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Reality Bleed #1
Hell on Mars
A Sci-fi Space Horror
Something went wrong in the Mars Felicity Station. A gate to another reality was opened, and a mysterious alien plague threatens humanity.
After communications with the station are cut, the crew of the Perihelion is sent to find out what happened. Outmatched and unprepared, they’re forced to make war on this new enemy and rescue what remains of the survivors.
Something went wrong in the Mars Felicity Station. A gate to another reality was opened, and a mysterious alien plague threatens humanity.
After communications with the station are cut, the crew of the Perihelion is sent to find out what happened. Outmatched and unprepared, they’re forced to make war on this new enemy and rescue what remains of the survivors.
163 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2020
611 people are currently reading
1056 people want to read
About the author
J.Z. Foster
29 books130 followersJ.Z. Foster is an Urban Fantasy / Horror writer originally from Ohio. He spent several years in South Korea where he met and married his wife and together they opened an English school.
Now a first time father, he’s returned to the states - and his hometown roots.
He received the writing bug from his mother, NYTimes best selling author, Lori Foster.
You can follow his writing progress on his Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/JZFosterAuthor/
Now a first time father, he’s returned to the states - and his hometown roots.
He received the writing bug from his mother, NYTimes best selling author, Lori Foster.
You can follow his writing progress on his Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/JZFosterAuthor/
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 127 reviews
February 7, 2021
3.5 Stars
As someone who loves both horror and science fiction, this series was right up my alley. Reminiscent of other popular scifi horror media, like Alien and Dead Space, this first volume delivered the space horror goods!
This was a nice blend of suspense and horror, with a tight narrative that moved forward at a propulsive speed. The characters and plot were fairly straightforward and predictable, but honestly I picked this one up for the action. The situations depicted in this book would certainly be terrifying to experience and the authors did a great job creating a chilling atmosphere on the station.
If you are looking for some fun space horror, I would definitely recommend trying out Hell on Mars. This first book had a solid ending, while also setting up the next book in the series. I'll likely continue on with the series with I need another dose of space horror.
Disclaimer: I received a digital copy of this book from the authors.
As someone who loves both horror and science fiction, this series was right up my alley. Reminiscent of other popular scifi horror media, like Alien and Dead Space, this first volume delivered the space horror goods!
This was a nice blend of suspense and horror, with a tight narrative that moved forward at a propulsive speed. The characters and plot were fairly straightforward and predictable, but honestly I picked this one up for the action. The situations depicted in this book would certainly be terrifying to experience and the authors did a great job creating a chilling atmosphere on the station.
If you are looking for some fun space horror, I would definitely recommend trying out Hell on Mars. This first book had a solid ending, while also setting up the next book in the series. I'll likely continue on with the series with I need another dose of space horror.
Disclaimer: I received a digital copy of this book from the authors.
February 26, 2024
Hell on Mars
By J.Z. Foster
A good start to a space, horror adventure. The first section introduces the characters in a genuine way. They are traveling to check on Mars because there hasn't been any communication from them. It is a great page turner when they get there.
By J.Z. Foster
A good start to a space, horror adventure. The first section introduces the characters in a genuine way. They are traveling to check on Mars because there hasn't been any communication from them. It is a great page turner when they get there.
April 28, 2020
Oh man did I love this book. Fast paced, great characters and monsters from another dimension. It's like The Thing and Aliens had a baby and that baby ate everyone. Can't wait for the rest of the series to come out.
September 3, 2021
What a trip! HELL ON MARS is (thankfully) the first in a big sci-fi horror series from J.Z. Foster and Justin Woodward. As an avid fan of sci-fi horror movies and games (Doom, Dead Space, and more) I found myself pulled into this story quickly and my level of engagement was at a high the whole time. These two authors do a brilliant job at bringing these characters to life, especially when you think about the number of characters as they compare to the amount of pages. I really cared about them, felt like their jokes/dialogue could be directed toward me, and when tragedy strikes I became extremely panicked for them. The start of the world-building with book 1 already has my mind racing as to where everything is going to go and all the things I will see! I'm so glad I had the opportunity to check this one out and am absolutely excited about continuing the journey!
November 23, 2023
My 100th book read this year and it’s a good one. Hell On Mars is SciFi Horror set in outer space. Yep! 5 stars. It’s the first book of a 12 book series, Reality Bleed. It’s a short quick read of 128 pages. A cargo crew is sent to Mars because the scientist there are in distress. The crew is tight knit. They even play a game of strip poker 🫢. Once they get to Mars it doesn’t take long to run into aliens so grotesque and some use to be human. Does the crew escape? Not everyone comes out alive!
