The Bothell Hell House: Poltergeist of Washington State

by Keith Linder

True Haunted House story - 2012 Keith Linder after successfully obtaining a management position at a prestigious healthcare company decides the time is right for him and his girlfriend to move in together. That's putting things lightly. Weird things begin to happen within days of moving into the modern suburban home. The horrors Keith and his girlfriend witnessed and desperately tried to fight off would end up putting them at odds with members of the paranormal community and themselves. This griping story, told from the house occupant point of view not only lists tales, but also includes pictures, video reenactments, commentary, and audio of the events being reported. Keith Linder does not ask that you believe him. He only asks that you listen. The Bothell Hell House has finally arrived ladies and gentlemen. The house that Zak Bagans and his team came to investigate (albeit for a short time) only to leave empty handed has come full circle. The house occupant tells his story. The complete story which includes why Zak and crew left empty handed. Spontaneous fire outbreaks and inexplicable wall writings are not the most horrific things that happened here. Something more sinister lurks. Robb Tilley of the Australian Institute of Parapsychology Research says "This case is right up there with the most frightening of poltergeist the Enfield Poltergeist, the South Shields Poltergeist, the Bridgeport Connecticut case, and the Matthew Manning case; all well-researched and detailed in various books and documentaries over the years. The Bothell Hell House is a major work, a turning point in poltergeist
research—Well done. "

Genres: Paranormal

726 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 15, 2018

Reviews

[Cheryl · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sooooo ..... after being locked out of my Kindle app I've decided to have a bit of a clean up in my various "Books Read" lists. First cabs off the rank are my DNF pile. If I DNF'd it and have absolutely NO intention of reading it again, I'm changing my rating to 1 🌟 and deleting it off my Kindle. Life is too short at my age for crappy books!!

Original Review:

This is a 2.5 star

Interesting and well researched real life haunting but SO incredibly dry. 🥱 I left it unfinished at 17%.

[Steve Parcell · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off I want to praise Keith for having the courage and conviction in writing this book. I was fascinated on the whole and admire his fortitude.

He goes in to great detail on every aspect of his haunting and seriously I really don't know how he coped with this whilst trying to carry on a normal life. Indeed it adversely affected his relationship with his girlfriend and family but he did have a good circle of friends to fall back on.

The book also highlights the scale of quality of the paranormal groups out there. Unfortunately most were more interested in gaining fame and fortune in capturing the evidence and possibly an apparition. One well known TV programme could not catch anything so portrayed the couple as hoaxers. Fortunately the last couple of paranormal teams were more helpful and empathetic and gave Keith the assistance and proof he always knen was there.

My only criticism was it was possibly 50 pages too long but hats off to you Keith Linder for writing one of the best first person hauntings I have read and keeping your head high whilst under a barrage of unjustified online attacks.

[Kay Kidwiler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Proof that Zak Begins is a jerk

This book started out very slow for me but I read on and really got the full impact of what Keith and Tina went thru. I was raised in a haunted house. Nothing like this couple went thru but I had the poking and covers taken from me. Whispers in my pillow when trying to sleep. From my experience these people were haunted and the paranormal community should apologize for listening to someone who has used the paranormal for profit The Ghost Adventures Team.

[Bridget Holbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

Never have I read a more through book written about a haunted house. I believe Keith’s experience 100 %. His research and testing with the help of experts was phenomenal.
I highly recommend this book to any skeptic or anyone that likes to read true hauntings.

[Will Hoover · Rating 3 out of 5]

Now here's an interesting book about a real life (okay, alleged) "poltergeist" infestation that took place not all that long ago in Washington State. Without giving too awful much away, here's the skinny: A middle aged African American couple moves into their dream house (even though they're actually renting it) in a town (Bothell) not that far from Seattle. And then, lickety-split, before you even know it, potted plants are flying around the house all of their own accord - and even being thrown violently at nearby walls by unseen (presumably spectral) hands. Oh my, indeed! And on the couple's very first evening in the house, a disembodied voice of a child is heard to cough. Yikes! I by that, I mean SPOO-KAY! Yuh-huh. And THAT, folks, was just the very beginning.

