Details of Publication - Apex Publishing Ltd.

The Mercury Man: Freddie Mercury in My Life
	Author: Mary Howis Classification: Autobiography/Spiritual	Brief Description: On 24 November 1991 people all over the world mourned the untimely death of Freddie Mercury, lead singer of rock band Queen. But for the author, Mary Howis, her life would never be the same, as, from that day forward, she was aware of a strange presence around her; someone from the spirit world – the spirit that once was Freddie Mercury, known in the spirit world as ‘the Mercury Man’. Mary had been chosen for a special mission – to be an instrument for the spirit world, for Freddie, through which they could communicate. But why her? Why someone who, until the news reports of Freddie Mercury’s death, had never even heard of him? Mary tells the story of her spiritual journey of discovery from disbelief, self-doubt and denial to an absolute conviction that what she was experiencing was real, the messages she was receiving were true, and they were proof that life continues after death; that Freddie was still alive, in spirit form, and had much knowledge to impart to the world. Despite the ridicule she might face, Mary knew that she was destined to write this book, to tell her story – Freddie’s story – to the world, in the hope that it would bring comfort and hope to those who are suffering in their earthly bodies, who are grieving for loved ones, who are fearful of death. The message is clear: death is not the end, it is a new and exciting beginning.

Special Note: This book is also available as an ebook. The original paperback version was published in 2004 under the following ISBN: 978-1-904444-18-3.

About the Author: The author currently lives in Devon.

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Publication Date:	21 October 2015
ISBN: ISBN 13:	0-993337-12-0 978-0-993337-12-3
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-- Reviews by the Famous and well Known

This, to me, is a wonderful story confirming Universal Truths, which I have held for as long as I can remember. What to me is Truth, many would find controversial, but I hold these things very dear. I can understand the struggle that Mary must have had - being a sceptic of Spiritual matters and gradually coming to Trust and Believe the vast volume of Evidence that was being placed before her, of Freddie Mercury working alongside her, in the Spirit.
It must have been very confusing, but she must have gained so much Wisdom in the process of struggling with her own doubts as to the process and fear of rejection by society as a whole. This book is a work of great Courage in the face of adversity, in people's inability to look deeper than the apparent normality of our day-to-day existence. Life is actually illusion of the highest magnitude.
It is Mary's story of how Freddie came to work through and with her, even though he was a stranger to her in the beginning. I am not personally inclined towards poetry without music as a norm, but the verses channelled are very moving. I pray this book helps the Truth of the Spirit's Eternal Life ring from the rooftops to all who are willing to listen and learn.
It is a great time in humankind's evolution. I can recommend that this book will touch the hearts of those that it is here to stimulate into action, to help in the Healing Process of Planet Earth at this time. There is so much more than the human eye can perceive, just waiting for us to embrace it within our Understanding and our hearts. I am honoured to have been invited to play a tiny part in this process in writing this review and hopefully have passed on some of my great enthusiasm for this lovely piece of work. It helps to relay the fact that Eternal Life is the norm - Spirit lives forever. Well done for writing this, Mary.
Les Draper Eames, Healer and Spiritualist

I found parts of the book interesting.
Jane Howard, Resident Psychic for the 'Daily Mirror'

THE MERCURY MAN - BY MARY HOWIS
Reviewed by Ian John Shillito - psychic medium
I found the book to be an honest story of one woman’s development with spirit. It’s comforting to hear other people’s tales of excitement and almost obsessive ness as they grow in a spiritual way. Freddy was Mary's focal point. I found it not necessary to print all the poems as I lost track of the story. I understand completely how personal these messages are when they come through - One wants to share them with all the world and in my experience, as for some of the world it falls on deaf ears. We are all at different levels of spiritual development.
Like Mary, I too have had a personal encounter with the spirit of Freddy. Up until recently I have worked as a stage manager on the Queen musical - We Will Rock You. It was only a matter of time that we would bump into each other. I was at prompt corner calling the show - The cast was singing' We are the Champions' and I was concentrating on the lighting cues. I was suddenly aware of someone standing in my aura - to the right of me - then I saw with my clairvoyant eye, Freddy by the side of the stage watching the show - He was dressed in a black shirt and criticising the show, in a way only Freddy would - As he was a perfectionist!
The book is a great read for anyone interested in Queen and Freddy. It would also stand its ground in the personal development sections.
Ian John Shillito, Psychic Medium & Ex-Stage Manager of the Queen Musical 'We Will Rock You'

A brave and moving account of communication with the Spirit World. A truly interesting book for anyone interested in life after death and that we do in fact still live on although in another dimension. An inspiring but practical and down to earth story told by a practical lady in her own words. She delivers the account in a very readable format that everyone can understand.
Gail Ross, Spiritual Medium

As a very experienced, working psychic and medium, I have both demonstrated and observed phenomena throughout the ‘psychic spectrum’ for almost sixty years. As such, when books highlighting spirit contact from ‘celebs’, etc. come to my attention, I am inclined to be somewhat acutely critical as to their authenticity.
However, here we find an extraordinary account of Freddie Mercury initially choosing, almost immediately on his ‘death’, Mary as his associate to detail his survival after ‘death’. His choosing of her quickly became effective and a mutual affinity transpired that has continued to date, for a goodly number of years.
It is a pity that she was at such a low ebb at the time of his transition though for sceptics might own that it was this which brought on the ‘feeling of great sadness’, especially as he was unknown to her. In addition, the obsessive feelings she had at first whereby she bought ‘Queen’ albums to listen to and researched as much as she could about his life in books, etc. will undoubtedly stand against her testimony.
In defence of her proof, it would have been better to have named all of the Spiritualist churches and the mediums involved to validate the messages she received but as a beginner in its (Spirit’s) workings she would not have realised the import of such things. Equally, to have a goodly number of private sittings with the same medium is not really ethical in proving survival. The essence of true confirmation is to visit different mediums and to answer just yes or no, for like the research aforementioned there can also be overindulgence, unintentional though it may be, for that medium to embellish certain aspects which he or she also knew about Freddie Mercury. Further, information could have been gleaned from the sitter over a period of time.
Notwithstanding, the poetry apart, which has sadly, little merit here, the evidence received is somewhat overwhelming and the author clearly comes across as an ordinary and at times ‘totally confused by the whole thing’ person. But this is to her credit.
Being fairly repetitive in its discourse, the book has no real professionalism shining through in the text. However, this is also to her credit for in the writing of it the sincerity of the author is patently self-evident.
Therefore, for anyone interested in Life after Life it is an easy to follow book and one deserving of recommendation as a ‘first-read’. This is because it will possibly, even probably, whet the appetite of those who at least want to dip their toe in the water in their search for evidence of survival.
Ken Pretty, Psychic and Medium

I have known Mary for many years and remember her first communication from Freddie. It occurred when we were learning about mediumship together at a spiritualist church. Mary was quite worried that she was going mad, to receive a communication from someone so famous. It was a joy to read the complete story and to learn how far the contact from Freddie has progressed over the years. The book is written in a friendly and down to earth way which would help the reader to learn more about the world of spirit, the process of mediumship and offers a wonderful insight into the way that spirit and mediums work. I would suggest that the book would be of great interest to Queen fans as well as to those who are interested in life after death and the work of mediums.
Mark Hartshorn, Medium & Spiritual Teacher

With Mary Howis' fascinating account, 'The Mercury Man' not only confirms a life after death, but gives comfort to those who have faced a loss. I found the book to be pure gold. Anyone questioning life after death must read it.
Stewart Roper, Psychic Medium

I'm sure the author feels trepidation. Such courage is given by the loving courage of the "True Entertainer" working with her. Laced with the love of the connection respectively. The bigger message being, physical conditions, names, titles are only labels of the minds making. Not the mind of our hearts. Not the true peace and love we are. Never Lost, Spirit Lights are seen by many, but do not ask "Who are you?" This Lady got her answer.
Carl Fletcher, Spiritual Medium & Author of 'From Love Through Love For Love'

Being a bit of a sceptic, I didn't know what to expect from this book. What I found was a very heartfelt, incredibly honest story of a woman who has a gift that she cannot understand, but has accepted it as part of her life. I found that once I started reading, I found it difficult to put the book down, wanting to find out how this extraordinary story panned out. By the end, I had accepted that Mary communicates with Freddie, and that he had so much more to give in this lifetime. I would recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in spiritualism, or just likes a good read.
Gary Mullen, Freddie Mercury Tribute Artist & Winner of 2000 'Stars In Their Eyes' series

