Tag: Shortstories

Posted in Fantasy, Novella/Short Story

The Knight and the Butcherbird

Posted on by Mama

Title: The Knight and the Butcherbird

Author: Alix E. Harrow

Pages: 40

Genre: Short Story, Horror, Fantasy, Fiction, Dystopian

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.

Evenin’ brave bookworms!

I’ll be completely honest with you on this one, I had never read anything by Alix E. Harrow before I picked up this one on my Kindle. I don’t generally enjoy reading on my Kindle, however I thought I’d take a “boo” and see what was out there. I occasionally enjoy short stories and novellas and when I saw the cover of this one, well….I was hooked! I instantly downloaded and began my descent into the wonderful dystopian-fantasy crafted by Alix E. Harrow.

This is the kind you read when the house is quiet, no one is awake, and the shadows in the corners feel just a little bit darker than usual. That’s the mood I felt when I read The Knight and the Butcherbird.

And let me tell you something…..this one is strange in the best possible way. I couldn’t put it down!

From the very beginning, the story carries an eerie sense throughout, not overwhelming or in your face, but present enough to know it’s lurking there. The writing style feels almost like a folklore, as if the story itself has been passed down for generations, but in whispered hushed tones. The feeling that magic might still exist just beyond the edge of the path.

The author masterfully sets the scene, utilizing the desolate, remote wilderness to perfection in this dystopian-fantasy. The way the author combines the “old world” with the “new” is skillfully accomplished and it made a smile spread across my face every time I read those portions.

There are two main characters in this short story: the knight Sir John and the young town historian known as shrike.

Sir John is of the conclaves and he carries the weight of duty, expectation and a solitary existence for the most part. Even though he is considered legendary and privileged for being a knight of the conclaves, there is almost a worn strength and thoughtfulness about him. Just looking at him, you know that he has seen too many battles.

The Shrike, or otherwise named by Sir John as the butcherbird, is the polar opposite.

She is sharp, clever and a bit unsettling. There is an edge to her, almost feral and chaotic to be honest. She keeps you guessing with every decision she makes throughout the story. However, there is also a loyalty, protectiveness and hopefulness for those she loves.

The dynamic between the two is a palpable tension that you feel throughout the whole thing. It’s not a simple black and white tale or good versus evil or even hero versus villain. It’s more murky then you’d expect and I found that made the character dynamics interesting.

I also loved the authors take on “demons” in this story. It’s something I hadn’t read in a story like this before and I found it a breath of fresh air if I’m being truthful. I won’t spoil it, but when I read the climatic portion of this, I literally said out loud “So cool!” Maybe I’m just a nerd though!

I will say I enjoyed the fact that this short story doesn’t hold your hand, it trusts the reader to follow along without over-explaining everything. The plot, atmosphere and characters build naturally, which shows a strong confidence in the author’s writing.

I will be honest, this is definitely an atmospheric and character driven tale rather than a fast paced plot. Which for some, may not be your type of read.

The Knight and the Butcherbird is elegant and eerie at the same time. So, if you enjoy a dark folklore vibe, morally complicated characters and a story that feels like whispered legends in a dystopian world, then this one might be worth adding to your reading list.

Hope you enjoyed the review and until next time…

Meet you after dark

💀Your cozy-macabre book bestie

Posted in Horror, Novella/Short Story

Ghost Camera

Posted on by Mama

Original post from my Mom blog here – https://mamaonthemove1.wordpress.com/2025/11/26/book-review-ghost-camera/

Title: Ghost Camera


Author: Darcy Coates


Genre: Horror, Paranormal, Short Stories, Fiction


Number of Pages: 341


My Rating: 💋💋


Book Summary:

They’re Always Watching…

When Jenine finds an abandoned Polaroid camera, she playfully snaps a photo without a second thought. But there’s something wrong with the image: a ghostly figure stands in the background, watching her.

Fixated on her.

Moving one step closer with every picture she takes.

Desperate, Jenine shares her secret with her best friend, Bree. Together, they realize the camera captures unsettling impressions of the dead. But now the ghosts seem to be following the two friends. And with each new photo taken, a terrible danger grows ever clearer…

THE HORROR HAS ONLY JUST BEGUN.

