Darkland Tales: Benbecula

Benbecula is the sixth title in Polygon’s acclaimed Darkland Tales series, which sees Scottish authors reimagine key moments from Scottish history, myth and legend. Previous titles include Rizzio by Denise Mina, Hex by Jenni Fagan, Nothing Left to Fear from Hell by Alan Warner, Columba’s Bones by David Greig, and most recently, Queen Macbeth by Val McDermid. The book is based on a true story. Graeme Macrae Burnet’s inspiration for his Booker-shortlisted His Bloody Project came from a case in 1835 in rural Normandy in which a young Frenchman murdered his mother and two siblings then wrote a memoir to justify what he’d done. It was only late in the writing of His Bloody Project that Graeme heard about a similar crime on the Scottish island of Benbecula. This true story forms the basis for his Darkland Tale.

On the 9th of July 1857, a twenty-five-year-old labourer named Angus MacPhee bludgeoned to death his parents and aunt in the crofting community on the remote Hebridean island of Benbecula. Five years later, Angus’s older brother Malcolm recounts the events leading up to the murders while trying to keep a grip on his own sanity. Malcolm is ostracised by the community and haunted by his past, but is he as innocent as he seems? From Graeme Macrae Burnet, the Booker-shortlisted author of His Bloody Project, comes a tale of darkness, violence and madness, leavened by moments of black humour and absurdity.

In this session Graeme Macrae Burnet explores historical fiction and the research and craft undertaken in its development, taking a closer look at the tense relationship between stories, archives and myths.

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