The Mercury Man by Mary Howis
I sat down this morning to treat myself to a new book written with Spirit, The Mercury Man by Mary Howis. The author does not claim to be a Medium though she certainly has convinced me that she communicates with those who have passed into Spirit, and one particular soul, Freddie Mercury.
Like the author I had not followed the life or music of Freddie Mercury. I rather chuckled today to recall that in the last few days since receiving Mary’s book, The Mercury Man, I kept hearing one of his songs on the radio. In the car, at home or in my office, I kept hearing those same words over and over, ‘We Are the Champions My Friend.’ It certainly was not coincidence as I have come to believe ‘everything happens for a reason.’ I set aside today to read the book and feel blessed by Spirit to have received it.
Mary Howis has a simple and honest style to her writings. Her humility for the work she did with Spirit is refreshing. She confessed her fears in revealing the story then shared her journey openly with her readers as she finally accepted her role in the exciting process. I would certainly recommend this wonderful book to anyone curious for information on Spirit and how they learn to communicate with those of us still in the physical realm. The read is quick and easy to comprehend; a story that reassures us all that anyone can learn to communicate with Spirit. And the book is real; it is her truth after all.
Dr. Deborah Richmond Foulkes, Spiritual Medium and Reiki Master

An excellent book! Whether you are a Freddie Mercury fan or not, this book contains an important message for everyone.
Brenda Cumming, Medium and Psychic

Mary Howis seems like a very decent lady, with a strong belief and an interesting story. The mediumship aspect would be of great interest to a lot of those seeking answers in spiritualism. I have bought books along this line and I have friends who also find this kind of subject matter interesting. I also believe that with a little extra research for accuracy regarding the facts surrounding Freddie's life and death some real integrity would be lent to this book. Anything that would help substantiate the claim that this is actually Freddie Mercury in spirit would give the book a stronger market with Queen fans. It was an interesting experience.
Deborah Edwards, Spiritual Medium

This book took me through so many emotions – all of which lead me to humility and the undeniable truth that we all continue to exist in another consciousness. The message of continued existence is as clear as a picture – only in this case beautifully mounted and guilt framed with Freddie’s unique style. This ordinary woman’s spiritual journey unfolds in an extraordinary story. I highly recommend this book as a medium – because it contains the truth.
Estelle Webster, Author of 'The Plan of the Highest Will'

Mary's story is compelling reading. Her journey since becoming aware of Freddie's presence in her life is remarkable, and a great example of how spirit can work through us to help others for the greater good. I am sure the people whose lives are touched as a result will agree.
Rachel Keene, Psychic Medium

There are many books written about the subject of ghosts, spirits, and Life After Death, but I guess none come so strange and controversial as this one. There are many claims by psychics who claim that they have Chinese doctors or full blooded Red Indians guides coming through them, there are even those that claim that they are receiving messages and communications from famous people that once walked the Earth Plane. Nothing strange or unusual in that, these types of messages have been given out by psychics for a very long time. However, what makes these messages so intriguing is when they come from someone who was ‘really’ famous, very popular and someone who would probably be known from Barnsley to Bombay. This book, concerns one such famous mega star, a star whose light was sadly cut off when he passed to spirit in November 24th 1991.
I recently reviewed a book called ‘All You Need Is Love’ written by Jewelle St James (who incidentally has lectured to our society Strange Phenomena Investigations) Anyway this book concerned a lady who claimed that she had met and loved John Lennon in a previously lifetime time when he was called someone else, she set out on a one woman crusade to track down facts and evidence to substantiate the psychic elements of this story. Now If I thought that that this book was strange and challenging, (although I must admit, very comforting and I agree with the content and outcome) then this book, (The Mercury Man) was even more so. It goes without saying that this book will have its critics simply because of its content, and will prove hard to swallow with believers and sceptics alike. One thing’s for sure though, even if 2% of the claims that are given in this book are true, then this still is one heck of a book. So who is this famous man that this book was written about? Well it’s none other than Freddie Mercury, once the lead singer of the popular British pop group Queen. Let us now take a look at how this incredible story all came about.
As we learn, this book is not a book about the ‘life’ of Freddie Mercury, its more about his ‘life after his death’ The author Mary Howis tells us that she had never even heard of Freddie Mercury and Queen before and it wasn’t until she saw the coverage on television of his death that she knew who this person was. Since that day of knowledge at the passing of Freddie Mercury, she felt a great sadness all around her which she couldn’t shake off, as I’ve mentioned, she never knew Freddie, hadn’t heard his music and yet something was making her incredibly sad, and this sadness would not go away. It was only later that she realised that this was the spirit of Freddie Mercury trying to make his presence known to her. One time, when Mary had a friend round at her house they were both listening to music, when they each suddenly observed a misty shape form which they couldn’t explain, this mist then moved through the room and could also be seen reflected in a mirror. A few days after this experience, Mary had a dream in which the spirit of Freddie calmly put his arm round her and kissed her on the cheek. More strange things began to happen as the weeks went on and Mary began to realise that she might have the spirit of Freddie Mercury with her. She questioned why her, why not a fan? For after all, she hadn’t even heard of him before.
Mary started going to some Spiritualist Churches an idea encouraged to her by a friend, she didn’t want to, but ended up going. Whilst there, she got a message from a medium who told her that she had with her a man about 5 feet 8 inches tall with short black hair and a moustache and who was saying that he had found her he would always be with her. Similar messages followed all from different mediums but not all messages came from Freddie, some were from Mary’s mother who was in spirit who told her that it was a great shock to find that she still lived after she died as she really didn’t think that there was anything to all this ‘life after death stuff’. The book goes on to mention Mary’s quest to find out more about the man Freddie Mercury and tells of her visit to a trance medium called Keith Harris who astounded her with some incredible information pertaining to Jake (her grandson who tragically died in an accident) and also Freddie who explained ‘WHY’ he choose her and what his plans for Mary were. Those plans, were essentially for her to write a book about these communications and to spread the word that there is a life after death, that death is not the end, it is only a new beginning and that we will once again, see all those loved ones that have went before us. Mary would spend many hours with Keith and through his mediumship; more information came through from the spirit of Freddie Mercury.
I think the strength of this book is the author’s honesty and integrity of questioning her own mind and sanity. For Mary was not a psychic medium herself of any kind and had no interest in the subject before, this type of experience was the furthest thing that she could ever imagine would happen to her, but happen it did, and she presents how the story all evolved and came to be. Even though having read this book myself and I ‘believe’ all of what she has written, there will still be those who question this book and say that she has written up a load of nonsense to try and capitalise on the death of Freddie. Now those people are entitled to their belief, but all I would ask them (and indeed any sceptic) is read this book yourself, just because something sounds ridiculous doesn’t mean to say that it is so. Read the book, challenge the book, make up your own mind. Never say something ‘isn’t without even venturing there to question in the first place. Admittedly there will still be people who, perhaps after reading this book will still say that it is all hogwash, well that’s as maybe, but this lady, the author of this book, didn’t really want any of this, didn’t want to write the book, and didn’t want the spirit of Freddie Mercury in her life. However, rather than ignore all this, she did what any right minded person should do, and that is QUESTION.
Through Keith Hall’s mediumship we learn that someone who knew Freddie well would be moving quite close to her soon and that when the time was right, Mary should contact this person and tell him all about Freddie’s communications. That person, as we later find out in the book, was Peter Freestone his former road manager. I won’t spoil it here by telling you the reader what happened on that first meeting, you can read it in the book.
The book also contains many poems relayed from the spirit of Freddie Mercury. These poems basically relate to spirit and general day to day matters. For me there is nothing overly special in these poems other than the main message that Freddie was trying to relay, that of a life after death. Through the mediumship of Keith Harris, we learn that Freddie wasn’t overly interested in matters pertaining to the spirit side of life when he was here on the Earth plane, what thoughts he did have on these matters he kept to himself. All that changed however, when he passed to spirit himself and found much to his amazement, that life goes on. At this point in the review, I was going to place hear many statements that Freddie gave through the mediumship of Keith Harris but will now refrain from doing so, simply because it’s best you read then direct from the book.
The book also relates Freddie’s spirit knowledge of Re-Incarnation and how he states that he formally lived before in Aristotle’s time and later in the book we learn, through the mediumship of Keith Harris, that Freddie and Mary had actually lived together before as black people in New Orleans. Freddie also relates how he felt at the time of dying and how desperate he was to tell people that he was still alive. One interesting thing that I got from this book, was when Freddie talked about people not wanting to come back and tell family and friends that they are still alive, and I quote;
“They feel they had their time there and that there is no reason at all to try and communicate with anyone on the Earth plane. They will meet up with their family and friends when they themselves pass over, but in the meantime there will not be any communications”.
Now that was interesting and would go a long way to confirming that not all people who die want to come back and say hello. However, another surprising thing that I got from this book was when Mary sat herself down and calmly (in her mind) asked Freddie what the spirit world was really like. The response she got was strange to say the least, and was told that owing to a universal law he (Freddie) wasn’t allowed to relay this information. Now this may seem to some, as a major ‘get out clause’ but he (Freddie) went on to say, that if people really knew what it was like over there, they may ‘shorten their lives to get there’? Mmmmm. The main message that Freddie wanted to relay, was that, ‘there is no death; you are free of all pain and misery upon dieing. Another interesting thing that people will find of interest, concerns Freddie’s mention that a number of musicians who have passed to ‘spirit’, regularly meet. He states that like minded people generally congregate together over there.
There is so much in this book that people can find comfort in but only if they truly believe that what is written is real. I say this because later on in the book we learn that Freddie isn’t the only ‘big time spirit’ that she has encountered. Mary also claims that the spirit of racing driver Ayrton Senna one day made his presence known to her. Not only that, so too did the Bee Gee’s singer Maurice Gibb. By now Mary was heavily involved with the Freddie Mercury messages and found herself going along to Queen Conventions and attending gigs in various towns to watch Queen Tribute bands. From being someone who had never known Freddie or his music, she was making up for it big time. In July 2003 Mary attended a small meeting where she hoped to learn how to read tea cups but was gob smacked by a lady there who, after reading her tea cup, calmly said to her that she could see the singer Freddie Mercury standing right next to her. Now here was a lady who didn’t know Mary from Adam and yet was confirming what she had known all along. Mary informs the reader that Freddie isn’t always with her; she can’t somehow conjure him up at will.
The book also relates to Mary’s work with a chap called Mike, who sadly passed to spirit through AIDS. Mary went on to forge relationships with a number of AIDS charities and help them with fund raising etc. Incidentally, Mike’s spirit also came back through the mediumship of Keith Hall and he thanked Mary for all her kind work and inspiration to him when he was here on the Earth plane.
My only concern, if I can call it that, is that throughout the whole of this book, I never found one single mention from the spirit of Freddie Mercury that referred to his own family and friends. There were no messages that he wanted to give to his own family circle. I will beg the author’s forgiveness if there are any references in this book, but I can’t recall seeing any. Surely Freddie would have wanted the knowledge that he still lives passed over to his family and friends, (unless of course this book, is the tool for that)? Another downside to Mary’s relationship (if we can call it that, with Freddie) was that her husband Norman didn’t really share his wife’s views and feelings as to what was going on and was effectively having a hard time accepting all of what was told to him. Sadly this took its toll and they eventually parted. Mary accepts that she is, as she puts it, (taking her chances) in putting this book out into the public domain, but at the end of the day, Mary is convinced that the spirit of rock singer Freddie Mercury has been with her since his untimely death in November 1991 and it is her duty to get this information out to the public.
In concluding this review I would say that I found this a fascinating book, a gripping book, a book which justifies her writing it, simply in the sense that it portrays Freddie’s main message to us all, that ‘There Is No Death’, not in the real senses anyway. As I’ve mentioned before, there will be those who will find it hard to accept any of this as proof that Freddie Mercury lives on, they may see it all as just pie in the sky wishful thinking, but I only hope that those who knock this book, at least take the liberty in reading it first and not build their assumption on hear say.
A thought provoking book then and one worthy of its place on your book shelf. Freddie’s music will live on in the hearts and minds of us all, and so too it would appear dear reader, does his spirit. God bless Freddie for his life, his music, his inspiration, but ultimately in coming back and informing us, that ‘There Is No Death’.
Malcolm Robinson, Strange Phenomena Investigations (Founder)

