March 2022 Group Read #1 - Dead Silence

[Jacqueline]

I’m around chapter 6 and so far I love the descriptions of the found ship.

[Alan]

When they got to the part where they found some video that gave them an idea of what went on, all I could think of was the very similar scene in Event Horizon.

[Ginger]

Kimberly wrote: "I want to watch GHOST SHIP again now. I haven't seen Event Horizon yet."

I haven’t seen either! I really need to check both out after reading this.

[Ginger]

I finished a few days ago. I enjoyed the concept along with liking the action and spooky moments.

The book struggled with the characters for me but I’ve finally realized (ha!) that I’m a character driven reader. I usually put a lot of weight on that and I don’t know why I’m just realizing this after 30+ years of reading. 🤣😂

I’m still glad I read this one and I did like the ending. I thought it was an interesting take on what was going on with Aurora!

[LTJ]

About to hit 80% in this one and agree with Ginger, I'm not digging the characters at all but do like the setting and descriptions of the Aurora. Curious as to how this ends!

[Alan]

Halfway through and shit's gettin' real, yo!

Other than the TL, the other characters are admittedly one-dimentional caricatures. But, they're not terrible, they're just tropes to fill needed roles.

[LTJ]

@Alan: That's EXACTLY how I feel. Kind of like watching a b-rated horror film, you know the stereotypes are there and sometimes they're forced to fit those roles.

[Paige]

Just finished this book and I have to say I loved it and I am very surprised. Reading and watching movies that involve space or the deep sea really play on my anxiety. Bad. I was terrified to open this and not be able to finish it but I did anyway and have no regrets!
Still gave me anxiety and a lot of breath holding but I loved this book a lot more than I was expecting to.
I felt like this is the genuine horror that I like to read and want to feel. The dread and uncertainty is what made me keep reading. I would def lean this more towards Ghost Ship...no idea where Titanic was brought in on this lol I guess a maiden voyage for a large ship? The characters were the only part of the story that I was not a fan of...I wanted to like Claire but nothing made me like her or any of them really. I didn't get that connection with them.

[Paige]

Scott wrote: "Giovanni wrote: "I totally loved the first half of the story, but I was a bit bored by the second part, I found it less interesting. anyway, it was a very enjoyable read"

I agree. I'm about halfwa..."

The part that drug on the most for me (and almost lost me) was the "NOW" chapters after everything big happens on the ship and they are interrogating her but once you get back up on the Aurora searching for what happened to her and her crew it picks back up again and questions start getting answered! Those 2-3 chapters were very meh to me but they were necessary for what was coming I guess.

[Ginger]

LTJ wrote: "@Alan: That's EXACTLY how I feel. Kind of like watching a b-rated horror film, you know the stereotypes are there and sometimes they're forced to fit those roles."

Alan wrote: "Other than the TL, the other characters are admittedly one-dimentional caricatures. But, they're not terrible, they're just tropes to fill needed roles."

Alan & LTJ, I felt the same.

The characters were definitely stereotypical for a sci-fi adventure.
The cowboy and badboy pilot, the introvert computer genius, the nervous and play by the rules comm specialist, etc.
But, it didn't bother me in the scope of things and just felt like some characters in a B rated movie. :D

Claire was the only one that I struggled with and I hated being in her head all the time. She's a hot mess. LOL!

[LTJ]

LoL yes, Claire is a hot mess and at times distracting but I'm hoping to finish this up by tonight to see how it ends!

[Alan]

290 pages in and now we have a bit of Aliens thrown into the mix. This was definitely cobbled together from bits of various existing Sci-Fi/horror movies/books, but they are working well together.

[LTJ]

Nice! I'm about to hit 90% and I'm just not feeling this as I'm starting to think sci-fi horror just isn't for me. I'm hoping there is a final twist or something at the end to make this higher than a 1/5 for me!

[Michael]

I was reading this casually, in between other things and a road trip. I've read the first seven chapters. There's a building sense of dread that is coming to a head, and I'll most likely spend more time with DEAD SILENCE from this point forward.
Claire is the most developed character, with several understandable flaws. (view spoiler)[ I'm also wondering if she's an unreliable narrator. (hide spoiler)] The other characters are mostly sketches. I can agree with the other readers who dislike Voller. Ugh.

[destiny ♡]

I finished last night and loved it. This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2022 and it checked all the boxes for me. I love horror set in space, I love the trope of a crew going into a long-lost ship to find out what happened (I know there's a term for this but am blanking right now lol), I love unreliable/flawed narrators... this was pretty spot-on for what I hoped it would be and will probably go down as one of my favorite reads of the year! I really hope they make a film of it as I think it would adapt wonderfully.

[LTJ]

I'm happy for those that enjoyed this one but that wasn't the case for me. I'm starting to think maybe I'm just not into Sci-Fi horror all that much but this one wasn't as scary or climatic as I wanted it to be.

[Alan]

LTJ wrote: "I'm happy for those that enjoyed this one but that wasn't the case for me. I'm starting to think maybe I'm just not into Sci-Fi horror all that much but this one wasn't as scary or climatic as I wa..."

