The Knight and the Butcherbird by Alix E. Harrow

First Line:

Once upon a time, a knight came riding into the holler.

Summary:

Iron Hollow is a small, rural community plagued with demons. Most residents die young. That is, if they don't turn into monsters first.

The town's historian, Shrike, wants to find out why.

When a legendary knight comes to hunt a beast terrorizing the community, Shrike becomes concerned.

That beast was her wife.

My Review: NO SPOILERS

My heart HURTS

I am so glad I decided to listen to the audiobook. This was read BEAUTIFULLY! I loved this story. It is one that you will think about for a long time after. There were so many gorgeously written lines in this story, and the emotional impact was incredible.

A one-of-a-kind story, and a must-read.

Rating:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My Favorite Quote(s):

A scrounging, desperate town full of sickly, short-lived people, where burials were more common than births.

An outlander doesn’t prove her love by dying young, but by living as long as she can.

She eats berries grown in bad earth and licks the poison from her lips; she makes her wedding bed from barbed wire and cinder blocks; she falls in love at the end of the world. And when death comes for her—too soon, too fucking soon—she becomes something else. Something that survives.

Page Count

36 Pages

Date Finished:

April 21st 2025

Book Genre:

Fiction, Fantasy, LGBTQIA+, Romance, Short Stories, Dark, Emotional, Fast-paced