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The Horrors of Fox Hollow Farm: Unraveling the History & Hauntings of a Serial Killer's Home
Fox Hollow Farm, the infamous Indiana property where Herb Baumeister allegedly murdered at least eleven men, has a grim past and an unsettling present. This riveting book pieces together the story of the tragic case and explores the paranormal encounters that continue to this day, delving into the psyche of a suspected murderer and the terrifying supernatural activity that lingers in the aftermath of such unspeakable evil. The Horrors of Fox Hollow Farm provides detailed insights from the original criminal investigation as well as the perspectives of the man who survived Herb's attempt on his life. This chilling book also features actual supernatural evidence―from EVPs and psychic confirmations to first-hand accounts of the disembodied hands and voices that regularly manifest on the estate.
240 pages, Paperback
First published September 8, 2019
210 people are currently reading
1783 people want to read
About the author
Richard Estep
72 books198 followersI'm a 48-year-old child who has no plans to ever actually grow up.
I make my living as a paramedic, clinical educator, for a busy hospital system and work as a street medic in a 911 system.
In my free time, I serve as the director of the Boulder County Paranormal Research Society, and investigate claims of haunted properties, people, and objects on both sides of the Atlantic. I love to read, particularly SF/Fantasy, history and historical fiction, the paranormal, and basically anything that piques my interest. I appear on the TV shows Haunted Hospitals, Paranormal 911, Paranormal Night Shift, Haunted Case Files, and several others.
I am an avid video gamer, table-top gamer, and love to build Lego. My wife and I are the proud humans of five adopted rescue cats and one smelly but adorable dog.
I make my living as a paramedic, clinical educator, for a busy hospital system and work as a street medic in a 911 system.
In my free time, I serve as the director of the Boulder County Paranormal Research Society, and investigate claims of haunted properties, people, and objects on both sides of the Atlantic. I love to read, particularly SF/Fantasy, history and historical fiction, the paranormal, and basically anything that piques my interest. I appear on the TV shows Haunted Hospitals, Paranormal 911, Paranormal Night Shift, Haunted Case Files, and several others.
I am an avid video gamer, table-top gamer, and love to build Lego. My wife and I are the proud humans of five adopted rescue cats and one smelly but adorable dog.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 206 reviews
August 4, 2019
I found that this was fascinating even if you are familiar with the story of Fox Hollow Farm and Herb Baumeister’s serial killings that took place there. Since much of it deals with things that have happened since then, it’s still of interest. It is of a paranormal bent, so if that is not your thing, you may want to pass on this one. I found it very interesting, even though I’d seen several shows covering similar things, such as Ghost Adventures, etc. The first part is written by written by Richard Estep, then Robert Graves, the current owner of Fox Hollow, takes up the story. Estep goes over the investigation of the property during times spent there.
Rob Graves tells of his experience from first learning of the place, deciding to buy it and the extended time it took to finally agree on an amount, and finally getting a call from the seller agreeing on a price much later. Then what it had been like from that point on living on such an estate, and the huge amount of time and money it takes to maintain it. Also how his wife and a tenant had begun having experiences with ghosts, unexplainable sounds, knocking when no one was there, ect. This led to the family eventually allowing paranormal investigators in.
There was plenty of information that was new to me, despite all I’d already seen and read about the subject to keep my interest, so others who are new to it, or only know some of the story should have no problem finding lots of interest in this story. I’d suggest this for those who like true crime and paranormal on one of the only crime scenes of its kind that is still standing, let alone being lived in as a residence by a family. Advance electronic review copy was provided by NetGalley, authors Richard Estep & Robert Graves, and the publisher.
First published on my WordPress blog:
https://wordpress.com/post/bookblog20...
Rob Graves tells of his experience from first learning of the place, deciding to buy it and the extended time it took to finally agree on an amount, and finally getting a call from the seller agreeing on a price much later. Then what it had been like from that point on living on such an estate, and the huge amount of time and money it takes to maintain it. Also how his wife and a tenant had begun having experiences with ghosts, unexplainable sounds, knocking when no one was there, ect. This led to the family eventually allowing paranormal investigators in.
There was plenty of information that was new to me, despite all I’d already seen and read about the subject to keep my interest, so others who are new to it, or only know some of the story should have no problem finding lots of interest in this story. I’d suggest this for those who like true crime and paranormal on one of the only crime scenes of its kind that is still standing, let alone being lived in as a residence by a family. Advance electronic review copy was provided by NetGalley, authors Richard Estep & Robert Graves, and the publisher.
