A Graveyard of Stars: Sci-fi Horror Novellas

Dark Tide Horror Novellas #15

by Lee Mountford, Joseph Sale, Dan Soule

In uncharted and forbidden tracts of space, ancient evils awaken…

With its visceral action, escalating dread, vivid characters braving trauma and temptation, and startling feats of imagination, A Graveyard of Stars anthology will send the reader hurtling through space toward chilling revelations and breathless conclusions.

The Temple by Joseph Sale: After an audacious crew of salvagers crosses into dangerous territory seeking otherworldly treasure, they discover an occult secret that could change everything.

The Station by Lee Mountford: The intrepid crew of the Argento encounters unimaginable horrors after discovering a mysterious, drifting megastructure in the depths of space.

Graveyard of Stars by Dan Soule: A routine maintenance job on the edge of the notorious Demon Star system goes terribly wrong, leaving the stranded engineers caught between the unfathomable forces of Algol and the lethal dangers of the encroaching defense net they are sworn to uphold.

These three brilliantly inventive novellas combined in this compulsive sci-fi collection to explore threats lurking in a forbidden and blighted sector of space. Perfect for fans of Event Horizon, Alien, Dead Silence, and Luminous Dead.

Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing—Tales from the Darkest Depths.

Genres: Horror, Science Fiction, Anthologies, Space

260 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 29, 2024

About the author

I am an author with a huge love of horror.

Of course, other genres float my boat as well; Sci-Fi, Thrillers, pretty much any Dark Fiction, but Horror is what I call home.

My first novel, Horror in the Woods, was released on in May 2017, and the second, The Demonic, on the the following July hitting multiple best seller lists. Since then, I have authored a number of horror novels that have terrified fans for the past few years.

You can find out more about me on my website, but also, don't forget to claim your FREE ebooks
: http://eepurl.com/dIaS0r

- Lee

Reviews

[Kate Victoria RescueandReading · Rating 5 out of 5]

This trio of incredible authors wove 3 interconnected tales of cosmic horror into a masterpiece of a book!

I love sci fi scary stories and all 3 entries really hit the spot. I truly cannot pick a favourite. There are monstrous entities, eldritch star systems, void children, space pirates, and so much more to delve into!

It’d be amazing to see this general concept of Algol space continue, maybe in an another anthology. Mountford, Sale, & Soule put so much work into their universe building that I don’t think this should be the end of what they started.

[Lisa Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Bibliophilia Templum review
https://bibliophiliatemplum.wordpress.com/2024/05/18/a-graveyard-of-stars-sci-fi-horror-novellas/

A Graveyard of Stars: Sci-fi Horror Novellas is Book 15 in the impressive Dark Tide series from Crystal Lake Publishing. This volume is comprised of three vivid and visceral sci-fi horror novellas by three impressive authors: Joseph Sale, Lee Mountford, and Dan Soule. These authors take you into the unknowns of space in three interconnected but separate tales of suspense and terror.

“The Temple” by Joseph Sale is an engrossing and suspenseful story, due in no small part to the author’s incredible storytelling. The story’s foreshadowing serves to increase the sense of mystery, and Sale is splendidly not afraid to have intense characters who say and do intense things. This complex tale brings the otherworldly horror and sets up the rest of the anthology.

“The Station” by Lee Mountford is a fresh hard sci-fi tale of cosmic terror. Mountford’s characters are wonderfully diverse and evocative (though one evoked me wanting to reach through the page and smack them), and his subtle homage to sci-fi classics takes nothing from his immersive style or the freshness of his story. On a deeper level, this is a story about humanity in multiple senses of the word, and I found that magnified the horror of it.

“Graveyard of Stars” by Dan Soule is a deep and compelling tale full of suspense and twisted horrors. The characters are a varied and supremely entertaining lot, and they ultimately drive the story from dark mystery to terror to outright horror. This one made me laugh out loud, gasp, and cringe. It’s a fantastic sci-fi horror and the perfect close to the anthology.

I love how these stories are connected and take place in the same literary universe and even make small references to one another. The book reads more like a series than an anthology, and I really enjoyed it. I could and would happily read more stories in this universe. A highly recommended 5-star horror read.

[Dale Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book, it definitely satisfied my sci-fi horror itch. Three separate stories that tie in together. When I started reading I didn't realise that, and initially I was disappointed as I was hoping for three totally separate space horror stories, but it worked really well when I got onto the second story and spotted some similarities. By the end I thought it was a great strategy for the book. It ended up being like a massive story told from three different perspectives.

