New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Heather Graham enjoys taking an occasional walk on the wild side with her writing, creating paranormal novels that feature ghostly characters from beyond the grave. Her latest book, THE DEATH DEALER, is just such a novel with much of the action taking place in an historic home, the residence of several spirits who have yet to “cross over.”

Now, Heather is offering one of her readers the chance to discover whether or not his or her home is haunted. Dr. Larry Montz, a veteran field parapsychologist who founded the ISPR in 1972, created GHOST EXPEDITIONS(TM) in 1993 and is the current developing force behind the world’s first 24/7 Interactive Paranormal Observatory, Lab & Museum, will visit the reader’s home, along with a veteran clairvoyant investigator from the ISPR team, to determine if there is scientific evidence supporting the claim of paranormal activity in the home. To enter, readers must tell Heather, in 25 words or less, why their family is the one family in North America who most deserves a visit from a world-renowned parapsychologist.

It’s all in celebration of the publication of THE DEATH DEALER, (MIRA Books) in March 2008. A master of moody, supernatural thrillers, Heather tells the story of a guarded private investigator who must deal with a newfound ability to communicate with restless spirits. THE DEATH DEALER sees him turn that unwanted gift toward catching a killer who patterns murders on the ghoulish tales of Edgar Allan Poe.

To learn more about the contest and enter online, readers should visit http://www.eHarlequin.com/GhostHunterContest and follow the onscreen entry instructions. To enter via mail, entrants must print (or type) on an 8 1/2″ x 11″ plain piece of paper their full name, mailing address and telephone number and explain, in 25 words or less, and mail it to:

“The Heather Graham Death Dealer Contest”
3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 9069,
Buffalo, NY 14269-9069

Canadian address: 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, ON M3B 3K9.

All online entries must be received by 11:59 PM (ET) on May 31, 2008.

A Clip from the movie, Shutter:

Paranormal magazine editor Ritsuo tells Jane about spirit photography: (James Kyson Lee) “Spirit photography has been around from the 1800s, as long as photography itself. All across the world these images have always appeared, connecting us with the unseen. And I think they’re trying to tell us something.” (Rachael Taylor) “Like what?” (Lee) “Well, it depends on the people and the pictures.”

Maybe it was the Asian girl stalking the newly married young couple in the Shutter preview that made me think of The Grudge. The premise of the movie sounded too similar. Because of this, I had a mild desire to see the movie, but wanted to hear what others had to say about it first before I plunked down my cash. In this case, I’m glad I listened to my intuition because the Reuters Review confirmed my suspicions. Today, I talked to a colleague who had seen the movie this weekend and thought it was stupid.

That killed any desire to see the movie, but the subject of spirit photography intrigued me and not for the first time. I’ve been writing about ghost sightings on photos and film since I started writing for this blog, the latest involving a videographer who filmed what looked like the ghost of a Roman soldier. Prairie Ghosts has a fascinating article on the subject, entitled History of Spirit Photography.

The photograph above of Mary Lincoln (allegedly) and her spectral husband, Abe, was taken by William Mumler. Mumler became widely popular in Boston as a “medium for taking spirit photographs” until he was taken to court for fraud allegations. His original photographs may have been authentic, but the lure of money spurned him to take fake pictures for his unsuspecting clients.

This picture of a ghostly young girl was listed as one of the Top Ten Best Ghost Photographs Ever Taken. What makes it so eerie is that no one was in that hall when Tony O’Rahilly took that shot from his telephoto lens as the Wem Town Hall burned to the ground in November of 1995. If there was, I doubt that they would be as calm as this girl appears to be in this inferno.

Clip Source: K-Lite FM

The Invisible begins with golden boy, Nick Powell, who dreams about killing himself during an agonizing graduation party. I sat there for the next half hour, watching his interactions with his mother, friends, and the school bullies who preyed upon his best friend. He defied his controlling mother by enrolling himself in a writing course in London, only to toss his airline ticket at a girlfriend who voiced her pleasure at rebelling against his mother. At that point, he gives up on the writing course and leaves the party to go home.

In the meantime, bad girl Annie Newton is out for revenge against Nick because she was told that he ratted her out to the cops about a jewelry heist. Annie and her cohorts, along with his spineless best friend chase him into the woods. She and the cohorts beat him into unconsciousness, and then hides him in a sewer drain because they think he’s dead.

Nick finds himself in a limbo state, stuck between life and death. He learns that not everybody thinks as highly of him as he was led to believe. This doesn’t stop him from screaming with self-righteous anger at everyone who disappointed him. Of course, nobody can see or hear him.

His spirit latches onto Annie, who is under suspicion with the police in connection with Nick’s disappearance. He follows her everywhere, both shouting and pleading with her to tell the authorities where his body is located before it dies. This was the best part of the movie. I was disappointed with the ending because it was unrealistic and contrived. To me, it went against human nature.

Up until that point, I enjoyed watching The Invisible. I loved the soundtrack and plan on hunting for it later. Also, I felt that the Seattle-like town added to the dark and somber mood.

Travel with Nigel Danvers to an eerie seaside town on England’s east coast. Learn to use advanced techniques used by real paranormal investigators, and uncover an ancient mystery and treasure. But, beware, not all of the towns residents will help in your mission, whether they are alive or dead.

Inspiration from the haunting works of Charles Dickens, M.R. James, Arthur Conan Doyle, and E.F. Benson combines with real ghost-hunting gadgets to bring this frightening story to bone-chilling life. Success or failure in locating wandering spirits depends on your skill as an investigator. Placing motion detectors, night vision cameras, and temperature gauges correctly will reveal a location’s haunted past, and expose terrifying apparitions. With nerves of steel, and wits to match, you will soon discover long lost secrets, previously known only to the dead!

I’ve been looking for a decent ghost hunting game for years, ever since I played the once-popular Amber Journeys Beyond. Based on the review from Just Adventure, this sounds like a great game. I liked the soundtrack on the trailer, but the animation looks a bit clunky. I’ll be watching for more reviews in the future.