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Scottish Ghost Stories (Tales of Mystery & The Supernatural) Paperback – 5 Feb. 2009

by Rosemary Gray (Compiler)
4.6 out of 5 stars 16 ratings
Scotland has a notoriously rich and diverse cultural tradition when it comes to the supernatural. Many of her greatest writers from Sir Walter Scott and James Hogg to Robert Louis Stevenson and John Buchan have explored the country's unique folkloric heritage to spine-chilling effect. From Highlands to Lowlands, from blasted heath or remote glen to wretched hovel or austere castle, the very topography lends itself somehow to the strange and unexplainable. Leading off Edinburgh's colourful Royal Mile, which runs from the Palace of Holyrood to the gaunt castle on the rock, there are many narrow 'wynds' - passages ancient and mysterious. As soon as you leave the sunshine and enter these dark and reeking ways you know that you are in a city full of ghosts and spirits - unhappy souls condemned for ever to roam this antique city. Tormented spectres like them throng the pages of this disquieting collection. Lock your door, turn up the lights, put extra logs on the fire and as you start to read, utter a fervent prayer: From ghoulies and ghosties And long-leggety beasties And things that go bump in the night, Good Lord, deliver us! If this plea fails to work and they choose to come for you, despair; there is no hope; there is no escape. In truth, dear reader, if you are of a nervous disposition and liable to fearings and fantasies we are not sure this book is entirely suitable for you. You have been warned.
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  1. ISBN-10
    1840221682
  2. ISBN-13
    978-1840221688
  3. Publisher
    Wordsworth Editions
  4. Publication date
    5 Feb. 2009
  5. Language
    English
  6. Dimensions
    12.9 x 3.1 x 19.8 cm
  7. Print length
    624 pages
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Wordsworth Editions
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ 5 Feb. 2009
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 624 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1840221682
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1840221688
  • Item weight ‏ : ‎ 384 g
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 12.9 x 3.1 x 19.8 cm
  • Best Sellers Rank: 1,165,178 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • Customer reviews:
    4.6 out of 5 stars 16 ratings

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4.6 out of 5 stars
16 global ratings

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Top reviews from United Kingdom

  • sandra k chung
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 28 April 2015
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    Thank you
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  • Max Markham
    4.0 out of 5 stars A Fun Read
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 August 2019
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    This is a good selection of Scottish ghost stories; some fictional and others allegedly based on real apparitions and authentic folk traditions. My only criticism is that a few of them, like James Hogg's "The Brownie of the Black Haggs" appear in every single books of Scottish ghost stories!
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  • Johnb
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
    Reviewed in the United States on 16 February 2021
    Verified Purchase
    Great book that gives a glimpse into the superstitions and ghost stories of Scotland. Got it for my sister and she loved it! Book was in great condition and was as described.
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  • Nightreader
    3.0 out of 5 stars Nicht schlecht, aber zu viel im schottischen Dialekt geschrieben
    Reviewed in Germany on 24 April 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Das ist eine nette Sammlung gruseliger Geschichten, aber wer kein Schotte ist, wird seine Mühe haben mit dem original schottischen Dialekt, in dem zu viele davon verfasst sind
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  • ealovitt
    4.0 out of 5 stars Bogles, spunkies, and blackgaird jotterymen
    Reviewed in the United States on 27 November 2010
    Verified Purchase
    Throughout its history, the story of Scotland has been interwoven with tales of the paranormal: Highlanders who 'see' the funeral procession of someone not yet dead; the ghostly reenactments of bloody battles; and fey creatures that lure men to a watery doom.

    Rosemary Gray has selected stories from the pens of Scotland's most well-known supernatural authors, including John Buchan, Sir Walter Scott, Margaret Oliphant, and Robert Louis Stevenson, as well as a smattering of anonymous folk tales.

    Alas, some of the stories are incomplete, e.g. "The Watcher by the Threshold" by John Buchan is mainly an excerpt from Chapter 1 of the longer, original version.

    The other problem with many of the stories (for me at least) is that they are narrated in an almost impenetrable Scots dialect. Here is a sampling from one of the most harrowing tales in this collection, Stevenson's "Thrawn Janet:"

    "Wi' a' that he had upon his mind, it was gey and unlikely Mr Soulis wad get muckle sleep. He lay an' he tumbled; the gude, caller bed that he got into brunt his very banes; whiles he slept, and whiles he waukened; whiles he heard the time o' nicht, and whiles a tyke yowlin' up the muir, as if somebody was deid; whiles he thocht he heard bogles claverin' in his lug, an' whiles he saw spunkies in the room."

    The longest story, "The Haunted Major" by Robert Marshall, is a humorous tale of a haughty English aristocrat who challenges Scotland's best golfer to a game, even though he himself has never set foot on a golf course.

    Of course no book on Scotland's paranormal history would be complete without mention of the late Queen Mother's home, Glamis Castle, often called the most haunted castle in Great Britain. The editor chooses to retell the tales of the guest who was awakened by ghostly hammering, and the stonemason who was forced to emigrate after "discovering more than he should have done" about the castle's secret room.
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  • Iain Esslemont
    5.0 out of 5 stars A compendium of dark tales by well-known authors
    Reviewed in the United States on 19 May 2016
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    Being a collection of short stories, there is no plot as such. Most of the stories I have read before, but they were worth rereading.
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  • Patrick Winters
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in the United States on 17 January 2018
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    Great product
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