It is well-written and honest. Overall, it nicely illustrates the point that in this life we cannot explain everything and, indeed, do not know the answers to everything.
Jill Prior, Author of 'One Moment In Time'

A well-written account of someone's experience with the spirit world.
Steve Holbrook, International Medium

'The Mercury Man, Freddie Mercury in My Life.'
A little treasure for anyone needing comfort that there is life after death. Mary Howis’s personal and loving account of her experiences since the personality previously known as Freddie Murcury on the earth plane, but now known as ‘The Mercury Man’ to medium Keith Hall’s guides, came into her conscious life.
Howis writes simply and from the heart. There is no doubt as to her honesty and openness. Her account of events provides evidence of survival over an extended period of years, sufficient to give, to her, undoubted proof that we do indeed survive death of the physical body.
The evidence comes in multiple layers of phenomena: from her own conscious recognition of thoughts which are not hers, occasional but not frequent glimpses of so-called apparitions when Freddie’s emotions bring his vibrational rate so close to those of our earth plane that they manifest as misty vapours or even the appearance of form, to independent confirmations from several mediums who did not know a thing about her, and to Hall’s trance mediumship which enabled ‘The Mercury Man’ to express himself verbally via Hall’s mind and mouth to Howis.
I have no doubt that the book will be read by many Queen fans – and that many of these people will not previously have paused to think about life after death; nor seriously about the occurrence of communications across the veil. I expect they will be intrigued as their power of God given reason absorbs the truths inherent in this single - but far from isolated - case of continuation of individual conscious personality after death: A continuation of life which awaits all of us.
Garth Willey, Editor of 'Woodland Way, A Path to Spiritual Enlightenment'

I have just finished reading "The Mercury Man" by Mary Howis. Let me say that I have never been a huge Freddie Mercury or Queen Fan. I like him and I liked some of the group's songs, but I wasn't a devoted fan. This book is a totally unique concept - a true view from another's eyes. I am a deep believer in the hereafter, so right away it caught my interest when I realized that her contact with Freddie was after his death. This book is written very lovingly, and the Maurice Gibb connection is also interesting. It makes you feel as if you are experiencing her relationships. I would recommend this book not only to Queen and Mercury fans, but to anyone interested in the supernatural, or entertainers in general. A very good read!
Sandi Haynes Pichon, Author of 'Raised on ELVIS! ELVIS! ELVIS!'

This is a very enlightening book on the spirit world. Its author has had the courage to write this book, knowing full well the prejudices that might manifest from ignorance. Having entered for the first time a 'Spiritualist Church' many years ago I did exactly what the author did. It is not until you have a message that you suddenly realise the fact that he/she could not conceivably have known anything about its contents. To be in contact with Freddie Mercury is part of her life and must be a most wonderful and fulfilling integration as she journeys through her life. Well written - a book worth reading!
Joesph James, Author of 'Above the Waterline'

How wonderful to have a famous singer and someone like Mary with no understanding of spiritual matters, coming together to give clear evidence that life goes on after physical death – and what it gives on in a truly loving way.
There is so much evidence around of existence in the spiritual realms, but only those who are ready are prepared to accept it as a great truth. Love solves everything and life is eternal. Thank you Mary Howis.
William Roache MBE, Actor

I first met Mary in 1991 at a spiritualist meeting and have made contact with Freddie Mercury many times since. I have no doubt at all that it’s him sending Mary all these messages and poems. The fact that someone who was a huge superstar should communicate from spirit is not surprising or unusual. “Ordinary” mortals do this when they pass over, so why not so-called “stars”? From what I have heard from this spirit he is not interested in Freddie Mercury, the celebrity. He believes he wasted his life and now wants to get the message across that the spirit world is all around us. He realises that giving his name will add clout to that message and make people listen. Although Mary was reluctant to receive the messages at first, he knew eventually she would be very open, which she is. Spirits will come through using anyone who is open, not just people they knew. He or she may try to talk to loved ones or to old friends as well, but unless they are tuned into this and prepared to talk about it publicity, we wouldn’t know.’
* Keith Hall can be contacted via the Spiritualist Association of Great Britain. For details, go to: http://www.sagb.org.uk
Keith Hall, International Medium

-- Newspaper and Website Reviews

I found parts of the book interesting.
www.crystal-unicorn.com

With Mary Howis' fascinating account, 'The Mercury Man' not confirms a life after death, but gives comfort to those who have faced a loss. I found the book to be pure gold. Anyone questioning life after death must read it.
www.stewartroper.moonfruit.com

The book comes across as a very heartfelt and genuine story. Mary is an excellent writer and her story will not fail to touch the hearts and minds of all who read it, and, if Freddie were alive today, I am sure he would be very pleased that he had chosen this woman to convey his message of life after death.
www.mysticfayre.co.uk

