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The Ghosts on 87th Lane: A True Story
Once upon a time, my house was haunted. It still is. I began recording my experiences, hoping to one day share them. I kept waiting for the incidents to stop, so I'd have a logical conclusion to my book. So far, that hasn't happened. It may never happen. I'd like to get my story told before I become a ghost myself. The True Story of a Haunting
Beginning in 1968 and spanning four decades, this true story chronicles the hair-raising experiences that nearly drove an ordinary housewife and mother to the breaking point. Not every haunted house is an old Victorian mansion, as the author and her family discovered when they bought a modest house in the suburbs. Even a post-war starter home can be a dwelling place for earthbound spirits―especially if it holds a tragic secret from the past. Eerie feelings of being watched, disembodied sobs, mysterious scratches appearing on her throat, and a child's voice crying, "Mommy!" convinced M. L. Woelm that she was sharing her home with ghosts. This is her story.
Beginning in 1968 and spanning four decades, this true story chronicles the hair-raising experiences that nearly drove an ordinary housewife and mother to the breaking point. Not every haunted house is an old Victorian mansion, as the author and her family discovered when they bought a modest house in the suburbs. Even a post-war starter home can be a dwelling place for earthbound spirits―especially if it holds a tragic secret from the past. Eerie feelings of being watched, disembodied sobs, mysterious scratches appearing on her throat, and a child's voice crying, "Mommy!" convinced M. L. Woelm that she was sharing her home with ghosts. This is her story.
288 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2007
16 people are currently reading
469 people want to read
About the author
M.L. Woelm
1 book3 followersM. L. Woelm has experienced paranormal phenomena since she was a little girl. A retired grandmother, she enjoys exploring popular haunts around the world. She lives with her husband and her dog, Max, who loyally alerts her to every ghostly visitor.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
January 19, 2009
This book not only bored me to tears but irritated the hell out of me! Cannot recommend to anyone unless you feel like yawning the entire time you are reading one unexciting account after another of every time over nearly 40 years that she has not just lived with ghosts in her home but put up with all that entails. Now I have read more than my fair share of these kind of books due to having experienced it myself and I have to be honest with you, you DO NOT stick around to see what else is going to happen to you! You run as fast as you can and get out of there even if that means renting a place that's smaller, less nice, people (including her husband) maybe GASP!! thinking she is nuts, blah..blah..blah.. all her excuses she used for staying. (and to make it worse she still lives there today!)
Now when this also involves physical harm to yourself (and this is when she had very young children in the home with no guarantee it wouldn't happen to them also!!)well none of those excuses stand up to scrutiny do they? I honestly don't want to call the woman a liar but hey these ghostly encounters she supposedly has suffered from for so long gave her a good reason to write a book, market it as something readable and sell it to all of us! Nice way to make some cash!
I wish I had not wasted my time or my money.
Now when this also involves physical harm to yourself (and this is when she had very young children in the home with no guarantee it wouldn't happen to them also!!)well none of those excuses stand up to scrutiny do they? I honestly don't want to call the woman a liar but hey these ghostly encounters she supposedly has suffered from for so long gave her a good reason to write a book, market it as something readable and sell it to all of us! Nice way to make some cash!
I wish I had not wasted my time or my money.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 12, 2009
Well, I really had high hopes for this book. But, unfortunately I was let down. Don't get me wrong, this woman is a great author and her writing is rather easy to read. But I just wasn't intrigued by this book. I didn't get the deep burning sensation to intintativly flip page after page. The stories were just bland in telling. I guess I was searching for something much more exciting. While she brings great experiences and feelings to the table that many paranormal beings do experience, I just wasn't impressed.
July 27, 2009
I really enjoyed this book. I just found it very facisnating. I felt for that the woman went through. I hated putting it down.
October 6, 2021
It has to be true...
because the writing is so natural, so disingenuous, so Minnesotan. I completely believe this lady's story. I would love to share some coffee with her and ask dozens of questions.
