When the Lantern Swings

by Allen Grimes

When the lantern swings, Jackie Hudak is coming back!

Ed Freemen, retired cop turned senior park ranger, came to Lake Hope looking for a fresh start after shooting a teenage robbery suspect armed only with a BB gun. But his dream of writing citations and leading nature walks is shattered when the mangled remains of a young woman are found on the Moonville Rail Trail. It looks like she was run over by a train, but the tracks were removed forty years ago. Freemen and his team discover the legend of a railroad worker run over by a train a hundred years before. The ghost returns every ten years to wreak vengeance on the guests of Lake Hope State Park. As more bodies are discovered, he is tormented by the voice of the dead teen. Despite his deteriorating mental state, Freemen must overcome the ghost of his past and stop the lantern-wielding menace before he reaches his diabolical quota for this decade.

Audible Audio

Published January 8, 2025

Reviews

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

A supernatural mystery

This is an extremely well written story. A police procedural with a ghost story twist. I really liked the plot line and the intricate weaving created by the author. This is an easy read, a fun story that is well worth the readers time. Grimes is a newer author that I had the chance to meet. I look forward to the his next book.

[Gabrielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars
I found this book incredibly intriguing, considering I grew up and still live around the area. My dad worked for Lake hope state park for 37yrs before retiring in 2011. I have always been fascinated with Moonville tunnel, having been there multiple times and walked through it. I feel there is definitely something different or supernatural that occurs in the area.
The story was very well written. I might be biased considering everything, but it was very good. The ending was great. Had a blast reading it.

[George Cramer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Breathtaking action

I'm not typically a supernatural thriller fan, But Grimes had the pages flying. I hope he writes thrillers for this mere mortals. Congratulations

[Richard Eric · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love spot on police procedurals with a strong mix of paranormal intrigue of the X-files sort, you'll love When the Lantern Swings. Set in Lake Hope State Park in Ohio, the story of Ed Freeman, an ex-cop turned park ranger, unfolds as he faces a series of murders. Has the ghost of a man killed by a train decades earlier returned to seek vengeance, or is a sadistic monster swinging an old railroad lantern impersonating the legend? Tormented with childhood trauma and, more recently, the shooting death of a teenager, can Freeman stop the perpetrator before he kills again-before someone he cares about is murdered-or worse yet, before he's cornered and beaten to death himself? The stakes and obstacles accumulate, sweeping the reader up and along all the way to the climatic ending at the infamous Moonville Rail Trail in the middle of the night.

[M.E. Roche · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an intriguing mystery based on a short story from the author's previous book: The Ghosts of Lake Hope. Here a body is discovered in a beautiful, but remote section of a state park in southeastern Ohio, an area where a railroad once traveled. The body appears to have been hit by a train which would have been virtually impossible in the present day. As the local authorities seek to explore all the possible alternatives for this death, more murders ensue and several park visitors witness the appearance of a monstrous dark figure who is carrying a lantern and seeks to attack them. Dressed in what appears to be a railroad worker's garb and carrying the lantern to signal trains, this figure impossibly disappears when threatened. The question of whether the monster is real or ghostly will keep the reader guessing until the end.

[Sally Handley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great First Book in a Series!

You've got to love Senior Ranger Ed Freeman as he faces demons, both political and supernatural while he investigates a most unusual series of murders in Lake Hope State Park -- an investigation that leaves him wondering at times if he is "bat-guano, stark-staring, howling-at-the-moon mad." Great writing. Suspenseful story. I highly recommend it.




ng howling-at-the-moon mad."

[martha s. williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

When the Lantern Swings

Ohhhh my. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but this is even better. I'm sure hoping there's more to this adventure, I like all these characters and even the bad guys are not completely evil, though some of their actions are. The gang is like an episode of Longmire gone Southern. Delicious.

[Christine Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is an excellent, tight mystery with a paranormal twist that adds a thrill to the story.

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story line but everything seems to be a bit wooden.