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Monsters Among Us: An Exploration of Otherworldly Bigfoots, Wolfmen, Portals, Phantoms, and Odd Phenomena
When it comes to thoughtful and well-researched accounts of the paranormal, the buck stops at Linda S. Godfrey. In her latest work, she tackles the very real possibility of portals between worlds -- and even other dimensions.
Shadow wolves, sentient mists, and UFOs...oh my!
Linda S. Godfrey -- author of Real Wolfmen, American Monsters, and other books reporting on creatures such as Bigfoot, gigantic birds, and strange energy forms -- began to seek answers to the question of where these creatures are actually from. The common thread that she discovered was the reportage of mysterious doorways leading to other worlds. Godfrey here offers a comprehensive look at the mystical, legendary, and scientific angles of these portals, providing a broad sampling of modern day encounters and experiences, interspersed with her own field research and interviews with eyewitnesses. Meticulously researched and expertly written, Secret Portals is a fascinating look into worlds unknown that will challenge the reader's idea of reality.
Shadow wolves, sentient mists, and UFOs...oh my!
Linda S. Godfrey -- author of Real Wolfmen, American Monsters, and other books reporting on creatures such as Bigfoot, gigantic birds, and strange energy forms -- began to seek answers to the question of where these creatures are actually from. The common thread that she discovered was the reportage of mysterious doorways leading to other worlds. Godfrey here offers a comprehensive look at the mystical, legendary, and scientific angles of these portals, providing a broad sampling of modern day encounters and experiences, interspersed with her own field research and interviews with eyewitnesses. Meticulously researched and expertly written, Secret Portals is a fascinating look into worlds unknown that will challenge the reader's idea of reality.
368 pages, Paperback
First published September 27, 2016
122 people are currently reading
1528 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
February 14, 2025
4 star for enjoyment and very interesting to listen too. But I'm not really believing in things like this but finding the topic very intruing. Might read more books like this. But one of the hard topics to belive and know what's accurate facts
March 10, 2017
Not a worthwhile venture into paranormal and supernatural speculation.
There are many examples in this book where Godfrey talks about "scientific" concepts she clearly has only very superficial knowledge about. She is repeating concepts that paranormalists co-opted in order to sound authoritative and scientific. Most of it is blatant pseudoscience. This totally ruins the book for me.
While I admire her documentation of reports of strange events, you will lose me when you go over the cliff into absurd, sometimes laughable, speculation and philosophizing. People’s stories are often not suitable to be taken at face value and do not represent the world as it objectively is. She doesn’t stop at the reporting and can’t help but go down a dangerous road trying to make sense of it all. Well, it won’t make sense. But I doubt paranormalists will stop creating fantastic alternative realities to fit it all because such fantasy appeals to many people. I refuse to be misled by conjured-up sciencey ideas and selected or tinted evidence suited to a preconceived paranormal conclusion. If you pull that sort of garbage, I will deny you credibility as a researcher.
Full detailed review is here: http://sharonahill.com/monsters-and-s...
There are many examples in this book where Godfrey talks about "scientific" concepts she clearly has only very superficial knowledge about. She is repeating concepts that paranormalists co-opted in order to sound authoritative and scientific. Most of it is blatant pseudoscience. This totally ruins the book for me.
While I admire her documentation of reports of strange events, you will lose me when you go over the cliff into absurd, sometimes laughable, speculation and philosophizing. People’s stories are often not suitable to be taken at face value and do not represent the world as it objectively is. She doesn’t stop at the reporting and can’t help but go down a dangerous road trying to make sense of it all. Well, it won’t make sense. But I doubt paranormalists will stop creating fantastic alternative realities to fit it all because such fantasy appeals to many people. I refuse to be misled by conjured-up sciencey ideas and selected or tinted evidence suited to a preconceived paranormal conclusion. If you pull that sort of garbage, I will deny you credibility as a researcher.
Full detailed review is here: http://sharonahill.com/monsters-and-s...
March 12, 2018
I saw this at the library, and since it was a disappointing trip for me I decided at least I'd be able to take away one book I knew I'd like. Like it I did! Although the stories are almost entirely American, I can see many similarities to events recorded in Australia, and I really enjoyed the matter-of-fact way the author handles them. Very rarely does she get excited and carried away by the evidence presented to her, and she doesnt really force her opinions either.
