Taut, atmospheric thriller that balances gritty realism with psychological depth, effectively building tension without resorting to melodrama.

The Cut

“The conversation petered out after that, dampened by the combination of Sadie's quiet, lingering discomfort”.

If I had to use three words to describe this book they would be, tension, discomfort and distrust. If the goal was to make the reader unsettled and not like anyone, mission accomplished.

The Cut follows Sadie, a woman on the run with her toddler, from an abusive boyfriend. Upon finding out she’s pregnant Sadie answers the push to escape before it’s too late.

Right from the start the reader is left with an overwhelming sense of dread, and this is even before Sadie makes it to the L’ Arpin Hotel.

Lured by the promise of free accommodations while working as housekeeping at the L’ Arpin hotel, Sadie settles in with her daughter in the hopes of saving enough money to get a fresh start on her own. The problem is we can sense something is very wrong at this hotel. Guests seem to be disappearing and Sadie feels like she’s being watched. We’re never sure who can be trusted right up until the end.

The concept and atmosphere are all there. The pace however, was a bit slow and there was quite a bit of repetition. The main character kept calling her daughter “little stinker”, which did get a bit trying.

I LOVED the creature feature feel and execution, although I could have done without the prolonged monologue by the villain. We got all the information missing in the first 95% of the story all in one scene.

I recommend this story for those looking for an old fashion creature story, with a slower pace and an interesting reveal.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the eArc.

This one started out with a lot of promise, but ultimately fell short. It ended up being quite repetitive and I found myself skimming just to get to the end. There were too many plot holes and just overall ridiculous things kept happening.

I was intrigued by this one, and I didn't absolutely hate it! The hardest part for me was the pacing- I got stuck at about 25-30% and took a few breaks because I just wasn't feeling interested. When I did push through, I felt like it paid off and I breezed through the rest, but I really struggled at that first third.

The horror itself was creepy and eerie. The monsters didn't turn out to be my favorite type, but I was still interested and enjoyed how it turned out. I think the other thing that brought my rating down slightly was the ending- it felt like there were a couple of plot holes and it wrapped up just a little too quickly.

This one wasn't my favorite, but I would try another C.J. Dotson novel in the future!

The Cut was an interesting read. I found that I flew through a lot of it, wondering what the heck was going on while simultaneously thinking I knew it all. I turned out to be mostly right but I did feel it was a lot of build up for little payout.

I was rooting for our MC, who is running from an abusive husband with her young toddler while pregnant. I really wanted the best for her and I loved how she was a strong woman who would do anything for her children. The cast of characters were all odd, which added to the enjoyment of it and I loved the weirdness of the nauseating, creature things, but somehow it just wasn’t all that I wanted it to be. Still, it was a mostly enjoyable story and I will definitely read more from the author. Thanks to St. Martin’s Press for my copy. The Cut is available now.

This book was just okay! It is way too long for what it is, which is a B-movie type creature feature. I usually love that kind of thing, and I think if this had been like 100 pages shorter, I would have enjoyed it more. Still a solid read!

Loved the setting. The characters and vibes were fantastic. Thank you for sharing with us. It was nice to follow along and get to know everyone.

I typically find myself really enjoying supernatural based horror, but this one overall felt very "meh" for me. While I felt the story started off strong, the pace quickly dwindled down to feel much slower and it felt harder to keep my attention. Thank you Netgalley and St Martin's Press for my early review copy!

⛧The Cut by C. J. Dotson - I found the story to be interesting, but honestly, not much happened to warrant a book of this length. Sadie cleaned rooms, ran around town, and snooped around the hotel, that’s it. She had shit taste in men and her parents were equally as shitty as her taste which meant she had absolutely no support system so I give her props for 1, getting the courage to leave and 2, finding any means necessary to support herself and her daughter. Even if those means meant getting violated by shower tentacles.

This audiobook is narrated by Jenn Lee

•Thank you to @macmillan.audio

Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Netgalley and CJ Dotson for the ARC.

After fleeing her abusive husband, Sadie is left pregnant and with a toddler in a run down hotel on Lake Erie beach. But with her new housekeeping position, the free room is the best Sadie can do. When a guest goes missing, Sadie gets a bad feeling. She doesn't believe her boss, who tells her the guest simply left without checking out. After the mental abuse of her exhusband, Sadie will never let someone tell her what she is seeing isn't real.