That said, this isn't a deep, dark mysterious haunting. It's probably what most paranormal problems are, everyday nuisances. The author shares her feelings and reactions to the events in her home. She astutely analyses the greatest impact - on relationships with family and friends. She has a funny and friendly style.
because the writing is so natural, so disingenuous, so Minnesotan. I completely believe this lady's story. I would love to share some coffee with her and ask dozens of questions.
That said, this isn't a deep, dark mysterious haunting. It's probably what most paranormal problems are, everyday nuisances. The author shares her feelings and reactions to the events in her home. She astutely analyses the greatest impact - on relationships with family and friends. She has a funny and friendly style.
August 9, 2011
Oh, dear. Where do I begin? First of all, reading this book can become very frustrating very quickly. Although the author writes interestingly enough, and used enough humor to keep me entertained, the book in it's entirety was pointless. Written in a sort of journal format, it recorded story after story of ghostly incidents, each no more or less intense that the one before. No attempt to discover the cause, no attempt to get rid of it, just year after year of unusual incidents.
I hate to comment about people personally, since this is a true story, but I feel as though I can because this lady made the decision to make her private life public, inviting criticism.
It seems to me that if one has a problem, ANY problem, that is causing enough stress to affect health and happiness for thirty years or more, one should get off one's duff and do more than complain about it! This seems to be the type of lady who not only rather enjoys negative attention, but after thirty plus years of complaining, she can be said to actually bask in it. One clue to back up this statement is her health complaints, which are probably blown out of proportion. She listed her ailments in one section of the book, and the list seemed a bit inflated. Her list of diagnoses, quoted from her book are, "allergies, depression, paranoia, irritability, extreme nervousness, asthma, irregular heartbeats, panic attacks, intestinal problems, arthritis, severe headaches, and chronic lung problems from years of heavy smoking. In addition to all those conditions, I suffer from persistent insomnia, which has exacerbated my fibromyalgia; I never sleep deeply enough or long enough to heal the damaged tissues. I've also managed to gain a considerable amount of weight due to nervous eating late at night resulting in a bad back and even more painful arthritic knees. Now, God help me, I am a border line diabetic." She mentioned earlier in the book that a ghostly occurrence caused her to fall on her knees on the stairway once, and thus caused her debilitating arthritis in her knees. Okay, if there are any nurses out there, please tell me what YOU would think if you read this list of conditions on someone's chart!
And her husband! Forty years of the worst case of denial I've ever heard of!
I do believe in ghosts. I do. I'm not trying to say anything here is not true. But it is because I believe, I am frustrated with the lack of dealing with the problem, if not head-on, then at least in SOME way, other than just writing an entire book to complain about it.
I hate to comment about people personally, since this is a true story, but I feel as though I can because this lady made the decision to make her private life public, inviting criticism.
It seems to me that if one has a problem, ANY problem, that is causing enough stress to affect health and happiness for thirty years or more, one should get off one's duff and do more than complain about it! This seems to be the type of lady who not only rather enjoys negative attention, but after thirty plus years of complaining, she can be said to actually bask in it. One clue to back up this statement is her health complaints, which are probably blown out of proportion. She listed her ailments in one section of the book, and the list seemed a bit inflated. Her list of diagnoses, quoted from her book are, "allergies, depression, paranoia, irritability, extreme nervousness, asthma, irregular heartbeats, panic attacks, intestinal problems, arthritis, severe headaches, and chronic lung problems from years of heavy smoking. In addition to all those conditions, I suffer from persistent insomnia, which has exacerbated my fibromyalgia; I never sleep deeply enough or long enough to heal the damaged tissues. I've also managed to gain a considerable amount of weight due to nervous eating late at night resulting in a bad back and even more painful arthritic knees. Now, God help me, I am a border line diabetic." She mentioned earlier in the book that a ghostly occurrence caused her to fall on her knees on the stairway once, and thus caused her debilitating arthritis in her knees. Okay, if there are any nurses out there, please tell me what YOU would think if you read this list of conditions on someone's chart!
