The subject matter instantly grabbed my attention, as someone who has long held a fascination with spiritualism and the supernatural, especially from an anthropological point of view.

I’ve always been in two minds about the rise of spiritualism during both world wars, questioning the motives of many mediums of that time.

Brilliantly captured the wave of fear and need for proof of the afterlife

The book covers the period 1914 – 1918 and what Ruickbie has done here is brilliantly captured the wave of fear and need for proof of the afterlife that society felt around the time of WW1. The accounts are credible, well referenced throughout and thought provoking. Who knew that so many prominent ‘seers’ foresaw the outbreak of war and warned of it in great detail?

With research funded in part by the SPR this book avoids becoming too laborious by breaking the accounts down into manageable, digestible portions and avoids overuse of unnecessary terminology striking a balance between being an academic piece of work and a mainstream publication.

  A thoroughly good read!

I found this book shone a light on a side to the great war that has so far been overlooked by most of us and has been presented in a very relatable way. I would encourage anyone with an interest in the paranormal to get a copy, find a comfy chair and settle in for a thoroughly good read!

[Originally posted on Facebook]

Jayne Harris

Jayne Harris describes herself as a psychical researcher foremost. She has worked on TV projects as an on-screen paranormal investigator for ‘Help! My House is Haunted’ on UKTV’s Really channel and industry expert on shows such as ‘Unexplained Caught on Camera’ on the Really channel and ‘Paranormal Captured’ on Sky Pick. She also regularly works as a media consultant and advisor behind the scenes for shows on networks such as the BBC, Travel Channel, CBS Reality, Canal+, the Discovery network and NPO.