Ghosts Among Us: True Stories of Spirit Encounters

by Leslie Rule

Do you believe in ghosts? Whether you are a believer or a skeptic, the stories of the supernatural in Ghosts Among True Stories of Spirit Encounters will keep you riveted.

Macabre and fascinating, Ghosts Among Us offers true-life, haunting accounts of eerie visitations and paranormal experiences along with artistically shot black-and-white photographs of haunted sites. The personal, firsthand reports and chilling, full-length stories are bolstered by sidebars of actual accounts of "Ghosts in the News." Each chapter explores mysterious events-events that the reader will find hard to pass off as mere coincidence.

In her quest to uncover explanations for each incident, Leslie Rule extensively researched library archives and interviewed credible witnesses, historians, renowned psychics, and parapsychologists. Throughout Ghosts Among Us, Rule's findings are mesmerizing. She writes about being raised in a haunted house. "To top that," Rule explains, "[my mother] introduced me to a serial killer when I was fourteen." The reader is invited to skip ahead to learn about that chilling episode...but the pages prior to that offer their own gripping, spell-binding encounters.

Genres: Paranormal, Ghosts, Nonfiction, Ghost Stories, Horror, Short Stories, History

222 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2004

About the author

Leslie Rule's true crime debut, A Tangled Web, covers a frightening Omaha love triangle murder. "I chose this case because I want to warn readers that the female sadistic sociopath may be the most dangerous killer of all."

A veteran author for over three decades, Rule's works include two suspense novels and five nonfiction books on the paranormal, including Coast to Coast Ghosts, True Stories of Hauntings Across America. Rule was only seventeen when she started attending murder trials with her mother, author Ann Rule. "It was my job to shoot the killers, not with a gun, but with my camera," says Leslie. Many of her courtroom photographs have appeared in her mother's books.

Reviews

[Brett C · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an OK ghost story book. It was more of Travel Channel Haunted Destination style book with hotels, amusement parks, theaters, museums & mansions, and other locations that have a haunted history. It was a decent read with some spooky stories but there wasn't anything special about it. I probably won't read it again and can probably get the same from the Travel Channel itself. Thanks!

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this author and this book.

[Ginny · Rating 1 out of 5]

I expected a book of ghost stories tied to specific venues. This was more of a guide book or advertisement for various hotels, restaurants and B & Bs who claim to have ghosts. Very few examples of actual sightings.

[Doreen Petersen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well spent most of the day reading this book off and on until I finished it. I believe there are things that can't be explained other than being paranormal. If you are interested in this genre then this could be the book for you.

[Dianna (SavingsInSeconds blog) · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book contained mostly secondhand legends that reached far into the "What if" depths. The author seemed to write with the intention of being witty; unfortunately, she missed the mark. Instead, the writing was juvenile and choppy. I appreciated that the author's own photography was included in the book (though the captions were silly).

Update 2020:
Here's how forgettable this book is...
I purchased it at a yard sale and have been reading it for a couple of days. Came to Goodreads to add it to my shelf, and found that I've already read it.

[Love, Heart · Rating 5 out of 5]

My ghost story is in this book... :) There's a photo of my daughters and myself in this book! The author Leslie Rule is truly amazing! I love her to bits!

[C. (Don't blank click my reviews, comment please! · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a Goodreads bookshelf called "Up To 2012", for gems read before I began reviewing. Halfway through "When The Ghost Screams", 2006: I am so moved by a personal glimpse shared fleetingly, I am attempting to write Leslie Rule. My Mom has read Ann Rule. True crime is not for me, therefore it was fun to become a fan of her daughter's, when I came across "Ghosts Among Us". I rarely review anything read fairly long ago but am doing it today because it is wonderful. Looking up Leslie, I was sorry to read Ann died July 26, 2015. What an impressive person, caring about people to the point of training with Seattle police and writing about murderers.

Discovering this 2004 book is the result of a binge I went on, after my 21 year-old cat died in 2003. It was momentous and led to a lot of things: like learning of animal communication and eventually becoming vegetarian. I urgently needed books on spirits. Few discussed animals in Heaven but my childhood passion for ghost-reading was restored. In twelve years I've read hundreds of books, fictionally or realistically, about spirits. "Ghosts Among Us" remains the best among countless compilations.

