A clear and concise guide to recognizing, understanding, and approaching spirits.

This book is divided into sections that progressively instruct the reader regarding encounters with spirits and the paranormal. Beginning with an introduction into channeling and tapping into spiritual energy, then recognizing what different entities are as well as how they effect the living, and finally how to remove the entities and prevent their return. Set up this way, it builds upon the previous chapter providing context and support for each later stage.

While Cross is a Christian witch (and utilizes Christian deities, prayers and angels) she does include alternative deities, prayers and practices, which enables the adaptability of her work to the diverse pagan community. I found her inclusion of deities related to multiple pantheons a great way to promote the use of her techniques with each person's individual craft.

I would recommend this book to anyone who has a starting knowledge of the paranormal or the craft, and is interested in better understanding how to work with spirits.

Thank you to #NetGalley and Llewellyn Worldwide Ltd. and Llewellyn Publications for the opportunity to read and review this title.

This book was well written and thorough in its exploration of paranormal activity through the lens of witchcraft. Though I personally waver back and forth on how much I believe in the paranormal, I was raised by two practicing Wiccan parents who certainly do believe in the majority of the things discussed in this book. A lot of times I read books like this only to be disappointed by the lack of depth or inaccurate information. That was surprisingly not the case with this book. Cross was clear and offered lots of details when describing his paranormal work.

This book is more specifically geared towards individuals looking to practice paranormal work similar to what Cross does. Though there are portions that many people could learn from, this is the main aim of the book. If you're just looking for more general info, this might be too specific for your.

Additionally, to any other witches out there, a heads up that Cross is a Christian witch, specifically Catholic. This is becoming more and more common as time goes on, but can still be off-putting for some witches, considering the way mainstream Christianity has demonized (and punished) witchcraft for centuries.

Absolutely yes! I really enjoyed reading this. I hope to read more by the author
I Would recommend to my friends

A comprehensive guide to Witchcraft and Paranormal operations.

The book opens like a thesis, arguing the necessity for witchcraft in paranormal work while articulating that there is no singular reference for the work.
This is the author's attempt at filling that need.

While it is expected that the witch in question has foundational knowledge before delving into the realm of the paranormal, this resource is very beginner-friendly. It creates a linear path for educating oneself and practicing this finer energy work starting with basics and offering caution before outlining riskier rituals.

If you are a witch looking to cleanse, communicate, or otherwise balance spiritual energies in the world around you, this is the definitive text. I would advise going into this work with a studious mind, using caution and foresight prior to delving right into potentially harmful communication beyond your control.

Definitely a text that I will be purchasing, highlighting, and revisiting in the years to come.

[Thank you to NetGalley and Llewellyn Publications for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.]

I really like this "guide". It was informative and fun, packed full of information for a beginner witch, to an intermediate witch. I think it could be used as a good tool for those interested in this topic. I enjoyed it.

I have always been interested in the paranormal. This book was detailed and interesting. I read the entire book in one day. I highly recommend reading this book. Many thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC.

This book is very comprehensive and detailed. It is quite complex delving into hauntings and investigative techniques. It's time well spent reading this book.

I've always been interested in the paranormal, so this was a fun read for me. The author is very informative on his subject while stressing the importance of not messing with things when you have no clue what you're doing. It's a pretty niche book, because unless you're into the paranormal thing, you probably won't enjoy it. But I definitely learned a lot.

A Magnificent Book

WOW, just from reading the Table of Contents, I knew I was going to read this book, thoroughly, in one setting.

J. Allen Cross is a thorough writer and in this book, he shares his knowledge of the paranormal with the world. He begins by discussing three separate but intertwined worlds:
1. First, he began discussing the world of haunted homes and paranormal investigation, focusing on the four major categories of haunting, which are: residual, earth-bound human, poltergeist, and inhuman entity. It is during this discussion that the author clarifies that there are four main types of haunting: residual, earthbound human, poltergeist, and inhuman entity, and each type of haunting needs to be handled in a specific way because you can not attempt to fix a poltergeist in the same way you would resolve an earthbound human haunting.
2. Second, he discusses the world of psychic senses and mediumship.
3. Third, he discusses the nature of matter and energy as we cross into the world of witchcraft.

The author states that every single person engaged in paranormal work around the world shares one very important commonality: we are all searching for the truth.

There are thirteen chapters in this book, 21 exercises, and 25 rituals. He clarifies in Chapter 1, Witchcraft Basic, that witchcraft can affect spirits and ghosts because it is the process of moving energy and causing shifts in the spiritual plane. He discusses such topics as "Mental Magic", which is casting a spell with the power of the mind through strong intention, focused visualization, and an iron will to manipulate portals, erect psychic barriers, and much more.