Always enjoy reading an unexplained mystery book, and this one is more ficused on wolfmen and Bigfoots than I generally read. Four stars
Always enjoy reading an unexplained mystery book, and this one is more ficused on wolfmen and Bigfoots than I generally read. Four stars
April 10, 2021
I think you'd be hard-pressed to find a cryptozoology book with a lower standard of inclusion than this. Wolf monsters disappearing at the mention of Christ's name from the lips of a "very honest person." Bored middle-aged sisters who present themselves as the Forrest Gumps of cryptids, having managed to see various monsters in what I can only imagine are otherwise tawdry lives. Witnesses are introduced with such unimpeachable qualifications as "mother of a credible middle-aged woman" and a "woman with advanced educational degrees," the latter of whom sagely declares that the "shadow wolf" who accosted her in her grandparents' barn 'was sort of like it was in another dimension. I remember being very afraid and I never told anyone.' Riveting stuff, lady.
These desperately boring stories are one thing, but when they're repeated ad nauseum by an author seemingly unwilling to subject them to any substantial scrutiny it really becomes a slog. Rational explanations for sightings are given short shrift while screwy concepts of dimension-skipping Bigfoot with the powers of invisibility are soberly introduced. When a woman sets up camera equipment outside her home after being accosted by a big hairy monster, she catches a few indistinct blurs. Could these blurs be caused by the end of someone's finger at the edge of the camera lens? Dust? Insects? Moisture on the lens? Seems unlikely to the author. They don't really look like any of those things, after all. That they don't resemble giant wolf monsters either is apparently besides the point.
Alleged encounters with fortean phenomena such as wolfmen, aliens, bigfoot and lights in the sky suffer from a paucity of corroborating evidence. Authors like Annie Jacobsen (Area 51: An Uncensored History of America's Top Secret Military Base) and John G. Fuller (The Interrupted Journey) have grappled with this issue by being as thorough and objective as possible in their investigation of such stories, uncovering detail and data allowing them to posit plausible conclusions. Unfortunately Godfrey doesn't have such scruples. In lieu of rigorously examining the extraordinary claims made by those who've contacted her, she simply repeats their stories and often tacks on her own, equally unsubstantiated theories to explain them. It would be generous to call her theories half-baked.
This book is definitely one for the quack shelf.
These desperately boring stories are one thing, but when they're repeated ad nauseum by an author seemingly unwilling to subject them to any substantial scrutiny it really becomes a slog. Rational explanations for sightings are given short shrift while screwy concepts of dimension-skipping Bigfoot with the powers of invisibility are soberly introduced. When a woman sets up camera equipment outside her home after being accosted by a big hairy monster, she catches a few indistinct blurs. Could these blurs be caused by the end of someone's finger at the edge of the camera lens? Dust? Insects? Moisture on the lens? Seems unlikely to the author. They don't really look like any of those things, after all. That they don't resemble giant wolf monsters either is apparently besides the point.
Alleged encounters with fortean phenomena such as wolfmen, aliens, bigfoot and lights in the sky suffer from a paucity of corroborating evidence. Authors like Annie Jacobsen (Area 51: An Uncensored History of America's Top Secret Military Base) and John G. Fuller (The Interrupted Journey) have grappled with this issue by being as thorough and objective as possible in their investigation of such stories, uncovering detail and data allowing them to posit plausible conclusions. Unfortunately Godfrey doesn't have such scruples. In lieu of rigorously examining the extraordinary claims made by those who've contacted her, she simply repeats their stories and often tacks on her own, equally unsubstantiated theories to explain them. It would be generous to call her theories half-baked.
This book is definitely one for the quack shelf.
October 17, 2018
If it is even possible for a book about monsters, this is just really boring. I had to put it in the DNF pile. I really wanted to like this a lot more, but it is a total snooze fest. Most of the sightings that she talks about are different people's stories but all are almost the same type of monster and similar encounters over and over. Just not that exciting of a book. Oh well, so disappointing. At least I got it from the library.
February 28, 2023
If you are as OBSESSED with cryptids and paranormal/supernatural topics, then I'm pretty sure you will love this book as much as I did. There are some very unique topics and theories on what causes certain supernatural occurrences that I had not heard of before, so it was exciting to feel like a student again.
