🗡️ At just 36 pages, The Knight and the Butcherbird manages to be sharp, unsettling, and achingly beautiful- a dystopian fairytale layered with allegory, grief, and love. It’s part horror, part fable, and entirely captivating.
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The story follows Shrike Secretary, a young narrator whose voice feels both raw and true to her age- sometimes naïve, sometimes reckless, always deeply human. Through her eyes, we meet the Knight and his eerie avian companion, and we’re drawn into a strange world that feels historical and futuristic all at once, where fairytales breathe with teeth and shadow.
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At its heart, this is a love story- not sweet or romantic, but harrowing and true. Harrow explores the way grief distorts love, what it means to hold on to someone who is no longer the person they once were, and the dangerous yearning to cling to them anyway, even at your own expense.
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The ending, while powerful, left me wishing for more pages. But that’s part of the brilliance- Harrow makes you ache for a longer stay in her worlds, even when she’s already delivered a complete, devastating story.
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Overall, The Knight and the Butcherbird is a gorgeously strange and deeply affecting short story. If you love dystopian fairytales, atmospheric writing, or simply fiction that makes you feel like you’ve brushed against truth, this one is not to be missed.

Shrike is the village Secretary (Historian) in a post-apocalyptic feudal version of America. When a knight comes to hunt a demon in her village she follows him, and then… (no spoilers)

This novella was good, I think I would have liked in better if it was a whole book. I’m learning novellas aren’t my thing (I want more 😭). Alix E Harrow is an author I really enjoy, this was no different.

Alix E. Harrow is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. There’s something so remarkable about her writing, she has a way of layering emotion into her works in a way that it feels beautiful and quite satisfying to read. Her prose is lyrical but not confusing, and it often lingers with me long after I finish a story.

The Knight and the Butcherbird is a short story, so it doesn’t delve deep on plot and world-building but still manages to be unique. In less than a hundred pages, she still managed to make me care for these characters and their relationships.

It’s rare to find a short work that resonates so much with me, but Harrow did it once again (I’ve been a fan of The Six Deaths of the Saint for years, and I always recommend it). Sometimes it’s the raw humanity of the characters, the beauty of the writing, and the emotions evoked that truly make a story unforgettable.

If I ever needed proof that I will forever remain impressed by Alix E. Harrow, no matter what they write! THE KNIGHT AND THE BUTCHERBIRD is a fantastic futuristic story combining traditional speculative and supernatural elements with a dystopian world teeming with demons. I loved everything about this piece. The prose is magnificent, as are the characters and the two romances at the heart of the story. I thought it said beautiful and real things about endemic human nature, storytelling and what we value in stories as well. Would wholeheartedly recommend this to anyone looking for a short but satisfying read!

I know this is tagged as dystopian, but honestly? The beginning had me laughing way more than I expected. In no way, shape, or form is this a comedy—but I probably just have a warped sense of humor, because I couldn’t stop chuckling through parts of it.

The romance element was actually kinda cute, though the ending felt pretty expected and didn’t have much of a surprise factor. What I did enjoy were the queer elements—they were well written and gave the story some heart amidst the bleak setting.

Overall, The Knight and the Butcherbird wasn’t mind-blowing, but it had its quirky charm. A decent read, even if it didn’t fully land for me.

Alix E. Harrow's The Knight and the Butcherbird is a delightful short story that weaves together fantasy, myth, and a touch of romance. The story follows a knight who encounters a mythical butcherbird, an encounter that turns his world upside down. It's a charming tale that explores themes of transformation and finding your true self.

The witty banter and creative world-building are the clear highlights of this short story. Harrow has a way with words that makes even the most fantastical elements feel grounded and enchanting. The characters' dialogue is sharp and humorous, and their interactions are a joy to read. I loved the unique twist on classic fairy-tale tropes and the overall sense of whimsy.

While the story is a lot of fun, I found the ending to be a little too abrupt. Just as I was fully invested in the characters and their journey, it was over. I wanted more time to spend in this world and with these characters. Despite this, it's a wonderfully written and creative short story that's perfect for a quick read. It’s was great introduction to this author’s writing style since I haven’t read anything by this author previously.

Thank you NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Alix E. Harrow never disappoints! I thoroughly enjoyed this short story. I liked the dystopian, post-apocalyptic feel to the town and characters, which I think meshed surprisingly well with the presence of knights. As with everything Harrow writes, the story takes on this dreamy quality, which only served to immerse me further. I think this is a complete tale all on its own, but I would love to see an expansion of this world.

This is a bite-sized novella that I read in a couple hours, but that isn’t to say that I didn’t love it. From the few Alix E. Harrow books I’ve read, they have a way of creating these characters who are so riddled with flaws, broken and heartrending in the way they move through the world, but so full of love and grief and inexplicably human… even if the world surrounding them is utterly fantastical in every sense. I loved this story and recommend it so strongly. 4⭐

*Thank you again to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

Alix Can do No Wrong. Alix Harrow continues her campaign to ruin me in under 50 pages.