Full of rich bonus material, Ghost Camera contains even more chilling tales from USA Today bestselling author Darcy Coates, including:

  • A woman survives a plane crash in a remote arctic tundra, accompanied only by a stranger who seems fixated on something moving through the blinding snow.
  • A house stands empty. Hungry. Waiting for the children drawn to it like moths to a flame.
  • A woman finds a shoebox filled with old VHS tapes. They have a note attached: “Don’t watch. You’ll regret it.”


My Thoughts:

I finished this novel near the end of October, so I’ve been putting off this review a bit.

I should have read the description more closely when I looked at this one on Bookoutlet.ca, because when I read it quickly, I expected the vast majority of this novel to be about two friends who now have to deal with a haunted camera or ghost camera. It sounded intriguing and I figured the bonus stories would be closer to the end of the book. Boy was I incorrect.

I will credit the author for being majorly creative and I did find some of the other stories to be far more intriguing and much better written than the novels title story. In my opinion, I found Payment for the Dead, Death Birds, Untamed Things, A Box of Tapes creepy, eerie and all around captivating. I wish these stories were longer to be quite honest or even their own novels. I would have loved to have dived in deeper and gotten more nitty gritty and detailed.

However, the title story Ghost Camera was….lackluster at best. It felt a bit rushed, especially at the end and the character development was okay. I will say the friendship between the two girls was very well written and something I feel felt like was a genuine friendship you would come across in the real world. However, the story felt a little boring to be honest. I feel like it could have been extremely unsettling if it had been longer than exactly 100 pages.

Now let’s discuss the short stories I did enjoy briefly, shall we?

Payment for the Dead was about a man who falls on hard times and takes a job as a grave digger with a man named Pieter. Working in the cover of night, digging up bodies for cash just to get by and to provide for his family, especially during Christmas. This job paid double and occurred without warning. He was later informed that he stood in a child’s grave and the parents paid the witch outside of town to have their son back….

Creepy right! I won’t spoil it entirely, but it was so good!

Death Birds was about a doctor who is working his shift at the hospital when he notices a these supernatural birds or ‘Death Birds’ as they are known. According to the story, they show up with death is about to occur and they feast on the dead bodies. There was an unusually large number, hundreds if I recall in this one location….the hospital. They called in extra staff (nurses, doctors, etc) because they were expecting a large flood of patients due to some catastrophic event, however what they didn’t expect was it to happen right there at the hospital…

DUN DUN DUUUUUUN…INCREDIBLY WRITTEN!

Untamed Things was part of the excerpt on the back of the novel and frankly they did a pretty good job at a short description. This is about a woman who survives a plane crash and discovers there is only one other survivor. The woman claims to have experience in the frigid mountains that they landed in and fixated on moving forward so they don’t get caught by the creature following them. Eventually a rescue team finds her in the nick of time, but her companion is no where to be seen…

OOO, honestly so creepy and had me at the edge of my couch reading it!

A Box of Tapes was another excerpt on the back of the novel and once again, well done for a quick short description. A woman moves into a new home, in a new town with her daughter. She finds a box of old VHS tapes and attached is a warning note not to watch them. Curiosity killed the cat and she begins to watch the videos, disturbing imagery and unnerving events are depicted. What’s worse is that things begin to happen in her home and around her daughter which makes her begin to question and investigate what really happened within the tapes….who is that creepy woman? What is happening to her? Is she really seeing the woman in the woods?

To say this was so unsettling is an understatement, it is literally everyone’s worst nightmare! Incredibly well written and should have been a novel all on it’s own.

Sadly though, those were the saving graces of this novel. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t recommend reading this book personally and I had such high hopes for this one. However, I am not saying the author isn’t talented, like I said the few short stories I did enjoy in this were intriguing and you can tell she is a wonderful writer. So I have a few other novels on my TBR list by her that I will eventually get to. But sadly, for me, Ghost Camera kind of missed the mark.

Hope you enjoyed and keep an eye out for the next review which will be the novel Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy. This one I recently finished.

I’ll also be doing, what I am going to call, Mini Book reviews. It’s the first in the series and these will be books, magazines, etc that I finish quickly. So look out for Scary Book of Christmas Lore: 50 Terrifying Yuletide Tales from Around the World by Tim Rayborn.

Ciao!