A review by singalana
Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes

dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

Titanic meets Event Horizon in this atmospheric space horror. 

A crew working on the edges of the known space picks up a distress signal from a luxury space liner Aurora that disappeared 20 years ago. They can't pass the opportunity to lay claim on the ship. When they board the Aurora, they soon discover that something is very wrong. 

We follow Claire Kovalik, a team leader of a five member beacon-repair crew. Even though the characters have their own personalities, I still feel that they need a little bit of work. Even though Claire is the main character, she seems to be keeping the reader at arm's length, and it's hard to feel connected to her somehow. Claire is a deeply traumatised person and that can be a bit overwhelming sometimes. Also there was a slight romance subplot that didn't really add to the story. 

Spoilers! 
The main strength of this book is definitely the imaginative, atmospheric horror elements. The first ⅔ of this book builds uneasiness and the horror elements nicely. However, the last ⅓, though still intense and pretty horrible, somehow ends up feeling almost like a Scooby Doo villain reveal. The style seemed a bit different, almost like I was reading a thriller instead of a horror story. I know it's difficult to come up with a satisfying ending to a story such as this, but still somehow I feel like the ending was a bit lacking. And in my opinion, the epilogue was a bit unnecessary, I could have done without it.

Still, good horror that makes the reader uneasy is hard to find. The author certainly manages to set up the scene and keep the reader guessing what horrors lie ahead. Despite the shortcomings, I would still recommend giving this book a go. 
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