So then, you guessed it, first time author Keith Linder and his girlfriend eventually ended up having to endure a whole host of increasingly violent, and sometimes just plain bizarre, paranormal phenomena. Including chairs being apported (a word which here means transported by supernatural agency from one location to another, presumably by some unseen entity or non-corporeal agent), the mysterious burning of a series of family Bibles (one after the other after the other), slamming doors, the repeated displacement of extremely heavy furniture (that would have taken more than one person to merely lift, let alone toss clear across a room), the repeated scrawling of sadistic phrases on walls in the house (and even stamped into the snow outside in the yard), something unseen honking the horn of Keith's car, and turning on the dome light when the vehicle was locked (all of which was captured on video and later judged, by certified specialists, to not be the result of any sort of known mechanical malfunction). Worse yet, in perhaps the creepiest disturbance of all, the author was subjected to nightly torment inflicted by a host of diminutive, shadowy phantom creatures that poked, prodded, and even seemed to be dancing around on the mattress of the couple's bed at night! And I mean, every single night, for literally years at a time.

So what did this beleaguered couple do then? Why, they suddenly got especially interested in all the various denominations of Christian groups in the surrounding area, of course. Well, not at first, but some people really do eventually get desperate enough to fall back on good old religion, you know. Even in places like fancy, highly liberal Washington State, believe it or not. Go figure. And yet, perhaps not unexpectedly, almost no one in the surrounding religious community seemed interested enough in the couple's dilemma to bother to help them very much at all.

But then, maybe it was because neither the author nor his girlfriend seem to have been particularly avid churchgoers. At least at that time in their lives. I mean, they sure as shootin' weren't Roman Catholics, that's for darn sure. However, that didn't stop the understandably distressed young couple from one day showing up (without an appointment) at a local Catholic church (which the author erroneously refers to as a "parish" throughout the entirety of the book - https://www.merriam-webster.com/dicti...), where the two more than likely proceeded to beg the priest in residence for immediate assistance.

And come on, who WOULDN'T eventually resort to pestering the local Catholic clergy, if, shall we say, things eventually just plain got Hollywood horror movie-style bad enough, right? I mean, isn't that what Catholic clergymen and women are just plain obligated to do any day of the week, 24/7/365? Isn't that their job? Well... actually, there's a whole lot more to their job description than simple ghost busting, but alas, this really is a review of a book about an alleged poltergeist infestation, and definitely not an educational pamphlet designed to dispel a number of incredibly pervasive (and just plain negative and highly erroneous) stereotypes about the Catholic Church in general.

Anyway, Keith and his girl weren't exactly married either, but were merely "shackin' up," as they say. Although... that is really not something that I would recommend that anyone walk into any old Catholic church and unceremoniously unload on the resident priest. Uh-uh. Nope. Not that the author did that, you understand. Of course not. I'm sure it all came out in fairly short order though. Besides, it's not like most people would just walk into any old Catholic church and just expect to be instantly served like the next customer at your neighborhood McDonald's, right? Nah! But then, I'm also pretty sure there isn't a single Catholic church anywhere on Earth with a sign outside that says, "5 BILLION DEMONS EXORCISED - AND COUNTING!" Yes, sir, just step right up, place your order, and drive 'round to the window, where a fully ordained priest will be waiting to simply drop everything to go bless your house.

But let's toss all that unwed stuff aside for now, shall we? 'Cause, hey, this IS the 21st century we're livin' in, ain't it? I mean, the human race is long past "the Dark Ages," right? Why, nowadays, our "modern" society is so "progressive" and "sexually liberated," that we even have "abortion on demand." Yeah! And who the heck are the local clergy to get all snooty and judgmental in the face of a gen-u-ine poltergeist infestation? I mean, right? But no worries on that account. In fact, in the book, the author simply relates how he and his significant other felt compelled to pay a personal visit to the local Catholic clergyman. Which is just fine, of course. However... just to be extra clear on the matter, I also really, strongly would not recommend... oh, I don't know, just... casually waltzing right into a mosque or a synagogue with a nice big ham sandwich, and then proceed to offer a sloppy slice of dead pig (aka non-Kosher meat, recently sliced off an animal with cloven hooves, no less) to the Imam or Rabbi on-site. But... maybe that's just me.