All the stories are well written and pull you right into the tales. Very creepy and quite emotional (mainly the last story), there's plenty here for any horror fan.

[Sazerina Wilde · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the moment I opened "A Graveyard of Stars," I was fully invested. Having read other works from Crystal Lake Publications, I knew this anthology would be good, but nothing prepared me for the rollercoaster ride that these three novellas took me on. This collection is absolutely everything I hope to read in the sci-fi horror genre.

"The Temple" by Joseph Sale kicks off the anthology with a gripping tale of a crew of salvagers venturing into dangerous territory in search of otherworldly treasure. The occult secret they uncover is both chilling and fascinating, setting a high bar for the rest of the collection. Sale’s visceral action and escalating dread kept me on the edge of my seat, and the vivid characters facing trauma and temptation added a deep emotional layer to the story.

Next, "The Station" by Lee Mountford takes us on a harrowing journey with the crew of the Argento. The unimaginable horrors they encounter within a mysterious, drifting megastructure are depicted with startling feats of imagination. Mountford masterfully escalates the tension and dread, making it impossible to put the book down. The sense of isolation and impending doom was palpable, making this novella a standout.

Finally, Dan Soule’s "Graveyard of Stars" concludes the anthology with a thrilling and terrifying tale of a routine maintenance job gone horribly wrong. Stranded on the edge of the Demon Star system, the engineers face unfathomable forces and lethal dangers that kept me glued to the pages. Soule’s ability to blend intense action with deep existential dread made for a breathtaking conclusion to the collection.

Each novella in "A Graveyard of Stars" is brilliantly inventive, exploring threats lurking in a forbidden and blighted sector of space. The visceral action, escalating dread, and vivid characters braving trauma and temptation are exactly what I hope to find in sci-fi horror. This anthology not only met my expectations but exceeded them, providing a thrilling and chilling reading experience that I won't soon forget. I can't wait to see what Crystal Lake Publications has in store next.

[Jake · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first time I've read an anthology of this sort, and I like the idea of it but I found the execution somewhat lackluster but perhaps I have the wrong expectations.

In essence, this is three sort stories / novellas that all revolve around various spaceships and their crews exploring the out realms of space and coming into contact with the "Algol". Each book tells a different tale involving each crews own horrifying experience coming into contact with the Algol.

I found this book after trying (and failing) to find a good sci-fi horror book. Finally, I found a good scifi-horror book! This book was fun to read and was really engaging. And most importantly, it definitely earned the horror moniker (I find most books in this genre to be quite lackluster and unimaginative).

My only criticism for this book is that I wish the three novellas felt more connected. I kept hoping for the next novella to pick up, at least in part, where the last dropped off and give some resolution to the story. But alas, each novella essentially exists in a universe of its own. Although each one revolves around the same reach of the galaxy (the Algol Space), their depiction of it is completely different and the Algol themselves appear dramatically different in each story to the point they seem like different beings entirely.

All in all, this is the best sci-fi horror "book" Ive read to date. Ill end with my scores for each novell:

The Temple by Joseph Sale: 4/5
The Station by Lee Mountford: 5/5 This was by far the star of the book and the best (and most horrifying) sci-fi horror book I've read to date. Suffice it to say, I immediately looked up Lee Mountford on GR to see if he had any other sci books and was saddened to see this was his first and only.
Graveyard of Stars by Dan Soule: 3/5 This was the weakest by far with a somewhat incomprehensible plot.

[Rochatra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three sci-fi horror novellas in one, great for people who like cosmic horror. This has a bit of everything, trauma, lots of body horror, and creatures. Most of these themes are found throughout all three stories. If you enjoyed the discovery of an unknown spacecraft in Alien, the madness of Event Horizon, or maybe even something crazy like From Beyond, this is most likely for you.

The Temple by Joseph Sale is about a crew of salvagers, sent on a big treasure hunt, they venture into unknown territory best left alone. This one got great action, and a nice twist towards the end.

The Station by Lee Mountford was my favorite story. A spaceship crew goes inside a megastructure drifting in space. A lot of body horror in this one. If you've read books by the author before, you can already expect some gritty violence, and a journey that's just fun to read.

Graveyard of Stars by Dan Soule tells the story of a maintenance job gone wrong, now the engineers are trapped in the nightmare of the Demon Star system, surrounded by evil forces. I must admit, this one did not catch my attention as much as the others. I liked the writing here, and the pacing was really good (perhaps even the best among the three stories), but I couldn't connect with the characters as much. I still recommend it for the ending, it was very well done.