First published on my WordPress blog:
https://wordpress.com/post/bookblog20...
November 23, 2019
True story: Once, when I was about seven or eight years old, I had an encounter with a ghost. My family and I had just moved into our new suburban home in Bay Village, Ohio. It was the first night in my own room in my own bed.
That first night in my own room, in my own bed, I remember laying there, trying to get to sleep. The excitement and fear of the move was still fresh, so I was tossing and turning. I remember that I slept with the door closed half-way and with no night light. My eyes may have been closed, but it didn’t matter. The darkness was total. I felt someone sit at the foot of my bed. The bed even creaked a little under the weight of the person. I assumed it was my mother coming in to wish me good night. I felt a hand brush hair out of my face and rest on my shoulder.
It was then that my mother opened the door, coming into my bedroom, letting light from the hallway spill into the room. It turns out, she hadn't been sitting there at all. I looked down at the foot of the bed. There was nobody there.
****
There are people who love ghost stories and people who don’t love ghost stories. My wife doesn’t like them. She gets that wide-eyed “I don’t want to hear anymore” look and, more often than not, leaves the room or picks up a magazine or her iPhone to do something else. This is why we don’t, and probably never will, watch horror movies together. (I have to wait until she’s in bed.)
I, on the other hand, love ghost stories. I love the sensation of goosebumps forming up and down my arms, the feeling of the little hairs on the back of my neck rising. I love to feel scared.
Truth be told, it takes a lot to scare me. I can watch most horror movies and not flinch. What most movie producers call “scary” movies nowadays are simply exercises in gratuitous violence and torture. I don’t find that shit scary. I just find it stupid. If I want to watch evil people doing evil things to innocent people, I will simply watch the evening news.
A good ghost story, however, can be titillatingly awesome. It’s fear porn, and I love it.
But why do I get a thrill out of ghost stories while my wife absolutely loathes them? I think part of the answer lies within our individual belief systems.
My wife has always had more religious faith than me. She believes in God, with all that entails, with an ease and a simplicity that I envy. I, however, have a hard time believing in God and all that stuff. Even when I went through a “born-again” phase in my thirties (somewhat short-lived but very very intense), I was never completely sold on the existence of God. I still love Jesus, but his dad’s another story.
What the hell does this have to do with ghost stories? It should be obvious, but in case it’s not, I’ll tell you: If you believe in God, you probably believe in the supernatural, because God is supernatural. Along with God (usually) comes the belief in things like heaven and hell, the devil, angels and demons, purgatory, the soul. I have never met a truly devout believer in God who didn’t believe in that stuff. It’s kind of required.
This is why my wife gets scared listening to ghost stories. It’s because she believes them.
I want to believe. Really, I do. I’m not sure if life would be easier if I did, but it would certainly be a helluva lot more explainable.
****
I’m not sure at what point I started questioning my childhood ghost experience. At the time, I never questioned it. It was a ghost. Plain and simple. I remember not being all that scared at the time because I don’t think it was a bad ghost. In fact, I was pretty certain that it was just a lonely ghost, welcoming me into our new house. (Years later, my mother told me that the original owners had a son that died of an illness in my room. He would have been about my age at the time, maybe slightly older.)
My point is, I believed it happened. It was only in my early adult years that I started looking back and wondering if I had simply imagined it, or if I had been half-asleep and half-dreaming when it happened. My mind had played a trick on me. Of course there wasn’t a ghost. Ghosts don’t exist.
But I know that this is simply a jaded, cynical view held by an agnostic who has been turned off by religion and God and all that that entails and not an objective opinion based on personal experience and research and a gut feeling.
I’m not sure at what point I stopped believing in God, but it’s probably about the same time I stopped believing in ghosts.
****
Richard Estep and Robert Graves, the authors of the nonfiction book, “The Horrors of Fox Hollow Farm”, believe in ghosts. Unquestionably. I mean, it’s not even a debate with them. To them, ghosts are simply a fact of life. Or after-life. Whatever.
Estep is a paranormal investigator (like those ghost hunters on the countless TV shows that I occasionally watch and make fun of while my wife runs out of the room) who has written at least a dozen books on the subject.
