Haunted Michigan: Recent Encounters with Active Spirits

Gerald S. Hunter is an ordained Methodist minister who just happened to grow up in a haunted house. The experience of growing up in this kind of environment not only convinced Hunter that there really was such a thing as ghosts, it also imbued him with a life-long fascination with the subject. I suppose that one would have to say that his hobby became the collection of ghost stories and this book is the natural culmination of this hobby. The most notably pleasant thing about this book is hinted at in the title, for this book is indeed made up of "recent encounters with active spirits." Nowhere in this book will you find an old legend that no one living has ever experienced nor will you find any stories that consist of only second or third hand accounts. Best of all, this author never once utters the phrases "They say..." or "Could it be..." and he never ever says anything like "One could easily imagine", all phrases that I absolutely detest. In fact, all of the haunts described in this book are of a recent nature and all have been experienced by more than one person. The author even had experiences of his own with some of these ghosts and most of the haunts are still very active to this day. The flaws in this book must be mentioned in any fair and unbiased review but these flaws are no big deal when compared to the overall quality of the stories. First of all, his investigations should really be described as interview sessions for there is little or no scientific investigation involved. To be fair though, Rev. Hunter does spend a good deal of time at some of these locations waiting for a manifestation and sometimes he gets more than he bargained for. There is also very little background information provided about the haunt unless the homeowner has done this on his or her own. A little historical research can often reveal the identity of the ghost and the reason for the haunting but if nothing else this kind of information lends added credibility to the story. It was therefore the exception rather than the rule when Rev. Hunter called a psychic into the investigation that makes up the final story in this book. It is worth noting that the psychic got right to the bottom of the problem and relieved the elderly gentleman in question of his ghostly problem. Even with these problems I found this to be an extraordinarily good book that was both highly readable and informative. This author not only has a pleasing writing style but he also seems to be able to get people who have had paranormal experiences to open up to him. A lot of the eyewitness testimony is taken verbatim from the witnesses themselves but Hunter, acting also as editor, never allows the testimony to ramble and loose it's focus. He also keeps his focus on the subject at hand and between his work as an investigator, a collector, an editor and an author the Reverend Hunter put together an extremely good ghost book.

This book is an excellant ghost book. I love reading about ghost stories in Michigan, as I live there, and this is the one of the best ones that I have read. I like how the tales are from all over the state, from the UP to the Lower Peninsula.

This book caught my eye because I am from Southern Michigan myself. I like the way the author not only told the case story of the haunt, but also told about the setting of the city. I'd just like to find the haunted house in my hometown of Marshall..... Anyways, I'd recommend this book to anyone who has even the slightest interest in ghostly activity. It was a book I definatly had trouble putting down!

Assembled and edited by Gerald Hunter (an ordained United Methodist minister) Haunted Michigan: Recent Encounters With Active Spirits is a compelling collection of modern ghost stories set in Michigan, active hauntings that persist to this day. From "Night Lights" (Adrian); "The Little Girl Who Likes To Watch" (Bay City); and "Night Callers" (Big Rapids); to "Some Ghosts Never Check Out" (Gladstone); "A Piano, A Water Bucket, And Fingers Under The Door" (Mt. Pleasant); and "Be Careful What You Play With" (Wayne), here are 29 tales of the supernatural that will raise the hair on the back of any reader's neck!

A great, scary book. Full of NEW ghost stories, all true, and all hauntings continue to this day. Nothing old here. This was truly spine tingling fun!Rev. Hunter writes in a fun, fresh, and frightening style. Contains many photos, and gives some addresses so you can check out some of the places yourself, including bars, hotels, etc. If you like true ghost stories, you'll love this book!