All three stories are play out within the same star system, the Demon Star. If you like anthologies with some connections between the stories, and the movies/themes mentioned above, I'm sure you'll enjoy your time. I'm just glad we get more sci-fi horror here and there.

[Iseult Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a fan of Sale and Soule, but this was my first time reading Mountford, and it won’t be the last.

I love science fiction horror and nasty things happening in space, so I couldn’t wait to read this book. I wasn’t disappointed.

If you’ve read Sale’s other books, you’ve a good idea what you can expect with his opening novella, “The Temple”. Dark cosmic horror, filled with literary allusions, I loved the play on the “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” (one of my favorite poems).

Mountford’s “The Station” was a glorious dark cosmic horror, full of tension and body horror. It started creepy, and then ratcheted up the tension as the story descended in nerve shredding depths of nightmare. I found this the most disturbing of the three novellas.

Soule’s “A Graveyard of Stars” is an intimate story of a crew fixing a space gun on the defense grid bordering Algol space (Algol’s are terrifying aliens that exist within the shared universe of the three connected novellas). I found the beginning a little slow, but once the story got going it pulled me in and made me love the characters the way only Soule can. The story was spooky and creepy, but it was the characters that really made the story for me. I loved the protagonist, Murphy (great name!), and Weaver, Wu, and Ito all won me over so that I really cared what happened to them.

Thank you to the authors and Crystal Lake for providing me with an ARC copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Winry Weiss · Rating 4 out of 5]

While it was not exactly what I wanted it to be, it was quite an enjoyable read. I especially appreciate that these were loosely interconnected novellas, all standing proudly on their own, but set within the same space. And what a nightmare of a space the Algol System is. (10 out of 10, I'd love to return!)

I'm more of a fan of mounting uneasiness, the foreboding sense of something not exactly right tinglingly creeping up along your spine - this was more in the vein of splatterpunk (rather mild, but still... eh) and body horror. Still, some nicely done Lovecraftian madness-inducing, mind-boggling experiences and beings, the awe of the scale of the otherness, t'was a nice touch.

Joseph Sale - The Temple - 4/5
Lee Mountford - The Station - 3/5
Dan Soule - Graveyard of Stars - 5/5

[Khaled · Rating 5 out of 5]

very fun

Three cosmic horror novellas, in a sci-fi setting. All set in the same universe, loosely linked together. Stay the hell out of Agoul space!

Story 1 is a pirate’s retelling of an extremely lucrative heist to a non-human temple, and how it destroyed her crew and sanity.

Story 2 follows a former addict turned clean working on an old exploration/science vessel. They encounter a strange anomaly and then a space station not made by human hands.

Story 3 follows a novice engineer on a maintenance vessel for the Defense Net. The discovery of a coffin with a lost scientist clutching and “breastfeeding” an alien idol causes all hell to break loose.

[Icy-Cobwebs-Crossing-SpaceTime · Rating 5 out of 5]

Release March 29.
DARK TIDE #15.

The newest themed Anthology in the DARK TIDE Series, these three exciting and engrossing SciFi novellas are set in uncharted deep space, in the mysterious and mystical realm surrounding the "Demon Star," Algol, or Algoul. In uncharted space, human explorers are truly alone, battling space insanity, the void, cosmic horrors, and quite possibly the elusive, legendary Algoul alien species. Come stretch your imagination, and blow your mind!

[A.K. McCarthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can't escape your past, even in the furthest reaches of space. This is a fantastic trio of space horror stories, all sharing similar themes and lore. I thought they were all excellent, but Dan Soule's entry was probably my favorite. Its visceral language and gutwrenching backstory makes it particularly effective. Another stellar entry in the Dark Tide series!

[Terry and dog · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Temple, The Station, Graveyard of Stars is like a three course meal at a table set in hell.
These stories wrecked me. Brutal, disgusting, devastating, but oh so fascinating. Each and every story a unique journey into Algol Space for a brief taste of savagery. I loved it.

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

If the three stories, none of them grabbed me outside of a few scenes. Particularly in the last one, the namesake, which had several good scenes. But as cohesive independent stories, they either needed more to them or more editing to get in more.

[Jules_withtheaxe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Space travel has always been a terrifying concept to me so most sci-fi has an element of horror in it for me. These three novellas really hit the mark and even gave me nightmares! So I highly recommend to horror aficionados.

[Michael Porter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three Twisted Tales Of Cosmic Horror

Love space horror? Tales of cosmic madness? Pick this up. It’s a wild ride through the darkness beyond the stars…

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Christian Orton · Rating 3 out of 5]

First two stories were decent. The last story I had to skim through, just wasn't written very well in my opinion. Kind of amateurish.