November 3, 2019
Liked this one better than the previous book. This one has some story prompt fodder if you're interested. I especially point out some interesting information which never shows up in fiction books featuring ghosts, like associated light phenomena and cryptids showing up in odd places. Two others have mentioned these things in their books: William J. Hall and Nick Redfern. Also, a very entertaining listen.
One complaint I have, is Wisconsin and it's surrounding areas and other states the only place that has bigfoot and "dog-men" sightings? What about the Northwest coast? Or the southwest? Also, what is wrong with the word werewolf?
One complaint I have, is Wisconsin and it's surrounding areas and other states the only place that has bigfoot and "dog-men" sightings? What about the Northwest coast? Or the southwest? Also, what is wrong with the word werewolf?
December 18, 2017
Great book on subjects I've never thought about, but now makes sense from my rural town. I have many sleep issues, so the area about unwanted bedroom guests rings very real and personal to me. I'm very glad I was given this book from Goodreads Giveaways; I was not able to put it down!
March 5, 2018
Monsters Among Us is an interesting collection of encounters with unknown upright canids. This is wrapped up in stories of Bigfoot encounters, as well as otherworldly portals. It's a fascinating collection, well written and summarized. [Author: Linda S. Godfrey] does a good job of cataloging the surrounding phenomena - both paraphysical and solar - that might help give rise to the belief that at least some of these experiences may be connected.
The author doesn't stand too firmly as to whether these creatures are flesh and blood or spiritual in nature, but does explore some of the arguments on both sides of that fence. It was refreshing to read more stories than she's shared on the radio and television appearances. However, some of the encounters are repeats from previous texts which may point towards the other books being better resources.
I'm curious to read more of her material, and I hope that in other books she goes more into detail of these creatures throughout history, and what they might mean for our folkloric beliefs. They might represent any number of things, but so far I've found Whitley Strieber and John Keel to be a bit better at summarizing the long-term psychological implications for these creatures.
The author doesn't stand too firmly as to whether these creatures are flesh and blood or spiritual in nature, but does explore some of the arguments on both sides of that fence. It was refreshing to read more stories than she's shared on the radio and television appearances. However, some of the encounters are repeats from previous texts which may point towards the other books being better resources.
I'm curious to read more of her material, and I hope that in other books she goes more into detail of these creatures throughout history, and what they might mean for our folkloric beliefs. They might represent any number of things, but so far I've found Whitley Strieber and John Keel to be a bit better at summarizing the long-term psychological implications for these creatures.
October 2, 2021
3.5 stars but I'm rounding up to 4 because I enjoy it. I like hearing about people's experiences with these beings...its interesting...but theres nothing here that backs any of it up and while some people seem really credible...others dont...and that makes it harder to "buy" the whole thing. But it was entertaining enough.
January 2, 2023
This compilation of firsthand paranormal encounters (as reported to and investigated by the late, great Linda Godfrey) was thoroughly entertaining and reverential to the subject matter. My biggest takeaway is that, in recent years, there have been an astonishing number of dogman sightings. What’s that all about? Hmm.
Here’s hoping 2023 will be a year of cryptids and anomalous encounters!
Here’s hoping 2023 will be a year of cryptids and anomalous encounters!
February 6, 2024
Actually a 3.5
This is an interesting book, marked down from 4 to 3 due to a description of a village where I used to live—the lake listed as being close by is actually in another village, while the river that runs through the actual place is never mentioned. Just seemed odd and possibly unintentionally misleading, and made me curious about the descriptions of places I hadn’t been. However, overall this is an interesting book which offers several suggestions for unknown creatures seen and felt by people. What are dogmen, werewolves and Bigfeet? The book offers ideas about them.
This is an interesting book, marked down from 4 to 3 due to a description of a village where I used to live—the lake listed as being close by is actually in another village, while the river that runs through the actual place is never mentioned. Just seemed odd and possibly unintentionally misleading, and made me curious about the descriptions of places I hadn’t been. However, overall this is an interesting book which offers several suggestions for unknown creatures seen and felt by people. What are dogmen, werewolves and Bigfeet? The book offers ideas about them.