[inciminci]

LTJ wrote: "I'm happy for those that enjoyed this one but that wasn't the case for me. I'm starting to think maybe I'm just not into Sci-Fi horror all that much but this one wasn't as scary or climatic as I wa..."

😞 too bad for you we have read so much SF horror here in this group this year... But at least you now know you don't like it LTJ.

To me it's one of the best things as I enjoy SF and horror separately already and even more together. Everyone has their thing, it's just not yours.

[LTJ]

Alan wrote: "LTJ wrote: "I'm happy for those that enjoyed this one but that wasn't the case for me. I'm starting to think maybe I'm just not into Sci-Fi horror all that much but this one wasn't as scary or clim..."

LOL! Looks like I need to bring you a virtual iced coffee so we can be friends again ;-) <3

[LTJ]

inciminci wrote: "LTJ wrote: "I'm happy for those that enjoyed this one but that wasn't the case for me. I'm starting to think maybe I'm just not into Sci-Fi horror all that much but this one wasn't as scary or clim..."

I think it just depends on the characters and settings for me, to be honest. This just wasn't super scary for me involving the encounters/situations. I want to keep trying SF until I find the right author/setting that does it for me, you know?

[inciminci]

Yeah I hear what you're saying. Try Blindsight some time, it has a few genuinely scary scenes and concepts 😬, it's awesome!

[Jacqueline]

I’m almost half way and I don’t know if it’s because I haven’t read a lot of space horror but I’m having difficulty imagining this all in space. The ships description reminds me so much of a luxury sea liner that I can’t get away from that visualization.

[Sally]

inciminci wrote: "Yeah I hear what you're saying. Try Blindsight some time, it has a few genuinely scary scenes and concepts 😬, it's awesome!"

Ooh, adding this one to my TBR! It looks really fun, tons of great reviews too. Thanks Inci!

[inciminci]

It's a great book Sally, hope you enjoy!

[WendyB]

For good or bad, I'm glad this book generated such a spirited discussion.

[Ginger]

WendyB wrote: "For good or bad, I'm glad this book generated such a spirited discussion."

Completely agree WendyB! I'm also glad everyone has been respecting each others opinion with this book. This group has been great with that.

[Ginger]

inciminci wrote: "Yeah I hear what you're saying. Try Blindsight some time, it has a few genuinely scary scenes and concepts 😬, it's awesome!"

Thanks inciminci! I'll check this one out as well.

[Ginger]

Jacqueline wrote: "I’m almost half way and I don’t know if it’s because I haven’t read a lot of space horror but I’m having difficulty imagining this all in space. The ships description reminds me so much of a luxury..."

I had the same issue with visualizing this. I kept imagining Titanic in space. LOL

[Kimberly]

WendyB wrote: "For good or bad, I'm glad this book generated such a spirited discussion."

This certainly was a great one for discussion! I did find many of the characters lacking in terms of depth, myself, but the implications of the ship in space (which was completely TITANIC in my mind as well), made up for that. I really did enjoy this one, and the conversations--from both those that loved it AND those that didn't. All new perspectives to take in!!

[LTJ]

@WendyB: Oh for sure! That's the thing for me, I'd never make fun of or disrespect anyone for having different opinions on books than I do. LoL that's the fun of a book club and I just love how friendly, positive, and awesome everyone here in HA are :-D

VIRTUAL ICED COFFEES FOR EVERYONE!!!

[Lindsay]

destiny ♡⚔♡ wrote: "I finished last night and loved it. This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2022 and it checked all the boxes for me. I love horror set in space, I love the trope of a crew going into a lon..."

You know, I actually didn't love the book (it was just ok for me) but I would absolutely watch this as a movie! I was imagining it very 80s John Carpenter style the entire time.

[Alan]

So I mostly loved Dead Silence. I wish I could find more space horror books like this one. It wasn't perfect, but it was thrilling and felt like an homage to similar books and movies that I adore.
My review (minorly spoilerific)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Latasha]

Make mine a chamomile tea LTJ! It’s almost bed time and I have a long 12 hour shift tomorrow.

[Latasha]

I wasn’t crazy about this one but I’d watch it if it was a movie.

[LTJ]

@Latasha: LARGE CHAMOMILE TEA COMING RIGHT UP! :-)

Good luck with your 12-hour shift... you got this!

[Stefan]

I just finished the reading, and before I left my comment I need to say that I didn't read a lot of sci fi (or space horror) books so i can't compare it to other works of that genre.
As a horror book I really liked it, because there are parts that I found really scary (or at least it worked on me :-).
On the other way, It has some cinematic moments, like movie cliché, that are really predictable but generally i think it is a good book. I enjoyed to read it and I can definitely suggest to others. Someone will like it more - someone less, it depends of personal taste and expectations but, generally it is well written.
I saw here in chat that someone wrote that it would be also a good movie and I can totally agree. I would like to see it. :-)

[Michael]

Up to page 115 and not engaged enough so far to spend more time per reading sessions. However, this does have it's moments. There's a passage near the beginning of Chapter 12 that pushed the right buttons for me: (view spoiler)[ "What was once an uncomfortable tightness in my chest is now a booted foot standing on my breastbone, heavy heel digging in. The silence around us feels expectant, as if we're performers in front of an unseen - but curious and impatient - audience." (hide spoiler)]

[Kelly B]

I just finished it. I was on vacation for a week and then my daughters were home on leave, so I haven’t been reading as much as usual.