GRANDMOTHER DETAILS PSYCHIC CONTACT WITH BRAIN-DAMAGED BOY
By Tom Arnold
Express & Echo

"The Mercury Man, Freddie Mercury in My Life"
A little treasure for anyone needing comfort that there is life after death. Mary Howis’s personal and loving account of her experiences since the personality previously known as Freddie Murphy on the earth plane, but now known as ‘The Mercury Man’ to medium Keith Hall’s guides, came into her conscious life.
Howis writes simply and from the heart. There is no doubt as to her honesty and openness. Her account of events provides evidence of survival over an extended period of years, sufficient to give, to her, undoubted proof that we do indeed survive death of the physical body.
The evidence comes in multiple layers of phenomena: from her own conscious recognition of thoughts which are not hers, occasional but not frequent glimpses of so-called apparitions when Freddie’s emotions bring his vibrational rate so close to those of our earth plane that they manifest as misty vapours or even the appearance of form, to independent confirmations from several mediums who did not know a thing about her, and to Hall’s trance mediumship which enabled ‘The Mercury Man’ to express himself verbally via Hall’s mind and mouth to Howis.
I have no doubt that the book will be read by many Queen fans – and that many of these people will not previously have paused to think about life after death; nor seriously about the occurrence of communications across the veil. I expect they will be intrigued as their power of God given reason absorbs the truths inherent in this single - but far from isolated - case of continuation of individual conscious personality after death: A continuation of life which awaits all of us.
www.woodlandway.org

I happen to be the writer of the UK’s longest-running column in a provincial newspaper which deals with the strange and the unexplained. Over the years I’ve investigated UFOs, conspiracy theories, ghosts, poltergeists and sea monsters and a plethora of other mysterious phenomena.
Then I spoke to Mary Howis, and I found myself being transported to a different dimension altogether – if you’ll excuse the pun – when she told me that she is in touch with the spirit of the late, great Freddie Mercury.
I was raised on Freddie and Queen in my younger days and never got over the addiction. Last Christmas my youngest son bought me a boxed set of three CDs. In fact, as I pen this review Radio Ga-Ga is belting out of a speaker dangerously close to my ear.
I’ve interviewed many fascinating characters over the years – from Uri Geller to Cliff Crook – but what struck me about Mary was the palpable reluctance with which she accepted the truth that was unfolding before her.
Mary Howis didn’t wake up one morning and decide to talk to Freddie in the spirit world. Freddie came to her, and she was dragged kicking and screaming into a very strange reality. It’s this initial reluctance to believe that convinced me that Mary is genuine.
Mary eventually came to terms with the fact that the spirit of a dead rock icon was contacting her from “the other side” and is now quite comfortable with the idea. In fact, The Mercury Man is filled with vignettes which have an eerie ring of truth about them.
In one incident Mary heard Freddie singing the lyrics to Another One Bites the Dust, and sensed that it was a warning of some kind. She checked on her partner Norman and found him choking on some tablets that he’d tried to swallow in one go instead of individually. “Its lucky I was there”, she told me. Norman is alive and well, and there is no doubt Mary believes that it was Freddie’s timely intervention – albeit a musical one – that helped.
The Mercury Man is a fascinating account of a woman who was forced to acknowledge that there really is life after death. That this realisation was brought to her by a rock star of legendary stature makes it mandatory reading for those seeking a cure for a closed mind.
Mike Hallowell, The Shields Gazette

A well-written account of someone's experience with the spirit world.
www.steveholbrook.co.uk

Page 3:
'I HAVE TALKS WITH FREDDIE'
Housewife Mary Howis had never heard of rock legend Freddie Mercury when he was alive. Since his death she has known him intimately...from the spirit world.
The Ashburton mum, 56, has now written a book about her extraordinary liaison with the superstar who died from Aids 13 years ago.
Her unremarkable life underwent a dramatic change when she accidentally caught a TV news bulletin announcing the Queen frontman's tragically early demise.
In short, he struck up a post-mortem relationship with the unsuspecting Mary which has thrown up a remarkable autobiography with dead Freddie as the ghostly co-author.
The Mercury Man - Freddie Mercury in My Life (Apex £6.99) - is a riveting read even for the sceptics.
Mary admits she is exposing herself to possible ridicule by publishing her stranger-than-fiction story. But she stresses: "It's as true as truth can be."
It all started with the TV bulletin on the BBC's Newsround programme. Soon afterwards she became aware of a presence around her which 17 months later she identified as Freddie Mercury after receiving a vivid description from a medium.
In one bizarre incident she was at a tea leaf reading session in Ashburton where the woman she was with announced that Freddie was standing right next to her "rock solid and in a green suit".
Mary said: "Freddie just found me as he left this earth and has stayed with me as a friend."
He has helped Mary compile the book with a string of messages, including poems.
Mary explained; "I just started writing bits and pieces down. The thoughts in my head were not mine but someone else's."
She added: "Freddie wanted people to know there is life after death. It is not the end. It's a new and exciting beginning."
One of Freddie's poems from "the other side" says: "This isn't a joke and it isn't a jest (But there's a long way to go yet) To convince all the rest."
He also reveals how he has met up with murdered Beatle John Lennon, admitting there are a "lots of stars in the sky".
And he says: "I have no regrets for myself but I had to die to know that I should have done so much more."
Freddie mentions a number of things which left Mary puzzled. She's hoping those who read the book might be able to answer the riddles.
The book derives its title from the name Freddie is given in the spirit world...Mercury Man, a name he says he quite likes.
Many of his revelations relate to life in the spirit world, his regret at not doing more when alive and his trust in Mary, who has suffered her own tragedies.
A top London publisher apparently ummed and aahed over publishing the curious work, till Apex grabbed it. They have printed 500 copies which are quickly being snapped up by inquisitive readers.
The book also relates how Mercury's pal Peter Freestone moved to Torquay in the late 90s to run a hotel in Babbacombe.
Mary, through her famous pal, was able to deliver a message to the hotelier which appeared to repair the rift which troubled the pair before Freddie's death.
Many of the messages to Mary were related to her by the Torquay-based medium Keith Hall and others, whose skills are readily acknowledged by the authors.
Mercury Man is available at local bookshops or from Apex at PO Box 7086, Clacton on Sea, Essex, CO15 5WN.
Paul James, Torquay Herald Express

Book Review Section:
APPROACH this how you will. Some might dismiss the Ashburton mum's after-death contact with The Queen legend as pure hokum.
Others might put their scepticism aside and relish the unusual tale of the author's bizarre spiritual liaison with one of the late 20th century's great rockers.
It must be said that the late Mr Mercury does not emerge from this account as the eccentric performer he was in life.
In death - or on the other side if you wish - the dynamic personality is a touch more restrained. He writes poetry which fails to hit any literary buttons and does go on a bit about his ponderous life in the spirit world more than one would like.
But for all this, you can't escape the fact that Mary has a rattling story to tell - and does a reasonable job with a pile of sometimes confusing messages from the ether.
Rather me than her. PJ
* The Mercury Man - Freddie Mercury in My Life by Mary Howis (Apex Publishing £6.99).
Paul James, Torquay Herald Express

'I HAVE TALKS WITH FREDDIE' South Devon News UK 3/20/04
Housewife Mary Howis had never heard of rock legend Freddie Mercury when he was alive. Since his death she has known him intimately...from the spirit world.
The Ashburton mum, 56, has now written a book about her extraordinary liaison with the superstar who died from Aids 13 years ago.
Her unremarkable life underwent a dramatic change when she accidentally caught a TV news bulletin announcing the Queen front man's tragically early demise. In short, he struck up a post-mortem relationship with the unsuspecting Mary which has thrown up a remarkable autobiography with dead Freddie as the ghostly co-author. The Mercury Man - Freddie Mercury in My Life (Apex £6.99) - is a riveting read even for the skeptics.
Mary admits she is exposing herself to possible ridicule by publishing her stranger-than-fiction story. But she stresses: "It's as true as truth can be."
It all started with the TV bulletin on the BBC's Newsround program. Soon afterwards she became aware of a presence around her which 17 months later she identified as Freddie Mercury after receiving a vivid description from a medium.
In one bizarre incident she was at a tea leaf reading session in Ashburton where the woman she was with announced that Freddie was standing right next to her "rock solid and in a green suit".
Mary said: "Freddie just found me as he left this earth and has stayed with me as a friend."
He has helped Mary compile the book with a string of messages, including poems. Mary explained; "I just started writing bits and pieces down. The thoughts in my head were not mine but someone else's."
She added: "Freddie wanted people to know there is life after death. It is not the end. It's a new and exciting beginning." One of Freddie's poems from "the other side" says: "This isn't a joke and it isn't a jest/ But there's a long way to go yet/ To convince all the rest."
He also reveals how he has met up with murdered Beatle John Lennon, admitting there are a "lots of stars in the sky". And he says: "I have no regrets for myself but I had to die to know that I should have done so much more."
Freddie mentions a number of things which left Mary puzzled. She's hoping those who read the book might be able to answer the riddles.
The book derives its title from the name Freddie is given in the spirit world...Mercury Man, a name he says he quite likes.
Many of his revelations relate to life in the spirit world, his regret at not doing more when alive and his trust in Mary, who has suffered her own tragedies.
A top London publisher apparently ummed and aahed over publishing the curious work, till Apex grabbed it. They have printed 500 copies which are quickly being snapped up by inquisitive readers.
The book also relates how Mercury's pal Peter Freestone moved to Torquay in the late 90s to run a hotel in Babbacombe. Mary, through her famous pal, was able to deliver a message to the hotelier which appeared to repair the rift which troubled the pair before Freddie's death.
Many of the messages to Mary were related to her by the Torquay-based medium Keith Hall and others, whose skills are readily acknowledged by the authors.
www.midiowa.com/cight/Ghost%20News.htm

