More likely an act of man than paranormal activity, the book "Haunted Asheville" keeps vanishing.

In fact, librarians say no book is stolen from Buncombe County Public Libraries more than Joshua P. Warren’s account of area apparitions, lore and the occult. To deter thieves, librarians have taken to storing copies securely behind their desks.

“Any librarian in the county will tell you that they've lost copies of it,” librarian Vance Pollock said. “Invariably, every branch in the county has had a copy go missing, and some many copies.”

County library records show 27 of 37 copies of "Haunted Asheville" as either missing or definitively lost. This does not include older copies long erased from the system. Pollack estimates a dozen have disappeared over the years from Pack Memorial Library alone. Time and again, citizens enter libraries to discover "Haunted Asheville" in the catalog but not on the shelves.

“I think there's something about that book that appeals to maybe mischievous characters,” Pollock said. “Taking 'Haunted Asheville' is an epidemic.”

'Haunted Asheville'

Across 173 pages, Warren’s "Haunted Asheville" dives into famed fantastical legends of Western North Carolina like the Pink Lady of Grove Park Inn, the haunting of Helen’s Bridge, the burial near Erwin High (where Warren graduated) and the ghost of 13 WLOS TV.

“It was the first of its kind,” Warren said over the phone from his home in Las Vegas. “That's the only way that I can make sense of why it keeps getting taken.”

As a child in Asheville, Warren steeped himself in the supernatural stories of his hometown. He wrote prodigiously: "Haunted Asheville," his fourth book, was published in 1996 when Warren was 18.

“There are haunting tales waiting to be told in the pages ahead,” Warren writes in the introduction. “Read them carefully. Take your time. Things dies slowly in the mountains — especially stories.”

Warren says the mingling of European and Native American folktales has made Western North Carolina rife with haunting narratives.

“It wasn't until I started traveling the country, traveling the world, that I truly realized what a rich tradition we have of celebrating ghost stories,” Warren said. “I assumed every place had it, but I kind of took it for granted.”

After publishing "Haunted Asheville," Warren began guiding nighttime ghost tours showcasing “Asheville's dark underbelly” — sites of murder, visions and locally-sourced spookiness. His tours continue today.

30 years of theft

The world’s most stolen book, the King James Bible, rarely gets snatched in Buncombe: Pack Library accounts for all seven of its copies. But for some reason, "Haunted Asheville" induces citizens to commit misdemeanors.

“I really don't know why people steal books because they can always come to the library and check one out for free,” Carla Hollar, branch manager at Swannanoa Public Library, said.

The oft-pilfered "Haunted Asheville" is still very popular, meaning branches try purchasing new copies as old one’s disappeared. “I've worked in the system for over 30 years,” Hollar said. “And I've seen us buy that book over and over and over again.” Hollar finds procuring new copies difficult.

Warren says he’s willing to donate his book to branches in need.

Some check out "Haunted Asheville" and never return it. When a copy is outright taken, there is little way to trace its whereabouts. Most Buncombe County branches do not have electronic security scanners flanking their entrances. Pack Library does, but offenders rip the magnetic code off the back page.

Hollar surmises people use the "Haunted Asheville" as a guide. “If they have the book, then they can take it and wander around and go check out these haunted places,” she said. “So maybe that's it. I don't understand it.”

Other librarians mentioned people are known to abscond with books discussing satanic messaging as a way to prevent public access, a form of vigilante censorship. But "Haunted Asheville" does not mention the devil.

Pollock says readers relate the text to the region’s ethereal mysticism.

“I think there’s some very old energy in these mountains,” he said.

But those swiping "Haunted Asheville" are earthbound, Pollock says. He dismissed any potential paranormal suspects with a laugh.