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 it 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!