This was such a fantastic read! I've really enjoyed all of S.A. Barnes' sci fi horrors, and this one, is particularly isolating, which just amped up the creepy vibe. Halley has her reasons for running, but the signs were there that this was a bad situation-she just thought that it would be better then what she was running from, and it turns out it wasn't.

Getting to know Halley as she's on the run, and then takes on this job, I loved it! That she visited the ship when it was a tourist attraction, and had a troubling encounter with the simulation of one of the creator's kids, well, that was greater incentive to both take on the job, and to not take it.

A big part of this book is about how to make choices when both the options are bad. The job that she had, and what happened that caused her to run,yeah, there are no good choices. I sympathized with her having to struggle over what she should do.

There were 2 pretty major reveals in this book, what was going on with the A.I., and what threat there was on the ship. They were both in turns so very horrifying, especially when the whole situation was understood. I did wonder why the one guy only showed up on her screen like he did. Oh, but I wish that there had been some way to reverse what had been done, but alas. The ending was pretty satisfying! I had hoped it could've worked out just a bit differently, but it didn't.

Loved reading this book, and I can't wait to read more by S.A. Barnes or as Stacey Kade!

SA Barnes knows what she likes and she writes precisely that. And I love it, lol.

Cold Eternity is probably the creepiest of her books, taking place on a mostly empty ship with a mysteriously absent caretaker, messed up AI, and a whole lot of frozen, mostly dead people. The creepy stuff starts up basically right away.

I enjoyed the tense loneliness, and the supremely creepy descriptions of the weirdness the MC encounters during the book. Barnes is good at description and suspense in my opinion.

I was occasionally annoyed by the MC, Haley/Katarina, who makes some questionable decisions at times. Her reactions don't always make sense either, which can be frustrating. She continually needs sense talked into her, and rarely does that sense come from her own internal voice, which is mainly "what's the worst decision I can make?!" I can see this frustrating some readers and making this one of her more divisive books but... personally, I didn't mind that much?

The story flies by though (in the best sense) and so whatever criticisms I have feel minor and easily overcome for the fun of the story. It's the most Dead Space-like of all Barnes' books and I am forever on the search for more media like Dead Space.

Overall I really enjoyed this book! It really satisfied my craving for some creepy, scary space horror, haha

Halley is on the run due to a political scandal that has put a target on her back. She gets a job on a defunct space barge that houses wealthy “ residents” who have had their bodies cryogenically frozen. There is only one other caretaker on the barge with her, Carl, who is extremely secretive. What could go wrong? Well, Halley starts to see scary things and it goes down hill for her from that point on. Barnes excels at creating a creepy and downright horrifying atmosphere, but Halley was a little too slow on the uptake, if you ask me and plausibility was difficult.

Recommended for die- hard fans of science fiction/ horror.
The audiobook was read by Amara Jaspar, an exceptionally gifted narrator

5 Stars

S.A. Barnes has quickly become a go-to author for me, and I’ve read everything they’ve written so far. Dead Silence is one of my favorite sci-fi horror books, and while I didn’t enjoy Ghost Station as much, I still really liked it. Cold Eternity, the third book in the series, was no different. I don’t typically read a lot of sci-fi, but there’s something about Barnes' writing style that really resonates with me; it’s incredibly captivating.

Cold Eternity was a bit unique, with Catatrina at the center of the story. She’s harboring secrets as she flees a dangerous situation and boards a defunct cryo ship. There are many layers of mystery here: What happened on the cryo ship? Who are the ghost-like apparitions that Catatrina can see? Who is she running from, and what’s the significance of her family/politician connection? Why are they so desperate to find her? I really enjoyed Catatrina’s character and especially loved her interactions with Alec, as we work to uncover the mystery surrounding him and understand what he’s trying to communicate.

The audiobook narrator did a fantastic job. I’ve listened to all three books in audiobook format, and I’ve enjoyed them all. The narrator brought the characters to life and perfectly conveyed the tension when the stakes were high.

What stands out about Barnes' sci-fi books for me is that they always seem to have a sub-genre of romance or character connections that I really care about. I know this isn’t for all sci-fi readers, but I absolutely love it. I’m always left wondering if the next book will have a similar subplot.

