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Wicked Woods:

Enlarge Photo

Ghost Stories from

Old New Brunswick

By Steve Vernon

(Nimbus Publishing)

Steve Vernon is a master story teller with more than 50 short stories published to date. He has also written four books: Long Horn, Big Shaggy and Haunted Harbours and his recent release Wicked Woods: Ghost Stories from Old New Brunswick.

Vernon believes that stories grow like forests - the best of them run their roots bone-deep.

Wicked Woods contains 25 haunting stories from New Brunswick's past, which are a combination of documented facts and legends passed on through word of mouth. Vernon's style of writing entertains the reader as he describes to perfection every eerie detail and character.

Reading Vernon's book is like taking a journey through time as his book is rich in history. Each story begins with a title and geographical location, for example, the University Ghost - Fredericton. Many will agree with the author who says that Fredericton is one of the prettiest cities in New Brunswick. It's fascinating to read the origin of Fredericton, which Vernon provides, and all the other areas depicted in the book, some dating back to the 1600s.

Wicked Woods will delight readers from all parts of the province. Stories such as the Dungavaron Whooper and the McNamee Swinging Bridge are native to the Miramichi area. The Dark Chuckle, The Shiktehawk Vikings and Echoes in a Covered Bridge may be familiar to those from Carleton County while Malabeam of the Maliseet is set in Grand Falls.

The Bloody Stump of Bonnie River tells a riveting tale of two friends Ben and Isaac, whose friendship Vernon describes as one carved in New Brunswick granite, so strong that only the love of a river woman could wash it away. Their friendship becomes tested and tormented when both men fall in love with Mary Well of the Magaquadavic. She loved them too, and couldn't choose just one.

The oldest tale begins in the 1500s. In The Phantom Ship of Chaleur Bay in Bathurst; Verner writes about two brothers of Portuguese descent, Gaspar and Miguel Corte-Rheal who sailed into Chaleur Bay on two separate crossings. Many can attest that after their untimely deaths, it was not uncommon to hear the cries of Gaspar or sight Miguel's burning ship for generations to come.

With summer fast approaching, Wicked Woods: Ghost Stories from Old New Brunswick is a wonderful book to have on hand while sitting around a camp fire. And as Verner reminds his readers - Don't forget the marshmallows!

- reviewed by

ANNE-MARIE HOOD