And her husband! Forty years of the worst case of denial I've ever heard of!
I do believe in ghosts. I do. I'm not trying to say anything here is not true. But it is because I believe, I am frustrated with the lack of dealing with the problem, if not head-on, then at least in SOME way, other than just writing an entire book to complain about it.
January 3, 2013
Llewellyn Books continues in their fine tradition of offering a book contract to every slightly daffy woman who has ever heard something go bump in the night. This book was the paper equivalent of listening to a beloved but long-winded aunt discuss the ghost she thinks lives in her attic, though that is sort of unfair because our beloved aunt would not sit there and read from her diary in which she recorded the events of several decades worth of very understated haunting.
Marlene has a husband Paul, who reads like an utter jerk of a human being and whose continual dismissal of his wife wore very thin after 10 or so pages, a cruddy house she lived in for decades, and a couple of kids. She was also haunted by what she thinks is the ghost of a little boy who died in the house. 276 pages of what can only be described as the occasional mist, unexplained noise and objects moved around from time to time. Really. The haunting was about as scary as living with a few cats.
And Woelm's storytelling technique of regurgitating every tiny paranormal event does not help the tedium. In all candor, I just began to scan around page 100 because this book was less interesting than a series of blog entries from a young woman who is certain that the noise she hears just cannot be the wind.
So, yeah, this book is in keeping with the trend of low-quality reads that Llewellyn has been cranking out for the last five or so years. I also hate panning this book because the author photo for the book shows the sort of woman whom I would prefer to hug than dismiss. Her and her little dog. She just seems adorable, you know? So this sort of hurts.
Though, perhaps you should read this book because if nothing else, it will make you appreciate the doctored narratives of hauntings, like The Amityville Horror. Woelm's excruciatingly honest story may have been startling to her, but it doesn't translate into the sort of fear-inducing page-turner that justifies publishing an entire book about one family's very mild, mostly uninteresting haunting.
Marlene has a husband Paul, who reads like an utter jerk of a human being and whose continual dismissal of his wife wore very thin after 10 or so pages, a cruddy house she lived in for decades, and a couple of kids. She was also haunted by what she thinks is the ghost of a little boy who died in the house. 276 pages of what can only be described as the occasional mist, unexplained noise and objects moved around from time to time. Really. The haunting was about as scary as living with a few cats.
And Woelm's storytelling technique of regurgitating every tiny paranormal event does not help the tedium. In all candor, I just began to scan around page 100 because this book was less interesting than a series of blog entries from a young woman who is certain that the noise she hears just cannot be the wind.
So, yeah, this book is in keeping with the trend of low-quality reads that Llewellyn has been cranking out for the last five or so years. I also hate panning this book because the author photo for the book shows the sort of woman whom I would prefer to hug than dismiss. Her and her little dog. She just seems adorable, you know? So this sort of hurts.
Though, perhaps you should read this book because if nothing else, it will make you appreciate the doctored narratives of hauntings, like The Amityville Horror. Woelm's excruciatingly honest story may have been startling to her, but it doesn't translate into the sort of fear-inducing page-turner that justifies publishing an entire book about one family's very mild, mostly uninteresting haunting.
August 1, 2012
I was really disappointed in this book. It wasn't very well written, had no structure to it – it was just one uncanny experience after another, not escalating, or leading to any conclusion – just repetitive descriptions. What really frustrated me was the authors complete spinelessness. Here she's living in a house that has her nerves on edge, contributes to her terrible health problems (so she says), and make her miserable – yet she just lives there and never makes any attempt to move out. Apparently, her husband wants to stay so she capitulates and agrees to stay for 40 years. She never stands up to her husband even once, no matter how blatantly he ignores her feelings. Apparently, she also does all the ironing and chores in the house and has the brunt of the burden of child care, which is hardly surprising considering her basically doormat approach to life. The book was unrealistic because it's hard for me to believe that someone would be so unhappy in their home for so long and yet never even try to address the issue – she didn't call a ghost Hunter for about 30 years. When she finally reaches out at a neighbor's insistence and talks on the phone to the investigator, she wins out and tells her it's not so bad. the investigator then gives her a number of someone else that would help her clear the house, and the author promptly loses it. Another reviewer said that the author just seem to enjoy making herself a victim, maybe that's true because that's the only way to explain her behavior.
