Haunted Harbours: Ghost Stories from Old Nova Scotia

by Steve Vernon

Scary tales from Nova Scotia, by the author of The Tatterdemon Omnibus and Where the Ghosts A Guide to Nova Scotia’s Spookiest Places.   This is a collection of ghost stories from Nova Scotia—from the restless spirits of Devil’s Island to the Black Dog of Antigonish Harbour. Documented and well-known stories from the provincial archives are mixed with word-of-mouth legends of strange happenings and scary sightings from across the province. Author Steve Vernon relies on his storytelling experience to create moody and terrifying tales from the annals of history.  Praise for Steve Vernon  “Writing with a rare swagger and confidence, Steve Vernon can lead his readers through an entire gamut of emotions from outright fear and repulsion to pity and laughter.” —Cemetery Dance

Genres: Short Stories, Nonfiction, Horror, Ghost Stories, Canada, Folklore, Paranormal

134 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 29, 2006

About the author

Hi! I'm Steve Vernon and I'd love to scare you. Along the way I'll entertain you. I guarantee a giggle as well.

If I listed all of the books I've written I'd bore you - and I am allergic to boring.

Instead, let me recommend one single book of mine.

Pick up SUDDEN DEATH OVERTIME for an example of true Steve Vernon storytelling. It's hockey and vampires for folks who love hockey and vampires - and for folks who don't!

For more up-to-date info please follow my blog at:
http://stevevernonstoryteller.wordpre...

And follow me at Twitter:
@StephenVernon

yours in storytelling,

Steve Vernon

Reviews

[C. (Comment, never msg). · Rating 3 out of 5]

Steve Vernon is enthusiastic and would be fun in person. He is a traditional storyteller; not general story imparting but rather, the art. He would surely sound atmospheric and noted that books differ from this aural art. Indeed, the nature of this collection deviates from what I sought. Thus I strive for feedback that justly tempers expectation with what this well-researched body of work is.

I learned aural storytelling might begin factually but that this is unimportant. It is reactionary. Embellishment is permissible and very much the goal. I gradually understood: this is what was set down throughout these pages; a textual transference of the aural art. What I had sought were true ghost testimonies, which is what the title “Haunted Harbours” implied to me. The further I proceeded, the more clearly I was able to put a finger on what I wanted. Knowing the origins of a spirit or haunted spot is valuable and compelling but I realized what matters to me, are reports of sighting these phenomenon thereafter.

This book presents deaths that precipitated legends; alleged at that. Though one can see his research was extensive, he was after Nova Scotia stories; not necessarily accounts that are true. I thought of it as “Spiderman” describing how he came to be a supernatural hero but not being shown any of his exploits thereafter. Steve’s chapters close ahead of my favourite part. There is perhaps one line: “Some say a ghost is seen”.... In one case, he said a ghost sighting was associated with the history he imparted but alas, declared: “That is a story for another time”! My favourite aspect is how he fuses personal connections for us, with his selections. One true experience, about his Dad’s passing, was the most beautiful, private memory to have shared with us.

[Gef · Rating 4 out of 5]

I reviewed Steve Vernon's Halifax Haunts back in January and figured it was about time I read a few more ghost stories based on the local folklore. Vernon calls himself the hardest working horror author in Nova Scotia, and given the diligence in his research to compile these ghost stories I am not about to argue.

Where Halifax Haunts centered on Nova Scotia's capital for folklore, Haunted Harbours takes a broader approach and collects stories from across the province. And it's quite remarkable how rich the province's history is when it comes to ghost stories and reported hauntings when not a single story depicted in Vernon's book is a repeat from Bill Jessome's 1999 offering, Maritime Mysteries.

Vernon's writing comes off as very conversational. It's less like reading a book than it feels like you're listening to him spin a yarn at a kitchen party or campfire. Some of the finer details are lost to time, so Vernon fills them out with his own unique flourish, which--let's be honest--is the mark of any self-respecting storyteller. It's not a book meant to serve as an index but as a compendium of indelibly Nova Scotian ghost stories.

If I'm to gripe about the book, I'll take issue with how scant it is at 120 pages. No sooner did I become engrossed by a particular story, when Vernon would end it and move on to the next one. Each story is quite brief, allowing a reader to read through a couple on their coffee break. If you wish for a deep immersion into any specific story, you'll be disappointed. But if you're curious about Nova Scotia's history and would like to be hit with a scattershot blast of it, then this is just the book for you.

For me a few of the legends that sparked my interest involved the expulsion of Acadian settlers, the foreboding black dogs of Celtic legend, and shipwreck tales from the southern coast. On a personal note, I only wished to see more tales from the southwest of the province where I call home. But heck, who's to say Steve Vernon isn't cooking up yet another book of Maritime ghost stories? I still have to get around to reading his collection of New Brunswick tales, Wicked Woods.

[Steve Vernon]

Right off the bat - being the author, I am somewhat biased.

Haunted Harbours (excuse the Canadian spelling of Harbour) was my first ghost story collection. I pitched it at the very first Halifax Word on the Street Pitch-the-Publisher session and this one of the only books to actually make it to publication that year. There's 21 stories of Nova Scotia ghosts - with tales of Sable Island, Devils Island, the Teaser, the Hidey-Hinder, the Cape North Selkie and many other fine yarns. All of these stories are based on actual folklore and/or history. All I did was to "story" them us a bit and do my best to tell it in an authentic and exciting campfire style. I'd recommend this book to kids from the age of twelve on up to adulthood, seniority, senility and beyond.

Hey, ghosts have a right to read, don't they?

Yours in storytelling,



Steve Vernon

[Sacred Suzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of the most entertaining reading experiences I have had in a long time. Steve Vernon is the perfect storyteller. So many ghost story books are dry and boring. Steve brings heart, fear and the truth mixed with fiction to create a fun brew of stories that I just adored.

[Gayle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember some of these stories from my own dad. Brought back great memories. Thank you!

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting volume of local ghost stories centered around the waterways of Nova Scotia. An enjoyable read, but I'd love to hear them from a storyteller by a fire in some old tavern near the sea.

[Marloes D · Rating 4 out of 5]

Voor de zomer opdracht van de FNL 2024 kan je een boek lezen dat zich in Canada afspeelt. Deze bundel bevat spook verhalen uit Nova Scotia, een streek in Canada. Vernon is een meester verteller! Niet iedereen kan zo goed een verhaal neerzetten.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nova Scotia is an old province and has ghost stories still told. This is an interesting collection of those stories. Some are funny, many are quite spooky. Well told.

I chose this book for the 2024 52bookclubchallenge, prompt “A plot similar to another book.” (For me it is Haunted Shores by Dale Jarvis.)