Author gets big response to new book, ‘Beyond Haunted Holley’
Raymond Santoro writes more ‘tales of mystery and the unexplained’
Photos by Tom Rivers
CLARENDON – Raymond Santoro, the Holley and Murray historian, had a line of people wanting him to signa copy of his new book, Beyond Haunted Holley – Further Tales of Mystery and the Unexplained. Santoro held a book-signing on Wednesday evening at the Hillside Cemetery chapel.
He will be signing books and reading from the book at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Community Free Library in Holley. He has another book signing and talk at 6 p.m. on Nov. 6 at Gaines Basin Cobblestone Schoolhouse, 3286 Gaines Basin Rd., Albion. This schoolhouse is used by the Orleans County Historical Association.
Ghost-themed cookies were served Wednesday evening at the Clarendon chapel. Santoro has 500 copies of the new book available.
“Beyond Haunted Holley” costs $18 and can be purchased at Author’s Note bookstore in Medina, the Community Free Library in Holley, Murray Town Hall and Cobblestone Museum in Albion.
Santoro’s new book is a follow-up to his book from 2023 on Haunted Holley. That book has been a sellout with two printings. He wrote about paranormal experiences for people in the Holley community.
He included his email at the end of the book. He received 80 emails from people, sharing their own stories and experiences. Others have called him or told him in person that they felt encounters with ghosts or the unexplained. Santoro said Haunted Holley has generated a lot of interest, much more than he expected.
“There are plenty of local stories to fill a dozen books,” he said.
Santoro encourages people to read the stories with an open mind.
“There is so much of the world we don’t comprehend and perhaps aren’t meant to fully understand,” he writes in the introduction of the 174-page book. “I hope that reading this work as whole might shed light on some of these mysteries.”
Raymond Santoro signed a copy of his book for Gerry Rightmyer, the Murray town supervisor. Rightmyer said he found the first book on Haunted Holley to be a page-turner that he couldn’t put down.
“It is extremely interesting,” Rightmyer said. “I’m real excited to get started on reading this one, too.”
Santoro wore a black cape for added effect during a brief book talk on Wednesday evening in the Hillside chapel.
His new book shares stories from communities near Holley – Bergen, Churchville, Hulberton, Kendall and others.
Santoro was joined up front by Peter Turkow, left, the president of the Clarendon Historical Society. Turkow said Santoro has done a commendable job writing stories that have a profound impact on many people in the community.
“Everybody has a scary story to tell,” Turkow said. “He has done a great job. It’s an important and unique contribution to the history of Holley and the surrounding towns.”
