Dead Silence by S A Barnes review

 





Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes


A woman and her crew board a decades-lost luxury cruiser and find the wreckage of a nightmare that hasn't yet ended.

A GHOST SHIP.
A SALVAGE CREW.
UNSPEAKABLE HORRORS.

Claire Kovalik is days away from being unemployed when her beacon repair crew picks up a strange distress signal. With nothing to lose and no desire to return to Earth, Claire and her team decide to investigate.


It was the blurb that drew me in, I have to admit. I'm a big fan of sci-fi books but not read much horror. This was a page turner that I read over the course of a week or two. It reminded me of Alien at the beginning (the lonely crew on the outskirts of known space discovering something strange), The Shining by Stephen King during the middle (when the weird stuff happens!) and Aliens towards the end (yes, there are mercs and one lone woman who saves the day!).

The Aurora itself, the Titanic like vessel the crew stumble upon (yes, it is supposed to look like an old steam liner, resplendent with smoke stacks!) adds to the atmosphere as the crew enter via the cargo hold and make their way up to the bridge passing through the different decks that are a nod to the awful design of the White Star Line vessel (the third class cramped quarters all with their doors locked or barred from the outside to stop people getting out up to the opulent elite class of apartment style rooms).  Just like the Titanic, the rich died alongside the poor only this time everyone died on board, seemingly at their own or a fellow passengers hands...or something else.

The mystery is resolved quite nicely towards the end and it is a satisfying, if slightly obvious, resolution. The one thing missing was a Newt character. I bet the author had an idea to put her in, but then decided against it as the timeline wouldn't fit and it would also be a shameless Aliens take.

Overall, an enjoyable book.

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