I feel guilty attacking the character of a person I've never met, so I'll be the first to say that this characterization of her may be way off base – maybe she is a completely different than the way I see her, but the way she presents herself in the book I have to wonder about her lack of initiative.
I feel guilty attacking the character of a person I've never met, so I'll be the first to say that this characterization of her may be way off base – maybe she is a completely different than the way I see her, but the way she presents herself in the book I have to wonder about her lack of initiative.
February 21, 2011
The Ghosts Of 87th Lane sort of reads as a journal because thats more or less what it is, entries by the author as things have happened but don't let that put you off. She writes as though she's gossiping over the garden fence which is good, I like things written plainly so it's easy to understand. The cursing is everyday stuff that we all say under our breath and we all relate to. I would sit nodding my head at these parts.
The experiences aren't the type that would make me curse but creepy enough at the beginning to freak me out. As you get further into the book I settled down a bit, maybe I just got used to it. I don't know. I was disappointed a bit that it didn't scare me more than it did as I love scary stuff and the picture on the front is slightly deceiving but I don't regret reading it.
The experiences aren't the type that would make me curse but creepy enough at the beginning to freak me out. As you get further into the book I settled down a bit, maybe I just got used to it. I don't know. I was disappointed a bit that it didn't scare me more than it did as I love scary stuff and the picture on the front is slightly deceiving but I don't regret reading it.
August 30, 2009
This book started out incredibly interesting, towards the end it seemed to drag a litt, but none the less I had a hard time sleeping after reading a few chapters of this! Paranormal stories always terrify me in a way that serial killer stories can't. I felt real sympathy for the author and all she had to go through in her 30+ years of living in this very haunted house.
October 2, 2007
Well-written (and funny!) story of the author's experiences living in a haunted house for nearly 40 years.
November 8, 2007
Somewhat of a spooky, fun read, but the author isn't the strongest of writers. Take it with a grain of salt. Read it in the spirit of the Halloween holiday. :)
September 29, 2008
It is such a good thing I read this book. Without it, how would I have ever known that every time my dog barks at nothing, he is actually alerting me to a ghost!!! Whew. Lucky I read this.
September 20, 2012
very immature writing.
January 3, 2021
This was a tough book to rate for the fact that it was BEAUTIFULLY written but vastly differed from my expectations. For those looking for a thrilling paranormal journey, this book may not be for you. "The Ghosts on 87th Lane" recounts M. L. Woelm's constant interactions with the paranormal after she and her husband purchased a home. Aside from a few extraordinary occurrences, the tale is more or less an anthology of mundane unexplained phenomena -- although to experience it would not have been mundane. There is no incredible (keyword here) reveal and no resolution. That does, however, certainly lend credibility to the author; the lack of embellishments paints her story as more authentic than what is typically found in libraries and cinemas.
There were certainly many aspects to enjoy or appreciate. M. L. Woelm's writing has a conversational tone and characterizes her as a sharp, curious, quick-witted woman. And while the storytelling may not offer much in hard evidence of supernatural activity, it shines a light on how the struggles enduring such activity (whether grandiose or not) can affect a person. If nothing else, M. L. Woelm's memoir addresses the physical and mental stress that her hauntings had caused her, the rifts it put in relationships, and the ways in which she grew stronger as a person and as someone sensitive to the supernatural.
If approached without the expectation of dramatic flare but rather a genuine curiosity to see the impacts of prolonged paranormal encounters, this book will be worth the while.