Anyhoo, good news! This little impromptu visit with the Catholic priest actually worked! Well, sort of. At first anyway. This particular priest, whom Keith Linder felt was pretty much ignoring him and his live-in girlfriend up to that point, actually did, with great kindness and charity, graciously receive the desperate couple who had nowhere else to turn. In fact, the three prayed together, and arrangements were made for the priest to go out and bless the poltergeist infested property. Good deal, right? Sure. The priest promised to do his due diligence, and eventually, really did do just exactly that. And on more than one occasion, mind you. He and his assistants even spent quite a lot of time in every room of the poltergeist infested joint, meticulously saying the usual prayers and tossing holy water on this and that as they went along. But... wouldn't ya know it, it didn't work all that well in the end. Or this wouldn't be an over 400 page book, now would it? Of course not, silly.

However, this is not to make light of, or cast aspersions on, author Keith Linder, his former girlfriend, or absolutely anyone who experienced the incredibly numerous and extremely well documented manifestations that occurred in the "Bothell Hell House" over the course of four terror-filled years. Of course not. In fact, if you take the time and trouble to read this book, I just about guarantee that you will grow to really like the author. I know I certainly did. In this book, Keith Linder really comes off as an extremely honest, level-headed, and all around good human being. In fact, I'd love to meet the man. I'd even be proud to call him a personal friend of mine. Despite the fact that the book is perhaps overly long (and not edited very well AT ALL), that is. But for a first time author, he honestly, still, really did a better than average job, I really must say. If nothing else, the man was incredibly meticulous in his reporting of the chilling events that allegedly took place at the Bothell residence - even long after his girlfriend had finally given up and fled the calamitous "hell house."

Yet still, I myself was raised in a devout Catholic household, and I can tell you, right here and right now, that, just like in pretty much any church (synagogue, mosque, etc) that you may happen to show up at, completely unannounced and unexpected, if you're not a member (and have no intention whatsoever of ever even seeking to become one) that absolutely no one in the building is under ANY obligation whatsoever (except perhaps an arguably moral one) to have to simply drop everything and run like heck, with their ever-lovin' buttocks on heavenly-fueled fire, to go chase the ghosts (or "geists," as Mr. Linder likes to call his poltergeist tormentors) out of ANY otherwise normal residence.

Yet still, that IS what the priest eventually did, of course. The numerous house blessing just didn't work particularly well. Or rather, the thorough, time-honored ritual blessings didn't work indefinitely, let's put it that way. 'Cause, see, that's how many of these terribly, terribly "haunted" poltergeist cases just go most of the time, apparently. And besides, the story didn't end there. A host of other investigators and religious (and non-religious)-type folks eventually visited the Bothell Hell House, too; all with varying results. With, by far, the absolute worst result of all coming from celebrity ghost hunter Zak Bagans and his crew from the TV series, Ghost Adventures. I mean, who knows? Maybe Zak simply wasn't wearing a tight enough t-shirt (to show his hunky bulging muscles) on the day he and his crew visited the Bothell Hell House. So hey, just read Keith's book yourself to get the full scoop. Who knows, you might even be glad you did.

Well, actually, if you're white and of even partial Irish Catholic heritage, you might want to brace yourself a bit before you get to the latter portion of the book. You know, the part where the usual haunted location schtick starts to rear it's all too typically trite, ugly (and possibly even RACIST?) head. Yeah, THAT part. The part where the author seems to sort of be suggesting: This house must have been built on top of sacred Native American land at some point, by gosh! But why are we getting so many EVP (electronic voice phenomena) recordings of ghost-like voices with (gasp!) IRISH ACCENTS? Well... well... it MUST be a nasty early white settler/INVADER thing, see! MUST BE! HAS TO BE! Sure. Why not?

Isn't THAT what ALL the ghost stories in America can all eventually be traced back to, right; bad white people?!? I mean, right? IT HAS TO BE THE WHITE MAN'S FAULT, DOGGONE IT! I mean, even "civil rights activist" El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz (better known as Malcolm X) said something pretty much akin to that very sentiment, didn't he? Like the vast majority of African Americans, he was partially Caucasian himself, but... well, at the very least, we can certainly get a pretty good idea just exactly which part of his very own racial makeup that he quite conveniently considered to be "the devil." And isn't the devil always lurking ever so ominously in the details of any and all bad things that just happen to happen in North America? Or... something like that. Well, anyway, we know (or are strongly indicated to know) who to blame in this particular case.