‘THE MERCURY MAN’ By Lisa Murray -
When Freddie Mercury died on 24th November 1991, for most of his fans it was a tragic end. For Mary Howis, 56 it was just the beginning – for the last twelve years he’s been a massive part of her life
Amazingly, before Freddie’s death in 1991, Mary from Ashburton in Devon didn’t have a clue about the rock legend. The first time she heard about him was on the evening news the day after his death.
“For some reason I was completely overwhelmed, it was like I’d lost a best friend,” explains Mary.
From then on Mary couldn’t shake off this weird feeling. She became aware of a strange presence around her that she just couldn’t explain.
“I felt compelled to buy his music and start reading about his life,” she says. “I can’t explain why, it wasn’t like I was a mad fan but when I woke up in the morning his image was there in my mind.”
Then things started to get really strange.
While Mary and a friend were listening to Queen one day, a mist suddenly appeared and floated down the stairs. It drifted past them, into the dining room and then vanished.
“Of course we were both amazed,” says Mary. “Neither of us had ever experienced anything like this before.” We couldn’t explain it so we just tried to laugh it off.”
But Mary sensed it was something more. So in an effort to get to the bottom of things she went along to a local Spiritualist church hoping to get a few answers.
“I didn’t really like the thought of it but I thought it might be a good experience,” she says. “I sat at the back, trying to keep out of sight, so I was shocked when the medium approached me.”
“He said that I had a message from a man in the spirit world. He was 5ft 8ins, had short black hair and a moustache and was 45 when he died.”
Mary was amazed - this fitted Freddie’s description perfectly. The medium went on to say that soon she’d meet someone who he’d considered part of his close family and when this happened she must pass on a very important message. Bewildered, Mary reluctantly agreed.
Still sceptical, Mary kept going back to the church in the hope of getting some answers. The next message she got was from internationally renowned medium Keith Hall.
“He told me that a man who’d been well known to the public, had died in London and was in his mid-forties would change my life,” recalls Mary. “Surely it couldn’t all be just a bizarre coincidence.”
Although Mary was still in disbelief she started volunteering for the Mercury Phoenix trust – Freddie’s charity. And in 1995, she befriended a local man called Mike who was suffering from HIV.
“I felt like I wanted to put something back,” she explains. “Mike became a great friend and I confided in him about my experiences with Freddie.”
“One day he just came out with a message for me.”
“He told me that after he’d died a man who had been very closely connected to Freddie’s life would come to Torquay. I had to tell him that Freddie was sorry.”
Mary didn’t take Michael’s message seriously. He was very ill at the time and shortly after, in February 1997, he passed away.
A few months later, tragedy struck Mary’s life again when her four year-old grandson, Jake fell into a canal. By the time he was found he was left with severe brain damage.
“This totally destroyed my faith in anything spiritual,” admits Mary. “With such a tragedy, any belief in Freddie went out of the window.”
Mary was at a real low but just a few months later in 1998, Freddie came back with a vengeance.
Mary got a call from a friend to say that a man named Peter Freestone had bought a hotel in Torquay. He’d been Freddie’s personal assistant and a close friend up until he’d died. Freddie had considered him part of the family – just as Mike had predicted.
If this was a coincidence it was a big one. Although Mary was still in no frame of mind to have fun, her friends persuaded her to come along to a barbecue at his hotel. That was when she met Peter for the first time.
“He was so welcoming and friendly,” recalls Mary. “As we got talking, the message from Freddie was really playing on my mind.” But how could I tell him?” He would have thought I was mad.”
Try as she might, Mary couldn’t shake off this feeling. As they became closer friends over the next few months, Mary plucked up the courage to confess everything to Peter.
“I expected him to be angry but he couldn’t have been more understanding,” she says. “He thanked me for passing on the message and told me it made real sense - it was such a relief.”
“Me and Peter became good friends after that.”
“He turned my life around and helped me get on with living after Jake’s accident.”
Sadly, Mary lost contact with Peter when he left Torquay and moved to Prague in 2001. She didn’t lose contact with Freddie though, he had another task for her.
In December that year, medium Keith Hall recognised Mary when she visited his church. He agreed to do a private reading for her in the hope of getting a few answers.
“After a while Keith went into a trance and the messages from Freddie started to come through,” explains Mary. “A spirit guide told me about ‘Mercury Man’ who wanted to converse with me.”
“He told me that I’d been chosen for a special mission – to be an instrument for the spirit world for Freddie to communicate through – he’d been with me all along.” He had chosen me to write a book to say all the things he never got the chance to while he was alive.”
Despite the ridicule she might face, Mary accepted the challenge, working closely with Keith over the next five months to make his dream a reality.
After sending it off to publishers she was amazed when she got an acceptance from Apex. The Mercury Man – Freddie Mercury in my life hit the shelves on 26th February.
“It’s taken me a long time to accept Freddie into my life,” admits Mary. “I’ve had a lot of strange experiences and a lot of laughs along the way.”
“I’ve been through total disbelief, self-doubt and denial but after everything that’s happened over the last 12 years I’m absolutely convinced that what I’ve experienced is real.”
“I know Freddie’s got a lot to say and I know he lives on. There’s even a song he’s written in the book, so come on Robbie I know you’re a fan. What are you waiting for?”
Lisa Murray, News of the World (Feature Writer for 'The Sunday Magazine')

