Between you and I, I thought Peter Venkman was telling a furphy when he said he had a PhD in parapsychology, but that’s the exact qualification the author has. I knew from watching American TV growing up that American colleges and universities have much more interesting subjects than we do in Australia, but parapsychology? I definitely would have studied at least one subject in that field if it had been on offer.

So, besides his PhD in parapsychology, the author has a doctorate in metaphysics and is also an ordained reverend (yes, his bio confirms he’s performed exorcisms, although there are none in this book).

This books provides some basic historical background for some well known American haunted locations, including Waverly Hills Sanitarium and the Myrtle Plantation. Then the author gives their impressions of each time they’ve investigated them.

If you were to ask me if I’m a Mulder or Scully, I’d tell you I’m both. I want to believe but I also want the science to back it up. Considering that to label something paranormal means that current scientific knowledge doesn’t have an answer for it, I’m fully aware that I want to have my cake and eat it too, but I’m okay with that.

Without fail, I wanted to scream, ‘Have you not studied <i>Horror 101</i>?’ every time the group of investigators decided to split up. I also may have groaned each time someone got an impression, a “feeling of unease” or “a strange sensation”.

“I got a playful, innocent feeling at times and a scared, threatened feeling at others.”

Vibes weren’t exactly the kind of evidence I was looking for.

Speaking of evidence, there were some times the author said they recorded voices and said what they heard. At other times, though, it was claimed they recorded … something, but never specified what. Then there were the times someone heard a voice but no one else did, or someone heard a voice but it wasn’t picked up by the recorder. I would have loved to have been given a link so I could listen to these recordings myself.

There were some photographs included in the book that were said to be showing a ghostly face or other spooky occurrences. The quality of the photos in the copy of the book I read weren’t good enough for me to decide one way or the other. The photo I most wanted to see but was not included was the one that showed a disembodied eye.

I never felt like I knew anything significant about any of the other investigators. Most were only introduced by name, although some of the early introductions included a brief description. We had an “experienced and innovative” investigator and a “mysterious” one, but “talented” Michelle was also “the most beautiful investigator I had met at the time”. I didn’t know whether to be offended on Michelle’s behalf for having a label attached to her that had nothing to do with her skills. I also wondered, yet at the same time didn’t care, who now holds the title of most beautiful as it’s implied Michelle has been demoted.

I did appreciate that the author was willing to say that at times nothing happened or, if something did happen, there was no way to prove that it was supernatural. The writing style, though, was very dry. There was a lot of ‘this happened, then this happened, then this happened and then we went to bed’. The emotion that you’d expect to accompany occurrences like feeling someone was tugging on your shirt or voices coming from nowhere weren’t evident in the writing.

It was frustrating when the author said they saw or heard something significant but they didn’t have any equipment with them to record it, or when they witnessed something while in a group but decided for whatever reason not to mention it to anyone at the time.

If it was me, I’d be asking everyone around me if they saw or heard it too. I’d want the confirmation that I wasn’t hallucinating. I’d also want someone to freak out with. Believe me, if I ever witness something supernatural, no one will be able to accuse me of being casual about the experience.

Because everything was written in such a matter of fact way, it was difficult to become invested in each suspected haunting. At no time was I caught up in the atmosphere, so I was comfortable reading late at night in the dark. I never felt the need to look over my shoulder or turn the lights on.

Content warnings include mention of death by suicide.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Llewellyn Publications for the opportunity to read this book.

A great book for the paranormal lover in your life. It is a great book with great writing and will keep you reading and enjoying every page,

Did not finished this one. I just did not find it very interesting or amusing as I thought it will be.

If you know me you know I love Ghosts!! I love reading about true haunting's more then any other thing. This book is filled with accounts of true paranormal encounters that Logan Corelli has had during his many paranormal investigations.

I am a bit torn on how to rate this book. It is my favorite subject but the book was a bit dry. Some of the stories probably could of been totally omitted from the book while others needed more in depth coverage, while others were written a bit to much text book style. The stories were great for the most part though. I wish I had of been along with Logan for many of these sites.
I received this bo
ok from the Author or Publisher via Netgalley.com and chose to leave this review.