Though "The Cut" started off the strong, the pace seemed to really slow down quite a bit, before picking up for the last 25% or so. I like the idea of supernatural horror but I wasn't quite sure what to make of this one. I felt like I was left with a few unanswered questions. But it was still entertaining, and I kept reading because I wanted to see how it was going to end. I would definitely read something else by this author!

I'll be honest - I found myself very frustrated with this book. The main character makes zero decisions that make sense, frequently puts her young daughter in harm's way, and does not seem to take things seriously - I was yelling when she did not burst into the middle of a conversation asking why her boss was lying, personally.

There's also frustratingly little explanation. We understand that Sadie is on the run from an abusive fiancee who is not her daughter's dad. We get little to no explanation on why her parents are so angry with her, or what exactly happened with her first husband, or why she was even with the abusive fiancee. All of which would be fine, except the novel spends so much time doing circles around Sadie's difficult personal life and living situation that the actual "horror" elements are pretty minimal for the first half of the book. Nothing really happens. Then all of a sudden things kick into extreme action, and there is again, little to no explanation for what is causing the issues, how it is happening, etc. I wanted to know way more about the monsters, the plot, the hotel, and it was all rushed through the end. Sadie also manages to somehow be on high alert for danger, and yet completely oblivious to very obvious danger signs from certain characters.

Also, if I had to read "stinker" one more time, I was gonna lose it. Overall, this one just felt really lacking to me.

I went into The Cut hoping to be scared senseless. What I got instead was a lukewarm thriller that felt like it had ambitions of horror but politely declined to actually horrify anyone. It’s like being invited to a haunted house, only to find it’s just a mildly overgrown backyard with a fog machine and one guy in a mask who's clearly just Greg from accounting.

The plot moves along well enough—I'll give it that. The pacing is decent, the characters aren't offensively written, and there’s a consistent tone. But it all feels a little too neat, a little too safe. I kept waiting for the moment that would chill me to the bone or at least raise a goosebump. Instead, I found myself thinking, “This would make a decent movie if they punched up the scares and cast someone broody and hot.” It’s got that cinematic vibe—quick scenes, visual tension, and just enough dialogue to carry a screenplay. But as a novel? It’s kind of like ordering a spicy dish and only tasting paprika.

Dotson’s writing style is clean and competent, but not particularly memorable. There were a few clever lines, and I did appreciate the atmospheric attempts, even if they never quite landed. It's not bad, just... there. Like a middle seat on a short flight. You’ll survive, but you won’t recommend it.

Overall, The Cut didn’t leave a scar. It left more of a faint paper scratch—annoying enough to notice, but not deep enough to remember. Two stars for effort—and for being the literary equivalent of a horror movie you put on while folding laundry.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with a digital copy for review!

The Cut
By C.J. Dotson
3⭐️

Sigh. I really thought I was going to love this one. It started with such potential. We have Sadie Miles, secretly pregnant and fleeing an abusive ex, with her young daughter. She ends up at a Lake Erie beach called The Cut and takes a position at the L’Arpin hotel as a housekeeper.
Not long after she arrives guests begin disappearing from the hotel and she thinks the manager may have a hand in covering it up.
After that, things not only go down hill for Sadie, but unfortunately, also for the story. There is just so much going on during the second half of the book, the ex- husband, the factory, the water, the monsters, the old lady.
Also, while the book is billed as horror and there are some scary moments, I would say it is more a mystery thriller.
I was disappointed with the ending but I was able to make it through the whole story so I am rounding this one up from 2.5 to 3 ⭐️

Thanks to the author, St. Martin’s Press, and #Netgalley for the eARC. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I couldn't get into this book. I didn't connect with the writing style, and I was rolling my eyes way too much.

DNF

I wish I could give feedback on this book. I requested this book when it was still possible to transfer on Kobo.

I'll update this review once I read this book on my own.

Sadie desperately needs her job at the rundown L'Arpin Hotel. As much as she can't afford to draw attention to herself or the fact that she's hiding her preschooler in her attic room while working her housekeeping shifts, she can't ignore that guests are vanishing or that something ominous is squelching and dripping in the building itself. I enjoyed this one. Sadie's situation required some suspension of disbelief, but the horror element was entertaining if not scary.

