[Novella Review] The Tale of Sawney Bean by Kevin J Kennedy

The Tale of Sawney Bean is a disturbing tale about family and doing what needs to be done, no matter what, in order to survive.

I had never heard about Sawney Bean before. After reading this tale I googled him… boy oh boy. When reading this, before you jump to calling this tale “vulgar,” you may want to read up on the lore that this story was based on!

Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.

Let’s dive in!

My Thoughts on The Tale of Sawney Bean by Kevin J. Kennedy

This tale was wonderfully written! Once I picked it up, I didn’t stop reading until I had reached the end.

The story begins in the woods, where we meet our two main characters, Sawney Bean and Sarah. Sarah eventually tells Sawney bits and pieces about her life. It’s clear that she is not in a good situation, and neither is Sawney. One day, the girl announces something that changes everything.

The two end up running away from society and their troubles, and they hide out in a cave. They both seem very happy for a time, but then something else happens that changes things yet again…

From there, we’re off on a slippery slope of events that even though Sawney knows it’s wrong, he just can’t rise above it to change anything because of his love for Sarah and their family.

This tale had a strong element of suspense for me. At each stage, I couldn’t believe what happened and I was so nervous to see what would happen next!

Such a disturbing tale, but wonderfully portrayed in this novella!

My Favorite Passages from The Tale of Sawney Bean

People who have an easier route in life often think everything is straightforward for everyone else, but I knew better.

She had actually lived through all the horror that lead her to commit murder and here she was only a few hours later, her whole life changed forever and she was now finally getting a chance to rest and take a breath.

I wasn’t sure what life had in store for us or how long we even had left but I knew right then that I would do my utmost to spend as much of that time with her as possible.

My Final Thoughts on The Tale of Sawney Bean

If you enjoyed the 1977 film, The Hills Have Eyes, you’ll love this quick novella! I know I sure did!

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Related Reading:

• Interview with Kevin J Kennedy
• 100 Word Horrors
• 100 Word Horrors, Part Two
• 100 Word Horrors, Part Three
• Carnival of Horror
• Collected Christmas Horror Shorts 2
• Collected Easter Horror Shorts
• Collected Halloween Horror Shorts: Trick ‘r Treat
• Dark Thoughts
• The Gatekeeper
• The Horror Collection: Black Edition
• The Horror Collection: White Edition
• Screechers by Kevin J. Kennedy and Christina Bergling
• You Only Get One Shot by Kevin J. Kennedy & J.C. Michael
• Vampiro and Other Strange Tales of the Macabre