The Knight and the Butcherbird by Alix E. Harrow Review

New York Times bestselling author Alix E. Harrow weaves a dystopian fairy tale that follows the town storyteller as she struggles to protect a local demon from the knight hired to kill it.
 

In this gritty, haunting tale about doing whatever it takes for love, a small-town storyteller resolves to keep the local monster—and her own secrets—safe from a legendary knight.
 

Nestled deep in the steep hills, valleys, and surrounding woodlands lies Iron Hollow, a rural community beset by demons. Such horrors are common in the outlands, where most folks die young, if they don’t turn into monsters first. But what’s causing these transformations?
 

No one has the answer, not even the town’s oral historian, seventeen-year-old Shrike. And when a legendary knight is summoned to hunt down the latest beast to haunt their woods, Shrike has more reason than most to be concerned. Because that demon was her wife. And while Shrike is certain that May still recognizes her—that May is still human, somewhere beneath it all—she can’t prove it.
 

Determined to keep May safe, Shrike stalks the knight and his demon-hunting hawk through the recesses of the forest. But as they creep through toxic creeks and overgrown kudzu, Shrike realizes the knight has a secret of his own. And he’ll do anything to protect it.

The following review is based on a complimentary ARC provided by Amazon Original Stories via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Knight and the Butcherbird is an intriguing dark fantasy short story that tells a brief, yet compelling tale in a modern world where shapeshifting monsters or “demons” roam the forests and wastelands. Narrated by Shrike, the rural community’s seventeen year old historian, the short story follows the arrival of legendary Knight who is summoned to the community to kill a demon that had been seen in the area. The only problem is the demon he’s been summoned to kill is Shrike’s wife May, a fellow villager who slowly transformed into a monster. Skillfully invoking a folklore/grimm fairytale vibe and incorporating dystopian and caste elements, The Knight and the Butcherbird is condensed yet imaginative and makes full use of its limited page counts to tell its satisfying and self-contained story. Featuring the Knight’s story within the overall story, I found the focal plot twist involving the Knight’s secret to be well done, with crucial clues subtlety presented within Shrike’s stories.

I previously read Harrow’s full-length novel Starling House and while I had some reservations with its plot and story, the visuals and somber tone were notable highlights for me. Harrow’s descriptive yet beautiful visuals are also showcased in this short story, with the community’s rural forested setting portrayed with great detail and style. Harrow’s visuals also carry over to the monsters/demons that are both descriptive for narrative purposes yet also abstract and vague enough to represent their shapeshifting nature.

The one minor nitpick I had with the short story’s execution was the decision to place the story in a modern setting. The rural community and the role of a “knight” suggests to me that the story has a generic historic fantasy or ambiguously timeless setting. However, it’s revealed that the story actually takes place in a modern age due to the technology advancements and devices referenced as well as the community being located in the general proximity to Cincinnati. Additionally, a threat from the city late into the story sounds like a plan better suited for a classical or medieval tale vs one in a modern setting. While the odd disconnection with the setting doesn’t really affect the enjoyability or immersive feel of the story, it did cause me the raise an eyebrow and re-read the first half of the story again for better context. Perhaps a mercenary, hunter, soldier, or other pronoun would’ve also sounded more fitting for the current time period, though even the rural community itself feels a bit out of place (unless this is an Amish village which is certainly not the case based on the culture of the community). Additionally I would’ve liked for the story to spend more time showing the reader the history and connection between Shrike and May to give the tense situation more emotional weight. However, I also acknowledge the limitations of the short story format and understand how the content needed to be prioritized with so few pages to work with.

Coming in at around a quick thirty minute read, The Knight and the Butcherbird is a wonderful and satisfying fantasy short story that covers a lot of ground with its short length. Well-written, plotted, and concluding with a bittersweet yet satisfying ending, I found this to be a solid short story that hits all the right notes on top of Harrow’s great visuals!