Ahem.

And to think, the author really had little white me up until that point. But hey! Maybe he's right. Right? I mean, if you're not white, ya have to be right! Right? I mean, maybe some devout Irish Catholic ghosties once had a settlement on the site the Bothell Hell House in days gone by, where the relatively new house was eventually constructed, and when hip, modern, (presumably) liberal ('cause, come on, it's Washington State we're talking about here), poor, unsuspecting Keith Linder and his woman friend moved in, WHAM-O!!! And maybe, just maybe... those old, devout, long dead Irish settlers are still hanging around, and they don't care too much for people who move in and sleep in the same bedroom, without even bothering to get hitched! Or, maybe that's just some silly idea that only a white person of partial Irish Catholic heritage would even be capable of dreaming up, eh? Although, I'm pretty darn sure that that is EXACTLY what African American author Keith Linder is actually STRONGLY hinting at here. Just maybe.

And come on, who REALLY, HONESTLY is a big, fancy expert on all this "geist" stuff anyway, right? Well, not little old me anyway, that's for sure. Nope. I just took my non-racist time (and even paid non-racist money) to read Mr. Linder's book in its entirety. Although, I do just happen to have a silly habit of actually THINKING for my very own non-racist self. You know, coming to my own conclusions - which I could, of course, BE TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY WRONG ABOUT, you know. Just like all the rest of us simple folks (of this, that, or ANY other "race") who aren't dead yet, and therefore simply do not yet have all the answers about Life, the Universe, and, well, everything.

At any rate, I honestly, really did enjoy reading Keith Linder's book. Up until the white guilt part, that is. Heck! I even gave him 3 out of 5 stars, doggonit! But then, I do almost always enjoy reading allegedly "true paranormal" accounts. And even though I say "allegedly," I honestly DO believe quite wholeheartedly that Keith Linder is totally and completely telling the truth to the very best of his ability about what he and his former girlfriend experienced in the infamous Bothell Hell House. In fact, Mr. Linder has not only written in great detail about the often violent and destructive events that occurred in the house on a consistent basis for four long, often torturous years, but the last time I checked, he also had a YouTube Channel with lots and lots of video (and audio) evidence that was actually captured in the house. To be fair, a good deal of his channel content is re-enactment footage (because these particular "geists" didn't seem to want to be on camera much at all, for some reason), but they DID cause an awful lot of physical damage to the house, which Keith Linder makes an extremely good case of showing that he himself (or anyone LIVING involved) had nothing at all to do with causing.

So again, my advice is, if you like reading about this kind of stuff, READ THIS BOOK. However, if you just happen to be living, unwed, with your girl or boyfriend, and a big, nasty poltergeist infestation just suddenly breaks out, I really, really would NOT recommend just waltzing into a Catholic (or pretty much ANY truly Christian) church and pretty much demanding (without actually coming out and saying as much) that the priest (or other allegedly holy person in residence) just drop everything and come and kick your noisy, cantankerous, and even downright violent "geist" tormentors out, just so you can go right back to doing your lawfully un-wedded thang. But, hey, maybe that's just me, eh?

[Cindi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Strong man.

The author is a very strong man to have lived with level of activity described. Very credible. Wish you well, Mr. Linder.

[Melinda Anders · Rating 5 out of 5]

I watched the Ghost Adventures episode when they went to the Bothell Hell House. I always felt that they treated Keith and Tina differently then any other house they had visited before. I always believed Keith and Tina that their house was haunted. Then I started hearing podcasts with Keith and I was so happy to get to read this book.
I truly think that Ghost Adventures owes them an apologize.

[casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

thank you

it takes great courage to tell your story and even greater courage to live in the Hell House. Thank you for sharing your story and helping others who have experienced the other side.

[Sandra Burns · Rating 5 out of 5]

I believe you. Long book, with story and links to instances. Pics also.

