Wandering Ghosts

"Wandering Ghosts" by F. Marion Crawford is a compilation of chilling supernatural stories from the end of the 1800s. The book starts with "The Dead Smile," a story revealing a dark family secret surrounding Sir Hugh Ockram, his approaching end, and the strange connection between his son, Gabriel Ockram, and his niece, Evelyn Warburton. The setting involves a history of disturbing events, focusing on the ideas of lies and the eerie effects of the past. When we start the collection, we go into the grim world of Ockram Hall, where Sir Hugh's confusing comments on the future of Gabriel and Evelyn suggest a deep family curse is coming. As Sir Hugh is dying, his scary smirk becomes important to the story, seemingly representing the weight of his hidden bad deeds. The stress increases as Gabriel and Evelyn face worrying secrets that suggest their future might be linked to an evil past, making them haunted by a "secret" that could destroy them. The mood is full of fear, and supernatural things hang over the characters, changing their destinies in a disturbing way.