Shutter by Ramona Emerson

First Line: Souls don't scatter like the rest of the body.

 

Rita Todacheene is a forensic photographer for the Albuquerque Police Department. She has an uncanny knack for taking photos with such incredible detail that they've helped solve cases. 

 

What very few people don't know is that Rita sees the ghosts of crime victims, and these spirits point her in the direction of clues that other investigators overlook. Ghosts have ruled Rita's life from an early age. They are what drove her from a life on the Navajo Reservation, and they are responsible for her nightmares and lack of sleep.

 

When Rita is sent to the scene of a supposed suicide on a highway overpass, the furious ghost of the victim latches on to Rita, insisting that Rita prove she was murdered so the dead woman can have revenge on her killers. Little does Rita know, but this vengeful spirit is going to drag her right into the crosshairs of one of Albuquerque's most dangerous cartels.

 

~

 

When I read the synopsis of Shutter, I'm positive that I didn't read the whole thing. I remember seeing "forensic photographer", "Navajo Reservation", and "New Mexico", and I jumped at the chance to read it. Using my incredibly focused hindsight, I'm not entirely certain I would have read this book if I'd paid closer attention to the complete synopsis.

 

Shutter is part crime thriller, part supernatural horror, and part coming-of-age story. Which part would have kept me from reading this book? The supernatural horror part. Normally, I don't care to spend time with that particular genre. What kept me reading? The other two parts, that's what. The crime thriller was taut as a bowstring and often shocking. If gruesome depictions of crime scenes bother you, I would suggest you give this book a pass; however, I did not find the descriptions gratuitous-- they served to open wide the window into Rita's nightmarish world. The mystery wasn't easy to solve either.

 

The absolute best part of Shutter-- and the part that kept me glued to Rita's side-- was the coming of age aspect. Readers watch Rita as she grows up on the Navajo Reservation with her grandmother, who is deeply worried about Rita's "gift". The Navajo perspective of death and dealing with the dead is very different from most cultures, and I sincerely appreciated the opportunity to learn more about this.

 

Fortunately, the mystery and the coming of age aspects of Shutter helped keep me from mentally dropkicking Erma the supposed highway overpass suicide into the next world where she belonged-- talk about an annoying character! But... as much as I did enjoy the mystery and learning more about the Navajo culture, I'm not sure I would want to read another book featuring Rita. That indecision has everything to do with my own personal tastes in reading and very little to do with Shutter itself.

 

 

Shutter by Ramona Emerson

eISBN: 9781641293341

Soho Press © 2022

eBook, 312 pages

 

Thriller/Native American mystery

Rating: C+

Source: Net Galley

Midwinter of the Spirit by Phil Rickman

First Line: This is where it walks...

Merrily Watkins is in her thirties. She's a single mother, and she's the parish priest of Ledwardine, a small village in Herefordshire, England. And-- after the events that occurred in The Wine of Angels-- she's been approached by the new bishop to be a Deliverance Consultant. It's a job that's viewed with so much suspicion by the Church of England that it now goes by this kinder, gentler name instead of the old title: Diocesan Exorcist. Although she has misgivings as to her ability, she wants to do good, to make a difference, so she goes on the training course.

The training course gives her more doubts because even the instructor believes that it's not a job for a woman, but when she returns to her own parish, she has to hit the ground running. A seemingly unending stream of phone calls demand her help with some very strange goings on. The current Deliverance Consultant, a curmudgeonly old man on the verge of retirement, is not about to give her even a molecule of help, and neither is the bishop. The bishop, a handsome, self-assured political animal, wants to see if she's got the right stuff. Even her sixteen-year-old daughter Jane is bent on rebellion, not help.

The new position has begun badly for Merrily and shows no signs of improving. The old city of Hereford is experiencing an early winter. The body of an unidentified man is found in the River Wye. An ancient church is desecrated. Even the cathedral itself shows signs of evil, where the tomb of a medieval saint lies in pieces....

When I read the first book in this series, I fell in love with the setting and the atmosphere that Rickman created as well as his characters, but I had a bit of a problem with the length of the book (over 600 pages). When I picked up Midwinter of the Spirit to read, I didn't even remember the quibble about the previous book's length. All I remembered were the characters, the setting, and the atmosphere. That's all I needed to remember. At over 500 pages, this book isn't lightweight either, but I didn't care. Not one jot. I immediately fell into that setting-- the ancient buildings, the centuries-old traditions, the feeling that the past is always with us-- and Rickman's wonderful characters.

Merrily with her self doubts and her real need to do good... her infuriating and lovable teenage daughter Jane... the self-effacing Lol Robinson... they had all been indelibly imprinted on my mind from reading the first book, and I felt as though I were renewing acquaintance with old friends. I dove headlong into the story and grudgingly came up for air only when real life demanded that I do so.

