Ghost Station by S.A. Barnes [Review]

Ghost Station by S.A. Barnes
Format: ebook
Source: purchased
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Date read: June 6, 2025

Purchase Links: Paperback | Kindle

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S.A. Barnes
| Website | Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):

An abandoned planet. A hidden past. A deadly danger.

Psychologist Dr. Ophelia Bray has dedicated her life to the study and prevention of Eckhart-Reiser syndrome (ERS)—the most famous case of which resulted in the brutal murders of twenty-nine people. It’s personal to her, and when she’s assigned to a small exploration crew who recently suffered the tragic death of a colleague, she wants to help. But as they begin to establish residency on an abandoned planet, it becomes clear that the crew is hiding something.

And Ophelia’s crewmates are far more interested in investigating the eerie, ancient planet and unraveling the mystery behind the previous colonizers’ hasty departure than opening up to her.

That is, until their pilot is discovered gruesomely murdered. Is this Ophelia’s worst nightmare starting—a wave of violence and mental deterioration from ERS? Or is it something even more sinister?

Terrified that history will repeat itself, Ophelia and the crew must work together to figure out what’s happening. But trust is hard to come by…and the crew members aren’t the only ones keeping secrets.

Thoughts on Ghost Station: No lie, this book is EXACTLY the type of creeping horror that works for me. Abandoned outpost on an abandoned planet? CHECK. Backstory on the characters that has the reader (and the characters) questioning what they could be capable of? CHECK. Super creeptastic events with no way to escape what's coming? SUPER CHECK.

Yup, this book worked for me.

To start with, Ophelia has SO MUCH baggage. Her family has used their wealth and privilege to, uhh well, do all the things that wealth and privilege allow them to do. Some of which involves covering up bad things that probably shouldn't have been covered up. To say that the crew she's been sent to evaluate aren't pleased (a) to have her prying into their lives and (b) that she's a member of one of the elite families (although Ophelia doesn't think of herself that way) might be understating things. While Ophelia herself only wants to help, her very presence causes additional tension that complicates an already complicated issue.

Then there's the little matter of Ophelia's past. She had THINGS that happened to her that haunt her to this day and those things aren't nearly as tucked away as her family thinks they are. So when events happen at the abandoned outpost, Ophelia starts questioning her every action. The crew she's been sent to help doesn't trust her and Ophelia doesn't trust herself. It's a vicious cycle that leaves her with no one to lean on.

Gloriously creepy horror in an abandoned outpost. MAN it worked for me.