There were certainly many aspects to enjoy or appreciate. M. L. Woelm's writing has a conversational tone and characterizes her as a sharp, curious, quick-witted woman. And while the storytelling may not offer much in hard evidence of supernatural activity, it shines a light on how the struggles enduring such activity (whether grandiose or not) can affect a person. If nothing else, M. L. Woelm's memoir addresses the physical and mental stress that her hauntings had caused her, the rifts it put in relationships, and the ways in which she grew stronger as a person and as someone sensitive to the supernatural.
If approached without the expectation of dramatic flare but rather a genuine curiosity to see the impacts of prolonged paranormal encounters, this book will be worth the while.
April 11, 2021
This book was a light hearted read despite the topic. The author added in quite a bit of her personality which seems like she is a very sweet person. I do feel bad for her since she felt abandoned by certain family members. She was terrified of that house and had no help. With that being said, the reviews by frustrated readers are disappointing. I also questioned her inability to do something about the freaky stuff happening around her because that’s not something I would let continue. However, at one point the author states that she dealt with significant emotional and mental trauma from the murder of her brother and she also says she is a non confrontational person. All of that plays a part in her decisions or lack there of to remove herself or the spirits from that house. She spent decades being gaslighted by her husband. His denial of what was happening in their home to avoid being scared left everything on this woman’s shoulders.
The story itself was okay. I thought it was interesting and would have enjoyed more photos. The ending was very lackluster and now I’m going to see if I can find out if she was able to move on from her story.
The story itself was okay. I thought it was interesting and would have enjoyed more photos. The ending was very lackluster and now I’m going to see if I can find out if she was able to move on from her story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 5, 2024
This is one of my all time favorite books. M.L Woelm did a fantastic job telling her story about the spirits in her house. There is on part where she is talking about walking up the stairs and she feels something grab her ankle. Nope I personally would of probably screamed really loud and made a mess in my pants and that would be the last time I went in the basement alone. I also understand not being able to tell anyone about what is happening due to them looking at me strange or think I was loosing my marbles.
I feel if a spirit wants to hang around and there nice and don't hurt me or my family all would be good.
Thank you M.L for such a wonderful story your book will always be in my collection and I will read it many times over.
I feel if a spirit wants to hang around and there nice and don't hurt me or my family all would be good.
Thank you M.L for such a wonderful story your book will always be in my collection and I will read it many times over.
December 10, 2022
I mean… I would move?
I started this book almost a year ago at my MIL’s recommendation. It was spooky, and interesting enough, but eventually I put it down and forgot to pick it back up until today. I made it to page 125 (out of, I believe 280?). I tried to keep going where I left off but I quickly remembered why I lost interest to begin with, and just skipped to the last few pages where I found more of the same for the ending.
I appreciate that the author wanted to tell her story, but it was pretty much the same thing happening over decades (unless of course I missed something from skipping).
From what I read at the end, I’m glad she’s made peace with her surroundings.
I started this book almost a year ago at my MIL’s recommendation. It was spooky, and interesting enough, but eventually I put it down and forgot to pick it back up until today. I made it to page 125 (out of, I believe 280?). I tried to keep going where I left off but I quickly remembered why I lost interest to begin with, and just skipped to the last few pages where I found more of the same for the ending.
I appreciate that the author wanted to tell her story, but it was pretty much the same thing happening over decades (unless of course I missed something from skipping).
From what I read at the end, I’m glad she’s made peace with her surroundings.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 22, 2021
I was reading this book in October and I thought the writing was boring and that some parts of this book were made up or just dramatised to keep the readers attention but it failed to deliver for me and by the time I was 70 pages in I quit caring so I just gave up on it.
I've done a real paranormal investigation at 30 East Drive, (Pontefract) including glass divination but it was nothing like they describe in this book.
I've done a real paranormal investigation at 30 East Drive, (Pontefract) including glass divination but it was nothing like they describe in this book.