Additionally, he discusses cleansing and clearing, paranormal investigative basic, portals, doorways, highways, and the types of clients you may have to work with.

My favor chapter is the discussion of the magical tool kits, which includes rituals, recipes, and techniques. However, I know it is very important to learn all the basics before delving into any ritual.

This is a very helpful book with a great deal of meaningful information. Highly recommend this book to anyone seeking to add this knowledge to their craft work.

The Witch’s Guide to the Paranormal was a really interesting book. On the surface, it’s a book about the paranormal, about “Ghost Hunting”. This is something that the author has extensive experience with, and he describes a number of personal experiences with the paranormal.

The author talks about these experiences through a lens that’s rarely seen, that of a practicing witch. Ghost hunting and paranormal experiences are usually tackled through a scientific lens, in which people are trying to prove the existence of the paranormal.

Instead, Cross takes for granted that the paranormal is as real as you or I, that spirits exist, and he teaches you how to identify and deal with them.

I would recommend this book even for a skeptic. Even if you don’t believe in what Cross states are his personal experiences, it’s fascinating to view this topic from a spiritual, yet somehow practical lens.

An informative and well written book that made me learn something new and I will surely buy. Well researched and well written.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I received a copy of this book for a fair and honest review. I have been a fan of this type of thing. This book is a good guide for those who are just now dipping their toes into the world of the paranormal. The content is nicely organized to make it an easy-to-use reference guide. I grew up in a house that is haunted and this would have been a good book to have when I was younger to understand what was going on.

The Witch's Guide to the Paranormal is a comprehensive look at using magick and the paranormal hand in hand. The audience of this book is very firmly for current witches who wish to provide paranormal investigation services to others, so don't come here if you don't know anything about witchcraft or know everything about investigating. Well written, a good blend of personal anecdotes and professional advise.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book.

Before this book became available on NetGalley, I was checking every week for it to make its appearance. I’m a fan of Cross’ first book AMERICAN BRUJERIA and couldn’t wait to see what he thought about paranormal investigations.

I will preface this review by saying that I’ve been a paranormal/ghost hunting fan for over a decade. I’ve watched the shows with a healthy amount of skepticism and read some books about the topic. A lot of the stuff mentioned in this book felt repetitive to what I’ve consumed for a long time. Because of this, I think this is a really good resource/reference book for newbies. It makes sure you’re not a jerk when dealing with spirits and incorporates witchcraft into investigations (though I would argue that a lot of these are necessary outside of witchcraft).

The information is clearly organized. While there is a table of contents for the chapters, there is another one for exercises and rituals so you’re not constantly flipping through, trying to find the one you’re looking for.

This book is geared toward paranormal investigation newbies who see a certain ghost adventuring show and feels like it’s not a good idea to yell at spirits, especially when you think they’re malevolent.

If you have felt drawn towards the craft, or dipping your toes in it, this book is for you! I have had encounters with spirits and entities for as long as I could remember. I would see an feel things, that my friend right next to me could not. So I have long been pulled towards the other world.
While I would say you probably want to already have some familiarity with the craft prior to this book, it is set out to help show the difference in the two worlds of paranormal investigation and witchcraft, while two separate planes, they Also work hand in hand, and can help eAch other greatly while trying to understand spirits from the other side while also bringing peace.
It’s broken down easily to understand, it’s set up to where you can have a specific topic you are wanting to find out more about, and go straight to that section.
I can tell you a lot of heart and soul went into the making of this! And I will be referring back over it time and time again. You can never learn enough about the craft or paranormal investigation!

My first interaction with a ghost was at age six. It terrified me, but it was meant to comfort me. I had seen things but never engaged again until my freshman year of college when Native Americans were in my dorm room. The odd thing with this one was my roommate had seen the same thing but we didn’t know about it until lunch time when I told my friends what had happened and they, in turn, told me what my roommate had told them before I arrived and she had head off to class. IT WAS THE SAME STORY.

Since then I have had several more experiences, but had not embraced it. It still terrifies me to some extent. How can I know when a spirit is harmful or not? How can I deal with these occurrences? I saw this book and decided to read it. I think this is going to be something I’ll be working through for a while to come, but at least I don’t feel as afraid of facing it and am learning how to deal with things. A great book for anyone who is interested in spirits or who, like me, needs to learn how to deal with them better.