December 11, 2022
Oh my god!!! Am I officially a Sci-fi horror fiction fan now?! Have I finally been swayed?! This was so good and I’m already psyched to jump into the second book! J.Z. Foster and Justin M. Woodward did an excellent job sending their audience on a thrilling and anxiety inducing ride through space.
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We are basically introduced to a cargo crew sent on a rerouted rescue mission to Mars where it is suspected that the Mars Felicity Station has gone quiet due to unknown distress. But when the crew arrives on the red planet, they are completely unprepared for the threat of an alien plague and flesh hungry monsters.
•
So far, this story feels very reminiscent of sci-fi horror movie classics like Alien, The Thing, and Pandorum. Characters were believable, the danger felt real, my heart was drumming a thousand beats a minute, and I was left with a cliffhanger that made me want to flip a table! The Reality Bleed series is definitely one I will fly through easily and fans of sci-fi horror will devour HELL ON MARS.
•
(Special thanks to J.Z. Foster for sending me this copy for review! I am so pumped to jump into book two!)
•
We are basically introduced to a cargo crew sent on a rerouted rescue mission to Mars where it is suspected that the Mars Felicity Station has gone quiet due to unknown distress. But when the crew arrives on the red planet, they are completely unprepared for the threat of an alien plague and flesh hungry monsters.
•
So far, this story feels very reminiscent of sci-fi horror movie classics like Alien, The Thing, and Pandorum. Characters were believable, the danger felt real, my heart was drumming a thousand beats a minute, and I was left with a cliffhanger that made me want to flip a table! The Reality Bleed series is definitely one I will fly through easily and fans of sci-fi horror will devour HELL ON MARS.
•
(Special thanks to J.Z. Foster for sending me this copy for review! I am so pumped to jump into book two!)
September 26, 2020
A piece of truly gruesome space fun - at its finest!
A space crew has been reassigned to find out why communications have failed with their outlier base on Mars. Should be routine, yes? - Well, think again, as they find 'things' not as expected...big, big, bad, man-eating alien 'things' from a parallel reality. An easy fix, no problem-o!
What a fantastic piece of escapism. Ok, it gets a little cheesy in places and the plot has all been seen before, but the wonderful storyline, fast-paced action, snappy dialogue, and marvellous account of the monsters and their gory mutilations in order to feed their flesh-eating greediness, makes it all thoroughly worth while. In fact, come to think of it, what exactly is there not to like? Answer - absolutely nothing.
So, give yourself a treat and go ahead and enjoy this 5 star, 'bloody' cosmic adventure - you will love it! Rating: 5.2 stars.
A space crew has been reassigned to find out why communications have failed with their outlier base on Mars. Should be routine, yes? - Well, think again, as they find 'things' not as expected...big, big, bad, man-eating alien 'things' from a parallel reality. An easy fix, no problem-o!
What a fantastic piece of escapism. Ok, it gets a little cheesy in places and the plot has all been seen before, but the wonderful storyline, fast-paced action, snappy dialogue, and marvellous account of the monsters and their gory mutilations in order to feed their flesh-eating greediness, makes it all thoroughly worth while. In fact, come to think of it, what exactly is there not to like? Answer - absolutely nothing.
So, give yourself a treat and go ahead and enjoy this 5 star, 'bloody' cosmic adventure - you will love it! Rating: 5.2 stars.
August 20, 2025
All hell is breaking loose on Mars, and an unsuspecting, unprepared ship and crew is going to check it out. They’re going to find out really fast—it’s game over.
Ridiculous, and not in a good or funny way. Forced dialog and cliched characters made it seem like I was watching a bad movie with poor actors and a terrible script. I love Alien(s), The Thing, and Starship Troopers—this was not that. The creatures were the only aspect of the story that I found somewhat intriguing but not enough to keep me interested.
Maybe it’s me, it looks like there are plenty of 5-star reviews for this, so if you’re into sci-fi and horror, go ahead and check it out. I warned you.
Ridiculous, and not in a good or funny way. Forced dialog and cliched characters made it seem like I was watching a bad movie with poor actors and a terrible script. I love Alien(s), The Thing, and Starship Troopers—this was not that. The creatures were the only aspect of the story that I found somewhat intriguing but not enough to keep me interested.