April 29, 2018
I'll admit to being creeped out by parts of this book, but it was so cool, I couldn’t put it down.Author Linda S. Godfrey has compiled accounts of encounters with both cryptids of various kinds and unexplained phenomena. For anyone who doesn’t know, cryptids are legendary or supernatural creatures like Bigfoot, the Lock Ness Monster, wolfmen, etc. They are the focus of the field of cryptozoology. These creatures might exist, or they might not, but if they don’t, it’s surprising how many people claim to have seen one.
Godfrey starts her book with wolfmen/dogmen/transformation stories. My favorites include the dog-headed guy who was sitting in the backseat of a limo. He looked like a normal German shepherd, until he raised his human arm and propped it on the car window. I also liked the woman who transformed into a wolf-like creature in the middle of a Sunday church service. Church Lady appreciated showmanship.
There are lots of other cryptids represented throughout this book, including everything from Bigfoot to werewolves to UFOs. There are plenty of odd phenomena, too, like footprints appearing in the middle of a snowy field, all manner of unusual lights, and portals that allow creatures from who-knows-where to appear and disappear at will.
MONSTERS AMONG US uses a consistent approach when examining the cryptid and unusual phenomena stories. Typically, the author has been contacted by someone who claims to have seen something unexplained, and she interviews that person. Sometimes the incident was witnessed by multiple people, in which case, the stories from all witnesses are compared. Each incident is catalogued with its date, time, location, weather conditions, etc. in an effort to provide as much information as possible while ruling out alternative explanations for the phenomena. For instance, the sighting of a doglike creature that occurs at dusk might be easier to misinterpret than the same creature in broad daylight.
This is an intriguing collection of cryptid tales that has crept into my subconscious. This morning, when I accidentally dropped a spoon, my first thought was the old superstition that says dropping a spoon predicts that a child will be visiting. My second thought was that I hoped the visiting child wouldn’t be some supernatural monster that tumbles out of a portal onto my front porch.
There’s another book on my to-be-read list called BLACK EYED CHILDREN by David Weatherly. I can’t wait to read it, but the inevitable sleepless nights are worrisome. Almost as worrisome as uninvited cryptid kids showing up because of one stinking dropped spoon….
Godfrey starts her book with wolfmen/dogmen/transformation stories. My favorites include the dog-headed guy who was sitting in the backseat of a limo. He looked like a normal German shepherd, until he raised his human arm and propped it on the car window. I also liked the woman who transformed into a wolf-like creature in the middle of a Sunday church service. Church Lady appreciated showmanship.
There are lots of other cryptids represented throughout this book, including everything from Bigfoot to werewolves to UFOs. There are plenty of odd phenomena, too, like footprints appearing in the middle of a snowy field, all manner of unusual lights, and portals that allow creatures from who-knows-where to appear and disappear at will.
MONSTERS AMONG US uses a consistent approach when examining the cryptid and unusual phenomena stories. Typically, the author has been contacted by someone who claims to have seen something unexplained, and she interviews that person. Sometimes the incident was witnessed by multiple people, in which case, the stories from all witnesses are compared. Each incident is catalogued with its date, time, location, weather conditions, etc. in an effort to provide as much information as possible while ruling out alternative explanations for the phenomena. For instance, the sighting of a doglike creature that occurs at dusk might be easier to misinterpret than the same creature in broad daylight.
This is an intriguing collection of cryptid tales that has crept into my subconscious. This morning, when I accidentally dropped a spoon, my first thought was the old superstition that says dropping a spoon predicts that a child will be visiting. My second thought was that I hoped the visiting child wouldn’t be some supernatural monster that tumbles out of a portal onto my front porch.
There’s another book on my to-be-read list called BLACK EYED CHILDREN by David Weatherly. I can’t wait to read it, but the inevitable sleepless nights are worrisome. Almost as worrisome as uninvited cryptid kids showing up because of one stinking dropped spoon….
June 4, 2019
As far as I can tell, Linda Godfrey really likes chatting with people about weird stuff they've seen lurking in the woods in Wisconsin. Then she writes it up, and here's this book. That's about it. She doesn't have any particular scientific or investigative expertise, she just presents eyewitness accounts, along with a brief analysis or an attempt to link related sightings. Since her livelihood depends on things remaining "mysterious," she doesn't go very far in trying to debunk or disprove any of the incidents- even cases of sleep paralysis/night terrors that seemed to me to be self-evident hypnogogic hallucinations. If you like this sort of thing (UFO's, portals, wolfmen)-- her writing style is entertaining enough. A lightweight, fun read.
