The Ghost Hunters

Product Information

Everything about this story is enchanting. Not in a fairy-tale kinda way, but a ghostly kinda way, if you know what I mean. I really, really enjoyed The Ghost Hunters. I, like many others out there, find the paranormal mysterious and I've always enjoyed reading stories, seeing pictures of haunted houses and "apparitions". What's included in the book is exceptionally mystifying; maps of the actual Borley Rectory, illustrations of the house and newspaper clippings. It's terrifying yet entertaining and I just couldn't put this one down. There's something about this book... I can't put my finger on it, but there's definitely something different about it. And personally, I LOVE different. There's nothing better than it. My major problem with the book is the conclusion. It doesn't really conclude! As the original scientists in William James circle die off, the book simply draws to a close. But the real excitement of the book is their research, and the questions which it poses -- which have yet to be satisfied. Thus, you find yourself a bit at a loss, without a nice feeling of "fini" at the end of the book. The plot is based on a true story, that of Borley Rectory, the alleged 'most haunted house in England', and its investigation by paranormal researcher Harry Price. Complete with academic-style, apparently factual footnotes, it's obviously been painstakingly well-researched, to the point that most of it might read like non-fiction were the story not told from the viewpoint of a fictional character - Price's secretary and research assistant, Sarah Grey. Grey's account makes up the majority of the book, and it is framed by the tale of a psychologist who, in the 1970s, has discovered it in Price's decaying library of oddities. When the ghostbusters come, there is an extremely dim assistant who’s my favourite 🤣 And jokes abound about a “Medium” (“you look like an extra small to me”) and about moving spirits to another erm, “plane”.✈️ What the SPR researchers sought to do was apply scientific methods of research to psychical phenomena; they questioned whether there could be communication with the dead, either through physical manifestations (ghosts, rapping) or verbal ones (automatic writing, trance mediumship). In the late 19th century, Spiritualism was a growing movement, and seances were popular, particularly among those who had lost loved ones in the not long past American Civil War. While most scientists scoffed at the idea of "talking to the dead," this small group of researchers chose to look at the problem scientifically.

Blum is an author who knows her subject matter and has delved deep into the Victorian period. Scientists interested in proving the possibility of life after death embarked in investigating the phenomena of mediums. The book charts the controversy and conflict caused between scientists interested in the phenomena and those that didn't believe that this type of research was valid. I would not read this one if I had to sleep alone at night! No matter what you believe this book will give you the creeps! I read these kind of books to get scared, and I'm pleased to say this one did the job. As I write this I keep looking behind me. Of course nothings there, but this just goes to show how creeped out I am! Unfortunately, the tale was a bit on the dull side. From a pure story view, there's absolutely nothing here that hasn't been seen a hundred times when it comes to the intrepid scientific debunker of mystical charlatans or the expected twists that come with tales of this nature. "Is it real or is it hoax?" So often, readers of this kind of trope rely on the strength of the characters and the excitement of the plot to carry us along.Now, in case there are any children reading this book — and there really shouldn’t be, because children should not be reading stories about ghosts, but if there are — I should explain what poltergeists are…” This well-researched book was a wonderful addition to my past readings on the topic of spiritualism and metaphysics, particularly since it tells the story of a group of well-educated people seeking the scientific angle.

This is historical fiction, a well researched story. Its focus are Borley Rectory, allegedly the most haunted house in England, Harry Price and his fictional assistant Sarah Grey. I have to admit this book excited my interests in the studies performed by the Society for Psychical Research (The SPR’s former presidents’ list reads like the Who’s Who in Science). One reason may have been my enormous respect for the works of the father of American psychology William James who presided over the SPR from 1894 to 1895. I'll be honest, I'm more interested in William James than I am in his more popular brother, Henry, because Henry wrote really snooze-worthy books and I have it in my mind that he wasn't all that nice to my BFF, Edith Wharton. I haven't read all that much of James's philosophy/psychology (but I have some of his stuff!), but the concept of him has always fascinated me, probably because Henry gets all the attention. (And then sister Alice gets no love whatsoever; my heart has always gone out to her, poor lady.)If you want to read cases in more detail (but in less quantity of cases) the book The Demonologist is an excelent option. (including cases like Annabelle, Enfield, and a deeply detailed case exposing the three phases of a haunting: infestation, oppression and possession). If you are looking for quantity, this is your book, told from the point of view of the very Warrens, with 14 interesting and quite different cases...

Whilst this story didn't have as serious a topic as previous books I love how the book was full of family love and heart from Greta. It is lovely to see how much she cared for her grandma as well as the members of the family in spirit form she can now see and how whilst she seemed to overdo her plan at times you could tell it was coming from her heart and her love of keeping her family together. The end was particularly heartwarming yet sad as it showed how far the characters had come in the story and it was great to see how everyone was considering each other's feelings and what was best for them. The main haunting--that of Borley Rectory--was the most intriguing part of the book, by far, in my own opinion. The "hauntings" themselves, as well as the various people that inhabited the Rectory throughout the years were really thought provoking. After reading this book, I plan on looking up some of the "real-life" happenings of the Rectory, as well as some more about Harry Price, himself. I think the knowledge that Borley Rectory was a real haunted place and Harry Price was a real ghost hunter makes this book extra special. The author has taken some liberations with the story. This is not a true story, but there are some truths in the story. Sarah Grey has never existed, she is based on a secretary that worked for Harry Price a while. But still, it's really fascinating to read this book and I was intrigued by Harry Price and can fully understand why Sarah Grey was too. Even though as I understand it the Harry Price in this book was more charming than the real one. Books like this one, either written in support of spiritualism or against it, always follow the same formula. First you are given a series of miraculous tales. You are given time to ooh and ahh. Then some of these tales are completely discredited. While the book was dry in places due to the wealth of factual information provided, I found myself unable to put it down.I read the kindle version and it was peppered with typos. Also the 'continuity' was often incorrect. The whole book is badly in need of a decent editor to get rid of these numerous amateur errors and problems, and give it a good tidy up. Another great quote (pg 264) by W James: "Nature is everywhere gothic, not classic. She forms a real jungle, where all things are provisional, half-fitted to each other & untidy." Speaking about Mr. Myers acceptance of the complexity of the cosmic environment, "although we may be mistaken in much of the detail, in a general way, at least we become plausible." GHOST HUNTERS didn’t convince me that spirits don’t exist. It did put a spotlight on the beliefs at the time.