Customer Reviews

The Haunted: The True Story of One Family's Nightmare

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I ended up buying a copy of this book based on a made for TV film I had seen years ago. It just turned out that the man I was talking to about the film knew it had been based on a book and knew who wrote it. I hadn't known of the book and as I do enjoy a scare thought I'd give it a whirl.
The first and most scary element is that this book is written by a man of faith, a recognised priest. Robert Curran. You can discount at that point that the book was written to sensationalise. You can also tell that book writing wasn't Robert Curran's strongpoint and rather than dampen the tale it adds more charm to it, there are no superfluos twists and turns.
The Smurls were being terrorised, physically, mentally and spiritually by several entities in the house. One of which was found to be a pure demon. The sounds of squealing pigs and disgusting scents fill the air as the devoutly religious family suffer just about every outrage possible, even the family dog Simon comes in for physical attack.
They go on holiday for a break and the ghastly dark entity follows them, it has learned to mimmick their voices and tease them. Their local clergy has turned their backs, stating that there is nothing there they can't explain, one comes to wonder who they would feel being watched in the bathroom, pushed downstairs or having thumps rampaging through the house followed by the sound of hooves...?
It gets much harder to discount by the minute as their neighbours start to report they too have been visited by the demon and the neighbourhood turns into a circus.
As a read it was very disturbing, enjoyed the tone and timbre of the book which was no frills, facts and discussions of events and people who were present lend it an unsettling amount of credibility.
I was a fan of the film, now I'm also a fan of the book, not many made me switch the light back, this one did!

This true story depicts the horror one family went through due to demonic haunting. This book contains real and frightening accounts of nightly occurrences that plagued the Smurl family, home and away from home, from wall banging to foul odors, to physical abuse and manifestations. Even the poor dog was not immune to this demon. Ed and Lorraine Warren are also featured in this true story as they help the family through this infestation. This is an excellent book for people who are interested in demonology or ghosts or just love a truthfully frightening read.

I found this book in the many stacks at my inlaws house. I figured it would be something to keep me busy durring the visit. Little did I know that the book would leave my inlaws house forever... It only took me a day and a half to read, I couldn't put it down. I shared the Haunting with my co-workers and soon enough the whole office had read it. Everyone having the same reaction: "I can't believe how hooked I got and how scary it was". I would recomend this book to anyone who is looking for a little fright...

Back in the 1970's, the Smurls bought a duplex with Jack's parents in West Piston, Pa. When they first moved in small but odd stuff started to happen. The children got the worst of it, but it was dismissed as fanciful and magical thinking. Their children said that they saw people floating in their room. It got worse, as Janet actually saw the demon in the basement, after it called out her name in her Mother-in-law's voice!
Jack's parents heard foul language in Jack and Janet's voices and was deeply offended. The mother-in-law saw stuff on her side on the duplex that scared her senseless.
The phenomena became progressively worse, bad smells, horrid visions, and Jack getting raped by a succubus.
The Warrens were in town and they asked to investigate, in which Lorraine Warren discovered three human spirits and a demon. They tried to get an exorcism but the local diocese turned them down because they no longer do exorcisms. So against the Warren's advice, the Smurls taken their case to the media. The demon was VERY pissed and attacked Janet and people's family involved in the case.
The local diocese eventually allowed an exorcism, which granted some peace for a while, then it started-up again. It came back with a vengeance. Then there was yet another exorcism, which it went away for awhile. They had to move because of the media and people would not let-up. It followed them to their next house, and the phenomena continued. The Warrens claim that this was one of the most tenacious haunting that they have investigated.

Although, not in the book, In 1992, the family was granted a full exorcism by Pope John Paul II. Which they have been free of it every sense. They still live in West Piston, Pa.

This book was written in a very dry manner...much like a history text book. Just words on a page, nothing came to life. I had no problem reading it before going to sleep. The movie was absolutely excellent and it's probably the first time I ever felt "cheated" by a book made into a movie; normally the book exceeds the movie overall. I finished reading it only because I finish what I start. Having said this, I, too, experienced a haunting and am, perhaps, a bit harder to scare than the reader who is interested in the paranormal but has never had first-hand experiences.

This novel depicts the true story of the Smurl family and their struggle to escape the spirits that torment them. They are assisted by Lorraine and Ed Warren, experienced demonologists, who try to save the family and uncover the mystery of why this is happening. Given the sheer number of witnesses I find it to be interesting that anyone can accuse them of making it all up. Besides that the experiences they describe match the type of attacks that real demons committ.

I had read this years ago and it scared me silly, when I found it again I was thrilled, even a better read the second time years later

I remember reading this book back in high school, and it scared the crap out of me. I couldn't even sleep with it in the same room; I hid it under the couch at night. I've never done that with any other book.

I think part of the appeal was that the book was based on a true story. And it was definitely a creepy story. Weird noises, bad smells, possession ... I think the creepiest part, for me, was the headless & tailess puppy that ran under a couch it couldn't possibly have fit under.

Now, I have to add that a few years later, I heard that this "true story" actually turned out to be nothing but a scam, that it never happened and was just a stunt pulled for the sole purpose of gaining lots of attention.

Kinda like their version of all those TV reality shows that've taken over today's cable networks.

Anyway, I don't know if that's true or not. Have never heard it confirmed or denied. Either way, it doesn't detract from the complete creepiness of the book. It's definitely worth a read if you love "true" stories of paranormal activity.