If you work in a public library, then you know that making book recommendations is one of the most enjoyable and, sadly, rare reference interactions. I’m reminded of the meme that shows what people think you do and what you actually do in a job. People think that library workers are talking about books all day, but in reality, we’re more likely to be explaining meeting room policies or showing someone how to download an app on their phone. Librarians get very excited when they’re asked for a book recommendation, and if the patron happens to mention a genre that you read heavily, that’s like librarian Christmas*.
So when a young couple dressed all in black approached me and asked for “horror books in space,” I nearly dropped my Americano in my excitement. My inner voice warned me to keep my frantic enthusiasm to myself, lest I scare off the two cool kids in front of me. For me, there’s a dreadfully thin line between eager excitement and manic fervor when it comes to books.
Playing it cool, I launched into my standard reference question, “Which space-horror books have you read and enjoyed?” and then realized that although I read both science fiction and horror, I couldn’t think of a single book I had read that crossed both genres. Turns out, they hadn’t read any yet either, but they had recently discovered the original Alien films and wanted a novel that evoked the same kind of claustrophobic terror that only a monster in space can bring.
I realized that space horror might be a fun little research project. Which books blend these two genres in weird and wonderful ways? Do you like scary aliens and the constant threat of suffocation? Of course you do, you little weirdo. Keep reading.
Shroud by Adrian Tchaikovsky
The publisher’s description of the novel asks the reader to ponder what to do when your mission to strip resources from new celestial bodies throws you into an impossible bid to survive. On a distant moon called Shroud, two people try to survive in an environment that is “pitch black, but alive with radioactivity. Its high-gravity, high-pressure, zero-oxygen environment is anathema to human life, but ripe for exploitation.”
One Goodreads reviewer calls it “different, a bit weird even” and many point out it deals with themes like understanding how aliens think and communicate while noting the characters display more emotional intelligence than other protagonists in Tchaikovsky’s work. Others seem to just appreciate the deep space scares that arise both from trying to survive in an extremely hostile environment.
Keywords: Fascinating, Creative, Dry, Scientific
Requiem by John Palisano
The description of Requiem is giving me space goth vibes. The story imagines a future where the mortuary sciences have taken to the stars. In it, the dead are buried on a distant moon that functions as a cemetery. When a musician turns up among the mourners and composes a lament that is so damn sad that it brings forth a hitherto unknown entity, only weirdness can come of it.
Online reviewers who connected with this story say it unfolds slowly, and they appreciated the way the story illustrates how survivors experience loneliness and grief after the death of a loved one. Many pointed out that the storyline was more atmospheric and philosophical than action-packed.
Keywords: Madness, Dread, Haunting, Space Goth