I am devastated that this is a short story because I want nothing more than to read a full book or better yet several books set in this world with these characters. Please Harrow convert this to a full novel, 36 pages is not enough for May and Shrike.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy!!

Things haven't been the same since the apocalypse happened, hundreds of years ago. Shrike knows this, but the outlands—and stories from the before times—are all she knows. Life is *hard*, and it's harder still when people keep turning into monsters. And when a famed monster hunter comes to town to destroy the latest victim, Shrike will do anything she has to to stop him...

I had to start this story twice (I wasn't in the mood for something kind of fairytale-esque the first time, so I took note of the vibe and came back to it), but once I got into it the story kept surprising me. It reminds me a bit of Lauren Groff's "Matrix", not because the plots or even the settings are so similar (they're not) but because of the way Shrike has been fighting for years to survive, because of the way she is so determined to make things work despite the status quo.

This was delightfully twisty—although I'm not sure I ever fully understood the context of Iron Hollow, where Shrike lives, I'm also not sure I really needed to; it was enough to know that life is hard for her, and that she has loved and lost, and that she is so determined not to lose everything. (There's also a beautiful moment, late in the book, where she reflects on what it means to love enough to kill—and on who is willing to take that step for whom. I would read a dissertation on that moment.) This is not my style for a novel these days (I'm not one much for alternate universe, or fantasy, or whatever this would be classified as), but for a short story it was just the right amount of weird and wild.

Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.

This was fantastic. It's very Alix E. Harrow (complimentary), with beautiful prose, great character work, and tons of deep thematic undercurrents. I very much hope she will write a novel in this setting. While this story was perfect the length it was, I would have been thrilled to read another 400 pages about the post-apocalyptic North America she imagined here. It's such a rich, interesting setting, and I'd love to see what else she might do with it.

Part fairy tale, part post-apocalyptic fantasy, and part love story, this does more in its 30 pages than lots of authors can do in an entire novel. Harrow's skill in writing short stories is on full display. I just didn't want it to end, and I know I'll be coming back to this story again and again. Highly recommended.

Huge thanks to Alix E. Harrow, Amazon Original Stories, and NetGalley for generously providing an ARC for review!

A haunting dystopian fairy tale that follows the town storyteller as she struggles to protect a local demon from the knight who would see her harmed.

With grotesque aspects of body horror and shape shifting creatures this tale is ultimately one about doing whatever it takes to keep the ones you love alive.

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐦𝐚𝐳𝐨𝐧 𝐎𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲 𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐊𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐀𝐥𝐢𝐱 𝐄 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰

The Knight and the Butcherbird is a compelling fantasy short story told almost as a dark fairytale but set in a modern dystopia. Narrated by Shrike, a young storyteller in a rural almost border community, the story follows the arrival of a legendary knight who is summoned to kill demons. Demons are shapeshifting monsters who were once human and mysteriously changed. This short story covers so much ground! It is a story about love, the lengths you’re willing to go for it, how much you’re willing to change yourself or sacrifice. But at the same time, it also weaves in the devastating effects of climate change, propaganda, the disparity of caste system where resources are hoarded within enclaves while rural communities die off or turn into demons.

My only hold off is that I wish it didn’t take place on Earth. I was a little thrown off by the modern Earth references and it took me out of the moment at first. However in the end this felt like a very minor annoyance because I enjoyed all of the other aspects of the book.

The Knight and the Butcherbird is another very solid story by Alix Harrow. The prose is absolutely beautiful. The world building is beautiful. It was simultaneously fun, sweet, bittersweet, and tragic - so much substance packed in a short story. It took me less than a hour to read. I would definitely recommend picking this up for fans of dystopian fantasies, Grimm fairytales, Greek mythology. This is a story I’ll be remembering and rereading.

4.25/5

I've read some Alix Harrow books, but this is my first short story by her. There is an incredible amount crammed into 36 pages! It's a very dark love story set in a very dark, terrible future, and yet, love still conquers all.

I received an ARC for free and gave my honest opinion voluntarily.

A quick hit from Alix E. Harrow that is absolutely worth it - I was immediately immersed in the post-apocalyptic America where demons have begun appearing in the Outlands where people are plagued by the effects of pollution and disease, while others live behind walled cities. Shrike Secretary is a storyteller for Iron Hollow and Sir John of Cincinnati comes to help slay a demon in their midst. This novella manages to pack queerness, criticism of Christianity, and Animorph references all into a quick 36 pages.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and to Amazon Original Stories for the advanced copy.

