Paranormal phenomena, crime, conspiracy and frantic chases during a hurricane threat come together in Dr. Katherine Ramsland’s new thriller “I Scream Man.”

In the novel, “I Scream Man - A Nut Cracker Investigation” (Katherine Ramsland, 2022, Level Best Books, 336 pp., $17.95, $5.99 digital), forensic psychologist Annie Hunter leads her team of Nut Crackers to find a missing boy.

The sleuth squad gets its name from taking on cases that are hard to crack.

At the Easton Book Festival, Ramsland will give a Halloween-themed talk, ”Lehigh Valley Ghosts,” 6 p.m. Oct. 28, Sigal Museum auditorium, 342 Northampton St., Easton.

The free talk is based on three of Ramsland’s books, “Bethlehem Ghosts,” “Haunted Lehigh Valley” and “Murder in the Lehigh Valley.”

Ramsland, who lives in Hellertown, teaches forensic psychology and criminology at DeSales University. “I Scream Man” is her 69th book. Others include books about forensics, serial killers, mass murderers and the psychology of criminals.

Ramsland based Annie Hunter, the narrator of “I Scream Man,” on herself. They take the same approach to, for example, remote viewing, which is the concept whereby a person visualizes places where he or she has never been to.

“Annie wants stuff to be true, but she won’t accept anything people say.

“I have heard people’s experiences and I think there is something there, but I don’t know what it is. I want definite proof,” Ramsland says in a phone interview.

Ramsland is familiar with many of the book’s edgy themes, including a murder investigation and kidnapping.

“I have seen many decomposing bodies and been to many autopsies. And my book, ‘Piercing the Darkness: Undercover with Vampires in America Today,’ involved the disappearance of reporter Susan Walsh.”

“Piercing the Darkness” was an outcome of Ramsland’s biography of Anne Rice, author of “Interview With a Vampire.” The biography and Ramsland’s mother, who told her ghost stories, led to Ramsland’s non-fiction books that explore ghost stories.

The Lehigh Valley has its share of paranormal tales, with purported sightings at the Hotel Bethlehem, Bethlehem’s Sun Inn, the Easton Cemetery and the Easton Library. The library stands on grounds that used to be a graveyard.

“There is a lot of good stuff in Easton concentrated in a tight area downtown. In other places it is more spread out,” Ramsland says.

Ramsland has spoken in area libraries and bookstores about ghosts and murders. The two subjects overlap in her talks and her book, “Haunted Crime Scenes.”

“Every time I speak, someone tells me a ghost story.”

She heard two ghost stories in October at her book signing at the Moravian Book Shop, Bethlehem.

“Bartenders and shopkeepers are a good source. I went to Scotland over the summer and heard a lot of stories there. The Celtic countries love their ghosts,” she says.

Ramsland feels that people can lean too far in either direction with their beliefs about ghosts:

“Some may be too gullible, leaving themselves open to be exploited for a lot of money.

“Others may be too dismissive. They miss out on the fun. And they are not really being scientific. Scientists are always open to new ideas.”

Ghost hunters use increasingly sophisticated equipment, but Ramsland says the results are “measurement, not science. It does not prove that something is a ghost.

“People have documentation and they try to do it carefully, but they cannot use scientific methods like sampling or using a control group. They approach it with a bias.”

Ramsland is working on a book with a serial killer who she does not want to identify. One of her previous books is “Confession of a Serial Killer: The Untold Story of Dennis Rader, the BTK Killer.” She has been corresponding with Rader for 12 years.

Ramsland is an executive producer of “Murder House Flip,” which has completed its second season. The Sony Pictures Television show has renovation experts redesign houses where murders have occurred.

And she has finished a second Nut Crackers book for a planned series of novels.

“Literary Scene” is a column about authors, books and publishing. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com