Britain and Ireland are famous for their inns and hostelries--and their ghosts. It seems that our favorite haunts are also those of resident wraiths intent on revisiting their past in the cozy confines of centuries-old pubs.
Ghostly monks, Victorian ladies, and murdered soldiers abound. There is the sinister figure with cape and cutlass at The Lifeboat Inn in Thornham, the busy ghost of Mary Queen of Scots at Oundle's Talbot Hotel, and even a rather risqué female ghost at The Lion and Swan Hotel in Congleton, who appears in the early hours of the morning to tend the fire wearing nothing but clogs and a winsome smile!
From Cornwall to Scotland, and from Ireland to East Anglia, historian and inveterate ghost-hunter Richard Jones seeks out the most charming inns with the spookiest of ghost stories. Richly illustrated with color photography and atmospheric drawings, all of the information you need for your own tour of haunted inns is provided. Just be prepared to encounter a ghostly knight or phantom highwayman as you relax with your drink.
Richard Jones is the author of 18 books, two of which (Uncovering Jack the Ripper’s London and Jack the Ripper: The Casebook) are about the 1888 Whitechapel Murders, and several others (Walking Dickensian London and History and Mystery London of which cover other aspects of East End history.
Lots of ideas for places to stay, definitely want to visit The Highwayman Inn in Devon and Jamaica Inn in Cornwall, have to see about jumping in the car and seeing these places. Just looking at the photos and reading the descriptions of the inns and pubs is interesting. The Trip to Jerusalem is the one closest to me.
A fairly entertaining read, though there were a few typos and one chapter in particular with the tagline of 'Beware the phantom dog' or similar, but the chapter was about spectral cats bothering dogs, so very misleading. Another chapter was tagged with 'Elizabeth Taylor and the spectral lady' or something to that effect, making it sound as if Liz had had an encounter with said spectre, but that was not the case. Enjoyable overall though, with some lovely photographs.
A nice read with good background information on each of the haunted inns and good spooky ghostly visitation bits. Nothing that cannot be dredged up from online sources, though. Might have given a fourth star, but the author made it seem as though he’d visited the inns, which could not be the case since one had definitely closed years before.