Oof, I was not a fan unfortunately. When parents and their interactions with their kids are not done right, it is a huge annoyance for me, and it really took me out of the story. I was rooting for Sadie in leaving her abusive relationship, but so many of the choices she made were irrational. And once again, her relationship with her young daughter was SO obnoxious that it really made me not want to continue reading. Izzy was supposed to be 3 and the way she talked was way too mature, and Sadie constantly called her "stinker." Constantly. Over and over again.

The mystery behind the hotel was interesting, but Sadie was the worst person to have to follow in figuring things out. She was so frustrating, so instead of having a fun B-movie time, I just wanted things to be over.

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for the eARC.

The Cut is a horror book that balances terror and self-discovery. It's about the gaslighting, the self-doubt that people instill in her. At the same time, the internal and external journey Sadie goes on allows her to find her voice and her strength. To see the ways she's been manipulated to not believe herself while also fighting for her children and herself. It's eerie immediately and full of questions which don't add up. With flashbacks, The Cut expertly maintains a level of tension in the pit of your stomach.

Audiobook: 3.5/5
Ebook/Overall Story: 2.5/5

I swear I’m just on a bad streak with NetGalley. This was a book I was really excited to read. I actually put off starting it because I just knew it was going to be a good time—but that just wasn’t the case.

Once again, here’s another book with a great cover, an interesting concept, and even a strong setting for the story to unfold. There was so much potential here that it’s almost painful to see how the execution didn’t meet expectations.
The story follows a young woman escaping an abusive relationship. She has a daughter she’s very close to and is currently pregnant with her second child. With no close family she can count on, she finds herself taking a job at an older hotel. But while working there, she begins to realize the hotel might not be the safe haven for her family that she hoped for.

I was really hoping to get more of a creature feature out of this book—especially since I’ve been on such a horror kick lately. I’ve been watching a lot of horror movies and had just finished rewatching Slither, so I was expecting that small-town creepy vibe to come through. While I do think the book has some solid horror elements, the pacing seriously hinders the reading experience.

I was grateful to have the audiobook for an immersive read; it definitely made it easier to finish. The narration was really good, and I think the narrator did the best they could with the material. They brought to life the innocence, naïveté, and—quite frankly—sometimes annoying energy that kids can have in moments of intense danger, while also capturing the hurt, ache, and longing the mother feels for her daughter and how far she’s willing to go to protect her children.

But I’ll be so happy to never hear the word “stinker” again.

That said, the story began to lean more toward domestic horror—honestly, in one of the most bland and boring ways. I wanted more of the creature aspect, and felt it should’ve been introduced sooner. The beginning of the story was okay and built an interesting foundation, but it was also very slow. Nothing major happens until close to the end, and by that point, I found myself questioning some of the author’s choices.

I also didn’t connect much with the mother or daughter as characters. It made me wonder if the author gave the main character a traumatic past to spark a connection with the reader. Whether that was an attempt at sympathy or clearly designating who to root for, I can’t say. Though so many of the characters weren’t fully developed leaving only their trauma to connect to. In addition, much of the dialogue was repetitive and bland, which limited the emotional engagement. Outside of the flashbacks to her previous relationship, there weren’t many moments that deepened my connection to either character.

While I understand needing a catalyst to propel our main character down her path, I think just telling readers that she was escaping abuse and highlighting how unsupportive her parents had been would’ve been enough. So when their ex pops up near the end, it feels more like a sudden attempt to inject an additional thriller element to the story, but only took me out of the read. Meanwhile, I’m sure they’ll be some readers who will appreciate that distraction from the slithering, tentacled creatures lurking around the hotel.

This story had all the potential in the world, and I can absolutely see the paths it could’ve taken. But I didn’t really enjoy the ending, and the road to get there didn’t always hold my attention. I’m incredibly grateful to have had the audiobook to enhance the experience. Without it, I likely would have struggled to finish. Some elements felt underdeveloped, and the atmosphere didn’t get played up as much as it could have.

I’m thankful to Macmillan Audio, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read, listen, and review this book.

This was an entertaining read! The characters are interesting. The writing was good and this was fast paced. I would recommend this! Special Thank You to C.J. Dotson,St.Martin's Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.