This was an interesting look at the views of a paranormal investigator. The author didn't try and persuade you to believe in the paranormal, he just wrote about his experiences with the unexplained. The notes on the places he has been and the things that happened to him and his teams are very interesting. The author also gives some of the history of the places which is nice to have. Over all this book was very interesting and enjoyable.

Corelli delivers information on his investigations in a realistic and unsensationalised way... something that the author of Norman (by the same publisher) struggled with.

There are some issues in that the sub-title suggests the book has "in depth" investigations of some of the most haunted locations in America, but at least one of the titular locations is covered in a matter of a few pages, and for the most part the descriptions aren't particularly in-depth, but rather a brief run-down of a series of investigations in certain locations.

The book could have done with a better edit, as there were quite a few typos and awkward phrasings (in the ebook as well as the physical copy I got my hands on).

It's also interesting that the investigations in this book seem not to go beyond 2008... suggesting that maybe there's a second book to come?

I'm a giant fan of ghost stories and urban legends and we try to go to at least one allegedly haunted place every time we travel. As a result I was super excited about this book. It wasn't as good as I hoped it would be though.

The overall premise was good and I was interested in a lot of the spots the author talked about. For me it wasn't in depth enough and I felt like a lot of the information was glossed over. The writing was a bit clunky and I think a good editor could have improved this book a lot. The bones of it was good but the execution was lacking imo.

**ARC provided through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

A fascinating book about paranormal experiences the author had while doing paranormal investigations with his team. The experiences are his own and some of the descriptions sent chills up my spine.

Logan Corelli authored The Haunted Heart of America which looks at famous and not so famous hauntings across America. One thing I love about ghost stories is that they are part history and part haunting. The book moved along quickly with some of the stories being more interesting than others. The stories were spooky but not scary. I enjoyed the book and would read more from the author.

My rating: 2 of 5 stars, it was okay.

I love ghost stories and paranormal shows on TV. I didn't love this book though. The locations were interesting, but the writing wasn't. And I was completely turned off by some of the author's comments, especially in his first paragraph about their Waverly Hills investigation, "...and the talented Michelle (who was the most beautiful investigator I had met at the time)." Seriously?! I did a mental double-take. Absolutely unnecessary to comment on someone's appearance!

I struggled to get through the rest of the book, only plowing through the Villisca Axe Murder House and the Myrtles Plantation (The Myrtles actually tripped a pet peeve of mine, presenting Folklore as fact.) because both locations are fascinating to me, but they didn't really contain anything new.

I did like the fact that Corelli was up front about one ghost hunting trend, the pay to play locations. This is a good thing, so we can all look at any "evidence" a little more skeptically, since it's in the locations' best interest to be haunted.

All in all, the writing didn't really draw me in, and I didn't really feel like the book added any new information or evidence of the paranormal. It certainly didn't feel "In-Depth."

Logan Corelli shares his ghost hunting adventures in the book, The Haunted Heart of America. He goes to several locations that are famous for being haunted. He shares what happens to himself as well as his colleagues.on the trips.
I especially enjoyed the trip to a church out in the woods.
If you enjoy the ghost hunting shows on television you will enjoy this book.

A fascinating book about paranormal experiences the author had while doing paranormal investigations with his team. The experiences are his own and some of the descriptions sent chills up my spine. I enjoyed the book a lot and would like to read more by this author on his more current investigations.
Pub Date 08 Apr 2018
I was given a complimentary copy by Llewellyn Worldwide, Ltd through NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

Do you believe in ghosts? I find myself fascinated with the investigators of hauntings will find. The author writes about his experiences that he had by himself, with team members and people he met at places he was staying at. He would offer strangers after a haunting tour the opportunity to go with him to see if they would find a ghost either by communicating or seeing the ghost. Interesting events did happen. Other times little or nothing was discovered. If he went back a second time, something might or might not happen. At times his book gave me the "creeps" as it seem so real.

The author wrote fine but could use an editor to make his writing smoother to read. I would read more by the author as I thought that he gave the truth of his experiences at the places he discusses in the book. I do recommend reading it.

