Nightbitch is an example of magical realism, in which hyperbolized or supernatural elements coexist with the ordinary, expected elements of everyday life. Whereas realist literature describes a world consistent with the laws of reality as we perceive them, and fantasy describes a world with a unique, internal logic, magical realism combines both. Magical realism also differs from surrealist literature, as fantastical events have an objective reality and are not just expressions of psychological states or hallucinations. Although Nightbitch’s transformation mirrors her emotional state, it’s not happening in her head—it’s real.

As is the case with magic realism, the novel disrupts our ordinary perceptions of reality. Whereas fantasy encloses the magic safely in a different domain, magic realism disturbs reality, allowing the fantastical to emerge from the most ordinary of settings. In Nightbitch, this process works by subverting the meaning of motherhood. Nightbitch’s transformation highlights the remarkable and extreme nature of being a mother, highlighting motherhood’s dark side—its violence, frustration, and animality, and how this has been suppressed and sanitized by modern culture. This particular application of a fantastical metaphor in the arena of the private family home also makes the novel a good example of what many critics refer to as domestic fabulism.