February 14, 2020
Linda Godfrey is an excellent writer, and her enthusiasm for the subject matter is readily apparent and makes for a simultaneously captivating and approachable collection of supernatural and cryptid accounts. My criticisms of this book are small and there are but two. Firstly, Ms. Godfrey seems to be drawn to tales dog-man and werewolf type creatures (which is understandable given her time in Elkhorn*) and the book seems to drift heavily towards these accounts. Second, the style of writing that comprises this book and others like it inevitably leads to the 'voice' of the original experiencers being lost or diminished somewhat in the re-telling of the re-telling (The Mothman Propecies being a notable exception), the trade-off being that it makes the book a much smoother read. Overall, anyone who enjoys reading collections of accounts of the supernatural will greatly enjoy this book, just as long as they don't mind a triple helping of the dogman.
* If you are unfamiliar with the history of Linda Godfrey's experiences with the supernatural it is well worth your time to read about her experiences in Elkhorn. A better origin story could scarcely be imagined, and she has certainly earned her stripes as a supernatural/cryptid writer.
* If you are unfamiliar with the history of Linda Godfrey's experiences with the supernatural it is well worth your time to read about her experiences in Elkhorn. A better origin story could scarcely be imagined, and she has certainly earned her stripes as a supernatural/cryptid writer.
July 27, 2021
Author promises in the begining scientific evidence and analysis of various cryptids.
But this is just a collection of short stories she has collected over the years.
The closest we get to any scientific analysis is a few photos of a bigfoot shelter and a few stories of "the person who told me this went through and thought through how it couldn't be reasonably explained."
I chose this book specifically because it promised UFOs and Bigfoots but even the big foot and ufo stories the author ties back into wolfmen theories. I understand that is her 'specialty' but it felt sort of like false advertising after a while.
The first half of this book was entertaining and reasonable- stories are claimed to come from reliable sources and are typically one off events that are believable. After about a page 150 she gets into the stories of people who email her every few months with new experiences in the towns.
I feel people who have multiple experiences (especially various seemingly unrelated per year) should be taken with a grain of salt. But there are full chapters dedicated to these people's expiriences.
Fun but unreliable "evidence".
But this is just a collection of short stories she has collected over the years.
The closest we get to any scientific analysis is a few photos of a bigfoot shelter and a few stories of "the person who told me this went through and thought through how it couldn't be reasonably explained."
I chose this book specifically because it promised UFOs and Bigfoots but even the big foot and ufo stories the author ties back into wolfmen theories. I understand that is her 'specialty' but it felt sort of like false advertising after a while.
The first half of this book was entertaining and reasonable- stories are claimed to come from reliable sources and are typically one off events that are believable. After about a page 150 she gets into the stories of people who email her every few months with new experiences in the towns.
I feel people who have multiple experiences (especially various seemingly unrelated per year) should be taken with a grain of salt. But there are full chapters dedicated to these people's expiriences.
Fun but unreliable "evidence".
