By Sarah Fertsch
Staff Writer
Two people falling in love between Victorian mansions on cobblestone streets makes for the perfect beach read. But what if the couple aren’t necessarily….alive?
Literary agent and published author Marlo Berliner incorporated a Cape May ghost story into her paranormal romance series, ‘The Ghost Chronicles.’
In the series, Protagonist Michael Andrews had it all (friends, family and a promising basketball career) until he died in a sudden, out-of-the-blue accident. And now he’s stuck, wandering through the world as a ghost.
When Michael meets Sarah, a young lady who died tragically at Angel of the Sea (a Cape May Bed & Breakfast), sparks fly. Can the two souls join in the afterlife before the demons chase Michael down, wrongfully attempting to drag him to hell?
Berliner grew up spending summers on Wildwood Crest at her parents’ bungalow, and as she matured, spent more and more time in historic Cape May. In the early 2000s, Berliner and her husband were staying at Angel of Sea awaiting breakfast when she read Sarah’s story.
“According to the story, we realized we were staying in the room the Irish exchange student spent her last day before falling from the window!” said Berliner.
The story stuck with Berliner, who had experienced a close-call car accident as a senior in high school, which almost ended her life early. Berliner mulled over what would have happened if she died that day, and what it means to lose your life at the start of adulthood, before you ‘find yourself.’
A journalist friend invited Berliner to a romance novel conference, which motivated Berliner to write her ghostly tale as a love story and pursue publication. “No one else has put out a ghost story that’s only about the ghosts,” she said. “It answers questions of what happens in the afterlife rather than taking the perspective of the living interacting with a ghost.”
The Ghost Chronicles are now a three-part series, with the third and final addition expected to be published at some point in the next year or two. She has also published a collection of short stories titled ‘Lessons of Hope and Light.”
Because of her use of the ghost story, Berliner has become close friends with the owners of Angel of the Sea, Theresa Stanton and her late husband, Ron, and their adult sons. “They have been extremely supportive of my work, and the Angel of the Sea has become my home away from home,” said Berliner. “I’ve stayed in almost every room, which is a lot because there are 27 of them. I have an open invitation to visit when I please, and sell my book in the parlor. In fact, they even bought my first case of books!”
Since the first book’s publication in 2015, Berliner has accepted the Stantons’ invitation to present The Ghost Chronicles at the Christmas by Candlelight House Tours, a tradition hosted by Cape May MAC in which visitors can explore Victorian inns at yuletide.
The first book in the Ghost Chronicles series has been a #1 best seller on Amazon in the
US, UK, Canada, and Australia. Both books have won multiple awards, including the 2016
NJRW Golden Leaf Award for Best First Book, and was considered a finalist in the National
Indie Excellence Awards for Young Adult Fiction. The book also received the Literary Classics
Seal of Approval, and was awarded a B.R.A.G. Medallion.
“The Angel of the Sea has so much incredible history and it’s very unique,” said Berliner. “I feel such an attachment to Cape May and its beauty. I love sitting on the beach and writing in every season.”
The Ghost Chronicles are available for purchase wherever books are sold and locally at the Sunset Beach Gift Shop, Whale’s Tale on Washington Square Mall, and at Angel of the Sea.
When she isn’t enjoying Cape May, Berliner lives with her family in Somerset County and works in New York as a literary agent, helping authors get their books published by the major publishers.