First, glad you moved! Was sad the lady killed herself. Wow , Tina and you, were brave to endure this for so long. It would have drove me insane. Also, glad that you were vindicated. Nothing worse, than being called a liar, for telling the truth. Final thought, unless the landlord was an imbicle, he knew something was going on. He should be held accountable, it at least told you about the quick moveouts of previous tenants. The electric company did,and the relator should have disclosed, regardless. Some things, people need to be aware of.

[Cheri Schaefer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just don't know what to believe about this!

It was an interesting read up to a point.
Once it went into the technology part I
Just started skimming through to the
end. This should have been proof read
because there were so many mistakes in
the writing that it became as much of a
nightmare to read s what they were going
through.
I felt sorry for what was happening, but wasn't
at all sure if it was totally true. I saw the
episode on Ghost Adventures and that woman
definitely have Zak an extremely nasty look.
I just couldn't finish the book. Anyway, God Bless
you, Keith. I hope everything is much better now!

[Rosie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Diarrhea of the mouth

Would have been had the author not kept repeating himself....like in rote...chi. 1 this is what happened...chip 2...this is what happened so he tell 1 again then 2....ans so on and so on and so on until you finally say " screw it. If he's not going to get on with it . "

[Victoria Majluf · Rating 2 out of 5]

Had the author just stuck to the facts instead of repeating himself and adding little unconsequential details, the book would have been half as long and more entertainning.

He kept mentioning every ghost investigator (no matter if they were introduced ealier), the book or the tv show they were on and,if possible, a link to their website.

[rienette · Rating 5 out of 5]

So scary

The best book I have read in years,scary, informative,genuine. I urge you to read this one and the follow up, it's unforgettable. My heart has been thumping with terror many nights when I read this. So many different investigators all came up with the same conclusion.I'm now downloading the follow up and can't wait. 10 out of 10 for me.

[Beth · Rating 1 out of 5]

They need a zero rating option button, especially for this so called booj

I couldn't even get through the first chapter on the book. It was boring and like the other's had said, he kept repeating himself.
It was like a high school student doing a crappy book report, so glad I didn't have to spend any of my money on this

[angela lenehan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thought I was never going to get through it

My goodness ,this is hard to read.Grammatically terrible. Rambling chapters where he often repeats himself again and again, Ghost Adventures mentioned in nearly every chapter if not page. Comes across as a very butter man who force feeds anyone who raises an eyebrow ,look look I've been vindicated. Definitely not a storyteller.

[Suzanne Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fascinating events that occurred when the author and his girlfriend rented a verified haunted house near Seattle, Washington.

Read this true story, expecting to be somewhat terrified, at what they endured. The writing should have been proofread first.

[Mary Lamb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read

I believe the story, I think if it were faked, it would have had some mysterious video evidence show up. As for Ghost Adventures, I have visited locations after them and heard some things that prove your point.

[Lucy Reid · Rating 1 out of 5]

Repetative

I got about 17% through this book before I gave up. It would have lasted about one paragraph, if it didn't keep repeating everything constantly, and padding the whole thing out with irrelevant nonsense.

[lisa m walton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

Great book. I would have been out way before he left. But very thorough with references and citations. Worth reading.

[Sarah-Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Bothell Hell House

Wow, what a read, don't think I would be able to cope with the poltergeist attacks. Keith is a very brave man to go through all this.

[Mer · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a wild story! Very long. Worst editing I have ever seen!

[Micheal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I first heard Keith Linder chatting with Ktown on the Supernatural Fears podcast. His story was pretty interesting, and so is his book, though I'm gonna recommend it, albeit reservedly. Not because of skepticism, no, ladies and gentlemen. And not because of the typos, wrongly used words and phrases, disorganised sentences and parapgraphs...No. I can live with these things and I'm gonna buy the claim that the poltergeists sabotaged the manuscript. I mean, I guess that is possible. No, the book is probably a hundred pages overlong and could've benefited from some gratuitous excisions. I like Keith's style, some might not but I did. I like how it reads like he's just in the room talking to you. But its stream of consciousness style is also its Achilles Heel cos it does get a bit repetetive. But no matter, cos at the end of the day it's still better written than The Amityville Horror! So, if you're into the supernatural and things that go bump in the night this book will make you hear them.
Oh! It was just the cat!