July 9, 2023
I don't really know what to say about this travesty of a "cryptid" book so I'll just post the notes I wrote from my reading journal:
-obviously anecdotal evidence of werewolves
-author says she doesn't really believe most werewolf stories but first 100 pages are only that
-werewolf disappears at the mention of Christ - story told by "very honest people" - insert eye roll here
-Oh now werewolves = UFOs LORDY
-so many witnesses are children or rather were and these stories were from 10+ years ago (kids are dipshits)
-some stories seem believable, spiritual manifestations vs physical
-mentions indigenous beliefs but doesn't expand on them, mostly just filler (Oh Natives live around here a lot) <- another eyeroll
-another story of saying "Jesus" and the creature disappearing immediately - call me a skeptic
-author states she received clear pictures of muddy werewolf prints but doesn't include them, includes pictures of formless mist from trail cam instead (okay, bro)
-cool, evidence of Bigfoot in TN = pile of s***, literally
-Bible stories as evidence now - first and last book by this author
-obviously anecdotal evidence of werewolves
-author says she doesn't really believe most werewolf stories but first 100 pages are only that
-werewolf disappears at the mention of Christ - story told by "very honest people" - insert eye roll here
-Oh now werewolves = UFOs LORDY
-so many witnesses are children or rather were and these stories were from 10+ years ago (kids are dipshits)
-some stories seem believable, spiritual manifestations vs physical
-mentions indigenous beliefs but doesn't expand on them, mostly just filler (Oh Natives live around here a lot) <- another eyeroll
-another story of saying "Jesus" and the creature disappearing immediately - call me a skeptic
-author states she received clear pictures of muddy werewolf prints but doesn't include them, includes pictures of formless mist from trail cam instead (okay, bro)
-cool, evidence of Bigfoot in TN = pile of s***, literally
-Bible stories as evidence now - first and last book by this author
December 9, 2018
I first heard about this book when the guys at Astonishing Legends podcast interviewed Mrs. Godfrey. Since then it has been on my list to check out. I have always been into strange things, so I was intrigued by what Linda Godfrey had to say.
She is a veteran reporter who started researching strange and mysterious sightings when she worked for a local paper. She isn’t quick to jump to conclusions and, as you’ll see in this book, she runs through many possibilities as to what the sightings may infer.
Perhaps it is my love of mystery and strong desire for there to be wonder in our vast world, but I am not quick to discount all mysterious creature sightings as desperate cries for attention, hoaxes, or recreationally altered states of consciousness. People that I know and trust have had their own experiences. The Bible has numerous accounts of supernatural occurrences. And I am a healthy skeptic of the limits of scientific method to explain everything that we experience in our world. This book just gave me more food for thought.
She is a veteran reporter who started researching strange and mysterious sightings when she worked for a local paper. She isn’t quick to jump to conclusions and, as you’ll see in this book, she runs through many possibilities as to what the sightings may infer.
Perhaps it is my love of mystery and strong desire for there to be wonder in our vast world, but I am not quick to discount all mysterious creature sightings as desperate cries for attention, hoaxes, or recreationally altered states of consciousness. People that I know and trust have had their own experiences. The Bible has numerous accounts of supernatural occurrences. And I am a healthy skeptic of the limits of scientific method to explain everything that we experience in our world. This book just gave me more food for thought.
April 3, 2020
Fascinating book. A majority of it focuses on "dogmen" and werewolf-type creatures, which I had largely dismissed in the past. Sasquatch and alien encounters were more intriguing and persuasive to me. This book shows that "upright canids" are a widespread phenomenon, and I am inclined to think they are a real phenomenon. The book prompted me to theorize, extrapolating from the author's documentation and her own attempts to make sense of her data. Dogmen seem to be an image from our collective unconscious, but also physical beings with supernatural abilities. The author sees two separate phenomena that happen to resemble each other. I think the two must be connected, and it boggles the mind to think how. The author includes data on many types of phenomena and looks for connections in a rational manner. The result feels like a substantial step towards understanding a huge bundle of paranormal mysteries.
April 19, 2017
Just finished Monsters Among Us an exploration of otherworldly Bigfoots, Wolfmen, Portals, Phantoms, and odd Phenomena. Interesting read but didn't really quite hold my attention the way I would've liked. Maybe it's because I'm heavy into ghosts and demonic stories at the moment, I figured this book would take me down a similar path of fright. Unbeknownst to me however this book was of a different paranormal flavor. Dealing mostly with Cryptid creatures like Bigfoot and Dogmen and taking a quick trip to UFO world, this book was okay in my opinion. The author does a great job on investigating these tales and adding a very journalistic view on these odd events, but it wasn't enough to snag my interest and hold it. If you're into cryptozoology this may be right in your wheelhouse, I however was not fulfilled.
February 14, 2020
Some books are made out of very little. This one starts and ends with an interesting exploration of recent events in Wisconsin. In between is a lot of filler collected from other books (the author constantly references her own books). The result is a very soft filling that is more in the form of a list than a narrative. Any veneer of science is so thin as to be transparent.
The world is a very mysterious place. That's it, so far.
The world is a very mysterious place. That's it, so far.