Maybe it’s me, it looks like there are plenty of 5-star reviews for this, so if you’re into sci-fi and horror, go ahead and check it out. I warned you.
December 31, 2022
4.5 stars
I have been in the mood for some solid sci-fi recently. And this book gave me everything that I was looking for in the ones that have come before it. While, it was short, and I do wish it was longer, it is part of a larger series which I will be able to explore and that’s amazing. We got a solid introduction to the characters and we really start to get a feel for them before all hell breaks loose. And then we are on survival mode. And the intensity doesn’t really let up. Then we have the mother of all bombs dropped on us. I really can’t find complaints with this story. It was a solid start and I will be continuing on with a series.
I have been in the mood for some solid sci-fi recently. And this book gave me everything that I was looking for in the ones that have come before it. While, it was short, and I do wish it was longer, it is part of a larger series which I will be able to explore and that’s amazing. We got a solid introduction to the characters and we really start to get a feel for them before all hell breaks loose. And then we are on survival mode. And the intensity doesn’t really let up. Then we have the mother of all bombs dropped on us. I really can’t find complaints with this story. It was a solid start and I will be continuing on with a series.
March 20, 2022
This. THIS is exactly what I was wanting!!
For the past few months, I’ve been wanting to read some space horror! Some GOOD space horror!
The ones I have read have been mediocre at best. Until this book came along!
I love that it’s not a long, strung out story. Since it’s under 200 pages it gets pretty intense pretty darn fast and that is what I love!! Fast paced and “edge of your seat” action! And, HOLY SHIT, is it brutal!!!
It’s got everything I’ve been craving in a space horror book and I’m in luck….. it’s a series!!! Woooowhoo!
Bring on the next book!!
For the past few months, I’ve been wanting to read some space horror! Some GOOD space horror!
The ones I have read have been mediocre at best. Until this book came along!
I love that it’s not a long, strung out story. Since it’s under 200 pages it gets pretty intense pretty darn fast and that is what I love!! Fast paced and “edge of your seat” action! And, HOLY SHIT, is it brutal!!!
It’s got everything I’ve been craving in a space horror book and I’m in luck….. it’s a series!!! Woooowhoo!
Bring on the next book!!
May 13, 2020
Great beginning! Fast paced monster filled fun. I love space horror, and this is promising to be a wild ride. bring on book2!
April 25, 2020
Foster and Woodward have hit the ground running with their new series. Conjuring Doom, Aliens, Dead Space and The Thing (amongst others) to the readers mind, you'll be fiending for more by the end.
August 19, 2022
I was sent the first 3 books in exchange for my honest review. I am now down with covid so perfect opportunity to devour these.
I wasn't sure what I was expecting in this first book but it went way beyond it. I was pulled in right from the beginning. The action was non stop, i loved the banter and relationships of the crew, and yes I loved the antagonist. It brought up all those nostalgia of those classic sci-fi horror movies ie; The Thing or The Leviathan.
If you loved those movies you are going to love this. I hope the rest of the series carries this feeling throughout the rest of it.
I wasn't sure what I was expecting in this first book but it went way beyond it. I was pulled in right from the beginning. The action was non stop, i loved the banter and relationships of the crew, and yes I loved the antagonist. It brought up all those nostalgia of those classic sci-fi horror movies ie; The Thing or The Leviathan.
If you loved those movies you are going to love this. I hope the rest of the series carries this feeling throughout the rest of it.
July 2, 2020
In one sentence: this book is The Thing meets Alien.
A rescue crew are sent to check up on a fellow space station on Mars that’s gone quiet. They suspect a minor system failure, and a crew in cryo-sleep, but what they find is so, so much worse.
This book is so entertaining. It’s a great blend of sci-fi and horror, fast paced but still gives enough time to the characters so that I’m invested in what happens to them. And there’s plenty of gruesome descriptions that made my toes curl!
Thank you so much @jzfosterauthor for writing such an awesome book, and for kindly sending me a copy. This was #gifted but the review is honest!
A rescue crew are sent to check up on a fellow space station on Mars that’s gone quiet. They suspect a minor system failure, and a crew in cryo-sleep, but what they find is so, so much worse.
This book is so entertaining. It’s a great blend of sci-fi and horror, fast paced but still gives enough time to the characters so that I’m invested in what happens to them. And there’s plenty of gruesome descriptions that made my toes curl!
Thank you so much @jzfosterauthor for writing such an awesome book, and for kindly sending me a copy. This was #gifted but the review is honest!