I know many readers who do not care to read about the paranormal or the supernatural. I used to be one of them. One of the things that I love about Phil Rickman's Merrily Watkins series is that so much of the supernatural is implied; you can choose just how deeply you want to go into the story. It would be easy to read Midwinter of the Spirit and pay little to no attention to the supernatural elements. The motivations of the characters are no different: greed, jealousy, ambition, and Rickman certainly knows how to put together a plot by interweaving all these characters and all these reasons to cause harm.

Characters, setting, plot... and the delicious eerie atmosphere that can cause a tingle... or the hair to rise on the back of your neck. Wonderful! If you're in the mood for a rich, meaty, slightly spooky read just perfect for Halloween (or any other time of year), I can give you a tip: get your hands on one of Phil Rickman's Merrily Watkins books. Chances are, once you've read one, you'll be reaching for more. Can you read the books out of order? Yes, you can, but character development is key to the series, and I would advise against it. Why deny yourself the pleasure of reading Merrily from the beginning?

Midwinter of the Spirit by Phil Rickman

ISBN: 9780330374019

Macmillan UK © 2000

Paperback, 544 pages

Genre: Clerical Mystery, #2 Merrily Watkins

Rating: A

Source: Paperback Swap

Arizona Ghost Stories by Antonio R. Garcez

Title: Arizona Ghost Stories
Author: Antonio R. Garcez
ISBN: 0-9740988-0-9, Red Rabbit Press, 2005
Genre: Ghost Stories
Rating: B-

First Line: Arivaca, about 11 miles north of Arizona's border with Mexico, was mapped by Father Eusebio Kino in 1695.

Author Garcez takes us on a journey through the state of Arizona. All the towns he stops in along the way are in alphabetical order, and he gives a little history of each to set the stage for the ghost stories. In addition, ghost stories from several of the Native American tribes in the state are shared.

Garcez doesn't set out to explain ghosts, and he lets each person tell his own story. If you want to read a book filled with tales that are going to make the hair stand up on the back of your neck, I wouldn't pick this book up because I found it rather tame in that respect. But as a history (of sorts) of each town, I found it to be very interesting and well worth my time.

I have to confess that I did get a few cold chills reading about Bisbee and the Copper Queen Hotel. Denis and I spent our honeymoon in that historic hotel in a room on the third floor. On our way down to Bisbee, I joked with Denis, telling him that the third floor of the Copper Queen was supposedly haunted. That was the extent of my knowledge. We laughed about it for a minute or two, and then we forgot all about it.

On our second night there, I was awakened at 3 AM by what sounded like an angry Shaquille O'Neal in a pair of hob-nailed boots stomping up and down the hallway right outside our door. When it didn't stop, I got out of bed, crept over to the door, and looked out the peephole. Even though I could hear that loud, angry stomping right outside the door, I couldn't see a thing. I was immediately covered in goose flesh. Deciding that discretion was the better part of valor, I got back in bed, pulled the covers up to my ears and plastered myself to Denis's back. In reading Arizona Ghost Stories I discovered that I'm not the only person who's heard that ghostly stomping-- and that there are several other things going on up on the third floor of the Copper Queen.

I enjoyed this book, and even if you decide you don't need to know anything about Arizona's ghosts, I'll just bet there are books written about the ghosts in your own area. You ought to check and see!

[Source: Purchased at Barnes & Noble.]

Inspirational Haverholme Priory As Seen By Simon Marsden

Haverholme Priory in Lincolnshire, England has some very well documented spirits. Some are known to frequent the Ghost Walk, and dogs and horses want nothing to do with a bridge at the end of a long avenue of elm trees. This area terrifies them. It's also said that Charles Dickens used Haverholme as his model for Chesney Wold in Bleak House.

Marsden's photograph once again is creepily atmospheric. That tower looming above me is watching me, daring me to come closer. Daring me to hear footsteps crunching on the gravel of the Ghost Walk. Enticing me to walk the avenue of elms down to the bridge. Something tells me I may not be brave enough to accept the challenge.

If you enjoy architecture, history, photography and things that go bump in the night as much as I do, find yourself a copy of The Haunted Realm: Ghosts, Spirits and Their Uncanny Abodes by Simon Marsden because I'm not going to turn loose of my 1987 edition! Marsden's book can be found at Amazon and on his own website and archive.

Reading about these historic and spooky old places is putting me in the perfect mood for Halloween!

Simon Marsden Visits Castle Grant

Visit Castle Grant in Scotland and you may see a ghostly piper trying to deliver news of the defeat at Culloden, or a serving maid whose tasks are never done. You may even see the small benevolent spirit of Barbara Grant who learned the consequences of defying her father's wishes. Barbara's father insisted she marry a man she did not love. When she refused to obey, he locked her in a cupboard where she was left to starve to death unless she changed her mind. She chose death.

A visit to Castle Grant might turn out to be the highlight of your holiday. In Simon Marsden's wonderful photograph, it does look foreboding-- a place of ultimatums and unhappiness.