FAMOUS SINGER RETURNS FROM THE SPIRIT WORLD
THE dramatic claim that Freddie Mercury, the lead singer of the internationally acclaimed, chart-topping band Queen, has returned to her has been made by a Torquay grandmother, writes Tony Ortzen.
Evidentially, Freddie communicated to 56-year-old Mary Howis through several different mediums. To date, the "dead" musician has "sent" around 65 poems to her.
Freddie was born Farrokh Bulsara in September 1946, on the small spice island of Zanzibar.
His parents, Bomi and Jer, were Persian. Freddie's father was a civil servant, working for the British government.
It was at an English boarding school, around 50 miles outside Bombay, that friends started to call him Freddie, a name the family adopted.
In 1964, the Bulsaras migrated to England. Freddie's former jobs included working in the catering department at Heathrow Airport and in a warehouse.
Fast-forward to April 1970, when Freddie changed the name of his then band to Queen and his last name to Mercury.
For the next few years, the group, which was fronted by flamboyant Freddie, sometimes in outrageous clothes, enjoyed global success.
Freddie's last stage performance was in October 1988. On November 24, 1991, he passed on peacefully at his London home of AIDS-related bronchial pneumonia.
In her book "The Mercury Man," Mary Howis says that previously she did not even know who Freddie was.
However, soon after his passing, she found that Freddie was always on her mind. She started buying lots of Queen music and any books giving information about him.
Then "odd things started happening." One night, as Mary and a friend called Joan were sitting together, "a mist appeared on the stairs and slowly started to move along and descend them.
"We both saw it clearly." Next, "it floated across in front of us, never stopping.
"The misty substance slowly passed in front of a mirror, went through the dining room and then disappeared."
Months later, Mary and Joan visited a Spiritualist church.
Bruce James, the demonstrating medium that night, approached them at the end of the service, said it was obvious they had not been to a Spiritualist meeting before and invited the pair to his home the next week.
There, Bruce described a spirit form next to Mary, saying: "He is quite tall, about 5ft 8ins, slim, with short black hair and a moustache." This sounds like Freddie.
The medium continued: "He says he died when he was 45. He is asking me to tell you that now he has found you, he will always stay with you."
Mary continued visiting the Spiritualist church, finding it "new and fascinating." Subsequently, both her mother and grandmother made their spirit returns.
Another time, medium Brenda Sawyer singled Mary out at a Spiritualist church service, saying she could see two male spirit beings by her side. One told the clairvoyant, "Tell her I passed away on November 24."
Later, Mary met and became friendly with West Country medium Keith Hall.
At a private sitting, Keith suddenly announced: "I have got Freddie Mercury here. He is saying: "Tell her this is Freddie with her and has been all along.
'"Tell her I want her to start writing things down for me'." Mary did just that. The result is her book.
At another sitting, Keith went into trance. A communicator thought to be Freddie gave a long message. Part of it reads:
"I didn't realise that we all carry the same truths in the end...
"Looking back, it all seemed to be about monetary gain, about the ego, about who I was, not the real message."
Freddie continued: "Most of the music and words I recognised came from a source outside myself.
"Music, words, melodies, fears. Nothing on this earth produces it. It comes from the spirit."
After admitting he led "a reckless life," Freddie said: "The first thing I realised when I passed to the spirit world was that I could have done so much more.
"There are many in my profession on the earth plane now who do great works - turn fame and fortune into always helping the world. I feel I did not do my share."
During another spirit return, Freddie recalled passing on and being lifted out of his body by unseen hands.
"Everything seemed like slow motion," he said. "Imagine how you feel when you are slightly drunk and everything slows down in a way, but you are still very aware of things."
Freddie was "shocked" when he saw his physical body, which looked "old and worn out...
"Then it dawned on me that I was all right. I was alive and free again. I didn't need that body."
In her book, Mary says the sole aim of "The Mercury Man" is "to prove without a shadow of a doubt that life goes on after we seemingly die and leave this earth.
"Freddie Mercury feels that if, through him, this can be proved, it will fulfil all things he didn't get to achieve through his life on earth."
Tony Ortzen, Psychic News (Editor)

Everyone who is intrigued by the possibility of an afterlife will find Mary Howis's book. Mercury Man, truly gripping. Take A Break's Fate & Fortune magazine was so knocked out by her incredible story we've asked her to share it with our readers in our fantastic September issue (on sale 10 August 2004).
Sue Ricketts, Spirit & Destiny (Features Editor)

MY GUARDIAN ANGEL IS A ROCK STAR
MARY HOWIS, 56, FROM DEVON, HAD NEVER EVEN HEARD OF FREDDIE MERCURY UNTIL THE DAY HE DIED. BUT THE FLAMBOYANT LEAD SINGER OF QUEEN WAS ON A MISSION FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE - AND MARY KNEW IT WAS HER CALLING TO HELP.
After finishing tea one cold night in November 1991, my husband Sam and I sat down to watch the news. Sam turned on the TV. 'Rock legend Freddie Mercury has died,' said the newsreader. I'd never even heard the name before, as I'm not really into music, but I found I was staring at the picture on screen.
Suddenly, a terrible feeling of sadness and despair swept over me, as if I'd just heard my best friend had died.
'Mercury, the lead singer of rock band Queen, passed away last night,' went on the news report. For no reason at all, I felt utterly heartbroken. Tears welled up, but I brushed them away and hurried into the kitchen before Sam noticed. The sadness overwhelmed me.
'I look a right idiot,' I said to myself, scrubbing the dishes, confused and embarrassed, 'I didn't even know the man.' But I couldn't get Freddie's image, or deep sadness, out of my head.
I was pottering around the house a few days later, still sad, when I sensed a warm, comforting presence beside me. The feeling was so intense that I looked to see if anyone was there. I'd never had any kind of psychic experience, and I told myself not to be silly. But the sensation wouldn't go away. Strangest of all, I wasn't frightened.
Weeks passed, and Freddie Mercury was still on my mind, so I brought a book about him, along with a few Queen CDs. To my surprise, I found I loved his music. Sam thought it was hilarious - a middle-aged woman singing along to Queen! I didn’t tell him about the presence, which was still with me - he'd think I was mad, and I wouldn't blame him! But every morning when I opened my eyes there was the image of Freddie Mercury imprinted on my mind.
Then strange things started happening. It turned out that my friend Joan really liked Queen's music. She'd never told me this, even though we'd been friends for a long time.
One night, Joan and I were chatting in my living room, with a Queen album on in the background. Suddenly, a patch of thin, white mist appeared in front of us.
'Look at that, Joan!' I whispered.
We stared as the mist moved across the room and out the door, too stunned to speak. Then we ran after it, but it had gone.
'It's Freddie Mercury's spirit,' laughed Joan. I froze. She had no reason to say this as I hadn't told her anything.
But who could I tell? I sounded ridiculous. People would think I was nuts. Even if there was an afterlife, why would a celebrity contact me? Surely he'd choose someone linked to him - his own loved ones, or a psychic, maybe even an avid fan?
Desperate to know more about the afterlife, I went to a spiritualist church for the first time. The medium, Bruce James, came up to me.
'A gentleman connected with you when he left this world,' he said. Shivers ran down my spine. 'He is walking beside you, and is about 5ft 8ins, slim, with short black hair and a moustache. He says he died when he was 45. He has been around you for quite a while and is asking me to tell you that now he has found you he will always stay with you.'
I sank back into my chair, shocked. But there was more.