I loved this book. There were scenes that genuinely scared me, and it’s rare that happens to me anymore. I think it was the descriptions of the abandoned luxury spaceship with all those corpses. So creepy. It also reminded me of a horror movie that really freaked me out as a kid (Event Horizon).

[Michael]

I finished it yesterday. The last 100 or more pages really grabbed me more than the rest of the book, and I read more and longer.
I'm getting ready to write a review of this. As a haunted house story set in space, it didn't entirely work for me - especially after I figured out the source of the nastiness. I did think the scary passages were well-done and maintained the sense of dread/fear.
I view this more as a science-fiction novel, and it seems to work better than way. The flow and presentation of the different elements and sci-fi trappings were thought out and done properly. The character development became better as the novel progressed. I liked and empathized (up to a point) with all the characters, except Voller (arrogant and obnoxious), Darrow (obnoxious corporate tool) and Donovan (two-faced corporate creep). Claire was the best of the bunch, despite her flaws. Who wouldn't be scarred after such an early childhood traumatic experience, especially one that she somehow felt responsible for. Overall a FOUR STAR read.
OMG, I do believe I've just written my review here.

[inciminci]

Michael wrote: "I finished it yesterday. The last 100 or more pages really grabbed me more than the rest of the book, and I read more and longer.
I'm getting ready to write a review of this. As a haunted house s..."

😄 Great review, Michael!

[LTJ]

Nice review, Michael! I'm glad you enjoyed it as much as you did :-)

[Michael]

LTJ wrote: "Nice review, Michael! I'm glad you enjoyed it as much as you did :-)"
Thanks, LTJ!

[Michael]

inciminci wrote: "Michael wrote: "I finished it yesterday. The last 100 or more pages really grabbed me more than the rest of the book, and I read more and longer.
I'm getting ready to write a review of this. As a..."

Thanks, Inciminci!

[jamako]

Due to my Dresden Files re-read I'm a bit late to the party on this one, but I'll pick it up when I'm done with Changes - probably around the weekend.

[Greg]

Michael wrote: "I finished it yesterday. The last 100 or more pages really grabbed me more than the rest of the book, and I read more and longer."

This was definitely the case for me as well. It was way better when we finally got past that middle slump.

I just finished today. I enjoyed it more than The Luminous Dead. I just really wish that the leading ladies in both novels were a little more Ellen Ripley and a little less Moaning Mertle.

The ending I found satisfying enough and the first few chapters on the ship were fun as well.

If I had to pick a favorite part it would be (view spoiler)[ the idea of them turning the gravity back on and all off the frozen cadavers plummeting to the ground. (hide spoiler)] That was the only thing that gave me a bit of a shudder.

Also as has been previously mentioned anyone who hasn't seen Event Horizon it is similar but much better and I highly recommend watching it. I also really recommend checking out Sunshine for another excellent horror movie set on a spaceship.

[WendyB]

I would love to see tougher female leads in these books too. Someone who really takes names and kicks alien ass.

[LTJ]

@WendyB: Yes! That's what I think is needed to really make these horror novels have a bigger impact. I want someone like Lt. Ripley from Aliens breaking many faces...

[Nick]

Just finished binge reading this book! Oh boi, i couldnt get enough of the atmosphere and the absolute dread felt by the characters. I enjoyed the uncertainty of real or "in their head" interactions. The story was really compelling from start to finish, the only thing i wanted more of was Lourdes and Nysus, the latter remaining a general mystery until the end. I didn't like the main character as much, there was one specific scene where (view spoiler)[ she goes on about how her seeing things was so horribly messed up but the moment someone else sees them, thats totally understandable for them... (hide spoiler)] Cmon girl. Could have used more time with the other characters

[Raif Hoffman]

I really enjoyed this. I was really into the tension being ratcheted up and thought that was going to be the rest of the book so I was a little disappointed that after a long build up things just go completely nuts then we get kind of a reset half way through. And I didn't care for the flash forwards at the beginning which kind of gave too much away in my opinion. I also felt there were a lot of questions and inconsistencies with the world the book is set in, but nothing terribly important to the story.

But I did enjoy Claire as a character and as a narrator who you could never completely trust which kept you guessing. I liked that it wasn't heavy on sci Fi and was basically just a cable repair team in space, like how alien is space truckers. The Aurora is a very spooky place and the first half was basically event horizon and the second half is aliens so what's not to like?

[Jacqueline]

I agree the flash forwards gave so much away!