Unfortunately, this book was hard to enjoy because of its average writing style and lack of editing. I hate to leave a sub-par review because I know people put their heart and soul into the books they write, but if you're going to sell something then you need to respect your readership and provide an enjoyable to read book.

Logan Corelli takes us on a journey through the heartland of America and some of the 'ghostly haunts.' There is great history here and a decent background of the areas provided.

While I enjoyed the book, I felt as though much of the perceived evidence was forced or exaggerated. I enjoy a good ghost story, so I appreciated the historical background of the houses, as much as could be provided, which is a great jumping off point for anyone who wants to do some background investigation on the locations named (all but the mysterious church which has no location).

About halfway through this book I was ready to throw it away. Very rarely will you see me post a negative review but I will be on this book. Don't waste your time reading Logan Corelli's The Haunted Heart of America. The writing is really subpar, and the lack of respect the author shows throughout the novel is aggravating.

If you don't believe in the paranormal, you're not going to like this book. The writing is sloppy and reads like someone's unedited journal. The author takes fascinating sights, and somehow manages to make them sound dull and boring. I really wish I could have gotten the time back it took to read this novel and read something else. I thought the subject would be fascinating and enjoyable. Instead it read like I was trying to review somebody's notes in class.

My biggest problem with the novel is the author's approach to the supernatural. He acts like he is entitled to a sighting, and will go to any lengths to instigate one. The most abhorrent example I saw in this novel was his decision to take an axe in to a house where the entire family was butchered in the middle of the night with an axe in order to instigate a response from the beings allegedly haunting the house. This was not the only such example, and regardless of your opinions on the supernatural, treating the dead with anything less than respect is disgusting. Even if the writing was great, this would have been enough to turn me off of anything this author bothered writing.

Overall, don't bother picking this up. It's a waste of time, and the author's attitude is pompous and irritating. I guarantee you will likely wind up annoyed you spent money on this book.

I do enjoy the paranormal and reading about such places and experiences. But I just could not get into this book very much. I don’t know if it is because I wanted more from each place, if it felt like I was just getting into a place and we were off to the next, or the writing style just didn’t engage me like I had hoped.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book provided by NetGalley.

So I'm torn with this one. There's lots of cool things in this book and the story itself is great but the writing isn't the best. Also... it reads very clunky and almost in a way, like a textbook and that is just boring. There were some investigations that could've been left out and I felt more details would've been better in others. Overall, this isn't a bad book, it's just not my cup of tea.

*Thanks to NetGalley for this book in exchange for an honest review*

This review will go live on my blog: 2/21/2018
http://sweetcherry69.blogspot.com/

This book was a fast read and at times I felt as I was there with them investigating the phenomena. A few times it even startled me. Logan Corelli has a great talent for sharing his experiences and I wish the book would have continued on just a bit longer. This is a book for anyone interested in paranormal investigations, experiences and what it feels like to be an investigator.

Who doesn’t love a good ghost story? A tale of phantom footsteps, flickering lights, and unexpected icy drafts. So much the better when huddled under the blankets on a dark winter’s night. I’d be willing to lay down money that even the most scientific and logical among us experience a pleasurable frisson while reading about these purportedly true hauntings. And so I opened The Haunted Heart of America with anticipation, especially as the book details the author’s own experiences in famous (or infamous) haunted locations across the country.

Unfortunately, I found the book to be disappointing. While Corelli brings us to well known sites like the Myrtles Plantation and Waverly Sanatorium (famous from any number of ghost hunter television shows), he doesnt really bring anything new to the story. Each chapter details his experiences at a different haunted location, and each is written in the style of a high school lab report. The chapters are ungainly and awkwardly written, with little attention paid to telling Corelli’s story in a compelling manner. The use of lab report-style chapters would be more appropriate if the techniques and approach to the subject matter was handled in a more scientific way, but Corelli and his colleagues seem to be without defined purpose or set methodology, and rather wander about haunted locations, using instrumentation and personal observation at whim.

I’ll say again, I don’t read books such as these for their scientific merits, by rather for their entertainment value. Unfortunately, Haunted Heart of America fails to deliver on both counts.

An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.