'He says one day you'll met someone who he considered, one of the family,' Bruce went on. 'When you do, you must pass on this important message: he is sorry for what happened between them before he died.'
Bewildered and confused, I promised to pass it on. I was sure in my heart that the spirit was Freddie. But it sounded so far-fetched. Why would he contact me? And as for meeting one of his close friends - I lived in a quiet village in Devon! Even if I did, I'd look a fool if I marched up to them with a 'message from Freddie'.
Intrigued, I went back to the church. A visiting medium, Keith Hall, approached me in the crowd.
'Sprits tell me that a man well-known to the public, in his mid-40s, is communicating with you,' he began to say to me.
I panicked. I was terrified he was going to say it was Freddie Mercury, and everyone in the room would laugh. So I lied and said I had no idea what he was talking about.
'Look, dear, I only bring the truth through,' he replied. 'If you don't want the message I won't waste my time.' I stayed silent, unable to find the courage to speak out. Telling people that Freddie Mercury talked to me was guaranteed to get me labelled a crackpot.
I joined the Queen fan club, listened to their CDs a lot and kept on going to the spiritualist church in the hope of finding out more about why this was happening to me. Time passed and Freddie's presence, like a strong feeling of love around me, continued. I'd hear his voice in my head. He'd tell me things about his life in spirit.
Freddie said he could still remember the sensation of dying - being lifted out of his body, gently, by unseen hands then realising he was all right, alive and free again. He didn't want people to grieve, as he's truly happy on the other side.
Freddie had died from Aids, and as I read more about the illness, and the Mercury Phoenix Trust, the charity he'd set up to support victims, I felt compelled to help. I agreed to become a companion to Mike, a 45-year-old man dying from Aids, with no family of his own. Over the months, despite our totally different backgrounds, we grew very close. My daughters got on really well with him, too, and sometimes he stayed with Sam and me.
One day I confided in Mike that I felt a spirit. Mike replied, 'I know. It's Freddie Mercury.' I was astounded - I'd never even mentioned Freddie to him. 'Someone close to Freddie is going to move nearby,' Mike went on. 'You'll give him a message.'
That's what the medium, Bruce James, had said, too. But it still seemed so unlikely that I'd meet one of Freddie's inner circle.
In August 1997, 15 months after we first met, Mike died of Aids. I was devastated.
More heartbreak was to come. Shortly after Mike's death, my four-year-old grandson, Jake, fell into a canal. Doctors were able to resuscitate him, but he was left permanently paralysed, blind, and unable to do anything for himself. He even had to be fed through a tube.
It broke my heart to see the suffering that both he and my daughter, Rachael, were going through. Seeing a little boy's quality of life so cruelly snatched from him threw the rest of my life into sharp focus. The spirit world seemed totally airy-fairy and irrelevant. How could I even think a former rock star was communicating with me from the other side? I told myself to just snap out of it.
Months passed. The messages from Freddie continued but I tried to block them out. Then a friend called with news. Freddie's former personal assistant, Peter Freestone, whom Freddie had regarded as 'family', had bought a hotel in nearby Torquay.
When I found out the hotel was a five-minute walk away from where my friend Mike had lived, the coincidence got me thinking. Some of my friends were planning to meet him but I was reluctant - I was still too preoccupied with Jake. Then one night they persuaded me to go along to a local show by a Queen tribute band. While standing around chatting at the event, I found myself being introduced to a kindly-looking stranger.
He took my hand and gave me a hug. 'I'm Peter Freestone. Pleased to meet you, Mary,' he said, before adding that we would meet again. Shortly afterwards, he invited me to a barbecue at the hotel. We had a nice chat and I told him about Jake and he told me bits about Freddie and how much he still missed him.
After that, we got together quite a bit. He became my shoulder to cry on over Jake, and I did the same for him, as he still grieved over Freddie.
I began to think maybe he was the one I was meant to give the message to, and that Freddie was bringing us together. Four months after we first met, I finally felt the time was right.
'I've got something to tell you, Peter,' I blurted out. I spilled the whole story about feeling Freddie's presence and hearing his voice. Then I gave him the message about Freddie being sorry for what happened before his death. I thought Peter would tell me to leave, but he just smiled and nodded.
'That makes sense to me,' he said quietly, 'It's such a comfort to know that Freddie's still around.'
Later, he pinned Freddie's message up on his fridge so he could look at it every day. I was beginning to understand why Freddie had come to me. He still wanted to bring joy into people's lives, and to let them know there was life after death.
I visited another spiritualist church and bumped into Keith Hall, the medium who'd first told me a 'well-known public figure' was communicating with me from the other side. I'd been too shy to admit it then. Now I wanted the truth.
Keith offered to give me a private reading where he could go into a trance and try to let Freddie speak to me directly. When the evening arrived I was shaking with nerves. What on earth would happen?
We sat down and Keith went into a trance. One of Keith's guides came through first. The voice said, 'I want to bring a spirit called the Mercury Man through to you. He wants to help the world he left behind.'
Keith's breathing became hard and rasping. I knew it was Freddie.
'For the last month that I lived on earth I could hardly breathe, but I was ready to die. My memory of my life there is very strong. If you will let me, I will communicate through you, Mary, I know compassion is in your heart. A book I started to write was never finished. I want to tell you about my life. I always loved music. From a young age I knew I'd be a performer. It was my way of telling people how I felt. But I don't think they really understood me.'
Freddie then explained why he had chosen me to deliver his message. 'It is easier if we reach out to a person who is a stranger to us on earth because their mind is more clear, uncluttered by memories of us. But in past lives we have known each other.'
At last I knew why Freddie had chosen me. It was because our spirits were linked. That's why I’d been so upset by his death, too. Suddenly everything made sense.
'Now I want to let you all know that we do live on after what is called death on earth,' Freddie went on. 'There's nothing spooky or weird.
'I lived a flamboyant life, but it wasn't the real me. We are all more than what is sent to earth. Tell the truth of the spirit world, Mary. We are all spirits, we are all equal, and we do all live on.'
Freddie asked if I would allow him to write poetry through me. I agreed and, to my amazement, words came to me. I'd never written a poem in my life. Suddenly my head was filled with words, which I scribbled down. When I read them back, I found they were beautiful poems - I could never have written anything like it myself. Today, a year on, I've collected almost 70 of Freddie's poems.
I've also written a book all about my experiences. It hasn't been easy, and I know sceptics will laugh at me. But I had to share what I've learned.
I'm so glad that Freddie's spirit chose me. At first it was strange, and hard to understand, but now I accept and treasure his presence. He has brought wonderful new people and experiences into my life and comforted our family over Jake. 'Don't worry about him - one day all will be fine,' Freddie's told me.
Jake's mum, Rachael, now takes a big interest in Freddie and his music, and I know he's bringing her comfort, too. Freddie's watching over us. I recently lit a candle for him at a monastery. The next day, when I visited a medium, a message came through: 'Thank Mary for lighting a candle for me.'
Above all, Freddie wants to tell us there is life after death. It's not the end; it's the beginning. The Mercury Man's spirit - and ours - will live on.
* The Mercury Man: Freddie Mercury In My Life by Mary Howis (Apex, 6.99).
Louise Baty, Take a Break's Fate & Fortune