April 18, 2020
If you enjoyed the original Alien series with Ripley and Prometheus this is the book for you. The monsters are terrifying. The heroes are flawed but worth rooting for and I wanted to stuff the true villain into an airlock and send him into space. I recommend reading with the lights on.
February 15, 2021
This book was amazing! It's like playing Doom, while watching Aliens, while on speed! I couldn't put it down.
March 3, 2024
Very creepy, perfect if you like your science fiction scary! It really reminded me of Mike Duke’s “Amalgam”.
A transport team gets redirected to investigate a station on Mars that had gone dark. They find untold monstrosities and the nightmare is only beginning!
It was pretty short, so I’ll be digging into Book 2 to see what happens next!
A transport team gets redirected to investigate a station on Mars that had gone dark. They find untold monstrosities and the nightmare is only beginning!
It was pretty short, so I’ll be digging into Book 2 to see what happens next!
June 6, 2021
3.5⭐️
September 3, 2023
Good sci-fi horror. I really enjoyed it. Very tense. I liked it a lot.
April 16, 2020
I like to think these two authors shared a beer and sparked an idea that created a sci-fi/horror series. Apparently, that's not what happened, but something sparked an intriguing idea. That idea? What would've happened if the Cold War had ended differently? Or, even more so, if it had never ended? What if it moved off our planet?
Such a cool concept, and these guys handle it really well. It's definitely got a taste of Alien--bantering crews, horrific aliens, highs and lows--but it has its own unique vibe. I'm looking forward to the ride.
Such a cool concept, and these guys handle it really well. It's definitely got a taste of Alien--bantering crews, horrific aliens, highs and lows--but it has its own unique vibe. I'm looking forward to the ride.
August 15, 2020
So much damn fun. Think Alien, Lovecraft and Dead Space all mixed into one.
November 16, 2022
What a damp squib. I am deeply sceptical of books written by multiple authors, and it is very much proven right in this case. This was not scary, except in a scary-how-incompetent-these-people-are way. I'm not tagging spoilers, because you should thank me for saving you the time.
The novella spends the first 25% with the crew of the Perihelion, none of whom of I cared about. A quarter of the book completely wasted, except to reinforce that male authors are so fucking predictable--every woman on the ship is sleeping with some guy (no one is gay of course, in the future) and there is even a strip poker scene. My eyes couldn't possibly roll back further in my head.
Despite the fact that our heroes are soldiers and presumably have some kind of established procedures somewhere, they bring an infected crew member aboard without any quarantine protocols or anything. My only fear was these dimwits bringing monsters to Earth, though if everyone in this reality is as stupid as the crew, they deserve to be eaten.
I suppose the crew's stupidity is justified by the terrifying situation (like continually shooting at these things despite them clearly not dying, you're just wasting ammo) but the writers failed to create the necessary atmosphere, so I was just annoyed with them all for freaking out.
The writers made a major mistake by writing one chapter from the perspective of the BBEG, some alternate dimension evil queen monster or whatever. It was unnecessary, broke all mystery around the baddies (which further diminished their horror), and undercut the one scary/cool thing they had set up to begin with--something on the other side of a gate spoke to them. But no worries guys, that gets explained and it's dumb af.
And then, the cherry on top of this mudcake: the only vaguely competent, intelligent and rational person is a Nazi scientist. Which I think was supposed to be a big twist at the end, except it was so bloody obvious because he's evil and German. WHO could he BE you guys, with his science and evilness and flashback to watching evil experiments?? Least original backstory ever. Don't worry though, he doesn't show any remorse or personality, so there's still no one to root for.
Definitely won't continue reading this series.
The novella spends the first 25% with the crew of the Perihelion, none of whom of I cared about. A quarter of the book completely wasted, except to reinforce that male authors are so fucking predictable--every woman on the ship is sleeping with some guy (no one is gay of course, in the future) and there is even a strip poker scene. My eyes couldn't possibly roll back further in my head.
Despite the fact that our heroes are soldiers and presumably have some kind of established procedures somewhere, they bring an infected crew member aboard without any quarantine protocols or anything. My only fear was these dimwits bringing monsters to Earth, though if everyone in this reality is as stupid as the crew, they deserve to be eaten.
I suppose the crew's stupidity is justified by the terrifying situation (like continually shooting at these things despite them clearly not dying, you're just wasting ammo) but the writers failed to create the necessary atmosphere, so I was just annoyed with them all for freaking out.
