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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
Amazing premise, especially for fans of the cult-classic horror film Ghost Ship. Faulty execution, especially for fans of enjoyable storytelling and clear writing.
Maybe the real villains are the ones we've already met along the way, etc. etc., but when I pick up a horror novel about a hard-luck salvage crew stumbling onto a long-lost luxury liner that shows signs of what can only be described as a gorey, self-contained apocalypse (with a dash of found-footage storytelling, which I'm always a sucker for), I just expect more than the standard timeless and timeline-transcending boogeyman.
I've mentioned in other reviews that there is something to be said for the effect of unlikeable characters, whether they're supporting roles or narrating protagonists. Sometimes someone genuinely unlikeable forces you to challenge your own existing perceptions and biases, or consider things from a new point of view.
Space ghosts, in this case, don't really need or benefit from that same careful consideration. I don't think I found a single character in this book to be particularly (or even generally) likeable, and while the premise drew me in immediately - hook, line, and sinker! - the execution just fell totally flat, and they played a role in that. The split timeline was confusing in a less-fun way than the (unreliable) narrator's ongoing internal monologue and experiences were. The ~big twist~ is probably one of your top three hypotheses if you read up to about 50% and then challenge yourself to come up with the handful of most likely scenarios, and while the idea of a luxury cruiser falling into abrupt, horrifying chaos is both entertaining enough to read about and concerning enough to make me not ever want to get a ship (seafaring or otherwise) again, but the way it all played out just felt tired, and like a bit of a letdown. A collection of passenger accounts/POVs of those last horrific hours, however - just the experiences of desolation and destruction of it all, no attempts at resolution - I would KILL (er, sorry) for.
The last half to quarter draaaaaaaaaaaaags like nobody's business, which is a big part of what I found offputting overall. The payload came way too soon, and I no longer wanted to eat my carrots after getting nice and full on my brownies mid-meal. The whole romance subplot is also a big nope from me. It felt shoehorned and obligatory, and I actually would've enjoyed that last quarter or so MORE had it not been a factor.
Lastly: Claire, girl, you gotta stop traumadumping. I know you're the narrator and we came along for this ride in YOUR head, so I guess it's the price of admission, but get some therapy and figure your shit out and then maybe stop going on about your dead childhood Martian colony. PLEASE.
Overall: moderately disappointed, but not exactly surprised; first half is fun to tag along for, second half is not worth the price of gas.
3.5 rounded down.
Maybe the real villains are the ones we've already met along the way, etc. etc., but when I pick up a horror novel about a hard-luck salvage crew stumbling onto a long-lost luxury liner that shows signs of what can only be described as a gorey, self-contained apocalypse (with a dash of found-footage storytelling, which I'm always a sucker for), I just expect more than the standard timeless and timeline-transcending
Spoiler
greedy capitalistI've mentioned in other reviews that there is something to be said for the effect of unlikeable characters, whether they're supporting roles or narrating protagonists. Sometimes someone genuinely unlikeable forces you to challenge your own existing perceptions and biases, or consider things from a new point of view.
Space ghosts, in this case, don't really need or benefit from that same careful consideration. I don't think I found a single character in this book to be particularly (or even generally) likeable, and while the premise drew me in immediately - hook, line, and sinker! - the execution just fell totally flat, and they played a role in that. The split timeline was confusing in a less-fun way than the (unreliable) narrator's ongoing internal monologue and experiences were. The ~big twist~ is probably one of your top three hypotheses if you read up to about 50% and then challenge yourself to come up with the handful of most likely scenarios, and while the idea of a luxury cruiser falling into abrupt, horrifying chaos is both entertaining enough to read about and concerning enough to make me not ever want to get a ship (seafaring or otherwise) again, but the way it all played out just felt tired, and like a bit of a letdown. A collection of passenger accounts/POVs of those last horrific hours, however - just the experiences of desolation and destruction of it all, no attempts at resolution - I would KILL (er, sorry) for.
The last half to quarter draaaaaaaaaaaaags like nobody's business, which is a big part of what I found offputting overall. The payload came way too soon, and I no longer wanted to eat my carrots after getting nice and full on my brownies mid-meal. The whole romance subplot is also a big nope from me. It felt shoehorned and obligatory, and I actually would've enjoyed that last quarter or so MORE had it not been a factor.
Lastly: Claire, girl, you gotta stop traumadumping. I know you're the narrator and we came along for this ride in YOUR head, so I guess it's the price of admission, but get some therapy and figure your shit out and then maybe stop going on about your dead childhood Martian colony. PLEASE.
Overall: moderately disappointed, but not exactly surprised; first half is fun to tag along for, second half is not worth the price of gas.
3.5 rounded down.
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
dark
mysterious
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:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was drawn to this book because the elevator pitch for this book (Titanic meets The Shining) reminded me of one of my favorite science-fiction horror movies: Event Horizon. Content warning for body horror, suicide and forced institutionalization. Claire Kovalik is days away from being unemployed, made obsolete, 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. What they find at the other end of the signal is a shock: the Aurora, a famous luxury space-liner that vanished on its maiden tour of the solar system more than twenty years ago. A salvage claim like this could set Claire and her crew up for life. But a quick trip through the Aurora reveals something isn’t right. Whispers in the dark. Flickers of movement. Words scrawled in blood. Claire must fight to hold onto her sanity and find out what really happened on the Aurora, before she and her crew meet the same ghastly fate. I loved the dynamic between Claire and the rest of the salvage crew. The world building is subtle and effective. The eerie and spooky elements were amazing. The concept of a haunted spaceship and how Barnes described those scenes during the first half of the novel were very well done. Things became super tense after the team boarded the Aurora and I was glued to my book because of the way the characters started unraveling and how quickly that happened to some of them. Some of the ghost scenes were so unsettling and I really loved how they were used throughout the novel to move things along. The writing was also pretty easy to get into and follow along with. The atmosphere during the scenes on the Aurora were so eerie and very well done. I liked how the flashbacks and the present day scenes feel like two different movies, a horror movie and a sequel, back to back. While I did love the concept and premise of this book, it didn’t satisfy me in the same way that Event Horizon did. I do feel like the author didn’t take the concept far enough considering how interesting it could have been. I liked the premise, but by the time I had reached the second half of the story, I had begun to lose interest. While I liked the idea of Claire returning to the haunted ship with a second crew, everything that happened afterward felt like a repeat and rehash of the first half of the book. I did notice that the storytelling structure of this book closely resembled the horror movies The Descent and The Descent 2, which I liked, I just wish it had been executed in a different way. The ending didn’t impact me the way it should have, even if I liked the explanation and conclusion on paper. Despite not liking this book as much as I should have, I still enjoyed my time with it and highly recommend it for fans of Event Horizon and science-fiction horror.
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I highly recommend if you like space horror. The unknown of outer space scares me so I really enjoyed the creepy vibes this book gave. I also really liked the writing style of this author. It felt like I was on that ship! I look forward to more horror! Following...