These are not fictional tales, but expert investigations of real people who were thought by their neighbors and others to be vampires--often with good reason. Providing background on Vlad the Impaler (the original Dracula) and other European members of this unholy clan, this book is based on extensive on-site research in Romania and environs. Also included is a survey of movie and TV treatments of vampires, as well as discussions of what habits and diseases might cause a person to be thought to be an evil immortal--and some of the rituals humans have undertaken to rid themselves of these creatures.

The author of A Guide to Haunted New England lifts the coffin lid on the region’s folklore and legends of the undead. New England is rich in history and mystery. Numerous sleepy little towns and farming communities distinguish the region’s scenic tranquility. But not long ago, New Englanders lived in fear of spectral ghouls believed to rise from their graves and visit family members in the night to suck their lives away. Although the word “vampire” was never spoken, scores of families disinterred loved ones during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries searching for telltale signs that one of them might be what is now referred to as the New England vampire. “In his remarkable book . . . Thomas D’Agostino details the longstanding belief among New Englanders that supernatural entities were responsible for the disease called consumption.”—Crime Capsule Includes photos! Praise for A Guide to Haunted New England “Fun, charming . . . includes not only locales with reported ghosts, but also sites with macabre (though not haunted) histories.”—True Crime Librarian “Anyone interested in exploring the haunted, macabre and abandoned throughout New England knows they can count on D’Agostino to find out more about the site’s history, past sightings and how to find them.”—Mobile RVing

These stories of vampire legends and gruesome nineteenth-century practices is “a major contribution to the study of New England folk beliefs” (The Boston Globe). For nineteenth-century New Englanders, “vampires” lurked behind tuberculosis. To try to rid their houses and communities from the scourge of the wasting disease, families sometimes relied on folk practices, including exhuming and consuming the bodies of the deceased. Folklorist Michael E. Bell spent twenty years pursuing stories of the vampire in New England. While writers like H.P. Lovecraft, Henry David Thoreau, and Amy Lowell drew on portions of these stories in their writings, Bell brings the actual practices to light for the first time. He shows that the belief in vampires was widespread, and, for some families, lasted well into the twentieth century. With humor, insight, and sympathy, he uncovers story upon story of dying men, women, and children who believed they were food for the dead. “A marvelous book.” —Providence Journal Includes an updated preface covering newly discovered cases.

"Presents vampire legends throughout history"--Provided by publisher.

A historical tour of the Ocean State’s spookiest sites, with photos included! Rhode Island’s ghostly heritage is as deep and profound as the history of the state itself. From the ghastly moaning bones of Mount Tom to the stately haunt of Judge Potter in a local library, Rhode Island’s apparitions have been causing fear for centuries. Follow M.E. Reilly-McGreen as she reveals the ghoulish stories of the state’s most haunted places. The author delves deep to unearth both little-known tales and those that have helped define the state’s supernatural history. From ghosts to monsters, this book is your guide to all things spooky in Rhode Island.

No matter how old we are, or how far from home, our family remains with us - we share their looks and gestures, social values and concept of "home". Yet we often fail to connect with family members, and in remarkable ways our early experiences with family are repeated with marriage partners and children. In this revelatory book, esteemed family therapist Monica McGoldrick explores why families behave as they do, using genograms (family trees) to illustrate family patterns. Mapped out over a three-generation span, repeated estrangements, alliances, even divorces and suicides prove more than coincidental. McGoldrick uses the genograms of famous families - including the Kennedys, Hepburns, Beethovens, Brontes, and the family of the Marx Brothers - to discuss the influence of birth order and sibling rivalry, family myths and secrets, cultural differences, couple relationships, and the pivotal role of loss. Relevant questions we can ask ourselves appear at the end of each chapter, helping the reader to become researcher, uncovering information previously withheld, misunderstood, or overlooked. There is a saying, "Those who cannot remember the past are recommended to repeat it". The message here is positive: once we reconnect with the past, McGoldrick tells us, we can choose our futures.