Graves is the owner of Fox Hollow Farm, a mansion in the middle of nowhere in Indiana, where a famous serial killer lived and committed dozens of murders of young men. The remains of over thirty victims were found scattered in the fields and woods surrounding the estate, and the FBI thinks that there are probably countless more that have never been recovered. Graves, to this day, still lives there with his wife and children.
The book is fascinating, for many reasons. The first half is the story of Herb Baumeister, the original owner of the estate, a well-liked and, by all accounts, friendly member of the community, husband, and father. He also liked to frequent gay bars, take home young men, and kill them. During the late-1980s and early-90s---when his killing spree took place---local, state and federal law enforcement agencies were closing in on him. Baumeister, feeling the heat, ended up taking his own life.
The story didn’t end there, though.
Many years later, the Graves family bought the house for a pretty good deal. They knew about the sordid history of the place, but they weren’t scared off. Then, strange things started happening. Weird power outages. TVs and vacuum cleaners turning on by themselves. Unsettling noises at night. Visions of strange figures walking in the woods.
The second half of the book is the story of Estep and his team of paranormal experts who were called in to see if this was a haunting or something else. It’s probably not a spoiler to say that it was a haunting. And it was something else. Something far creepier.
I’m not gonna lie: I had goosebumps from page one until the end. It truly freaked me out.
Which led me to wonder: why is this book scaring me? Am I starting to believe in ghosts and the supernatural?
The truth is: I don’t know. Maybe.
****
This may sound sentimentally cheesy and sappy to people who don’t have children, but for those of you who have children, you may get it:
Roughly six years ago, after my wife and I entered the hospital for that frightening, nerve-wracking but simultaneously exciting and joyous day, my daughter was born. When her tiny naked china-doll form was placed in my nervous arms for the first time, I had a thought I hadn’t had in many years: maybe there is a God...
It’s a thought that hasn’t gone away. In fact, it’s kind of like an ear-worm. It just keeps growing and growing and getting more annoying with every passing day, but it always shows up, like a bad penny.
And that experience that I had as a child shows up every once in a while, too. When it does, I am less inclined to dismiss the memory as an overactive imagination. I am beginning to think that it actually happened. It was a paranormal experience. A ghost experience.
Maybe one day I can tell my wife the story without her running out of the room...
That first night in my own room, in my own bed, I remember laying there, trying to get to sleep. The excitement and fear of the move was still fresh, so I was tossing and turning. I remember that I slept with the door closed half-way and with no night light. My eyes may have been closed, but it didn’t matter. The darkness was total. I felt someone sit at the foot of my bed. The bed even creaked a little under the weight of the person. I assumed it was my mother coming in to wish me good night. I felt a hand brush hair out of my face and rest on my shoulder.
It was then that my mother opened the door, coming into my bedroom, letting light from the hallway spill into the room. It turns out, she hadn't been sitting there at all. I looked down at the foot of the bed. There was nobody there.
****
There are people who love ghost stories and people who don’t love ghost stories. My wife doesn’t like them. She gets that wide-eyed “I don’t want to hear anymore” look and, more often than not, leaves the room or picks up a magazine or her iPhone to do something else. This is why we don’t, and probably never will, watch horror movies together. (I have to wait until she’s in bed.)
I, on the other hand, love ghost stories. I love the sensation of goosebumps forming up and down my arms, the feeling of the little hairs on the back of my neck rising. I love to feel scared.
Truth be told, it takes a lot to scare me. I can watch most horror movies and not flinch. What most movie producers call “scary” movies nowadays are simply exercises in gratuitous violence and torture. I don’t find that shit scary. I just find it stupid. If I want to watch evil people doing evil things to innocent people, I will simply watch the evening news.
A good ghost story, however, can be titillatingly awesome. It’s fear porn, and I love it.
But why do I get a thrill out of ghost stories while my wife absolutely loathes them? I think part of the answer lies within our individual belief systems.
My wife has always had more religious faith than me. She believes in God, with all that entails, with an ease and a simplicity that I envy. I, however, have a hard time believing in God and all that stuff. Even when I went through a “born-again” phase in my thirties (somewhat short-lived but very very intense), I was never completely sold on the existence of God. I still love Jesus, but his dad’s another story.
What the hell does this have to do with ghost stories? It should be obvious, but in case it’s not, I’ll tell you: If you believe in God, you probably believe in the supernatural, because God is supernatural. Along with God (usually) comes the belief in things like heaven and hell, the devil, angels and demons, purgatory, the soul. I have never met a truly devout believer in God who didn’t believe in that stuff. It’s kind of required.
