Customer Reviews

Ghosts from the Coast

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Nancy Roberts is a good storyteller, but where 'Ghosts from the Coast' runs into trouble is with the history of the area. The story about Moon River Brewing Company ('Mystery at Moon River') is a typical example. She states that pirates walked the streets of Savannah, a statement which is more myth than fact anyway, but she goes on to claim that Edward Teach, Calico Jack Rackham, and Captain Charles Vane were once in Savannah. Well, Edward Teach (also called Blackbeard) died in 1718, and Savannah wasn't founded until 1733. Rackham was hanged in 1720, the same year Vane died. So the history of the area does not support her story.

In another instance, she talks of slaves at the Olde Harbor Inn (also in Savannah). But the structure was built in 1892, and slavery had ended with the conclusion of the Civil War in 1865. The construction with beams on River Street also wasn't built out of salvaged wood from sailing vessels, at least not in that time period, which is another claim in the book. The seaport was established enough by 1892 for enormous heart pine beams & rafters to make up the majority of building materials, and they are obviously milled expressly for that purpose.

Nancy Roberts is not a historian, but then again she doesn't claim to be one, either. She is a very good storyteller, with a whole host of books to her credit. But the historical innaccuracies will bother those readers out there with a grasp of history and a craving for a correctly-told story set in a specific time period.

One of the reviewers on here said that this book had a few inaccuracies. I can't comment on that because I have no idea. The one thing I do have an idea about is that like so many other which claim to be about ghosts, this is a travel guide.

Unlike a ghost book where it says "this happened and this happened", the book will give you 5+ pages of the history of a tavern, inn, hotel, or whatever and then the last paragraph will give you a brief overview of the ghostly happenings such as "To this day, every now and then a glass moves or an apparition is seen" or if you get specific it would be "To this day Ms. blah blah is still seen at odd times of the night"....this one paragraph after 5 pages of travel guide information on the history of the tavern.

Like Haunted New Jersey, which I just rated on Amazon with the same problem, I bought a history book rather than a ghost book, though looking at other reviews it fails to even be a history book with its inaccuracies...I don't know.

I am not trying to be rude to the author who does have a great style of writing. I am just tired of buying alleged ghost books only to have them be history books of people begatting other people and talking about slaves and whatnot. This should be a book on ghosts, not people 200 years ago. If you are going to write a ghost book, give a few sentences about the history of the place and a few pages of the ghosts, not visa versa!

John McAdam, author of:
Enoch and the Extraterrestrials

I have been a fan of Nancy Roberts for quite a few years. This latest book of hers is a great addition to her body of work. Covering ghosts in three states (coasts) North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, Nancy Roberts is her spine tingling best. Whether mean ole pirate ghosts haunting a tavern in Savannah, or a tragic lover endlessly driving his coach on the annivesary of his death, the collection of stories is truly varied. You'll want to read this book with others around you.