There can be a dryness to documentaries even with a good storyteller. Leslie is first I know to be a genuine authoress of these. She didn't merely collect stories: she entered the houses she featured! The photography is hers and it is enthralling to follow what becomes the story of a researcher, interviewing people in-the-know and exploring everyplace she presented. Because she is American, I expected unknown locations. It made it fun that my fiancé & I had watched "Rose Red", revealed as Thornewood Castle of Lakewood, Washington. I am pleased to have encountered, belatedly, another of Leslie's memorable books.

[Dee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal. Her brilliant writing takes you back so vividly to the location where these known encounters occurred. Ms. Rule's descriptions, along with past and present references have you enthralled from beginning to end.

[Sabrina Rutter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this! I thought it was also cool that she told a couple of stories about well known murder cases where there is beleived to be hauntings.

[Colleen Villasenor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Don't read this if you're looking for scary stories. This is a collection of experiences people have had with ghosts or place memories described in an almost clinical manner. The author is not creating sensationalist journalism. She is simply recounting the experiences people have with an open mind and a willingness to accept their stories. It is an interesting read. It is surprising how matter-of-fact people can be about these kinds of unexplained occurrences

[Kait · Rating 3 out of 5]

These stories are good for a quick read. The only thing I don’t like is the abrupt ending. I’ve read a couple other books by this author and they are all pretty good. These ghost stories are spooky but not too scary.

[Laure Estep · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, engaging, easy to read collection of ghost encounters.

[Kathryn Barto · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am genuinely annoyed with this book. It promised well researched ghost stories. It delivered mediocre gossip with almost no research or effort. Each story is quickly told without any details. Many are half page blurbs that are based entirely on speculation. She apparently believes everything that people tell her and doesn't offer up alternate possibilities or even confirm things that could be easily researched. At one point she tells us that a piece of a story could easily be confirmed but didn't actually bother to do it! It is so incredibly frustrating. The stories are bland and the writing is not very good. I'm puzzled by the positive reviews. Her breathless "imagine if!" wasn't working for me. I haven't read anything by her more famous mother (Ann Rule) but I think copies are sold and praise of this book is largely given due to her being Ann's daughter. She had potential for interesting stories and it was just so flat.

Some people liked that she listed the different locations but to me that read as "look at these places that paid me to say they are haunted." I know I'm being cynical but some of them were just addresses with little more than "some people say a figure has been seen here." In the world of google we don't need a book to tell us where supposedly haunted places are - especially not if they are accompanied by weak and vague stories.

[Carah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book! Easy to read... I liked the format of the book. The chapters and stories are short... so it's great for the type that have to pick up and put down your book constantly (Moms. haha) I'm not one to 100% believe in ghosts.. but I do like to entertain the idea, and hear peoples stories so this was right up my alley.

[Sharonbrown3158 · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a typical ghost story collection. A quick collection of various "encounters" that we have all heard before-but the last chapter about ghosts and associations with serial killers was new to me and interesting, too.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! Definite recommendation to anyone interested in the paranormal and the "unknown". I also think anyone curious about the genre would enjoy reading this awesome writer's work! :)

[Blaire · Rating 2 out of 5]

very poorly written.

[Rosa · Rating 4 out of 5]

not a scary book ...but love the paranormal stories. .

[Belle · Rating 4 out of 5]

A friend of mine let me borrow this book it feels like eons ago. She has an obsession with anything horror related and therefore she was instantly drawn to this book. I was hesitant. I believe in the paranormal (sorry, not sorry) and was not sure if I could physically read this book and think about my own experiences.

All that being said I was PLEASANTLY surprised that I could not put it down. I started this book with the intentions of finishing a different one first and this would be the pick up and read when I had nothing better to do but again, I could NOT put this down. I liked that Leslie Rule added in her own writings in between those that are stories from other people.

For my first read of 2020, I think this was the best! I can't wait to eventually read more from her and possibly look into books by her mother, Ann Rule as well.

