Hang My Head and Cry [Hardcover]

Elena Santangelo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 4, 2001

With By Blood Possessed, Santangelo introduced an unusual mystery heroine, a woman with one foot in today and one foot in history: Quite literally, Pat Montella can "see" into the past. Now Pat has given up her city life and moved onto Miss Maggie Shelby's Civil War-era estate, an estate which Pat will someday inherit. Suddenly her visions return, and Pat begins to see 1870s Virginia through the eyes of a young slave. The personality of this 10-year-old boy, Emancipation, known as "Mance", seems harmless enough, but when Pat and Miss Maggie uncover a skeleton on the estate grounds, once again past and present collide and Pat must use her unusual talents to solve this intricate, intriguing mystery.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Pat Montella, heroine of Elena Santangelo's previous romantic mystery By Blood Possessed, is back in another adventure. As the unpaid director of the Julia Bell Foundation, Pat's collecting unemployment and living on...Magnolia Shelby's Civil War-era estate in Virginia while she waits for her own future to reveal itself. But it's the past that comes clear first when the amateur archaeological efforts of Aunt Maggie and her friends unearth a long-dead body on the property Pat will someday inherit. And it's Pat's unique ability to "see" back to 1870 (and reconstruct through the eyes of a 10-year-old boy named Emancipation the circumstances under which the skeleton met its end) that turns the somewhat creaky wheels of the plot.

More interesting than the contemporary action (which includes a couple of murders connected to secrets that some of Aunt Maggie's neighbors would just as soon stay buried) are the flashbacks to Reconstruction, the racial politics of the post-slavery years, and the fascinating cast of characters who populated Bell Run back then and whose ghosts still haunt the Virginia countryside. This slow-moving but nicely written ghost story should win Santangelo and her heroine new fans. --Jane Adams

From Publishers Weekly

The past continues to catch up with Pat Montella both literally and figuratively in this captivating sequel to Santangelo's well-received debut, By Blood Possessed (1999). Pat's gift for seeing and hearing ghosts continues to manifest itself with vivid snippets of the past, as if from old newsreels. Miss Maggie Shelby, scion of the Virginia Civil War estate owned by the Bell family, who discovered that Pat is the last descendant of the Bells, continues to preside over Pat's metamorphosis from office worker to heir to a Southern tradition. Pat's finding an unknown gravesite and the disturbing appearance of the ghost of a former slave boy named "Mance" (short for Emancipation) begins a story of old wrongs whose roots reach into the present. The discovery of the grave brings welcome help in the form of Emmy Brewster and her handsome assistant, Theo Clayborne. It also brings unwanted help in the form of police and politicians eager to make hay from the excitement. After Pat's visions of the past intensify, she discovers she's not the only one who has such visions. When Theo becomes the prime suspect in the death of his best friend, Pat is driven to solve both old deaths and new with surprising results. Ghosts, murder, romance, Old South, New South, an aristocratic old lady, a gaggle of good ol' boys and an intrepid heroine add up to fine and cozy entertainment.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; 1st edition (April 4, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312269390
• ISBN-13: 978-0312269395
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,127,703 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

ELENA SANTANGELO pens the Possessed Mystery series, including Agatha Award finalist BY BLOOD POSSESSED. The series features laid-off office clerk turned ghostbuster, Pat Montella, and her 91 year-old sidekick, Miss Maggie. These novels combine murder, ghosts, history, and a protagonist brought up on Italian cooking and superstitions. Latest in the series is FEAR ITSELF, in which a ghost from the Great Depression helps Pat solve a present day murder in her hometown.

Elena's Twins Mystery Series begins with the Kindle-exclusive novel TWO-FACED, which introduces Gen Ziegler, forensic psychologist, and her mirror-image twin, Sara. The series continues most recently with DOUBLE CROSS, where the sisters become stranded in a West Texas town, surrounded by secrets, outlaws, danger, and murder.

DAME AGATHA'S SHORTS is Elena's armchair companion to Christie's more than one hundred and fifty short stories. DAME AGATHA'S SHORTS won the 2009 Agatha Award for Best Non-Fiction and is an Anthony Award and Macavity Award finalist.

Sixteen of Elena's short stories have been published in the United States and Japan and most are available on Kindle. She co-edited the short story anthology, DEATH KNELL IV.

She has chronicled the 1945 journal of her uncle, Joseph Chicco, which you can read at 1945chicco.blogspot.com.

Visit Elena's website at www.elenasantangelo.com and read her writing blog at elenasantangelo.blogspot.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Really Good Sequel, April 19, 2001

By 

Moe811 (New York USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Hang My Head and Cry (Hardcover)

I recently read By Blood Possessed and enjoyed it immensely. The novel reminded me of the best of the Barbara Michaels novels, suspense with a little of the supernatural thrown in. Her second book is just as good. The story of Pat, Miss Maggie and Bell Run continues, when another ghost makes his presence known to Pat. Shortly thereafter, a skull is found in Pat's proposed tomato patch. The anthropology department of the local university is called, and a team is sent up to Bell Run. A contemporary death seems to connect the two eras, and Pat and Miss Maggie try to find two murderers in two different centuries.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A mystery with a fantastic twist, February 18, 2001

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hang My Head and Cry (Hardcover)

One day Pat Montella, the ghost detective, will inherit Miss Maggie's Bell Run, Virginia estate as the last known descendent of the Bell family. Pat begins to "dream of a young Black male living in the mid 1870s. Apparently he was named Emancipation in homage to Lincoln's freedom speech at Gettysburg a week before he was born.

At about the same time, an unknown gravesite is found. Considering the history of the estate where many Civil War skirmishes occurred that would not be a shocking scenario. However, not long afterward, the police believe that a friend's assistant committed murder. Somehow the three events: the vision from the past, the newly found gravesite, and the murder are linked with Pat's abilities to see ghosts as the only chance of finding out the truth.

The second Montella paranormal mystery retains the freshness and uniqueness within a strong amateur sleuth story line that highlights the debut tale (see BY BLOOD POSSESSED). The plot is fun and never loses steam as Pat struggles with her century plus old visions and trying to find the connection to present events. The characters (mortal and spiritual) add depth that propel the story line forward in such a way that paranormal mystery readers will appreciate. After HANG MY HEAD AND CRY Elena Santangelo can hold her head up high with pride.

Harriet Klausner

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Grave of a Ghost, July 31, 2008

By 

Nash Black "Troubadour" (Jamestown, KY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

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This review is from: Hang My Head And Cry (Paperback)

Elena Santangelo's HANG MY HEAD AND CRY, the sequel to BY BLOOD POSSESSED will have ghost hunters finding membership in her fan club. I have not, at this date, read the first of the series. But HANG MY HEAD AND CRY has plenty of strength to stand alone.
Pat Montella is an Italian-American heir to the Virginia home of Miss Maggie Shelby. Together they are an engaging pair of amateur sleuths who zero in on a dual-case. The skeletal remains that turn up in Pat's garden and some current murders to keep the story hopping. The intricate details of post Civil War Virginia makes fascinating reading. The ghosts are real with more substance than a cold breeze, Pat's ability to step into the past will keep you reading through the summer heat.Writing as a Small BusinessSins of the Fathers: A Brewster County NovelUnder the Liberty Oak