Captain Ruby Harlow is in a tough spot. Not to mention the sleazy salesperson Randall Pickle who offers Ruby and her father Bob a haunted spaceship. I’m referring to the fact that the spaceship Gloria has a mind of her own, along with a plethora of terrifying bats and ghosts. Things only become worse and worse after Ruby and her crew leave for space. Gloria wakes up Ruby’s team, which includes her wife and a sex fembot, way too early and completely off course.
The plot centers on a team of astronauts who set out on a journey to explore a previously unexplored part of the cosmos. The crew is faced with a string of progressively frightening incidents as they travel further into the unknown and start to experience odd phenomena. The main character, who struggles with their own sanity while attempting to understand the wonders of the cosmos, sees the story develop through their eyes.
One of the book’s strongest points is how intricately it creates its world. Lock’s vision of a future society grappling with the expanse of space is fascinating and scary at the same time. Every location feels lively and vivid, from the crowded spaceports to the desolate moonscapes. A further degree of authenticity is added by the author’s attention to scientific detail, which gives the story’s events a sense of plausibility and realism.
Space Hysteria, by Womanoid Diaries series author Ava Lock, is a wild, seductive, gruesome part-slasher part-erotic trip across the expanse of space and the breadth of the mind. In one sense, Bob suffers from schizophrenia. His medication withdrawal is making him paranoid and delusional. However, Doctor Vlad is exceedingly untrustworthy. He appears to be sniffing the crew and may be consuming samples of their blood.
The novel occasionally introduces a large number of topics and subplots that can be confusing, if there is one little critique that can be offered. Lock, on the other hand, deftly weaves things together, making sure that nothing is left hanging. The story’s complexity ultimately contributes to its attraction by posing a challenge to readers to use their intellects and solve the problem with the characters.
About The Book
Captain Ruby Harlow and her father get a killer deal on a pre-owned spaceship with a dark past. Determined to leave a dying earth for the final frontier, she and her wife overlook the ship’s lousy attitude and nasty bat infestation. But their troubles escalate when a ghost begins tormenting their sole fembot, and the crew remains oblivious to the haunting. Despite all these problems with the ship, the captain leads a glorious launch into the cosmos.
Later, with the entire crew in cryo, the haunted spaceship strays off course, then suddenly wakes everyone. Trapped without the possibility of returning to hypersleep, Ruby and her crew face the chilling realization that their journey will stretch across many years, with only a mysterious comet as their potential destination.
Soon, the endless isolation of deep space starts taking its toll on Ruby’s father. And after a seizure, Bob becomes increasingly hostile and paranoid. Consumed by grandiose delusions, he becomes convinced that the ship’s doctor is none other than Dracula himself. It’s crazy, but he might be right, and proving it will push him to the edge of madness.
The Review
Space Hysteria
This is a strange blend of genres, but it works pretty well. You have sci-fi, some horror, especially campy horror, there are aliens, ghosts, violence, humor… The author tried to make a scary sci-fi horror that is also funny, and it mostly is like that. The writing is dynamic, it all goes so fast, and I had a lot of fun reading this. It definitely scared me at times, so if you’re not a fan of horror, that is something to keep in mind.