DEAD STATION

by Aaron Beardsell, Michael Cole (foreword)

“Dead Station, by new talent Aaron Beardsell, has all the right stuff—great characters, horror, sci-fi action, and concepts to blow the mind. This is a guy to watch.” —Greig Beck, bestselling author of Beneath the Dark Ice

Deep within the unforgiving mines of Titan, crew member Mary and her team have been digging relentlessly toward an anomaly on their scanners—what they hope will be the motherlode of mineral deposits. But as they delve deeper, they can't shake the feeling that they’re being watched. The air grows colder, the darkness more menacing, and then the whispers begin—a voice in their minds that craves only one to be awakened.

Within hours, the entire minesite plunges into silence. Contact is lost, and when a recovery team is sent to investigate, they expect the miners may not have survived. But the truth is far worse. Those who heard the whispers have been reborn as something else entirely—creatures warped by an ancient horror. And they aren’t just lurking below; they’re waiting to consume everything in their path.

As grotesque creatures rise beneath Titan’s wastelands, the colony teeters on the brink of annihilation. Only Ryka, a grizzled security officer, and his scrappy team stand between the colony and a nightmare come to life. Outgunned and facing monsters beyond comprehension, Ryka’s squad will need every ounce of firepower and courage to confront the terror that’s been unleashed.

Can Ryka and his team stop the infection from spreading, or will the shadows of Titan consume them all? Dive into Dead Station for a relentless thrill ride into sci-fi horror like you've never seen!

194 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 1, 2024

About the author

Aaron Beardsell fell in love with writing when they purchased a typewriter from a church buried deep in the woods. Some say the typewriter has a soul of its own, and lives through its victims. Others say it now sits abandoned in a basement somewhere. Only time will tell.

Aaron's stories have been published in a wide variety of anthologies, including Anterior Skies, Bullet Points, Cult Horrotica, Dark Speculations, Shadowed Realms, SNAFU: CONTAGION, Strange Aeon, and Summer of Sci-Fi & Fantasy.

Reviews

[William (Mr. Bill) Turner]

Dead Station a gruesome space adventure

I enjoyed this terrifying story. As if mining in tunnels deep below the surface of Titan isn't scary enough Author Aaron Beardsell has created a very gruesome enemy or entity. Is it benevolent or malevolent? That depends on whose side you end up on.

[Chance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Callisto like the video game just less corrupt cops

You gave to much backstory in this novella length book has it referenced events from chacthers past like theres supposed to be prequel books to give narrative to thouse events. I hope you don’t go overboard in future books has fans can get annoyed when they don’t have the full story.

[KallistaFaye · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is deep space horror done right!!! I loved the inner monologue of the MC. It was a fast paced, edge of your seat story, that kept me up all night reading. The small, subtle homage to “Aliens” was great. In fact, I would rank this right up there with “Aliens”. If you like Sci-Fi, if you like space horror, I can’t recommend this highly enough.

[Lauren Fitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.6 stars
Fun space horror

[BooksandBacon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Humanity has partially colonised the Sol system. A mining crew are busy tunnelling under Titan, Saturn's second-largest moon, but something is wrong. Mary, the leader of the mining crew, hears voices, but she realises she feels the voices inside her head. It's calling to her, wants her to join "it". The deeper they dig, the stronger the voices get.

Titan Station has lost contact with the Mining outpost, and Security Officer Ryka has been tasked to assemble a team to investigate. What they find is the stuff of nightmares. Ryka remembered years ago. He was tasked with harvesting asteroids, but like in Titan, he saw something hidden deep in the asteroids, something ancient, deadly and its awakening. Indeed it was eradicated then, so why is it familiar to what's in Titan?

Aaron has created a dark, scary future for humanity's next chapter, conquering space. His writing is superb, with intriguing characters and a startling, gruesome storyline. We're treated to a peak of the "entities" past and the massive war which took part before humanity sprang from the primordial soup. I hope Aaron expands it on future stories.

I recommend reading Book 1: Dead Station, which sets the series' tone. A highly recommended space horror series!!.

[Nathaniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was very enjoyable. It was horrifying, disgusting, and well done. Aaron Beardsell is becoming a favourite sci-fi horror author. I’m looking forward to more from him!

[Terry and dog · Rating 4 out of 5]

In your head, in your head, zombie...zombie. That's what was going through my head.
Lots of creepy imagery, down in the mines gave me such a gaspy feeling and lots of wormy and tentacley action and all around gross stuff. A fast paced riot of alien terror and claustrophobia. 3.7

[Lars · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring and unsurprising unfortunately.

[Liz Shorter · Rating 3 out of 5]

No character development, but action packed and an easy read with graphic imagery.