The Knight and the Butcherbird is a whisper of a story that somehow still manages to scream. A dystopian fable with the bones of a fairytale and the rot of something much older, it follows Shrike—a town historian with teeth—who’s determined to stop the Knight sent to kill the demon in the woods. The catch? The demon was once her wife.

The prose is, of course, beautiful. Harrow writes like someone trying to exorcise something—lush, lyrical, saturated with grief and devotion. The story is soaked in longing and transformation, faith and rot, the aching question of what it means to choose someone who has already changed. It's queer, strange, allegorical, a little absurd, and occasionally too pleased with its own cleverness—but I forgave it, because it got under my skin anyway.

I don’t know that this one worked for me entirely as a story—the worldbuilding is evocative but foggy, and the emotional payoff relies on you already being swept away. But as a tone poem about monstrous love and the violences we call sacrifice? It hits.

Would kill for this woman. Would also be killed by her. Possibly both.

4.5-5 stars. Would read again on a day I feel too human.

I am so impressed by how much Alix E. Harrow can pack into such a short story. This is a bizarre, unique dystopian fairy tale, beautifully written and emotionally charged. It’s a quick read, but a deep one.

The Knight and the Butcherbird is a very unique dystopian-fairytale-horror blend of a story. Some of this was great and some went over my head. Alice Harrow is a great author and she seems to speak to her audience beyond the words she puts in her books.
This was an extremely short story, around 40 pages, but this author was able to create such a throughly detailed world in such a short amount of time.


Thank you #NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Grips you right off the bat. Story is an elegant mix of sci-fi dystopia and haunting fairy tale, with brilliant worldbuilding and writing that is beautiful and witty.

Alix E. Harrow has once again cast a spell I didn’t want to break.

The Butcher and the Blackbird is a gothic, romantic, witchy masterpiece—dark and decadent like a blood-red velvet cake eaten under a thunderstorm. It’s a story that crackles with magic, simmers with slow-burn tension, and aches with longing and loneliness in equal measure.
What makes Harrow’s writing so addictive is her signature blend of lyrical prose and rich, folklore-soaked world building. Every sentence feels carefully crafted and yet effortlessly immersive. The book is both funny and brutal, tender and terrifying.

Just as Alix did with Six Deaths of the Saint, she has beautifully explored—and tested—the boundaries of love in The Knight and the Butcherbird. Her approach felt unique and honest, and I am, again, impressed with just how much she’s able to fit into such a short read.

Beautifully written and achingly heart wrenching, these distinct characters left a lasting mark…as did the author. Highly recommend.

THE KNIGHT AND THE BUTCHERBIRD is short and sweet, but it highlights Alix E. Harrow's beautiful and powerful writing to perfection. Set in an apocalyptic future where there is no United States of America, life is brutal. Kingdoms, former major cities, exist, but just as many people are living outside of those kingdoms. Outside is also where the number of monsters is growing. As Shrike works to prevent Sir John from hunting those monsters, what we learn is both clever and chilling. More importantly, there is a beautiful message of hope as well, one that slightly lessens the horror of it all. THE KNIGHT AND THE BUTCHERBIRD by Ms. Harrow is thirty-six of the most impactful pages I have ever read.

A post-apocalyptic fantasy story that reads as heavily inspired by the Animorphs books and <i>Ladyhawke.</i> It could have been better, but it was entertaining enough for a lunchbreak read and didn't overstay its welcome.

Thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this. It was a nice quick read, set in an intriguing post-apocalyptic world, and I liked the two main characters and their similar motivations. I'm a sucker for forbidden romance, and this was done really well, while also briefly considering what makes us human/how far can we change and still call ourselves human. I'd love to see more in this world, but I'd be happy if it was just left with this story as well.

A quick and interesting read! I love Harrow’s writing and this one was great. I plan to recommend this novella to everyone! Thank you NetGalley for the eARC.

I am not a short story lover. I never feel like a get enough character development or enough time to become immersed in a story but I saw this was by one of new favorite authors and figured I would give it a shot. I am SOO glad that I did. I don't care that this was less than 40 pages, this story packed a punch. It was haunting and atmospheric, even without full back stories of the characters I felt like I knew their stories, their struggles and their hopes. I love the story of demons and demon hunters but with twists.
It was a story that I never really heard before but still almost felt like a dark fairy tale that I knew. I truly fell into the world and was basically on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen. So good and highly recommend. Would be an amazing dark and stormy afternoon read.

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Didn't wow me as much as Alix E. Harrow's first short story but it still was really good. Harrow has an incredible ability to fit twists into less than 30 pages and make you feel connected to characters in barely any time.