I can’t wait to see what S.A. Barnes’ next book will be.

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for this advanced reader copy. My review is voluntarily my own.

audio-ARC from NetGalley.

S.A. Barnes never lets me down, and I think this was her best book yet.

Our protagonist is on the run from a deadly plot to silence her after she discovers that her employer sabotaged an election. Out of money and desperate to move on before her hunters find her, she accepts the first under-the-table job she can find: a security guard for a now-defunct cryo-graveyard housing 200-year-old popstars and the richest of the rich in hopes of one day being revived. Except that one day never came.

But, immediately upon boarding the ship, she begins to question things. Why have all the previous security guards left so abruptly? What did she see on the security cameras her first day? And, most importantly, are her childhood memories of one of the holograms talking to her like it was sentient real?

Give me rogue AI. Give my monsters on a spaceship. Give me conspiracies. I eat it up every. single. time. And this time was no exception.

This is her best book yet, and I'm so sad it's over.

I've read one other S.A. Barnes story that I truly enjoyed. This one, however, took a lot to get going and pull me in.

While the character development was smoothly fleshed out, I still failed to connect with the main character. The world vision through out the story was easy to follow as well.

Overall, an okay story. The narrator did a fantastic job presenting to us.

Thank you #NetGalley #ColdEternity #SABarnes

Barnes is one of my go-to, auto-buy, scifi horror authors. So far in the line-up I'd say this is actually my least favorite. Still worth the read for fans of Barnes, but I wouldn't recommend it as someone's first read from the author. Dead Silence was a solid four star for me, and Ghost Station was a fantastic five star favorite. This one was a heavier on the political side like DS, whereas I prefer the more extraterrestrial aspects like in GS.

S.A. Barnes is definitely one of my “must read authors”. She is the absolute queen of space horror. Also, the more I read of her work, the more I don’t want to ever leave earth and hope that we never discover life on other planets. I’d like to remain blissfully unaware. Barnes has a knack for writing stories that keep me completely engaged all the way through to the point that I have jumped if anyone talks because in my mind, I am in the action. You can always count on her to bring the thrills and chaos in every story and Cold Eternity is no exception. The writing is creepy in all the best ways. I love that fun, scared feeling! The atmosphere is absolutely chilling and the characters are horrifying. There were so many surprises that I kept finding myself wanting to guess what would happen next. There was just so much to this story that I truly feel like I will need to read it again soon.

Thank you, S.A. Barnes, Tor Nightfire, and Netgally for gifting me a copy of this e-arc.

Halley is running from a political scandal that's resulted in a giant target on her back. So when she's offered an under-the-table job on Elysian Fields, a space barge housing cryogenically frozen bodies, she jumps at the opportunity. But within an hour of being on the ship, Halley starts to see things that don't make sense, and she soon realizes she might have gotten herself into a more dangerous situation than what she was running from.

Barnes is one of those authors whose work I'm always excited to pick up. She does such a good job at creating a creepy space atmosphere without being over the top about it.

One of my favorite parts about this book was Halley's journey to finding out the big reveal, which I was surprised by. I questioned early on whether Halley was a reliable narrator or whether she was actually going crazy, trapped on a ship with only the ship's caretaker and a bunch of frozen bodies.

I listened to this one on audio, narrated by Amara Jasper, and I'm so glad I did! There isn't a wide cast of characters in this book as the majority of it takes place on the Elysian Fields ship, but Amara did a wonderful job creating a unique voice for each of the characters. One of the characters, Alec, is a digital representation of who he was when he was alive, and she especially did an incredible job with his voice, making him feel not quite human, especially during periods when his programming wouldn't let him share certain information with Halley.

Read if you like:
Space horror
Science fiction
Fake identity
Political intrigue
Surprise twist
Artificial intelligence

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an eALC in exchange for an honest review.

I have read and loved Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes, but I found their subsequent novel Ghost Station to be dry and repetitive and lack a real punch. Cold Eternity fell somewhere in the middle for me. It has an eerie atmosphere and I enjoyed the political and A.I. discourse, but the twists and reveals were not as impactful as I would have liked them to have been. Within the first few chapters of listening to this, most of what was to come was already quite predictable and by the end I was just dying for this to come to a close and be over with.