This post-apocolyptic tale was so beautifully and hauntingly written. I loved all the twists and turns and surprises that Harrow takes the reader in a mere 30 pages. Every time I thought I had figured out the world-building mysteries, something new would be revealed that had me second-guessing what I thought I knew.

Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

For a story just under 30 pages, this sure packs quite the punch. Alix E. Harrow's dystopian fairytale is gorgeous written and deeply touching. I'd love to read an entire novel set in this world! Dystopian and fairytale is a combination I didn't know I needed but one that results in a story that is familiar and refreshingly new in equal parts. It's a very quick read and I highly recommend it!

Short and beautifully written dark fairy tale. Female lead, a knight and demons. Great story. Thank you to the author. Thank you to #netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.

This short story showcases all the signature elements of the author’s work: engaging characters, a vividly twisted setting, and an eerily captivating tone. Set some hundreds of years after the apocalypse, the reader will recognize the world as both familiar and altered—an unsettling but believable evolution of our own. The author paints a picture of a poisoned world, telling both a love story and monster hunting tale. And while the creatures are scary in both origin and form, they are described with an animalistic realism, making them feel less like horrors and more like a realistic evolution of nature. Overall, it was a short, compelling read with a very satisfying ending. Fans of Alix E. Harrow’s previous work and T. Kingfisher’s horror stories wont want to miss it!

Thank you to Netgalley and Amazon Original Stories for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It's a compelling narrative filled with suspense, emotional depth, and the complexities of love and sacrifice. There really is something for everyone in this book! I just wish it was longer!

A short story set in a post-apocalyptic world that is a call for change in today’s society, Alix E. Harrow has reminded me why she’s an author I return to again & again. There were themes of love & transformation, environmentalism, & a distrust of authority that claims to do things for the benefit of the wider population (& she somehow worked in Animorph & Hulk references, which were amazing). There’s also an ode to the art of storytelling woven into this tale, & I loved the author’s assertion that the setting in which one hears a story matters.

Thank you to NetGalley & Amazon Original Stories for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Alix E Harrow has such an imagination. Here is a world where the people you love can turn into literal monsters that can no longer live in society and may be hunted down and killed. The characters are asking themselves important questions about themselves and their ties to their loved ones and their homes.
It's a short story, but I found myself thinking about it later. I felt angry and sad and surprised, in just a short space.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

This is a post-apocalyptic short story that has dark fairytale elements. It sounded like it would be a hit but didn't work for me and I didn't like it. I wasn't endeared to the characters and it was slow with lots of talking and not enough action or true world building descriptions. It tried to bring up relevant things from current times to create the backstory but didn't flesh it out all the way, which is understandable since it's so short. There were moments that touched on great but they fizzled before they could be explored more.

What an incredible short story! Only Alix Harrow could create a whole post-apocalyptic world as rich as this one in a mere 30-some pages. This is a dark tale that's somehow also full of love, loyalty, and devotion. Harrow has never let me down and remains an an auto-buy author for me. Looking forward to seeing what she comes up with next!

Thanks, NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories, for the chance to read this story prior to its publication in exchange for this brief review.

I devoured this. Absolutely loved it! Such an interesting take on survival in the apocalypse. Shrike made me rethink how I’ve always thought about myths. Loved it and would totally recommend!

Alix Harrow managed to create a beautifully written fantasy story, equipped with it's own magic and lore, in under 40 pages. I am completely blown away. The Knight and the Butcherbird isn't just short and well written, it's moving and absolutely feels like it will stick with me. It took me about 30 minutes to read this book before bed and I'm still thinking about it while sipping my coffee. I will absolutely be returning to this story any time I need a quick read to get me back in the mood for fantasy.

The Knight and the Butcherbird is a stunning dystopian fairy tale. Shrike is the town storyteller. Her wife, May, has turned into a demon, but Shrike is unwilling to believe that she is now a total monster. When a knight arrives to hunt the demon, Shrike does everything she can to keep May safe - and finds out the knight is hiding secrets too.

This was a wild ride that had me feeling all of the emotions. The writing was absolutely fantastic and so descriptive. The story was both beautiful and hauntingly sad. It may be a short story, but it had the perfect amount of plot and world building.

"Dragging along
Following your form
Hung like the pelt
Of some prey you had worn
Remember me, love
When I'm reborn
As a shrike to your sharp
And glorious thorn" -Hozier

shrike is one of my Absolutely favorite Hozier songs and this tale felt like the embodiment of it. What a ride. It was dystopian and horror, with mystery and love in one.