition, similar to PTSD, that can lead to mental deterioration and violence. Dr. Bray is assigned to join a small exploration crew as they journey to an ancient, abandoned planet. Unfortunately, it doesn't take Ophelia long to realize that the new crew isn't exactly excited to have her aboard. They've never needed a Head Doc before, why now?

Ophelia is confident in her purpose though, so she just tries to do her best to fit in and help them to understand the reasons for her attendance. She knows better than most just how imperative her skills may become. The rest of the crew have worked together before and feel more like a family than a team. Ophelia, as the only outsider, has a long way to go to endear herself to the group.

As they begin to establish themselves on the abandoned planet, they start discovering disturbing signs left behind by the previous colonizers, who apparently departed with haste. It presents a real mystery for the crew. They have no idea what happened to the previous inhabitants, but signs are pointing to the fact that they didn't live happily ever after. The longer Ophelia and the crew remain on the planet, the more unnerving things become, until Ophelia's worst nightmare starts to come to life.

Ghost Station is the latest from S.A. Barnes, author of Dead Silence, which I read and really enjoyed. I've been anxiously anticipating more from Barnes ever since. I loved the SF Horror vibes she delivered in Dead Silence and definitely believe she succeeded on that front here as well. For me, Ghost Station is way more of a slow burn than Dead Silence, but the content and MC, Ophelia, are so interesting, I didn't mind that one bit. I enjoyed getting to know Ophelia and learning of her past and motivations, while watching her try to find a place within this new crew. I also feel like you can see a maturation of Barnes writing in this one, which is lovely to see. We love to watch an author progress over the course of their career.

I really enjoyed the dangerous feel of the atmosphere that was created on the planet they were exploring. There was a sense of foreboding over every page that kept it compelling and also kept my pulse slightly elevated. The audiobook for this was fantastically narrated by Zura Johnson. I highly recommend that as a format choice if you have the option available to you. The narration style was very soothing to me, in spite of this being an intense story. I really felt myself relaxing into it.

I was extremely satisfied with how Barnes wrapped this up. The conclusion surprised me in the direction it ultimately took. I wasn't expecting it and I was happy with that.I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys SF Horror, or darker SF in general. As far as Science Fiction goes, I would consider this light, with concepts that are easily understandable to a wide audience. You aren't going to get bogged down in scientific jargon in this one, if maybe that is a concern for you.

This is an easily understandable, compelling story, with chills and thrills, as well as great characters throughout. Additionally, I think this could translate really well to film.

Thank you to the publisher, Tor Nightfire and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review.
As mentioned above, I was anxiously awaiting this one and it didn't disappoint. I look forward to seeing what Barnes comes up with next!

I am so glad I enjoyed this book. I loved Barnes first book and I was concerned that this one wouldn't be live up to my expectations but it did!
This book had such a feeling of dread all throughout. I felt like I was going to have a panic attack throughout most of the story and that is exactly what I wanted. I also really enjoyed piecing together the mystery with the rest of the cast.
This was definitely a solid read!

Note: being a therapist is not the career path one should take if they have enough unresolved trauma for a dozen people.

Dr. Ophelia Bray deals with her problems by trying to fix others. After losing a crew member, a small space crew requires a psychologist, and Bray eagerly volunteers. From the beginning, it's clear the crew does not want her to help, but when their assignment kills another team member, Bray might be the only one who can help.

I loved Dead Silence, so I went into this one with high expectations, but it let me down. It started well. Gray is hiding something about her past, and the little flashbacks to her childhood are intriguing. Tension on the ship is high and everyone is at each other's throats.

But nothing happened til the 70% mark. This thriller focused on Gray's budding relationship with the captain than anything else. At first, Gray's perspective was initially interesting but it got bogged down by all her self-therapy sessions and her relationship drama. It threw me for a loop since Dead Silence was focused more on the action than character development. I was expecting that dynamic here, but it was completely altered.

The twists at the end were rewarding, and I did enjoy where Barnes took the story. It just took so long to get there. The audio clocked in at fifteen hours! If you enjoy slow-burn psychological thrillers, I'd recommend the book format for Ghost Station. The narrator was great, but at the end of the day, it was too long in audio form.

Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio, for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.