The writers made a major mistake by writing one chapter from the perspective of the BBEG, some alternate dimension evil queen monster or whatever. It was unnecessary, broke all mystery around the baddies (which further diminished their horror), and undercut the one scary/cool thing they had set up to begin with--something on the other side of a gate spoke to them. But no worries guys, that gets explained and it's dumb af.
And then, the cherry on top of this mudcake: the only vaguely competent, intelligent and rational person is a Nazi scientist. Which I think was supposed to be a big twist at the end, except it was so bloody obvious because he's evil and German. WHO could he BE you guys, with his science and evilness and flashback to watching evil experiments?? Least original backstory ever. Don't worry though, he doesn't show any remorse or personality, so there's still no one to root for.
Definitely won't continue reading this series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 21, 2020
Holy shinolli, this was one wild ride! I absolutely love this collab between JZ Foster and Justin Woodward, its easy to read yet gritty, gripping, and twisted. This book leaves you scratching your head every few pages, then rereading to make sure that that did in fact just happen! It is superbly done, and brings to life an entirely new universe, and I can't wait to dive in and see what happens in the next book! Thank you for the opportunity to review this gem, I love it!
August 19, 2020
Hell on Mars indeed!
What a great start to what looks to be a very exciting series. Hell on Mars just jumps right off the deep end and throws the reader into the heart of the action. I'm right there with the crew, experiencing the horrors they are facing, and seeing them rise to the challenge, in spite of the odds. As soon as I finished reading, I had to buy the next installment, I NEED to know what happens next!
What a great start to what looks to be a very exciting series. Hell on Mars just jumps right off the deep end and throws the reader into the heart of the action. I'm right there with the crew, experiencing the horrors they are facing, and seeing them rise to the challenge, in spite of the odds. As soon as I finished reading, I had to buy the next installment, I NEED to know what happens next!
August 8, 2020
Man oh man. I just finished 𝘏𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘯 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘴 by J.Z. Foster and Justin Woodward. I'm going to work on a full review later today but I cannot wait for the rest of this series. Imagine if the video game series 𝐃𝐨𝐨𝐦 and the film 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐇𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐨𝐧 had a scary baby and that would be this book. Great set up, wonderful characters, and wicked extra dimensional monsters. I need the next book immediately
May 16, 2020
Great book
Simply put, I could not stop ready this book. Every time I decided to take a break, I just had to find out what happened next. I'm so looking forward to the next installment in this series.
Simply put, I could not stop ready this book. Every time I decided to take a break, I just had to find out what happened next. I'm so looking forward to the next installment in this series.
December 30, 2020
Basically this book blends together the best parts of Doom, The Thing, Aliens, Event Horizon, Dead Space, and Stranger Things (all of which I love so much). Maybe I should knock off points for copying some, but I was just having too much FUN to care! Really though it manages to still stand alone as it’s own exciting entity, full of exhilarating action sequences, grotesque monsters, and great character development.
I love sci-if action/horror in general, but it’s that last point that really stood out to me (although these monsters are freaky!). I really appreciate how much I cared for this cast of characters. They felt fully realized, even the minor ones, and there’s some fantastic banter between them (the kind that can come across as cheesy in movies often, but here it’s done very well).
This book is the definition of a page-turner, and I tore through it in one sitting. Thankfully it’s just book one in a full series called Reality Bleed, and this dynamic duo of authors just released book five! Now excuse me while I stare anxiously into the void until I can read the next book.
I love sci-if action/horror in general, but it’s that last point that really stood out to me (although these monsters are freaky!). I really appreciate how much I cared for this cast of characters. They felt fully realized, even the minor ones, and there’s some fantastic banter between them (the kind that can come across as cheesy in movies often, but here it’s done very well).
This book is the definition of a page-turner, and I tore through it in one sitting. Thankfully it’s just book one in a full series called Reality Bleed, and this dynamic duo of authors just released book five! Now excuse me while I stare anxiously into the void until I can read the next book.
April 15, 2020
If you have a soft spot for 80s sci fi than this is the book for you. It is a great, fast paced read that will have you dying to pick up the next book in the series!
April 21, 2020
normally I'm not into science fiction, and i havent read many sci fi/horror that could keep my attention but these two authors keep me turning every page until i as finished yet had me asking the question of WTF? Who will make it out alive before the creatures eat them alive or will everyone die trying?
August 22, 2021
Review to come! loved it
Displaying 1 - 30 of 127 reviews