Short story: alien intelligence take-over in Antarctic base

[astrodan]

I'd like to track down an English-language short story I read sometime between 1990 and 2010 approx, and which I'm fairly sure was in a UK-edition anthology.
It's about an alien intelligence (monster?) which had taken-over/mind-controlled/inhabited the mind and/or body of a female industrial worker/scientist in an underground(?) facility/lab/drilling site in Antarctica, or somewhere similarly cold and icy, while her male partner/co-worker tries to help. There's a multi-level circular shaft with some sort of machine at the top, where most of the story takes place. The time setting is now, or the not-too distant future.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

This so reminds me of a Dean Koontz novel. I’ll have a google at him and see if I can tie it down.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

Icebound

The arctic night is endless. The fear is numbing. Screams freeze in the throat. Death arrives in shades of white. Cold-blooded murder see...

www.goodreads.com

 

[astrodan]

Hi Jo, I'd need to get a copy of that to make sure, but from the reviews at your link, it seems to be a strait techno-thriller, with no mention of an alien, whereas my memory is that the struggle between the woman's consciousness, and that of the alien, was fairly central to the story. Also, that it was a short story, not a longer piece of writing.

(BTW, you possibly don't remember, but we met a year or so ago at a book event in Belfast (possibly the Chris Hadfield book-signing in Easons?) – I suggested that we shared a common interest in SF, you asked me “writing?” and I said something along the lines of “Nothing so grand, just reading” )

 

[Jo Zebedee]

How cool I do vaguely remember that although I can’t remember what signing it was

 

[HareBrain]

What a cool coincidence that Jo should be the one to answer!

 

[Jo Zebedee]

What a cool coincidence that Jo should be the one to answer!

Especially in this forum where I normally know nothing! (Although I still got it wrong so shall shut up...)

There was an X-files episode like the one described, I think.

 

[astrodan]

You may yet not be wrong; while I still think it's an sf short story, I did wonder earlier whether I was really remembering something by someone like Koontz, or Stephen King. Might just have to start wading through each story's opening pages in my collection of anthologies... and a whole lot more of different author collections...

Looking up dates, Chris Hadfield's signing was a bit further back than I thought, on Tuesday 14 Jan 2014, in the downstairs floor of Easons, Donegall Place.

 

[Danny McG]

How cool I do vaguely remember that although I can’t remember what signing it was

Translation: Jo thinks "who the feck is this?"

 

[Jo Zebedee]

Translation: Jo thinks "who the feck is this?"

Nope. I remember chatting but I don’t remember the event. I go to a lot of book events