April 12, 2017
A very good read on the paranormal and how it could possibly somehow be linked with extraterrestrial sightings. I have had a theory of my own for quiet sometime that some how spirits, time travellers, aliens, UFO's, underground tunnel systems are all linked together. The sightings, stories and experiences found in this book gave me the greatest confidence ever of my theory of being true.
August 22, 2021
I was incredibly underwhelmed by this book. More then 50% of the book was about incounters with canine like creatures. I honestly should have read the review before purchasing. It was mostly first accounts which is very interesting but there were no explanations and minimal history. I know I should not judge a book by it’s cover but very misleading
March 14, 2022
A collection of summaries of paranormal encounters. Some reports had everything you can imagine, making me question the witness credibility. If someone sees a ufos, Bigfoot, and a werewolf are they telling the truth or seeking attention. Many of the stories lacked credibility. Over 1/2 the book is about wear wolf 🐺 sightings. Wouldn’t read again, going to the neighborhood book share.
December 13, 2022
Got about half-way thru, but couldn't finish this one. The book consists of mainly werewolf stories, with an occasional splash of other tales here and there. Most stories are cliche. If you're in to the whole werewolf vibe, this may be the book for you.
August 19, 2022
Almost daily people are seeing strange phenomena that cannot be explained. The anomalies can be described as monsters. Canines that stand upright. Bigfoot chasing people down, invisible monsters and portals. We are talking cryptozoology here. Animals that are not officially recognized by science. Some of these creatures appear and then disappear. Where did they go to and where did they come from? There are millions of undiscovered species on this planet and scientist are finding new species every day. Some say that the creatures are part physical and part spiritual which gives them the ability to stay hidden from us. Other theories state that there are portals to other dimension and these creatures some how travel though them to our world.
The dogmen are basically humanoid like canines. They show up on people and tend to send psychic messages. While not many have been hurt there have been times when they have delivered a threatening presence. There are times when the dogmen have chased people in their cars. Others who witness them feel that if situation were different the dogmen would be hunting them down. Many cases have been reported in Wisconsin . There was one instance when a young girl watches a man transform into a dog man. Could be a skin walker or shapeshifter. These are the most frequent sightings.
The second most frequent are bigfoots. There are seen all over the place. They have been known to hunt deer and throw rocks at people. There have been reports of them appearing suddenly and then disappearing suddenly. Some even speculate that bigfoot might be able to affect the environment around him. Like making one feel fear and controlling the weather. Bigfoot is found almost all over the place.
People have been pursued by invisible beings. All they hear is leaves crunching behind them but never see anything. One person was abducted by invisible dwarves who wanted to kill him but in the end they let him go.
The author discusses 33 different cases. In many, but not all the areas where these cryptids are found there are often sighting of UFO’s and flashing lights in the sky. Some of these areas are known to be spooky with green mists rolling around making people sick and messing with the electronics. Thing is no one ever manages to get solid proof and credible people are often ignored or ridiculed.
The dogmen are basically humanoid like canines. They show up on people and tend to send psychic messages. While not many have been hurt there have been times when they have delivered a threatening presence. There are times when the dogmen have chased people in their cars. Others who witness them feel that if situation were different the dogmen would be hunting them down. Many cases have been reported in Wisconsin . There was one instance when a young girl watches a man transform into a dog man. Could be a skin walker or shapeshifter. These are the most frequent sightings.
The second most frequent are bigfoots. There are seen all over the place. They have been known to hunt deer and throw rocks at people. There have been reports of them appearing suddenly and then disappearing suddenly. Some even speculate that bigfoot might be able to affect the environment around him. Like making one feel fear and controlling the weather. Bigfoot is found almost all over the place.
People have been pursued by invisible beings. All they hear is leaves crunching behind them but never see anything. One person was abducted by invisible dwarves who wanted to kill him but in the end they let him go.
The author discusses 33 different cases. In many, but not all the areas where these cryptids are found there are often sighting of UFO’s and flashing lights in the sky. Some of these areas are known to be spooky with green mists rolling around making people sick and messing with the electronics. Thing is no one ever manages to get solid proof and credible people are often ignored or ridiculed.