THE MERCURY MAN
The Brit (Madeira Newspaper)

THE MERCURY MAN
Eternal Spirit

FREDDIE MERCURY IN MY LIFE
Tenby Observer

-- Radio and TV

Apex Publishing Ltd and Mary Howis have signed contracts with Los Angeles based screenwriter Brooke Burton in view to make the book into a film.
Brooke's comments: “What a stroke of luck to have found such an amazing story such as Mary Howis’! Though simple in its format, it draws in the reader with its honesty and lack of pretense. Howis talks to the reader as if they were her friend and confidante. She tells it like it is with no agenda and an open mind. Throughout her book, Howis is both skeptical and curious as she explores the reasons why the spirit of rock singer Freddie Mercury visits her and demands her help. Howis’ book shows just how powerful and life changing a visit from the spirit world can be. If Freddie Mercury’s goal is to tell the world the spirit world exists, then I don’t think he could have picked a more perfect person to tell his story.”
(Picture 1: Mary with screenwriter Brooke Burton, Picture 2: Brooke Burton in Ashburton whilst on a trip to visit author Mary Howis).
Mary Howis signed contracts with Los Angeles based screenwriter Brooke Burton

-- Readers Comments

I enjoyed this book very much, it was fascinating. I can identify with a lot of the author's experiences and it helped me quite a bit. I hope she will be writing another book soon.
Donna Cormier
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I was so moved by this book.
Cheryl Robinson
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"THE FREDDIE SPIRIT" … FACT OR FICTION?
I'll admit, I approached Mary's Howis; book, The Mercury Man: Freddie Mercury in My Life, with a totally cynical mind (that belief that everything is not always as it seems), and found that my "gut instinct" (which is not the same as my cynical mind) has been correct. Mary Howis does have a link to the spirit of the man once known to the world as, "Freddie Mercury."
The main thing that attracted my attention about the book on the whole, is that Mary wrote from her heart and not her brain. So many writers, like myself, write with mostly their brain. I am very conscious of the words I put over to other people, always fearful of their criticism. To me, writing is an art. I've had the gift of composing thoughts with words creatively since I was a little girl. I have always been one to want to be "grammatically correct" in my writing talent.
Evidently, Mary was more interested in the message her story was bringing to others, rather than its presentation. The result is a something from the heart, that, in turn, reaches into people's very souls … as it surely did mine.
I heard about Mary's book during an internet search to find others, like me, who have shared in experiences with communications from the Spirit known as "Freddie Mercury." But, I'll have to admit, that reading the first article about the book was rather upsetting to me. I felt jealous that Freddie would be "spreading himself around" to others the same way he did in life. That's when my world of the "Freddie Spirit" seemed to begin to crumble. I truly began to doubt my experiences, in a way, not wanting to believe in him anymore. In retrospect, I know this was out of pure jealousy … the desire to have him all to myself.
Please understand that I actually fell in love with this man from the Spirit World, called Freddie Mercury. His influence in my life taught me how to love again. He reached out to me at a time when I was afraid to feel love for anyone, out of fear of losing them to death, the way I had lost everyone else in my life that I had loved. During his very intimate visits, I felt such unconditional, complete love emanating from him. His contact with me was more often "physical" in nature rather than him attempting to get me to realise the necessity for helping others the way he has been doing with Mary. If his visits to me were real, they were for a very different purpose … at least in the very beginning.
The unfortunate thing is that I became besotted with him to the extent that I no longer wanted the company of men in the real world. No boyfriend I ever took on would work out -- these relationships were brief and tempestuous, and usually ended bitterly. If Freddie had taught me to love again, it was certain that I loved him, and him alone.
Eventually, Freddie began to try to bring others from the Spirit World to me, but I would only allow him to come through. I refused to believe in anyone else, because I come from a Christian background that teaches that ghosts are demon impersonators of deceased people, that "reincarnation" is nothing more than the "doctrine of demons," and on and on. Because of my religious ideals, I could not allow Freddie to enlighten me on the truth that I have always known in my heart.
Somehow, my whole life, there has always been this thing inside of me, pulling me towards belief in the truth – that spirits or ghosts are not demons; that reincarnation is not only true, but that I, myself, have been here on Earth before – somewhere in England. My pull to that country has always been so very strong, and I've always wondered why.
Strangely, looking at photographs of Freddie have been like looking in the mirror at myself. I've been told by many people that I resemble him as he once looked in the early 1970's. In addition, the part in Mary's book about Freddie desiring to have a cigarette while on the earthly plane was alarming. To understand this, one would have to read the section of my own story about the "Mercury Possessions." Believe it or not, during those times that I felt taken over by Freddie Mercury's personality, I smoked a lot of cigarettes … and I have never been a smoker, until that time. But this alone does not prove the reality of it all.
Obviously, I have come to the point in my life that I have nearly dismissed Freddie completely, and it's because of my contact with another author in England, who not only claims to be a psychic and a medium, but that she has a direct link to Freddie as his one true Soul Mate (Twin Soul). For the purpose of this writing, I will simply call her, "S."
S. has convinced me that Freddie cannot and is not able to have I.S. (spiritual sex) with anyone except for his true Soul Mate (herself), and that all my intimate relations with the one I called Freddie were all in my head … that he was the product of my troubled past and loneliness. In short, she has said that all of my experiences with him have been "a falsehood."
For a time during my initial dealings with S., Freddie fought to get me to believe that he was real – remarkably much like Mary has described in her book!!!! I have had many things happen that could be Freddie's way of proving who he is to me, but somehow they can all be dismissed away – and they have been dismissed completely away by S.
I have noted a couple of questions that Mary asked in the book. One: Do any of us ever experience twinkling stars (flashes of light)? Yes. I have seen the silver star … during visits from Freddie … more often in the presence of others. In addition, I have seen twinkling stars of who I believe to be other loved ones of mine who have passed over, in many other colours … blue, green, yellow, pink, and red.
There was also something mentioned about the dark green suit that Freddie was wearing once, and Mary's questioning the meaning or significance of it. Well, green happens to be the colour of "dreams" in the Spirit World, or so I have read. Does this make any sense to you, Mary?
I do not claim to have the gift of being a psychic or a medium. As a matter of fact, S. has me convinced that I am not blessed with such gifts. This must mean that I cannot receive any psychic messages from the great beyond unless I go to the place called, 'RAZ … which in ancient Persian means, "Secret." 'RAZ is the place where the living can visit the Spirit World much like having a visitors pass.
But I must also mention that this information comes from S., the one who has me almost completely convinced that Freddie is NOT real.
The fact is, to believe in Mary's story is to believe that my experiences with Freddie were, in fact, a reality. To believe in S.'s claims of being Freddie's Soul Mate (Twin Soul), is to disprove Mary's story, and therefore mine as well. I am at a loss as to what to believe right now – torn between my desire to have Freddie back in my life to the same degree as before, and yet controlled by my fear of believing in a falsehood.
I was completely convinced he was a falsehood until Apex Publishing emailed me and asked me for my review of Mary Howis' book. At the time, I had not read the book, only saw an article on the internet about it, and Apex found my comments about it on my website. Just days before, I had been begging Freddie to come back and prove to me that he was and had been real to me, not really expecting anything to happen. After Apex Publishing contacted me, I have been in literal turmoil over the issue of the Freddie Spirit in my own life … was he fact or fiction?
Since reading Mary's book last night, I have been vexed, and stayed up nearly all night long arguing with the voices of reason. I've even felt Freddie's presence try to come through, but my own Spirit serves to block him for the most part … like it's pure instinct to not believe in him now.
However, this morning, upon awakening, I heard the voice say softly to me: "I would like for you to do two things for me – will you do this?"
I replied, "Yes."
It went on to say, "Firstly, I want you to put all your fears aside. Secondly, if you ever feel as though you're waiting a long time …. (long pause) … don't call me. Let me come to you."
Okay, so …? Please answer me, Freddie. What do I do, and where do I go from here?
Sue E. Koenig
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I read this book at a single sitting - until 3 a.m. As someone with experience of highly accurate communications from beyond the grave (both directly and via mediums) and with some knowledge of Freddie Mercury's life and personality, I was totally convinced and enthralled by Mary Howis's courageous account of what happened to her after Freddie's death. Doubtless this material will be hard for Freddie's family, close friends and some of his fans to swallow, not least because it comes from someone who never knew him while he was alive. That, however, is one of its merits. Had Freddie communicated with a fan, a friend or a family member, the account would have been easily dismissed as wishful thinking. The fact that Mary had not so much as heard of Freddie Mercury before his death was announced in a news bulletin lends her story extra credibility, should it be needed. That his direct communications with her were in verse (mostly rhyming couplets) is particularly striking: it is not intended as great poetry, but it is all the more moving, urgent and authentic for being in verse (a prose account could far more easily have been put down to the author's imagination). And the entire content makes sense in terms of Freddie's life and outlook. The Queen drummer Roger Taylor (among others) has told us how different the real Freddie was from his public image: "He was shy, gentle and kind". Freddie cared deeply about people during his life (he often said that love was a driving force for him), and it makes total sense for him to want to use his celebrity to show people once and for all that there is life - and what life! - after death. If you know that, you can be free of the fear that shackles humanity. Freddie's message is no less than that (and probably a lot more). We owe Mary Howis our thanks for writing this book, which deserves to be read.
Barbara Hall
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I must admit that I am not much interested in reading books but when I started to read 'The Mercury Man' I just couldn’t put it down! By chapter 4 I was very inspired spiritually to do a painting (this didn't take long and got straight back into the book), then it helped me to understand that when we die we still go on. What a precious piece of information; that we will get to see our loved one's gain. Because of this book I have returned to my spiritual self and a much better artist. For anyone who has not yet read this book and are felling spiritually drained it's an absolute must. Thank you Mary Howis for sharing your life experiences to all the people who have read your book.
Jane Macintyre
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Mary's book has been such an inspiration to me - it has changed my life and I would like to thank her. Many thanks and God Bless you.
Cheryl Robinson
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It is so well written with great courage. That you so much for writing this book, it has given me such comfort.
Kathalene Murray
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This is one of those books that drew me in as I was a little hesitant from its title however, Mary's style and honest writing made for a compelling read. Refreshing 'down to earth' for a book covering spirituality - both affirming and informative.
Catherine Cousins
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This is Mary’s first book and it has been written in plain, simple English. I find this a very interesting and easy book to read as it comes across as though Mary is communicating with the individual reader, almost as though she is relating her experiences on a one to one basis.
Joan Bing
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Whilst at a tealeaf reading I was partnered with Mary, whom I had never met before. We were given the exercise of trying to become receptive to enable us to pick up something from the tea leafs. As we were trying to read from the tea leafs I had a clear impression of Freddie Mercury standing next to Mary on her left hand side. He was wearing a beautiful suit that was a vibrant jade green. I immediately recognised Freddie, as I had always loved Queen. He stood there for minutes, appearing to be solid – and then faded away.
Maureen Knight
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Thank you for writing such a wonderful book about Freddie, ‘The Mercury Man’.
I found it very moving, but very reassuring that Freddie hasn’t really gone from us. I am a fan of Queen but especially of Freddie, he was special and such a showman, but I also felt he was a gentle soul. Thank you once again! I hope you don’t mind a ‘middle aged’ fan commenting on the book, I can’t wait to read your next book.
Mrs Entwistle
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Gripping and compelling reading, I couldn’t put the book down. I don’t have much time for myself but I had to keep reading. I have been interested in spiritualism for many years now, I live in Torquay, Devon, and therefore, I could relate to the book knowing of the area and the mediums that are referred to. I used to really like Freddie Mercury. I was touched by your book Mary, and send lots of love to your little grandson, Jake. You are a very special lady, good luck with the book!
Sylvia Hill
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-- Book Signings and Events

Mary Howis in her local bookshop 'The Book Shelf', Ashburton.
The Book Shelf, Ashburton

Mary Howis at 'Quest 2004' in Newton Abbott, Devon.
Quest 2004

-- Libraries that stock this book
Torquay Central Library, Devon
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Torrington Library, Devon
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Ashburton Library, Devon
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Newton Abbot Library, Devon
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West End Library, Southampton
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The British Library, Boston Spa
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The Bodleian Library, Oxford
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The University Library, Cambridge
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The Spiritualist Alliance Library, Newmarket, Auckland, New Zealand
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The National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh
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The Library of Trinity College, Dublin
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The National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth
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Totnes Library, Devon
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Teignmouth Library, Devon
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Alexandria Library, Glasgow
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Balloch Library, Glasgow
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Clydebank Library, Glasgow
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Dalmuir Library, Glasgow
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Duntocher Library, Glasgow
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Faifley Library, Glasgow
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Gavinburn Library, Glasgow
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Ladyton Library, Glasgow
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Parkhall Library, Glasgow
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Renton Library, Glasgow
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