Werewolf: A story of demonic possession
With werewolves now a hot fiction item (for instance,  Michael Cadnum's St. Peter's Wolf, p. 416, or Dennis Danvers's  Wilderness, p. 266), it's no surprise to see a ``true'' account  of the hairy beasts. Too bad it's by the Warrens, those  professional ``demonologists'' last seen facing down Satan and  his minions (and Bigfoot too) in Ghost Hunters (1989).  Before the Warrens enter the chronicle at hand (told in  narrative, Q&A-interview;, and diary forms), though, we're regaled  in the alphabet-block prose of their usual coauthor, Chase, with  the sad saga of Bill Ramsey, the book's fourth credited author.  Ramsey, you see, was the werewolf--well, actually it turns out  that he wasn't a werewolf at all but, as the text describes him,  a ``wolfman'' like Lon Chaney, Jr., in those 40's horror  films--well, actually it turns out that he wasn't a wolfman at  all but a young working-class British bloke who thought he was  changing into a wolf, which is why he tried to bite all those  friends and young ladies and cops and nurses. But it wasn't his  fault: The Devil made him do it. Which is where the Warrens come  in. In England on a promotional tour (neatly continued in the  text: ```The Warrens are the most fascinating people I've ever  interviewed,' '' an anonymous TV producer is quoted as saying),  they learn of Ramsey's plight and pinpoint it as demonic  possession. A bit of persuasion and Ramsey is off with them to  the States, where their old colleague Bishop McKenna, also last  seen in Ghost Hunters (``He's a very earnest and devout man. You  just don't see his kind around a lot anymore,'' says Ed)  exorcises the invading ``demon,'' setting Ramsey free.  Skeptics, please note the Warrens' assurance that this is  ``a carefully documented'' case (they forgot to include the  documentation, though). As for us: Grrrrrrrrrr.... --Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.