Sallow Bend

By: Alan Baxter

Narrated by: Joe Hempel

Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's summary

Something old and deadly has awoken.

When two teenagers go missing from the small, rural town of Sallow Bend, the residents come together to search for them. Little do they suspect that finding the wayward girls will be the start of their problems. An old evil is rising, and only one man seems to realize that everyone is in danger and this is not the first time it’s happened. With the carnival in town, people want to have a good time, but for many, this will be the worst time of their lives.

“Alan Baxter is an accomplished storyteller who ably evokes magic and menace.” (Laird Barron, author of Swift to Chase)

“Baxter delivers the horror goods.” (Paul Tremblay, author of A Head Full of Ghosts and The Cabin at the End of the World)

“Step into the ring with Alan Baxter, I dare you. He writes with the grace, precision, and swift brutality of a prizefighter.” (Christopher Golden, New York Times best-selling author of Ararat and The Pandora Room)

©2022 Alan Baxter (P)2023 David N. Wilson

Wow! Pleasant Surprise!!

I was suspicious of this book simply because there weren't many reviews. However, the reviews were all great, I've never followed this author, the story seemed cool AND the book was on sale! Turns out I have a new author to follow! It was creepy, gripping and the ending was satisfying! Two thumbs up!

Charming 1970s-Esque Horror

"Sallow Bend" was an engaging experience; the performance was captivating and the narrative (with twists and turns) was enough to quickly hook me. The tone, writing and characters were similar to horror paperbacks from the 1970s... I was surprised to learn that the writing is far more contemporary. If that kind of Bradbury-small-town-mystery vibe is your speed, "Sallow" is likely to fill that need.

Great listen for the person looking for a supernatural touch!

Love this listen! I was pleasantly surprised how good it was ! A little spooky and mysterious.

Not quite scary, but suspenseful.

I cannot recommend Sallow Bend by Alan Baxter enough. It's like Something Wicked This Way Comes meets It. I wouldn't say it was scary really, but it almost wasn't trying to be. Alan Baxter makes you care so much about the characters that what you're really scared or is whether or not they're all gonna make it out alright. It also keeps you guessing until the last few pages. Just like the characters, you have all the pieces, but you can't see how they all fit together until it's almost too late. What I like most is the characters though because they're believable in every situation they get in. What they end up doing at the end is believable. It's definitely how real people would react in such a desperate situation. It didn't quite rise to the level of horror for me, but few books ever do. Salem's Lot is the only book that's ever actually scared me. This definitely hit the mark as atmospheric and suspenseful though. Definitely a must read.

Somewhat dissatisfied...

I would first like to start with the narrator. He read this story very well, I would definitely choose another book narrated by him.
I really liked all of the characters in this book, and the story kept my interest, however....

The story was predictable. However, with an almost 10-hour audio book, I was disappointed that only the last hour shined any light to the main character's reason for doing what they did.

I felt like the back story for this character was extremely rushed.
It was as if the author wrote these great characters, a great build-up, and then just quickly summed up all of the reasoning for what was happening! It was quite disappointing.

Intriguing premise and strong narrator

Sallow Bend is a "small town with a dark secret" story, complete with a traveling circus, so you know exactly what you're getting. Easily digestible with some strong beats of horror, the story itself drags from repetitive passages, monologuing villains, and a few stereotypical character traits and tropes that we can all do without.

That said, it's a well-paced story that kept me engaged, with strong narration from Joe Hempel, so I recommend it.

Ok story but...

Sorry but the narrator ruined this book for me. I struggled to finish this, but I did because the story was interesting enough to do so, but I was irritated by the narration the entire time. On top of it all I had just returned a book, which I don't do often, because the narration was God awful, to find out I purchased another book (this one) with the same narrator! I will be more careful to find that out from now on!

Another hit for Baxter!

Over the last few years I have quickly become a huge fan of Alan Baxter. The range in which he can write is incredible. Whether it’s a creature feature like The Roo, or a cosmic horror collection like The Gulp/Fall series, he’s nailed each trope. I was excited to see how he handled more of a slow burn in this small town folk horror. I was not disappointed! The dread and mystery builds with each page and all comes full circle in a satisfying conclusion. Joe Hempel did an amazing job narrating as usual, and it really brought this story to life. Highly recommended!

Pretty Good Story

This book was just “good” 3.5 stars really. If you can catch it on a deal, do it. The plot wasn’t crazy original, think a mix between Stephen King’s “IT” and Dean Koontz’s “Odd Thomas”. But again, still pretty good. I am on the fence with the narrator.

80s-Style Teen Witch Horror

3.5 A modern male feminist take on an 80s-horror-style book. Those old blood-soaked paperbacks are great, but why do they have to be so sexist all the time? Here comes Sallow Bend, a well-executed mix of pulp 80s horror and modern liberal politics. It's exciting and I agree with all this!

It's a thoughtful story about a teen witch who returns as part of a curse on a town who uses her powers to kill harassing men. So the townsfolk have to ask themselves, "How can I not be a sexist piece of shit to survive?" The main characters are surprisingly queer-positive and the violent deaths are gruesome. It's a balanced mix of horror and preachiness. I liked the worldbuilding around the evil spirit and how it implanted false memories in the town's people. Mid, but interesting and easy to read. Fairly spooky too.