Thank you, R.E. Holding and Cliff Cave Books for the ARC!

-- Why I Chose This Book --

Subcutaneous was such a treat!

So, I used to almost exclusively read Stephen King books way back when I was a more casual reader, but it's honestly been a while since I've read a good horror book. Since a big part of this reading journey has been to explore a variety of genres and authors, and I've been really wanting to dive back into a good horror book, I went to NetGalley and found this hidden gem.

I wasn't really looking for any specific type of horror; I just wanted to go in blindly and see what I could find, and this book hit the spot.

-- What I Liked --

I always enjoy seeing the first-person present tense point of view, but it works so especially well here. I'm going to be light on details here to keep things spoiler-free, but the way this particular perspective was written was so cool.

One of my favorite things about the book is the writing style. I'm not really sure what kind of writing style I was expecting out of the first horror book I've read in years, but R.E. Holding wrote some beautiful sentences in this story and used a nice vocabulary of uncommon words like "titter" while still keeping the story very accessible.

Another pleasant, unexpected surprise was the very well-placed humor in the book. I very much want to find any excuse possible to call someone a "tofu person" now, and I had to hold in a laugh in the breakroom at my work when one of the characters said (view spoiler)

I thought the characterization here was also very good for the story being on the shorter side; it feels like everyone got the spotlight at some point. One character was kind of uninteresting and then became interesting as the story went on. Others had great character quirks and flaws. The group dynamic was a lot of fun to see; kind of gave grown-up Scooby-Doo vibes in a way.

I also enjoyed the mention of Dr. Thunder. The struggle is real.

-- Closing Thoughts --

My first venture back into horror was awesome. Subcutaneous is a great mix of tasteful horror elements, complex characters, and a touch of humor written in a wonderful way.

I'm adding R.E. Holding's other books to my Want To Read list because I love this style of horror writing.

This was a solid read, but unfortunately it just didn’t completely pull me in. I liked the creepy and unsettling atmosphere, and there were definitely moments that had me curious about where everything was going. The premise was interesting and had a lot of potential, but I felt like some parts worked better than others. Overall, I enjoyed it, but I was left wanting a little more from the story and characters. 3 stars.

Subcutaneous was exactly the kind of psychological horror that gets under your skin—literally and figuratively. There’s something deeply unsettling about the way R.E. Holding takes the familiar and slowly twists it into something disturbing, making you question what’s real and what you can actually trust.

The atmosphere, creeping dread, and increasingly uncomfortable moments kept me hooked. This one doesn’t need to rely on cheap scares to get under your skin—it builds that feeling that something is VERY wrong, and I loved that.

As someone who is ridiculously hard to scare, I’m always happy when a horror book manages to make me uncomfortable. Subcutaneous definitely got there.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the advanced copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley

Subcutaneous is a serviceable occult thriller with a strong voice, though some plot holes left me with questions.

Subcutaneous starts out strong with an eerie and mysterious first person voice before getting into a third person story with the protagonist Bash and his friend group. I liked that Bash and his friends felt like real 3-dimensional people with faults. The first chapter had me a little worried that they would all be caricatures, but they felt fleshed out.

The writing style overall was strong and consistent, with engaging prose that keeps the audience reading.

I have two minor frustrations with the book. The first is just my own opinion that I'm sure other people wouldn't have an issue with. The second is more about craft.

First, at times this book falls into the "there's not really anything scary to say, so I'm going to make my protagonist have a scary dream" pattern that is unfortunately common in books. That's not to say it's always out of place, but it's not my favorite style of horror writing.

My second complaint is that it feels like there are some plot holes left at the end. No spoilers, but I was left wondering, "Did the bad guy do all of that just for arts and crafts?"

Overall, however, I enjoyed this book, and I will be checking out some other books by the author.

Thank you to Cliff Cave Books LLC and Net Galley for allowing me to access this digital arc.

This review was uploaded to Net Galley and Goodreads on September 27, 2026.
This is going to be a review of R.E. Holding’s book Subcutaneous. The genres for the book are adult fiction, mystery, thriller, horror, and I would add psychological. The book hits shelves physically and digitally on February 16, 2027. Before we get into the review, I want to place the following trigger warnings:
• Alcohol
• Violence
• Sexual Assault
• Body horror
• Stalking
• Witchcraft

Subcutaneous follows a retired engineer, Sebastian Page who starts to experience unexplainable things. In the background, there are a string of killings happening in his town. As the webs of intrigue and dread close around him, Sebastian will find out just how sinister the webs around him are and how deeply they are rooted.

Right away the book hits the ground running, and the author did an excellent job of describing everything. The scenes were painted vividly, and it helped the story feel real and organic. Following Sebastian as he wanders deeper into his own mind and despair was an interesting journey, and on I enjoyed following.

I also thought that the violence was written well and the methodology was unique. The meticulous nature of the violence reminded me of the show Dexter. The mystery was kept close to the chest until towards the very end, and I enjoyed reading the explanation given to everything. There was also something about the characters that made them relatable.

The one thing I found hard to like was how predictable it was when you suspended disbelief. While I did not receive vindication until the end of the story, I was writing notes about how things would go. I also think the story could have benefited more if the author used “show, don’t tell” with the big reveal. But I enjoyed the story all the same and would read again.