The Spector of Carlton County By Marc Miller Marc Miller finds the boys who fought for the right reason and the wrong man.

To this day the ghosts of six, teenage, confederate soldiers - The Cowards' Patrol - roam the Ozark backwoods, forced by an evil cleric to continue taking the war to blue clad Yankees who dare trespass into the dark summer nights of isolated, Carlton County. When a young writer, Marc Miller, travels to the area to write their story, he finds he is unwelcome both as a writer and an outsider. He hears their mournful cries at night and sees their ghostly images in the windows and mirrors of the old Inn. He encounters them on horseback, swords at the ready, galloping together across a foggy, moonlit, Civil War graveyard. Are they apparitions searching for their final peace, or are they something more sinister? Miller is a skeptic but will that continue once he meets The Specters of Carlton County?

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By John William Kates, Author, book reviewer

     To this day the ghosts of six, teenage, confederate soldiers - The Cowards' Patrol - roam the Ozark backwoods, forced by an evil cleric to continue taking the war to blue clad Yankees who dare trespass into the dark summer nights of isolated, Carlton County .

     When a young writer, Marc Miller, travels to the area to write their story, he finds he is unwelcome both as a writer and an outsider.  He hears their mournful cries at night and sees their ghostly images in the windows and mirrors of the old Inn .  He encounters them on horseback, swords at the ready, galloping together across a foggy, moonlit, Civil War graveyard. 

     Are they apparitions searching for their final peace, or are they something more sinister?  Miller is a skeptic but will that continue once he meets The Specters of Carlton County?

     The author wisely chose to write this story in the first person, which lends a degree of realism and allows reader involvement in ways other styles could not. You feel the chills playing up and down his spine.  You search the foggy, darkness through his eyes.  You chuckle with him at his foibles and enjoy his ready wit. 

     Reviewers tend to over analyze, to see symbolism where none was intended.  I have to wonder, however, if Marc Miller's message doesn't flow well beyond the superb story line. 

     Whether you like soirées into the supernatural or just enjoy well constructed, skillfully written stories, you will want to read The Specters of Carlton County

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The Malevolent Ghost of Charlie Chance By Marc Miller Bein' Possessed in the Darkness like he was, he had the black gift- he could suck the soul right out of a person then shred it and blow it to the seven winds.

     The Ozark Hills Academy - a rustic boarding school - sits atop a beautiful hill in the back country of Northwest Arkansas, and serves the region's disadvantaged, 13 to 19 year old boys. The area had once been owned by the long dead, Charlie Chance - known hater of children and progress. During each Devil's Darkness - the convergence of the dark of the moon and a strong, warm, southerly breeze - the Ghost of old Charlie selects a student and sucks his soul from his being, leaving him dead and bereft of an afterlife.
     Author, Marc Miller, hoping to write Charlie's story, arrives to investigate. The Ghost appears and raises havoc in an apparent attempt to get the writer to leave. It becomes a 'good ghost' - 'bad ghost' quandary for Marc and the young people who offer help.

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By Bess Foster-Keppy, Professional book reviewer
The Ozark Hills Academy - a rustic boarding school - sits atop a beautiful hill in the back country of Northwest Arkansas, and serves the region's disadvantaged, 13 to 19 year old boys. The area had once been owned by the long dead, Charlie Chance - known hater of children and progress.
During each Devil's Darkness - the convergence of the dark of the moon and a strong, warm, southerly breeze - the Ghost of old Charlie selects a student and sucks his soul from his being, leaving him dead and bereft of an afterlife.
Author, Marc Miller, hoping to write Charlie's story, arrives at the Academy to hold a week-long seminar for the students and to investigate the legend. The Ghost appears and raises havoc in what most believe is an attempt to get the writer to leave - or could it be an attempt to tease him into staying? It becomes a 'good ghost' - 'bad ghost' quandary for Marc and the young people who offer help.
The reader will meet the Reverend Abernathy, a hell-fire and brimstone preacher; David James, the Headmaster of the Academy; Doc Johnson, the ancient country doctor who takes care of the student's physical ailments; Sheriff Fred Carter, following in his father's footsteps in that position and "tottin' the biggest sidearm" Marc had ever seen. There is also Gracie at the diner, Sally the local keeper of the lore and stories, and Tyke, a high school junior who, in all likelihood, will be Old Charlie's next victim.
The novel utilizes an interesting format, in which the author becomes the lead character as he goes about writing the book you are reading. There are lots of scary moments, lots of laughs, and lots to think about. This is a fine book and receives my highest rating.

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The Kettles and the Keeps: Ghosts AT War! By Marc Miller An Ozark mountain ghost story. .

     

     Ghost Writer, Marc Miller, arrives in Sandy Valley, an isolated area of northwest Arkansas , to mediate a dispute between warring clans of ghosts - the Kettles and the Keeps who, in their mortal forms, have been feuding for more than a century.  A pair of pre-Civil War Apparitions appears - one Kettle and one Keep - and unexplainably begins inflicting serious physical maladies on a dozen teenagers.  The dispute escalates, once again turning the families against each other.  Marc enlists the help of Willy, a teenager suddenly confined to a wheelchair and Jake, a ten year old, curiously wise beyond his years. 

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     Ghost Writer, Marc Miller, arrives in Sandy Valley, an isolated area of northwest Arkansas , to mediate a dispute between warring clans of ghosts - the Kettles and the Keeps who, in their mortal forms, have been feuding for more than a century.  A pair of pre-Civil War Apparitions appears - one Kettle and one Keep - and unexplainably begins inflicting serious physical maladies on a dozen teenagers.  The dispute escalates, once again turning the families against each other.  Marc enlists the help of Willy, a teenager suddenly confined to a wheelchair and Jake, a ten year old, wise beyond his years. 

     In this third Marc Miller novel about ghostly going's on, the author makes little effort to disguise his personal and social philosophy.  He manages to stimulate thoughtful dialog without being offensive.  The story, itself, is a well constructed mystery - a set of mysteries, actually: one unfolding in the world of the spirits and a second in the mortal realm. 

     Read it as a chilling ghost story.  Read it as a social philosophy.  Either way you won't be able to put it down.  The Kettles and the Keeps rates my highest recommendation for adults and high school age readers.

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