May 6, 2019
This was a good read in the winter when there was nothing else to do, but curl up with a book. It was a good story, but I got frustrated with the relationship between this woman and her husband. I felt frustrated that she kind of dealt with the haunting on her own...either way, it was a good story and worth reading.
November 15, 2009
Being that this is the very first account I've ever read about someone who claims they lived in a haunted house, that they see ghosts, etc. I'm really quite in the dark about what to say here.
There were, for sure, a lot of the situations that could be explained in the book. And that's assuming Woelm is being honest here. How do we know she's not some bored attention-seeking grandma? But I like to go about reading my non-fiction assuming the author is telling the truth and I did the same here. I honestly don't know if I believe in ghosts or that I believe that some people can see, sense, smell, get touched by them, etc. But I am open to the idea.
Honestly, I'd like to talk to the husband myself.
I found a few things disturbing - much more disturbing than seeing a ghost. Let's start with the woman who talks to dogs.
If I had a friend over and we were sitting together and she stopped our conversation, looked at my dog, giggled and said, "Oh you are, are you?", then proceeds to tell me that my dog told her that he's sensitive, I'd probably (as nonchalantly as possible) go get the largest kitchen knife I have and then tell her to vacate the premises. NOT NORMAL.
Her camera goes missing and a friend tells her that it's "in another dimension". Oh. Good to know. NOT NORMAL.
This doesn't have much to do with ghosts, if anything, but it still struck me as odd. She talks to keeping a "death vigil" when she was told her mother would pass away at any time. Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't a "death vigil" when you stay at the persons bedside? a "death vigil" isn't going home to return to normal everyday duties. But she got a phone call telling her that her mother had died.
Second to last, is every orb and streak in my pictures a ghost? Because then I can write a book too. Because I know, for a fact, I have pictures with unexplained orbs and streaks in them. Silly me, I just thought it was the light or something else NORMAL like that.
And lastly, I just wanted to brag that my dog is also sensitive to ghosts. He barks at nothing too sometimes. And you know, silly me again, here I thought that was a normal dog trait. But it's not - he's apparently barking and alerting me to apparitions. Cool.......
***I just came back to add something - I feel like I should admit that Woelm is very, very friendly and she strikes me as someone who I could talk to and get along with. And come to think of it, why don't we get to see the pics with the orb ghosts in them? We saw everyday normal pics of the house, the furnace, the steps, a closest door, etc. but no orbs. What's up with that? I wish she were a GR author so I could ask.
There were, for sure, a lot of the situations that could be explained in the book. And that's assuming Woelm is being honest here. How do we know she's not some bored attention-seeking grandma? But I like to go about reading my non-fiction assuming the author is telling the truth and I did the same here. I honestly don't know if I believe in ghosts or that I believe that some people can see, sense, smell, get touched by them, etc. But I am open to the idea.
Honestly, I'd like to talk to the husband myself.
I found a few things disturbing - much more disturbing than seeing a ghost. Let's start with the woman who talks to dogs.
If I had a friend over and we were sitting together and she stopped our conversation, looked at my dog, giggled and said, "Oh you are, are you?", then proceeds to tell me that my dog told her that he's sensitive, I'd probably (as nonchalantly as possible) go get the largest kitchen knife I have and then tell her to vacate the premises. NOT NORMAL.
Her camera goes missing and a friend tells her that it's "in another dimension". Oh. Good to know. NOT NORMAL.
This doesn't have much to do with ghosts, if anything, but it still struck me as odd. She talks to keeping a "death vigil" when she was told her mother would pass away at any time. Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't a "death vigil" when you stay at the persons bedside? a "death vigil" isn't going home to return to normal everyday duties. But she got a phone call telling her that her mother had died.
Second to last, is every orb and streak in my pictures a ghost? Because then I can write a book too. Because I know, for a fact, I have pictures with unexplained orbs and streaks in them. Silly me, I just thought it was the light or something else NORMAL like that.
And lastly, I just wanted to brag that my dog is also sensitive to ghosts. He barks at nothing too sometimes. And you know, silly me again, here I thought that was a normal dog trait. But it's not - he's apparently barking and alerting me to apparitions. Cool.......