May 17, 2024
The author uses a shocking amount of conjecture and coincidence to almost fool you into thinking that these cherry-picked stories all have something in common. All we end up determining is somewhat obvious: delusional people make up similar stories that are simultaneously extremely unique and painfully similar. How easy would it be? One person makes up a story, hallucinates, or mistakes a nightmare for reality. Perhaps innocent, many times less so. They report a story to Linda, or Linda finds them. Then, once the story is published, anyone seeking some attention can contact the author directly and share their encounter. If their copycat story includes the right amount of arbitrary details tied together by the author, a couple of curveball details to make it worth publishing, and they present a semi-honest facade, that story gets put in a book.
Luckily, the author rarely questions anyone's character, doesn't ever wonder why every single person requests a fake name, and applauds those who run away and never go back. The most impressive investigation circles around a farmer who found strange footprints in what appears to be melting snow in a field. He didn't catch anything on trail cams (of course, placement is key), and once caught what appeared to be some fog on camera. From this evidence, we conclude a bipedal dog creature appears out of the mist at random.
The barely coherent strings tying this together leads to the theory that portal jumping werewolves with contradicting intentions and modus operandi unknown, not only exist, but they're taking anything from Bigfoots (a hilarious plural) capable of piloting flying saucers to self-governing green mists into some spectral realm beyond human comprehension. They're out there and you should be afraid.
Only partake if you truly believe everything you read.
Luckily, the author rarely questions anyone's character, doesn't ever wonder why every single person requests a fake name, and applauds those who run away and never go back. The most impressive investigation circles around a farmer who found strange footprints in what appears to be melting snow in a field. He didn't catch anything on trail cams (of course, placement is key), and once caught what appeared to be some fog on camera. From this evidence, we conclude a bipedal dog creature appears out of the mist at random.
The barely coherent strings tying this together leads to the theory that portal jumping werewolves with contradicting intentions and modus operandi unknown, not only exist, but they're taking anything from Bigfoots (a hilarious plural) capable of piloting flying saucers to self-governing green mists into some spectral realm beyond human comprehension. They're out there and you should be afraid.
Only partake if you truly believe everything you read.
August 2, 2019
Tedious, Long & too Much Discussion
I normally love these kinds of books, especially the witness stories of their encounters. While this book is well researched, the constant discussions of what things relate to bog the book down. The fact sheets after each encounter were undoubtedly included to appeal to the skeptics. This book is best for a newbie, looking to learn about the unknown. I personally prefer books where the focus is on the encounters themselves, without doctoral dissertations. They took all the fun out of what could've been a great book. A better example are the works of Lyle Blackburn. He includes the stories, extensive research, yet never become boring. They are hard to put down. Not this book. I read this book using immersion reading while listening to the audio book. Narration was rite as well. It often put me to sleep and was hard to finish.
I normally love these kinds of books, especially the witness stories of their encounters. While this book is well researched, the constant discussions of what things relate to bog the book down. The fact sheets after each encounter were undoubtedly included to appeal to the skeptics. This book is best for a newbie, looking to learn about the unknown. I personally prefer books where the focus is on the encounters themselves, without doctoral dissertations. They took all the fun out of what could've been a great book. A better example are the works of Lyle Blackburn. He includes the stories, extensive research, yet never become boring. They are hard to put down. Not this book. I read this book using immersion reading while listening to the audio book. Narration was rite as well. It often put me to sleep and was hard to finish.
February 28, 2018
I had a lot of fun reading this book for more than half of the book. Most of the accounts towards the end became repetitive and a lot of the stories seemed to come from people whose accounts seemed not so trust worthy. The author also makes several arguments protecting the stories, and skeptical perspectives could have been used more. I heard about Godfrey on a podcast called Astonishing Legends and she seemed to be an interesting author so I got her book. I do not think that it convinced me that the supernatural exists, but it was a fun read non the less. If you are into spooky accounts and stories that make you scratch your head, you would probably like this book.
January 19, 2019
I really enjoyed the stories, along with how the writer/investigator tied them together. The tongue-in-cheek language seemed appropriate and gave it some humor. Having listened to it on Audible, the "case summaries" that appear periodically seemed liked interruptions. Since sets of stories were presented together and the author presented them in groups, the case summaries seemed to come randomly, and because they came AFTER the story they're summarizing, it seemed to slow down the stories and interrupt the drama. That said, if you're a fan of the paranormal, this is worth reading for the church scene alone.
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