S. E. Schlosser

‘’It was, Jan Sol suddenly realised, a very eerie sort of night. The trees whispered and snickered and snapped in the wind. Shadows flited back and forth before his eyes. One shadow had long fingers, like an oversized hand. The fingers seemed to beckon to him, moving slowly in a nightmarish rhythm. A short shriek came from the woods. Jan Sol shivered and grabbed his blunderbuss before he realised it was only an owl.’’

Spooky USA is one of my favourite folklore/ghost stories series. This one is more folklore than true haunting stories, but no less entertaining. Moreover, every story echoes the state's extraordinary, enchanting, and bloody history.

Watch the Central Park Skaters glide gracefully on the frozen lake in the iconic park in Manhattan, and witness the sorrow of the Gray Lady in Staten Island over the tragic death of two young men. Seek the buried treasure in Liberty Island and look on the horizon for the Fire Ship in Long Island Sound. A young woman can be seen weeping for her lost fiance in the Observatory of the Empire State Building and a brave man returns from the Beyond to protect his young family. A kind ghost wants to go fishing and a man addicted to gambling is dissuaded from playing by the spectre of his wife. A galloping Hessian can be seen in Tarrytown, echoing Irving’s Headless Horseman and a dress brings extreme bad luck to a young girl from Queens.

Rival fiddlers can be heard in Brooklyn and a baker in Albany understands the meaning of the phrase ‘’a baker’s dozen’’. The legend of the Maid of the Mist sings in Niagara Falls, in Rockland County a salamander becomes an omen death, following the repercussions of a tragic tale. Hard to believe the legend of Jan Sol and the monster in Wall Street once you stand in the one place of the Earth where nowadays empires rise and fall, and in Allegheny region, a mysterious figure in a high hat causes terror.

The most fascinating tale is the Night Riders of Copake, a story of a pact between a brilliant girl and an evil warlock. A story straight out of Katherine Arden’s pen.… (mais)