***I just came back to add something - I feel like I should admit that Woelm is very, very friendly and she strikes me as someone who I could talk to and get along with. And come to think of it, why don't we get to see the pics with the orb ghosts in them? We saw everyday normal pics of the house, the furnace, the steps, a closest door, etc. but no orbs. What's up with that? I wish she were a GR author so I could ask.
April 7, 2012
M.L. Woelm is a decent writer, but she's no Shirley Jackson. She doesn't claim to be, and I wouldn't expect her to be. She's just a woman trying to put down her personal experiences as a long term tenant of a haunted house.
The book is pretty well written, for what it is. I will say that whoever edited this book should have laid down the law at some point. The repetition of spooky events gets so redundant that it completely loses the creepy factor. I understand that this is a true story, documenting true events, but I think that it could have been laid out to the audience in a more organized way, and pared down to the events that were the most dramatic. The things that freaked me out (and actually made it hard for me to fall asleep) became old hat about half way through. I think this book could have been edited to half of it's current length.
The last fifty pages or so felt tacked on. I'm not sure what the author's vacation to another supposedly haunted location (and the back story of said haunted location) has to do with her own experiences in her house. She retells some of the same stories over and over again. It would have been fine to hear about her dog's reaction to the ghosts once or twice, but she includes so many occurrences that are so similar, it felt like I was reading the same pages over and over again. I found myself skimming at the end of the book.
That being said, for what it is, it was pretty good. The author is likable. Reading this book was like spending the weekend with someone who lives in a haunted house, and wants to tell you all about it. There were parts that gave me chills and the first night I was reading it I had trouble going to sleep by myself.
The book is pretty well written, for what it is. I will say that whoever edited this book should have laid down the law at some point. The repetition of spooky events gets so redundant that it completely loses the creepy factor. I understand that this is a true story, documenting true events, but I think that it could have been laid out to the audience in a more organized way, and pared down to the events that were the most dramatic. The things that freaked me out (and actually made it hard for me to fall asleep) became old hat about half way through. I think this book could have been edited to half of it's current length.
The last fifty pages or so felt tacked on. I'm not sure what the author's vacation to another supposedly haunted location (and the back story of said haunted location) has to do with her own experiences in her house. She retells some of the same stories over and over again. It would have been fine to hear about her dog's reaction to the ghosts once or twice, but she includes so many occurrences that are so similar, it felt like I was reading the same pages over and over again. I found myself skimming at the end of the book.
That being said, for what it is, it was pretty good. The author is likable. Reading this book was like spending the weekend with someone who lives in a haunted house, and wants to tell you all about it. There were parts that gave me chills and the first night I was reading it I had trouble going to sleep by myself.
January 19, 2012
This was an okay ghost story. It is supposed to be the true account of one woman's life with ghosts. Throughout the book she keeps saying how much the ghost scared her and how she wanted them to go away and can't understand why they didn't leave once she called in a psychic to remove them. Personally I think (that if everything written is true) that the reason the ghosts never left is because she didn't want them to, she enjoyed having something that made her feel different or special from hose around her. There are a few inconsistencies that troubled me with the work. In the beginning of the book she swears that ghost haunt her home even though there is nothing special about the house and no one died there, but then later in the book she claims that one of the ghosts is there because someone's body was found by the back steps. But in spite of this she never mentions that someone died there again. Personally if someone died by my back steps I would do everything I could to find out who even if the event had happened decades before I moved there. The author claims that there are many ghosts living in her house, but only gives reasons for one ghost belonging there. It wasn't the best ghost book I've ever read, but in spite of the flaws it was still fairly interesting.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 16, 2015
I kind of liked this book. I thought the author was a very good writer and could tell a good story and kept it somewhat amusing throughout the book. I finished it rather quickly, so why am I only giving it two stars? I suppose because there are some things that annoyed me, beginning with her husband. When they bought the house he said that was the only house he was ever going to buy for her and apparently he was right. He was not supportive of her and I felt like her family thought she was crazy. If it wasn't for some of her friends and her daughter I think she might have felt like she was crazy too. The book is kind of repetitive and probably only very scary to the person who lived through it, although I wouldn't want to have to put up with that for as long as she did and often wondered why they didn't move many years ago. All in all I thought it was a pretty interesting book and well written about what her experiences were.