Sadly, I'm afraid S.A. Barnes might be a one-hit wonder for me with Dead Silence and maybe it's time for me to stop picking up her novels.

Cold Eternity offers a uniquely eerie premise: a fugitive hiding among century-old cryo-corpses and glitching holograms on a derelict space barge. The setting drips with claustrophobic dread, amplified by uncanny sounds and hallucinations. However, the slow-burn pacing delays gripping action, testing patience despite atmospheric buildup. Halley’s paranoia is compelling, but underdeveloped side threads—like the political scandal—feel wasted. The finale, while tense, concludes with a rushed, underwhelming resolution that leaves key mysteries unanswered. Still, Barnes excels in spine-chilling ambiance and existential horror. An imaginative blend of sci-fi and horror, perfect for readers craving mood over momentum.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the audiobook ARC!

I love space horror so I've read all of SA Barnes's books. I really liked the first one, really didn't like the second one, and this one falls somewhere in the middle. I liked the plot overall and I didn't hate the main character, but a lot was going on in this for only being about 3oo pages. I also didn't think the 'romance' was necessary. I will always read a space horror book though and I think a lot of people are going to like this. For me personally though, it was a 3 star read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor for providing me with an early ARC/ALC!

READ IT IF YOU'RE INTEREST IN OR LIKED
- Space horror
- AI horror
- Dystopian dread
- Severance
- M3gan
- Themes of excessive wealth & billionaire liar-boys
- Creature features
- Body horror

BRIEF REVIEW
This book has not been released yet so I'm going to be careful of how much to share. It's an interesting concept and like watching a space horror movie you're just waiting for the action to start and know once it does it doesn't let up until the end. I still have enjoyed Dead Silence the most by Barnes but I did like parts of this one a lot. There were definitely ebbs and flows but I think it's definitely worth reading especially with so little space horror being released right now.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Audio Review: the audio is good, I have no complaints

Review: meh.... I went back and forth in my head (and journal) about my thoughts on this. Let me take you with me Start (meh) middle (oh this is good) end ( super meh). I requested this for review because the premise sounded really cool. It did deliver what it said it would, just in a well... meh feeling way. The MC is okay, she can be a bit (nicer word for annoying) at times but is mostly okay. I didn't feel connected to her therefore worried/ anxious about what might happen to her. I did enjoy the political aspects and some scenes were a little unsettling. In terms of horror, this is not as "scary" as her previous books. If you have played the video game Bioshock, it gave me a lot of vibes from that game. In summary the premise was good, my overall enjoyment was meh. I don't really have a lot to comment on either way. Oh it also sort of has a night at the museum feel.

As a huge S.A. Barnes fan, I couldn’t wait to dive into Cold Eternity, and while I definitely enjoyed the immersive and intense world Barnes created, the story felt a bit disjointed at times.

I love rich character backstories, but in this case, the political background of the main character seemed to overshadow the eerie, sci-fi horror elements that made the premise so compelling. While the plot was somewhat predictable, it still delivered a fun and spooky experience with plenty of tension to keep me engaged.

Overall, Cold Eternity was an enjoyable read, even if it didn’t quite reach the heights of Barnes’ previous works. Fans of her signature blend of sci-fi and horror will still find plenty to love!

4.5 rounded up to 5 stars

Another spooky space horror from S.A. Barnes. She is quickly becoming an auto-buy author for me and I'm so grateful I got the ARC audio. She does an amazing job, once again, building tension and fear in creative ways. If you enjoy sci-fi/horror with isolation, questionable morality, and monsters, this is a must read.

The narrator does a great job in helping to build the tension and make the story even scarier.

Okay so I am a huge S.A. Barnes fan. Basically Barnes is why I have gotten more into Space Horror or Space Thrillers. This book started off so great...so so so so so great. Then right about the half way point it lost me slightly. I kept going though because I saw the promise of what the story could be and once again Barnes didn't let me down. Although the ending was a little meh, I still enjoyed this little space jaunt.

I read my first S.A. Barnes book last year (Ghost Station) and enjoyed it well enough, even though I found it to be more atmospheric than scary or even tense. Ever since seeing "Alien" when I was far too young, I have been a bit obsessed with space horror. The video game "Dead Silence" and the movie "Event Horizon" are also faves of mine, so I was down to give Barnes another go. I'm happy to say that this book was definitely creepier and more of what I am looking for in a space horror book.

