In the history of the numinous there are few things more common than the belief in ghosts. From the earliest writings such as the Epic of Gilgamesh  to today's ghost-hunting reality tv  shows, ghosts have chilled the air of nearly every era and every culture in human history. In this book, Lisa Morton wrangles together history's most enduring ghosts into an entertaining and comprehensive look at what otherwise seems to always evade our eyes.

Tracing the ghost's constantly shifting contours, Morton asks 'What exactly is a ghost?', and examines related entities such as poltergeists, wraiths and revenants. She asks how a ghost is related to a soul, and describes the different varieties of ghosts that seem to be.