Our Haunted Lives: True Life Ghost Encounters

by Jeff Belanger

Ghost encounters are happening everyday to people everywhere, and the events prove that we are not alone. When people encounter what they perceive to be a ghost or spirit, their lives are forever changed. The ultimate question - Is there life after death? - has just been answered for them. Ghosts cross every culture and continent, and the belief in their existence is on the rise. Our Haunted Lives features the stories of dozens of people who have witnessed the supernatural firsthand in their homes, at work, and in numerous other locations and explores the profound nature of ghosts and spirits. Through personal interviews, the author captures the many different facets of the experience - the touching, where people come in contact with a loved one who's passed on; the funny, where pranks are played or peculiar disembodied sounds are heard; and the frightening, where people still feel shaken by what they saw, heard, and felt. Ghosts are unbiased - they appear to people from all walks of life, ages, cultures, and religious backgrounds. Our Haunted Lives features accounts from famous hauntings, such as an extensive interview with George Lutz - the man whose experiences with the paranormal in Amityville, Long Island launched debates, books, and movies. You'll hear from police officers who were the first on the scene after a homeowner reported a break-in, only to find the disturbance wasn't caused by someone living. Doctors who had a brush with the supernatural after losing a patient on the operating table will speak about the very emotional and profound events they witnessed. No, we are not alone.

Genres: Paranormal, Nonfiction, Ghosts, Ghost Stories, Horror, Mystery

222 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2006

About the author

Jeff Belanger is one of the most visible and prolific researchers of folklore and legends today. A natural storyteller, he’s the award-winning, Emmy-nominated host, writer, and producer of the New England Legends series on PBS and Amazon Prime, and is the author of over a dozen books (published in six languages). He also hosts the New England Legends weekly podcast, which has garnered over 5 million downloads since it was launched.

Always one for chasing adventures, Jeff has climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa, he’s explored the ruins of Machu Picchu in Peru, he’s searched the catacombs of Paris, France (where he encountered his first ghost), he faced his life-long struggle with basophobia on his birthday by going skydiving, and he’s been ghost hunting all over the world from a former TB asylum in Kentucky, to medieval castles in Europe, to an abandoned prison in Australia.

Jeff got his start as a journalist in 1997, where he learned how to connect with people from all walks of life. For his work, he’s interviewed thousands of people about their encounters with the profound.

His books include the best sellers: The Call of Kilimanjaro, The World’s Most Haunted Places, Weird Massachusetts, Our Haunted Lives, and Who’s Haunting the White House?. He’s a noted speaker and media personality. He’s spoken at MENSA’s national conference, has given a prestigious TEDx talk in New York City, and provides dozens of live lectures and programs to audiences each year.

Belanger has written for newspapers like The Boston Globe and USA Today, and has served as the writer and researcher on numerous television series including every single episode of Ghost Adventures (25 seasons and counting), Paranormal Challenge, and Aftershocks on the Travel Channel, and Amish Haunting on Destination America. He’s been a guest on hundreds of radio and television networks and programs including: The History Channel, The Travel Channel, Biography Channel, Reelz, PBS, NECN, Living TV (UK), Sunrise 7 (Australia), Bell (Canada), The Maury Show, The CBS News Early Show, CBS Sunday Morning, FOX, NBC, ABC, and CBS affiliates, National Public Radio, The BBC, Darkness Radio, Australian Radio Network, and Coast to Coast AM.

Reviews

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a real good collection of true paranormal stories. It was a different type of paranormal read as the author interviews the people and they give their account of what happened to them. I really enjoyed all the stories and some of them are a bit creepy. The stories cover just about everything from ghost sightings to out of body experiences. Giving it four stars for keeping me entertained.

[Dennis Phillips · Rating 5 out of 5]

Over the years I have come to the conclusion that eyewitness accounts are indispensable to this type of book and that without them all you really end up with is a bunch of old legends. Belanger has a history of excellence in this area and this book is no exception. If anything he takes eyewitness accounts a little to the extreme in this case. The stories in this book are made up exclusively of interviews with eyewitnesses and these first person accounts are generally excellent. One pitfall of this style is evident in this book however and that pitfall is that some of the interviews will obviously be better than others. In other words, some people are just naturally more articulate than others while others are very articulate in person but their words seem to become less clear on paper. Overall though the interviews were excellent and were conducted in a very professional manner.

The biggest problem that I had with this book however was that the author relied far too much on the eyewitnesses for the possible history behind the haunts. In some cases this worked just fine and the subjects were intimately familiar with the background of the ghosts in question. In other cases though there was little or no history to be found and it is sometimes hard to really get a feeling for a haunt without knowing what might have caused it. A little research by the author would have added immeasurably to a few of the stories but once again I may be being picky because this author has shown himself to be a more than capable researcher and I found that I really missed his work in this area.

Still, this is one fine book of ghost stories and one that any ghost enthusiast will want to read and own. The interview with George Lutz alone is worth the price of the book and I must applaud Jeff for having the courage to take on such a controversial subject. Also included is an interview with a nephew of Ed and Lorraine Warren (another controversial subject) that is quite frankly marvelous. This is without doubt a five star book so I just regret that I couldn't give the last book I read by this author six stars.

[Ashley McCloney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had the opportunity to meet the author, Jeff Belanger, back in August of last year. We went to a conference in Vinton, Iowa where he was a guest speaker & also got the opportunity to meet & do a paranormal investigation with him. He’s a truly nice guy. We get to see him again next month in Kansas City for a Missouri Paracon so I wanted to read this book before going. This was a quick great read. It’s a little different than the other paranormal books I read as this is done in an interview style. Jeff has interviewed different people who have had paranormal experiences. These include their homes being haunted, hauntings at their work places, hotels & just while out living day to day life. It also talks about people who like to do paranormal investigations (like my daughter & myself). If you enjoy reading about the paranormal then you would enjoy this book.

[Jessica Carr · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was alright. The stories set in the water treatment plant and the cheap motel room were the scariest. They seemed to be right out of a horror movie. Maybe a little too much out of horror movie. The ghostly encounters with deceased loved ones seemed to be wishful thinking and projection by the bereaved.

[Lou Canning · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting and fascinating read. I couldn’t put it down.
If you love a ghost story, especially one which is supposedly true, this is a really good book. But even if you don’t believe? It’s still an enjoyable read.
Highly recommend.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderfully fascinating read. Enjoyed hearing about the different hauntings from the folks who lived through them.

[Fiona Murray · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an easy read, but I was hoping for more.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

As always I love anything about ghosts or haunting and I enjoyed reading this book. Many well known sites in this book with the history of the location thrown in. Great job writing the book as well as taking the time to review the history of the places. I would highly recommend this book!

[Regina Tabor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Again ghost stories But I like them so it was worth reading

[Allie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Its a good book...but, it has some stories that i have a hard time believing. im not really a believer, but some of these stories are pretty realistic.

[Debra Darschewski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the conversational way the tales were told. They were interesting and the book was a quick read. Entertaining light reading on people's encounters with the paranormal.

[Melissa Pettersson · Rating 1 out of 5]

Could not finish the book. So boring!

[Stephanie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Could not get into this one.

[❤ Çandí ❤ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and freaky stories that one can tell to others on a ghost stories night.