The TV show that may just fill the void Game of Thrones leaves behind.

Exciting news for Game of Thrones fans (so that’s all of us then) – a TV series based on another George RR Martin book is in the works.

Before Martin wrote the A Song of Ice and Fire series that was adapted into the HBO hit we’re all obsessed with, he wrote a sci-fi novella called Nightflyers.

The rights to turn the book into a TV series have been snapped up by NBC Universal owned-channel Syfy and lead actors have already been cast, including Boardwalk Empire’s Gretchen Mol as Dr Agatha Matheson.

Listen: Meanwhile in the new series of Netflix sci-fi series, Black Mirror, ‘The System’ is a lot like Tinder and claims to find your perfect match. (Post continues after audio.)

The channel will co-produce it with Netflix – which is where Aussies and other international audiences will be able to catch it.

Before you get too excited about a Game of Thrones clone – for that turn to the rumoured prequels and spin-offs -this novella has a very different plot and setting to the A Song of Fire and Ice series. And by that we mean its the exact opposite.

Instead of mythical medieval Westeros, the series is set in space.

According to the official synopsis, Nightflyers “will follow eight maverick scientists and a powerful telepath who embark on an expedition to the edge of our solar system aboard The Nightflyer – a ship with a small tightknit crew and a reclusive captain – in the hope of making contact with alien life.”

“But when terrifying and violent events begin to take place they start to question each other – and surviving the journey proves harder than anyone thought.”

So it sounds a bit like a cross between Alien and Star Trek so far, with the potential for just as many gory out-of-the-blue deaths as GoT fans are accustomed to.

This isn't the first time Nightflyers has been adapted for the screen. It was turned into a film in 1987 - though that's probably not worth looking into if you don't want to find series spoilers.

No word yet on whether the series will reach our screens later this year or in 2019 - or later. But if we were placing bets, we'd say the series would drop on the streaming service shortly after Game of Thrones' eighth and final season finishes (sometime in 2019) to capitalise on the audience looking for something to fill the void left behind.

Until then, we'll just have to continue with our GoT season one to seven rewatching.