This is why my wife gets scared listening to ghost stories. It’s because she believes them.
I want to believe. Really, I do. I’m not sure if life would be easier if I did, but it would certainly be a helluva lot more explainable.
****
I’m not sure at what point I started questioning my childhood ghost experience. At the time, I never questioned it. It was a ghost. Plain and simple. I remember not being all that scared at the time because I don’t think it was a bad ghost. In fact, I was pretty certain that it was just a lonely ghost, welcoming me into our new house. (Years later, my mother told me that the original owners had a son that died of an illness in my room. He would have been about my age at the time, maybe slightly older.)
My point is, I believed it happened. It was only in my early adult years that I started looking back and wondering if I had simply imagined it, or if I had been half-asleep and half-dreaming when it happened. My mind had played a trick on me. Of course there wasn’t a ghost. Ghosts don’t exist.
But I know that this is simply a jaded, cynical view held by an agnostic who has been turned off by religion and God and all that that entails and not an objective opinion based on personal experience and research and a gut feeling.
I’m not sure at what point I stopped believing in God, but it’s probably about the same time I stopped believing in ghosts.
****
Richard Estep and Robert Graves, the authors of the nonfiction book, “The Horrors of Fox Hollow Farm”, believe in ghosts. Unquestionably. I mean, it’s not even a debate with them. To them, ghosts are simply a fact of life. Or after-life. Whatever.
Estep is a paranormal investigator (like those ghost hunters on the countless TV shows that I occasionally watch and make fun of while my wife runs out of the room) who has written at least a dozen books on the subject.
Graves is the owner of Fox Hollow Farm, a mansion in the middle of nowhere in Indiana, where a famous serial killer lived and committed dozens of murders of young men. The remains of over thirty victims were found scattered in the fields and woods surrounding the estate, and the FBI thinks that there are probably countless more that have never been recovered. Graves, to this day, still lives there with his wife and children.
The book is fascinating, for many reasons. The first half is the story of Herb Baumeister, the original owner of the estate, a well-liked and, by all accounts, friendly member of the community, husband, and father. He also liked to frequent gay bars, take home young men, and kill them. During the late-1980s and early-90s---when his killing spree took place---local, state and federal law enforcement agencies were closing in on him. Baumeister, feeling the heat, ended up taking his own life.
The story didn’t end there, though.
Many years later, the Graves family bought the house for a pretty good deal. They knew about the sordid history of the place, but they weren’t scared off. Then, strange things started happening. Weird power outages. TVs and vacuum cleaners turning on by themselves. Unsettling noises at night. Visions of strange figures walking in the woods.
The second half of the book is the story of Estep and his team of paranormal experts who were called in to see if this was a haunting or something else. It’s probably not a spoiler to say that it was a haunting. And it was something else. Something far creepier.
I’m not gonna lie: I had goosebumps from page one until the end. It truly freaked me out.
Which led me to wonder: why is this book scaring me? Am I starting to believe in ghosts and the supernatural?
The truth is: I don’t know. Maybe.
****
This may sound sentimentally cheesy and sappy to people who don’t have children, but for those of you who have children, you may get it:
Roughly six years ago, after my wife and I entered the hospital for that frightening, nerve-wracking but simultaneously exciting and joyous day, my daughter was born. When her tiny naked china-doll form was placed in my nervous arms for the first time, I had a thought I hadn’t had in many years: maybe there is a God...
It’s a thought that hasn’t gone away. In fact, it’s kind of like an ear-worm. It just keeps growing and growing and getting more annoying with every passing day, but it always shows up, like a bad penny.
And that experience that I had as a child shows up every once in a while, too. When it does, I am less inclined to dismiss the memory as an overactive imagination. I am beginning to think that it actually happened. It was a paranormal experience. A ghost experience.
Maybe one day I can tell my wife the story without her running out of the room...
January 6, 2022
This was okay, I enjoyed the paranormal parts more than the true crime parts (but that part only took up a small portion of the book). And the Ghost Adventures mention! I remember that episode even though it's been years. It's pretty good as an audiobook too.
September 18, 2019
Fox Hollow Farm, the infamous Indiana property where at least eleven murders of gay men occurred at the hands of mad man Herb Baumeister . Have you heard of the case of Fox Hollow Farm? I have not but sure found out a lot of information about the case.
A couple and their children purchased the farm after it sat vacant for many years, after all who wants the stigma of living in the "murder house" ?