[Dejon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting book I picked this book because it was about ghosts and i do and don't believe in them, so I was curious to see what this book was about and it shows stories about old places from the past. like a old farmers market that was that was haunted downstairs on the second floor but that wasn't the point the author Leslie Rule was talking about how she used to live in a haunted house and in a haunted neighborhood in Seattle and how her mother introduced her to a serial killer when she was fourteen. In my opinion I think after reading this book i think ghost are not real but spirits and one of the stories was really funny how this lady would never see the ghost but her dog would always run away when she heard wired sounds.

[Dennis Phillips · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ms. Rule visited the places she wrote about and included some wonderful photographs she had made during her visit. There are also numerous recent eyewitness accounts to be found in this book which also helps to lend a great deal of credibility to the book. I was also very impressed with the range of stories in this book. All too often writers in this area tend to use only secondary sources and just basically re-tell the same old stories over and over again. One ghost book author I have run into tends to tell his stories almost word for word like previous authors and gets by with it by crediting the previous author in his bibliography. There is none of that with Leslie Rule and very few of her stories deal with the famous and well-worn haunts that tend to show up in book after book.

[Cherie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Let’s just state that I am a believer in paranormal activity, YES, but this book did nothing for me. A paragraph is not a story, come on, could you not investigate and explore a bit more rather than just tell us what has been told to you? The beginning and the end of the book had more substance but otherwise it was incredibly disappointing. It sounded like a travel log detailing different places to stay choosing your flavor of ghost in bullet points that I almost stopped reading it. I hardly ever stop reading a book when I’ve invested time into a genre I typically enjoy. At least the author did have worthy family and friends whom she focused on at the end as they contributed to her stories greatly. Not sure she would have made it on her own otherwise.

[Helen Pugsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. I'm blown away.
I've been reading this at night to help me calm down. Well, it worked!
Anyway, I love how respectful Rule was to the spirits of the dead. Rule always touched on how many of these people had died in traumatic and tragic ways, leaving unfinished business. I think it's beautiful she makes them human, rather than spooky stories to gawk at.
Rule's writing is also impeccable! Rule is a very good story teller. It kept me hooked well past bed time.
It's comforting how many times loved ones came back, or ghosts helped solve their own murders.
I was going to pass this on to a friend but I kind of want it in my house for a little while.

[Reader · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Ghosts Among Us: True Stories of Spirit Encounters" is an entertaining read. There are interesting entries of history given on bed and breakfasts, restaurants, older hotels, a bookstore that was originally a bakery, and other sites.

My overall honest review of the book is... I find the author to be focused on tourist attractions and less on paranormal activities.

[Evelyn Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like the book. Only thing I didn’t like about it was the fact that Leslie was not a psychic or medium who could see in here spirits. I would’ve given it a five star rating if she could. That’s what makes the books so much more interesting. Because I can know what happened and what they were thinking at that time.

[Stacey OBrien · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great writing, fascinating stories

I like that Leslie Rule didn't just passively collect stories and cobble them together. Instead, she went to these haunted places and experienced them for herself. That's what an excellent writer does. And she brings the places and stories to life in a way that most ghost story writers cannot. One of the best ghost books around!

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a believer in ghosts as energy just doesn't stop. Some of the first hand stories are more interesting than others. There were several that I wanted to know more about-history of the places, what else has happened to people, etc.

[Soren · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had fascinating content. I personally have seen something of the supernatural and decided to investigate the experiences of others on this front. I'm glad I found this book, filled with stories of many people who have experienced something that simply cannot be explained away.

[Liza · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is bound to bring visitors to the “haunted” places (wink wink). It’s a cute read save for the heavy last part that describes the crimes that readers of Ann Rule will recognize.
Not a ghost believer myself, but I like to think like one when immersed in this kind of book.

[Saprina Y. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe 2.5⭐️
This book was ok…the stories were way too short and it was more a brief description of the places that were haunted a very brief mention of a ghost or two haunting the place. I was mostly bored with this book and was left wanting more substance to the stories.