Varla Ventura's Paranormal Parlor: Ghosts, Seances & Tales of True Hauntings

Varla Ventura has published numerous titles in the paranormal genre. Readers have seen titles involving mermaids, werewolves, fairies, the freaky and the unexplained. She has been found in podcasts, social media, Beyond the Strange Radio, and in many other places discussing the strange and terrifying. She enjoys researching and finding those unusual stories. She is an authority in the field and can be found sharing her knowledge throughout many outlets. In her new book, Paranormal Parlor, Ventura gets to record and release to her audience some of her latest and her favorite findings.
 
Entering into this book is entering into a secret world of unknown and unspoken stories. Stories reputable and even famous people have first-hand accounts of but may have kept to themselves out of fear of the public opinion. Readers enter into what stories, sightings, and experiences have haunted these people their entire lives, what has kept them up at night and given them nightmares. Readers briefly enter the world of the unexplained and one that only few have first person knowledge and experience of.

Ever wanted to go on a road trip and see some of the most haunted places, cemeteries, hospitals, etc.? One could use this book as a guide or reference in places readers may be interested in getting up close and personal too. But for the fainter of heart, read the lore right from the safety of your own home and still get those goose bumps the stories are sure to insight.

Ouija board stories, séances, and other psychic art mediums are included in this collection of stories from around the world and throughout time. Readers can expect recollected stories from hundreds of years ago that have endured time and surely been harshly critiqued. Readers will also find tips and insight on how you may recognize a haunting or that you are being haunted.

True or fiction… I think the reader find a combination within these pages. However, interestingly entwined is a fascinating chapter on customs and traditions related to death. These are some factual accounts of why we do what we do and how those customs have evolved, or differ around the world. Ever wonder why we wear black to a funeral?

I would recommend this book to all those ghost and horror story enthusiasts. It is a great book to add to your library for those readers seeking to add even more word of mouth accounts of supernatural proof. All of us who seek more and more evidence of true hauntings, ghosts and the afterlife will find mystery, information, amusement, and possibly even some previously unfounded knowledge within these pages. The real question here is whether the reader will read this find in a crowd in the daylight or will they brave it in the dark alone?

~review by Keri Nichol

Author: Varla Ventura
Red Wheel /Weiser, 2018
p. 254, $$16.95