Almost as soon as they moved in paranormal activities started manifesting.
After a tragedy such as this the building is usually torn down. In this case it was left standing and of course grabbed the morbid curiosity of many thrill seekers who dared each other to go there to explore.
When the family moves in they work with paranormal investigators who thoroughly research the case and use the latest equipment to "make contact" with the spirits and entities .
Many sightings in the woods surrounding the home, day and night both. Contact was also made through evp (electronic voice phenomena ). Clearly and concisely presented book. I do believe in the paranormal . What about you?
Published September 8th 2019 by Llewellyn Publications.
I was given a complimentary copy of this book. Thank you.
All opinions expressed are my own.
A couple and their children purchased the farm after it sat vacant for many years, after all who wants the stigma of living in the "murder house" ?
Almost as soon as they moved in paranormal activities started manifesting.
After a tragedy such as this the building is usually torn down. In this case it was left standing and of course grabbed the morbid curiosity of many thrill seekers who dared each other to go there to explore.
When the family moves in they work with paranormal investigators who thoroughly research the case and use the latest equipment to "make contact" with the spirits and entities .
Many sightings in the woods surrounding the home, day and night both. Contact was also made through evp (electronic voice phenomena ). Clearly and concisely presented book. I do believe in the paranormal . What about you?
Published September 8th 2019 by Llewellyn Publications.
I was given a complimentary copy of this book. Thank you.
All opinions expressed are my own.
May 1, 2020
I really wasn't sure what to expect from this book. It was the first book I have read of its kind.
Although I had, like many ,heard of the terrible events of Fox Hallow Farm, I didn't know a huge amount about it.
I found this book hugely informative, and the investigation undertaken fascinating.
The felt the whole book was written in a very respectful way towards the people interviewed, the victims and families involved.
I voluntarily read and reviewed this book,all thoughts and opinions are my own.
Although I had, like many ,heard of the terrible events of Fox Hallow Farm, I didn't know a huge amount about it.
I found this book hugely informative, and the investigation undertaken fascinating.
The felt the whole book was written in a very respectful way towards the people interviewed, the victims and families involved.
I voluntarily read and reviewed this book,all thoughts and opinions are my own.
January 18, 2020
An interesting and weird little book, true crime blended with paranormal nonfiction. I would’ve enjoyed it more, I think, had more of the book focused on the true crime aspect, though. Also — very creepy. Not a book to read alone in the dark.
October 1, 2021
3,5*
We are introduced here to the case of serial killer Herb Baumeister. However there is not much exploration on the true crime story and the book soon becomes a full on paranormal investigation.
It goes in depth into some techniques and some explanations on how to detect a presence, how to know if a place is haunted and how to capture that in audio or film.
A team of people will go to investigate Fox Hollow Farm to see if there are any spirits haunting a place that gave shelter to a cold blooded serial killer.
We are introduced here to the case of serial killer Herb Baumeister. However there is not much exploration on the true crime story and the book soon becomes a full on paranormal investigation.
It goes in depth into some techniques and some explanations on how to detect a presence, how to know if a place is haunted and how to capture that in audio or film.
A team of people will go to investigate Fox Hollow Farm to see if there are any spirits haunting a place that gave shelter to a cold blooded serial killer.
May 22, 2020
This was an interesting book about Herb Baumeister who murdered many young men at Fox Hollow Farm and the paranomal aftermath at the farm that followed the murders. Even though this was mainly a story about the hauntings, I was impressed by how the author laid the ground work by detailing Herb Baumeister's life and crimes. All in all, it was a very interesting read.
August 30, 2019
A fascinating story that advances the always present question...does a crime scene absorb the evil of the crime only to forever reflect that crime? Both sides of the story are well researched, the crime and the aftermath. Richard Estep and Robert Graves obviously spent a considerable amount of time and effort to insure this story was a great reading experience. There was never a boring or slow chapter. True crime done right!
July 28, 2019
Received this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Wowsa...this is non-fiction and 5% in I'm already freaked the eff out. 😳
Wowsa...this is non-fiction and 5% in I'm already freaked the eff out. 😳
August 17, 2022
Two of my favorite subject: true crime and ghosts. I knew about this case but it's one that I'm always looking to learn more about. There's something about the cases where the killer unalives themselves and leaves so many unanswered questions. Those are the ones that I find myself going back to the most because there's so much that's unknown and they also seem to be the most haunting cases.