If you'd like to read more about Castle Grant and other spine-chilling places to visit in the British Isles, grab a copy of The Haunted Realm: Ghosts, Spirits and Their Uncanny Abodes by Simon Marsden. His photography is marvelous, and the accompanying text draws you in and keeps the pages turning. The cover seen to the left is from my copy of the 1987 edition. The book has been updated and can be found at places such as Amazon or on Sir Marsden's own website where you'll also find greeting cards, calendars and other items available for purchase.

Visiting haunted houses is the perfect way for me to get in the mood for Halloween!

The Curse of Alloa Tower

Alloa Tower in Clackmannanshire, Scotland, looms unhappily above its visitors. It has good reason to be unhappy: the hereditary curse upon the Erskines, Earls of May, has no equal as a prophecy of doom that came true almost to the last detail. What gives the curse its spine-tingling authenticity is the fact that it was well known long before the predictions came to pass.

The curse is a bit long, but here are the highlights:

The family would become extinct and their lands would be given to strangers; an Erskine would see his house burnt and his wife would die in the fire; horses would be stabled in the Great Hall; but when an ash sapling grew from the topmost stone of the tower, the curse would have run its course.

All these things came to pass, including the ash sapling which appeared between 1815 and 1820. Simon Marsden's photograph captures the unhappy atmosphere surrounding the tower to perfection.


If you'd like to read more of Alloa Tower and its curse-- along with all the histories and photographs of the other buildings in the book, find yourself a copy of The Haunted Realm: Ghosts, Spirits and Their Uncanny Abodes by Simon Marsden. The book cover you see to the left is from my personal copy of the 1987 edition. It has been updated and can be found at Amazon as well as Sir Marsden's own website and archive-- where you will also be able to find other items that just might tickle your fancy.

Watton Priory Through the Eyes of Simon Marsden

Watton Priory in East Yorkshire is my kind of house: it's riddled with secret cupboards and passages and there is also a river running beneath the building. Although the house is mainly in the style of the Tudors, it also incorporates the remains of an eighth-century nunnery and a medieval priory. You would expect a house such as this to have several ghosts-- and it does--but the two "stars" are both women grieving over their lost children.

If you want to read more about this fascinating (if spooky) house, you'll have to get your hands on a copy of Simon Marsden's The Haunted Realm: Ghosts, Spirits and Their Uncanny Abodes. You can find it at Amazon, or you can go directly to Sir Marsden's website where you can find other items such as greeting cards and prints available for purchase.

But before I leave you, I just have to take another look at Watton Priory. There's something rather judgmental and anticipatory in the way the house sits there. I could swear the house is watching me. Waiting for me.

Some people don't care for black and white photography, and I tend to be one of them. But there are times when it's perfect. Black and white photography is absolutely perfect for these places with sad and tragic histories, don't you agree?

Simon Marsden Looks at Whitby Abbey

Whitby Abbey on the Yorkshire coast has to be one of the most atmospheric places in England, and Simon Marsden's black and white photograph captures it perfectly. Whitby's ghosts? An ancient coach pulled by four headless horses which races along the clifftop near the abbey before plunging over the cliff into the dark water below. Constance de Beverley (Sir Walter Scott's Marmion) who violated her vows and was bricked up alive in a Whitby Abbey dungeon. Those are only two of the spirits who call the abbey home.

What makes Whitby Abbey so special for readers? Bram Stoker visited once and was so impressed that he was inspired to write Dracula.

The next time I'm in the UK, I definitely want to visit Whitby Abbey, but in the meantime, I do love looking closely at Simon Marsden's photograph. The photograph alone can scare me! If you'd like to see and read more on the subject, you need to find a copy of The Haunted Realm: Ghosts, Spirits and Their Uncanny Abodes by Simon Marsden. The book can be found at places such as Amazon, or at Sir Marsden's website where you'll also find posters, prints, calendars and other items that are available.

Celebrate Halloween with Simon Marsden's The Haunted Realm

This year I'm doing something a bit different for Halloween-- partly because I was nosing around on my shelves and came across one of my favorite books.

This is my 1987 edition of Simon Marsden's The Haunted Realm: Ghosts, Spirits and Their Uncanny Abodes. In researching what I wanted to do, I learned that Simon Marsden is now a Sir, and he has his own website: Simon Marsden Photographer & The Marsden Archive.

Not only has The Haunted Realm been updated, but now there are calendars, prints, greeting cards, DVDs, and posters available for purchase. I love his atmospheric photographs, and something tells me that I'll soon be visiting his website to make further purchases!

Starting tomorrow (Sunday), I'm going to be featuring one house per day from The Haunted Realm, giving you a taste of marvelous photography and hauntings until Saturday when I will feature my own photography and a tale of one of my English family ghosts from West Yorkshire. I do hope you'll join me in this week-long celebration of the otherworldly!

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the Marsden Archive for allowing me to use a few photographs from my edition of the book. I'd also like to remind everyone always to ask before using anyone else's work. It's the right-- and the only-- thing to do!