The novel follows Halley, a fugitive trying to escape a political scandal that has put a target on her back. Desperate to disappear, she accepts a job on an abandoned space barge that holds the cryogenically frozen bodies of Earth's wealthiest citizens. The program was initially set up to allow people to freeze themselves before they died so that one day when medical advancements had made it possible, they could reawaken, be cured of what ailed them, and live even longer. These efforts have long since been abandoned, leaving the ship as nothing more than a floating tomb in the middle of space. But soon after her arrival, Halley begins to sense that something else might be happening on the ship. Strange noises keep her on edge, and, worst of all, she starts to see figures moving, crawling, and slinking in the shadows. This is made all the more terrifying when you realize that Halley is floating out in the middle of space with nowhere to run if/when things get dangerous (and they do - fairly quickly).

Barnes does a fantastic job of building a creepy and often disturbing atmosphere. From the moment Halley steps aboard the ship, there's an overwhelming sense of isolation and dread. The descriptions of the cryogenically frozen bodies are haunting. I wouldn't want to be stuck in a morgue with my feet firmly planted on Earth for five minutes, so I certainly would be on the edge of completely losing my shit if I were stuck on a spaceship in the middle of nowhere with a ship full of frozen people. Add in the threat that something might be lurking within, and it ups the creepiness even more.

Halley is a well-developed protagonist. She's resourceful, tough, and deeply flawed, making her an interesting character to follow. I appreciated that she wasn't just reacting to the horror around her - she was actively trying to solve the mystery while also dealing with her own inner demons.

I also felt the pacing was much stronger in this book. Unlike "Ghost Station", which leaned heavily on a slow-burning mystery, this novel hits the ground running. There's a constant feeling of tension and unease, and once things start happening, they don't stop. The horror elements are well-executed, relying more on psychological fear and paranoia rather than outright gore and it works really well. There's a strong feeling of helplessness as Halley tries to figure out what's going on while floating in the middle of nowhere.

The biggest drawback of the novel, in my opinion, was the ending. After such a strong buildup, the resolution felt a bit rushed and underdeveloped. It's not that the reveal was disappointing - on the contrary, I really enjoyed the way Barnes tied everything together - but I wanted more time spent exploring the ramifications of the final events. It felt like the book was racing toward the finish line instead of letting the conclusion breathe.

I read this book in both print and audiobook format, and I have to give credit to Amara Jasper's narration. She did a fantastic job capturing the tension and fear in Halley's voice, and her ability to differentiate characters made the story easy to follow. Her pacing and delivery enhanced the creepiness, making the audiobook a great option for those who enjoy a more immersive horror experience.

Overall, I found this to be an engaging and atmospheric sci-fi horror novel that delivers on its eerie premise. The setting is fantastic, the tension is palpable, and the mystery unfolds at the perfect pace. While the ending could have been fleshed out more, it didn't ruin the experience for me. This is the kind of book that's perfect for anyone who enjoys the idea of being trapped in deep space with an unseen horror lurking nearby. It's a solid read for horror and sci-fi fans alike.

I am a big fan of sci-fi and murder mysteries, but not of horror. Despite this, I can listen to SA Barnes’ novels without having nightmares. Yet they are creepy and filled with horrifying things that go bump (and screech) in the night. I think it’s because the horror is integral to the story. We follow Halley as she escapes from a station to hide out while a political scandal unfurls. She takes a job on a ship where her main job is to press a button every 3 hours, then to check on the cryogenically preserved humans that are the “paying guests.” But something is not as it seems…
We stick with Halley as she learns the truth about the ship and its inhabitants, and uses her determination to try and right some wrongs. Edge-of-the-seat listening with great narration!
My thanks to the author, publisher, producer, and #NetGalley for early access to the audiobook #ColdEternity for review purposes. Publication date is 8 April 2015.

I thoroughly enjoyed Barnes' 'Cold Eternity.' She somehow manages to make a huge ship feel claustrophobic. The horror was on-point and very atmospheric. There was a feeling of dread throughout the novel. The narrator was great as well. 5 stars.