January 30, 2025
Overall, I think this was a good book. I was just hoping for more information on Herb and his victims. I did not realize the book was based mainly off of ghost sightings in paranormal activity that still occurs at the house today.
November 4, 2024
Interesting!!
November 19, 2023
An interesting book, but American ghost hunting (from the admittedly limited amount I've been exposed to) always seems to get more and more dramatic. It's not just the house of a serial killer which is haunted, there have to be demons and elementals, a tale of attempted redemption from beyond the grave. All a bit much
July 8, 2019
Check out my full review over on my blog: https://allthebookblognamesaretaken.b...
I received a free digital ARC from Llewelyn via NetGalley in the change for an honest review.
I received a free digital ARC from Llewelyn via NetGalley in the change for an honest review.
December 31, 2020
Shout out to my friend Stephanie for recommending this book!!
My main reason for reading this was because it’s location was very, very close to where I grew up...literally down the street a few miles. I was in high school when these horrible crimes were discovered so I wasn’t quite aware of them until now. For me, it was a quick read and especially riveting in the beginning. I remember having to stop reading it late into the night since it was beginning to scare even me. I appreciate the willingness of the homeowner to allow people in his home to investigate and then to subsequently help in the writing of the book. It’s not a book for everyone but I enjoyed it for what it was.
My main reason for reading this was because it’s location was very, very close to where I grew up...literally down the street a few miles. I was in high school when these horrible crimes were discovered so I wasn’t quite aware of them until now. For me, it was a quick read and especially riveting in the beginning. I remember having to stop reading it late into the night since it was beginning to scare even me. I appreciate the willingness of the homeowner to allow people in his home to investigate and then to subsequently help in the writing of the book. It’s not a book for everyone but I enjoyed it for what it was.
July 15, 2021
interesting story, specially regarding the fact that it’s about the paranormal activities at the farm after herb’s serial killings. the writing, on the other hand, would only be considered decent if a 12 year old had written the book. the author seems to really like foreshadowing things but incapable of doing that, so in every chapter there’s at least a paragraph foreshadowing the future events that just fall flat
July 3, 2019
Herb Baumeister was a (suspected) serial killer in the 80s and early 90s whose crime spree centered around the luring of gay men out of bars and strangling them. While he fled to Ontario and committed suicide before any sort of trial, he is linked to at least 11 murders due to human remains found spread in the woods around his home, Fox Hollow Farm. As the site of such a multitude of grisly murders, Fox Hollow Farm has naturally become a lightning rod for reports of supernatural happenings, which Richard Estep tackles in this book.
Admittedly, when I requested this book I did so expecting it to be a bit heavier on the True Crime aspect of the story. While the beginning third of the book does give some detail about Baumeister's life and (suspected) deeds, it does not go nearly into the depth that I normally like to see in true crime (details on victims, an in depth snapshot of Baumeister and his family life, police reports, etc). This is especially disappointing throughout the entire back two-thirds of the book, which reads like an episode of Ghost Hunters committed to print, with EVPs, thermal imaging, shadowy figures, a medium, and even Elementals given in depth coverage as Estep and his team attempt to chronicle any paranormal activity in the house and on its grounds.
It has to be said that I'm a skeptic at heart, which tends to hinder my enjoyment of any sort of treatment of the paranormal like this. I persevered, and while reading it with a grain of salt, the back half is a fun read. I'd definitely recommend this more for people with interest in the paranormal than I would for fans of true crime.
**I was given a copy of this book by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to Llewellyn Worldwide, Ltd..**
Admittedly, when I requested this book I did so expecting it to be a bit heavier on the True Crime aspect of the story. While the beginning third of the book does give some detail about Baumeister's life and (suspected) deeds, it does not go nearly into the depth that I normally like to see in true crime (details on victims, an in depth snapshot of Baumeister and his family life, police reports, etc). This is especially disappointing throughout the entire back two-thirds of the book, which reads like an episode of Ghost Hunters committed to print, with EVPs, thermal imaging, shadowy figures, a medium, and even Elementals given in depth coverage as Estep and his team attempt to chronicle any paranormal activity in the house and on its grounds.
It has to be said that I'm a skeptic at heart, which tends to hinder my enjoyment of any sort of treatment of the paranormal like this. I persevered, and while reading it with a grain of salt, the back half is a fun read. I'd definitely recommend this more for people with interest in the paranormal than I would for fans of true crime.
