A new book by Neil Arnold
(Published by The History Press) ISBN- 978-0-7524-8772-4
Ever wondered just what strange
things lurk in the cold depths of Britain’s foaming seas? Ever taken the time to
peek down into those grey waters as you’re fishing, or skinny-dipping off a
rugged coastline?
Now, for the first-time ever
Britain’s underwater domain can be viewed in a different light as monster-hunter
Neil Arnold takes us hundreds, if not thousands of metres beneath the sea in the
hope of finding out if those seafaring tales of monsters and mysterious
manifestations are true. Do strange beasts resembling serpents inhabit those
inky depths? What of those old folktales concerning mermaids - mere superstition
or fact?
Fisherman have long spoken of
“the one that got away” but what of those seemingly tall stories that speak of
haunted boats and phantom vessels – ships believed to have been wrecked many
years previous on harsh coastlines, only to reappear on the horizon with tatty
sails unmoved by the wind. Can we truly believe the stories told by witnesses of
spectral sailors and ghostly crewmen aboard ships that have not seen action for
decades? And can we discount those even stranger tales where those aboard great
ships and smaller boats too, have reported seeing unusual lights emerge from,
and enter the frothing waters?
Forget Peter Benchley’s classic
novel Jaws, SHADOWS ON THE SEA – THE
MARITIME MYSTERIES OF BRITAIN is a real-life exploration in search of those
horrors of the deep that you dismissed (or believed in!) for years.
Along with several tales
pertaining to sea-related superstitions, you’ll also hear about cursed
sea-chests, the Devil and the deep blue sea, haunted cliffs and beaches,
smugglers tales, strange coastal swarms, killer sands, haunted lighthouses,
phantom bells at sea, ghostly lands, haunted buoys, spooky submarines and close
encounters of the coastal kind.
SHADOWS ON THE SEA (which includes a
foreword by Jonathan Downes of the Centre for Fortean Zoology) covers all manner
of British maritime mysteries, so, just when you thought it was safe to go back
in the water – it isn’t!
Available from all good
bookshops and online. Priced £12.99