Review: Quick, enjoyable short stories
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 08 8, 2012
The first story surrounds the Ghost of John Wilkes Booth. I liked the story but I really had to think about why the author chose to make this the focus by titling it this way. I really felt that this was more of a secondary occurrence in the story and the main focus was environmentalists saving property. I know some will disagree but that is my opinion. I will add that it did not in any way take away from the enjoyable story. The story surrounds a piece of land bought by a developer with plans to build a large housing development. Some people of the town fight to keep the land undeveloped.The second story, Ghost of a Smile was well written and a bit scary at times. This story follows the ghost of a woman named Moll Dyer who was accused of witchcraft in 1697 and had died after being run from her home on a very cold February night. The modern tie-in surrounds a woman who has been commissioned by the local historical society to make a bronze statue of Moll Dyer for the town square. The hope is to increase tourism to the area, but some are against using a woman accused of witchcraft as the towns "claim to fame". As the bronze is made strange occurrences start to happen on the property of the woman making the statue. The property just so happens to be the same property Moll Dyer owned in the 1600's.The third story in the trilogy is The Ghost of Lyon Lodge and it was a bit different from the others. This story seemed to be more about the girl and her situation rather than Captains Sol's ghost. I was also disturbed, on some levels, as it dealt with stalking, sexual battery and inference to rape. I will say that it was well written, because if it weren't it wouldn't have disturbed me so badly. The story follows the ghost of Captain Sol, who died at the lodge while visiting his daughter who taught at the school. Captain Sol was an honest, upright citizen with shrewd business skills the author states. The modern day story surrounding this ghost is about a young woman who is unexpectedly confronted by a young man who stalked her in high school and has now relocated to the same college that she attends. He ramps up his attacks on her now that he has more freedom on the college campus and although she tries to stay one step ahead of him, he proves to be the one who stays a step ahead. After he successfully turns her charge of stalking and such back on her she knows that it is up to her to keep herself safe and when she feels she is all alone with no one to help her the ghost of Captain Sol steps in to help.