**I was given a copy of this book by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to Llewellyn Worldwide, Ltd..**
October 15, 2019
This book was a combination of true crime book and ghost story and it's hard to say which bit was creepier, the parts that are 100% proven (the serial killer targeting gay males in Indiana) or recounting of the haunting of the home where the crimes are supposed to have occurred.
The book starts with the history of the home and the horrors of an alleged serial killer and his crimes. It then goes in to the story of the next owner of the property and finally, into the paranormal investigation of the property by Richard Estep and his team.
I found the entire book utterly fascinating and didn't want to put it down.
I received an uncorrected ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, and my biggest complaint is that the version I started to read had missing letters that made it annoying/hard to read. I finally borrowed the final version from my library, which didn't have the same issue. That's the only reason it took me so long to finish. I actually read the hard copy version in one sitting.
*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, via NetGalley.*
The book starts with the history of the home and the horrors of an alleged serial killer and his crimes. It then goes in to the story of the next owner of the property and finally, into the paranormal investigation of the property by Richard Estep and his team.
I found the entire book utterly fascinating and didn't want to put it down.
I received an uncorrected ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, and my biggest complaint is that the version I started to read had missing letters that made it annoying/hard to read. I finally borrowed the final version from my library, which didn't have the same issue. That's the only reason it took me so long to finish. I actually read the hard copy version in one sitting.
*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, via NetGalley.*
August 27, 2019
I enjoyed the look into a serial killer's property where so many men have died at the hands of one. So often properties are torn down because they become tourist attractions and have the horrible memory attached to them forever. That is also the case with this property.
I don't remember hearing about this particular case, but I did find it fascinating that this property is still standing and the owners have allowed paranormal researchers into their home. I just don't think I could make a place such as this my home. I personally would be too freaked out.
The only thing I didn't really care for with this book was I wish it had focused a bit more on the victims. I know some weren't claimed by their families because of the stigma of being gay but it would've been nice to have a sort of tribute to those that suffered at the hands of this killer.
I was given an eARC by the publisher through NetGalley.
I don't remember hearing about this particular case, but I did find it fascinating that this property is still standing and the owners have allowed paranormal researchers into their home. I just don't think I could make a place such as this my home. I personally would be too freaked out.
The only thing I didn't really care for with this book was I wish it had focused a bit more on the victims. I know some weren't claimed by their families because of the stigma of being gay but it would've been nice to have a sort of tribute to those that suffered at the hands of this killer.
I was given an eARC by the publisher through NetGalley.
October 19, 2019
This book was very interesting but could give you nightmares - I didn't know anything about Fox Hollow Farm, so it was all new to me and if you don't like paranormal events, you will want to skip this book - He is very descriptive in his writing. If you are looking for a good "ghost" story to read for Halloween, this is it!!!
August 30, 2021
Laughable. The author describes himself as a „42 year-old child“ which is really impressive because he definitely writes like one.
Have you tried summoning the ghost of a dead gay man by playing "I will survive" by Gloria Gaynor on your phone, or are normal? Also the ghosts are apparently misogynistic?
Have you tried summoning the ghost of a dead gay man by playing "I will survive" by Gloria Gaynor on your phone, or are normal? Also the ghosts are apparently misogynistic?
November 9, 2023
Very interesting and had my attention the whole time.
May 11, 2024
I had high hopes for this book. I was hoping it delved more into the murders and murderer but was more about ghosts.
July 21, 2024
Haha I literally read this in one sitting over the day. This is a really grim tale, the story of Herb Baumeister and Fox Hollow Farm is one of true-crime’s nastier pieces, and this book touches on parts of that but is focused more on the haunting side of the house and the aftermath of the murders. It was a great read, I couldn’t put it down. Spooky and genuinely unnerving.
May 15, 2025
I listened to this as an audiobook. I thought it was ok, but I think only because I wanted to learn more about this specific family...
September 30, 2019
As always, an excellent journal of one of Richard's many paranormal investigations. If you are into the paranormal his books are a must read.
March 18, 2025
It was good but it’s not as much about the murders as it is the paranormal investigation into the house. It’s told by the investigator, primarily.
September 21, 2019
True crime + paranormal investigation = my cup of tea.
July 10, 2020
Super "fun" read for me - true crime turned haunted house! Loved that two authors contributed: the owner of the home and the head paranormal investigator. My idea of a great summer page turner.
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