December 19, 2012
The part of this shelf that this book belongs is not for me. It kind of got repetitive after a while, and it didn't hold my interest that well after about 100 pages, but unfortunately I have a problem with leaving books unfinished: I can't.
I love a ghost story and scaring myself as much as the next person, but after awhile, it wasn't even scary anymore because I knew what to expect and what was going to happen. I do appreciate the trauma that this woman had to go through for over half her life, but after some time wouldn't it have made sense to call in an expert or something, a priest to bless the house or something like that? I know she did eventually, in 1997...but that's 30 years of living in that house.
I don't know, I wouldn't read it again. It started off very strongly, but kind of dwindled as time went on.
I love a ghost story and scaring myself as much as the next person, but after awhile, it wasn't even scary anymore because I knew what to expect and what was going to happen. I do appreciate the trauma that this woman had to go through for over half her life, but after some time wouldn't it have made sense to call in an expert or something, a priest to bless the house or something like that? I know she did eventually, in 1997...but that's 30 years of living in that house.
I don't know, I wouldn't read it again. It started off very strongly, but kind of dwindled as time went on.
November 12, 2013
I found this book to be very repetitive and quite boring. It actually took me about two and a half months to finish reading it, but I am not one to not finish a book once I start it so I was determined to finish it. The only parts I really found exciting were when she finally got Echo to come to here house and then the completely off course story about going to the hotel on vacation, which I am not sure what it had to do with her haunted house. Anyway, I totally understand that she was writing based off of her journaling and is not really a seasoned writer but maybe the editing could have been better as well.
January 14, 2017
LOVE this book! The author is so very easy to relate to. The amount of detail she includes is spot on. I have a fascination with haunted houses. I realize after reading her boom, my dream of owning one has been completely romanticized. It hasn't changed my dream, only changed the notion to one based on reality. I could not put this down. Well, occasionally I did have to stop reading once it was late, dark and everyone else was asleep. That creepy feeling got to be a little too much at those times. This is MUST read for anyone that has the same romanticized dream as I did. Bravo!!!
July 15, 2009
After reading two other accounts of "real life" ghost hauntings from the same publisher, I'm beginning to think that hauntees are just women with too little self-esteem, too little emotional support from their husbands, and too much time on their hands. Marlene's inability to assume control of her life and her ghost problem (that is, if one even exists) is infuriating. She allows her fears to control her life. I think she actually relishes her role as the victim.
August 13, 2011
This book creeped me out... Of course I read it at night, which I know probably wasn't the best idea. Sitting in the house alone late at night hearing a noise and creeping yourself out haha! In all honesty though the book is truly awesome! I recommend it. Give a read at night with just a lamp on and I'm pretty sure you'd creep yourself out like I did. If anyone else has any recommendations along these lines then please feel free to email me with them. :)
xo
xo
January 26, 2012
Mrs. Woelm is not a bad writer at all, its just that she could have said all she wanted to say in 100 pages instead of dragging it out to be 270ish pages. After reading this I’ve actually been contemplating writing my crazy ghost experiences down in a book format, I sure did see a lot more then this lady…
For a more in depth review please visit Shivers of Horror
For a more in depth review please visit Shivers of Horror
October 20, 2012
This author is easy enough to read and she is a likeable character, but the book felt like a long series of repeated stories. The author jumped around through time and went back and forth throwing in information. It really left me confused about what exactly she was going through. She almost seemed as if she enjoyed the encounters she had. Although not terrible it is not anything I would recommend or read again. There are much better books on this subject.
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