My thanks to the publisher for a proof copy in exchange for an honest review.
I absolutely loved Call Me Mummy, Tina Baker's debut. It had a great hook and thrilling plot. Nasty Little Cuts is completely different in style. I felt this slow burn thriller was more character driven than plot driven.

It too has a very dramatic opening, a physical fight between a couple in their kitchen, whilst their two children sleep upstairs. It's told over 2 time points, the present moment (in real time, it feels like a second by second account) and in historical flashbacks.

The flash backs are useful in providing context for the present situation. We slowly learn more about the characters, the dynamic of their marriage and essentially why the husband is violent and why the wife puts up with it. I didn't like either of them, which is not really a problem when there is a compelling plot. I found it difficult to care about their story though. As I learned more about them, I did develop some empathy for both of them (slightly more so for the wife) but it was an effort to finish the story. The story is well written though and the characters very believable, so I'm sure plenty of people will enjoy it and find it compelling, but it just wasn't the novel for me.

I thought Call Me Mummy, Baker’s debut novel was a messed up read, little did I expect her follow up to be even more so.

On the outside, Debs and Marc have an ideal marriage, two adorable children, both parents doing what they do well but no one knows what happens behind closed doors right? No one really knows what has made the relationship what it is when Marc appears in the kitchen armed with a knife in the middle of the night. Seriously – what the hell?!?

The events in the kitchen are very unnerving. Marc’s limited communication is intrinsic to rattling my nerves and making what is playing out before me very uncomfortable. I wasn’t sure how this would play out before me but I really needed to know!

In-between the chapters in the kitchen (which are messed up), Baker puts together the jigsaw of the history of Deb and Marc’s relationship from their meeting to some rather more dark entries in their plotted history. Some of these darker flashbacks don’t bode well for the present, but the present seems to have a different balance of power between this couple.

In the writing of Nasty Little Cuts, Baker has managed ride the psychological wave she started in Call Me Mummy and has curated another messed up relationship which could oh-so-easily be playing out in your neighbours house. She’s found the knack of taking the nature of human relationships and making one heck of twisted mess which what a thrill to read.

Debs finds a man in her kitchen in the night with a knife, her children are upstairs, the man is her husband Marc. She knows she has to get herself and her children out of the house before anyone gets hurt.

The story is told in a series of flashbacks to more than two timelines, sometimes from his viewpoint, some from here. He has issues with his mother, is controlling of his wife and their sex games. She had a troubled childhood, where will the story take us, who gets out alive?

I did struggle with this book, it may have been because it was a proof and there seemed to be no definite chapters, it may have been the subject matter, I am not sure, could just be me as others have loved it.

Nasty Little Cuts

A brutal domestic noir, Nasty Little Cuts explores the violent breakdown of a marriage over one night, cut with other snippets of their lives over the past few decades.

Deb wanders down to the kitchen one night and sees her husband Marc holding a knife. She no longer recognises him. We are invited to see their past and how they grew together and since fallen apart. Marc is vicious, haunted by a harsh upbringing and a war he cannot forget, but he has no idea what Deb is capable of when she believes her children’s lives are in danger…

This is a vivid and visceral thriller, with violent outbursts and a marriage rotten to the core. Marc is an unpredictable loose cannon and cannot be trusted. Tension was crafted marvellously, but I almost couldn’t take it. I joke, I had to find out what happened! I normally race through thrillers like this but for Nasty Little Cuts I found myself savouring the pages, letting myself be slowly drawn into this poisonous relationship breakdown. I felt my heart in my mouth somehow hoping for a positive outcome.

The narrative jumps around between timelines, going from present day to three months ago, ten years ago, twenty-seven years ago and yet the story is easy to follow. The chapters are short, snappy and have real impact. No filler or fluff to be found. Each snapshot into the past reveals more about what has led Marc and Deb to this point and wanting to find out how their relationship comes to a head keeps us turning the pages.

A dark and disturbing look at how marriage can go so very wrong. With some graphic and harrowing flashbacks, we can somewhat understand how Marc and Deb came to this point, but the dramatic ending I did not see coming.

This was a dark and disturbing read based around Debs and Marc's relationship and how it has reached breaking point.

It was difficult to read in parts with realistic depictions of domestic violence throughout as well as telling the dark backstories of each main character through flashbacks. Building up the tension right from the start, switching between each as narrator and with short, snappy chapters, it was a compulsive read.

Highly recommended domestic drama. I’m predicting this will be one of 2022’s big reads.

The events take place over a number of hours in the early morning of Christmas Eve, a true nightmare before Christmas. Debs, our protagonist, jolts awake and goes downstairs to find her husband Marc slumped on the floor cradling a knife. Events from the past intersperse with the cat and mouse game which ensues in their kitchen. As the story of how they came to this point unfolds, the author explores themes of misogyny, familial trauma and domestic abuse.

This one grips like a vice and pulls the reader along on an emotional rollercoaster. I could not put it down. 4.5 stars

Wow!! I don't think I took a breath through the whole book!! Tina Baker has done it again!

I absolutely loved Tina's first book but Nasty Little Cuts is a whole other level of brilliant. Not for the faint hearted as it concerns domestic violence and is distressing in some places. Interspersed with this is the wit and humour that Tina does so well. The back and forth in the time lines of both Marc and Debs is a very good tool in growing the characters as the book progresses. I had sympathy for both characters but ultimately I'm glad the end was how it was. Another 5* read!

What a phenomenal book. I have to admit, I left writing my review for a few days in order to process what I had just read.

From the first page, you are plunged into the toxic world of Debs & Marc. Did it resonate more because I share her name? Who knows? But the characterisation is so well written that you live every bitter, shocking moment.

Debs & Marc have become married strangers who have two children. They no longer know each other & their interactions are deeply uncomfortable. Throw into the mix Marc’s vile mother & the scene is set for this detail driven book.

It is not written chronologically or following individual characters in turn; it is very much mix & match but it works. Events have happened in their pasts which neither know about; things have happened which they have shared & now we’re in the present. In the kitchen. On Christmas Eve. With that fridge. And a knife.

Harrowing at points but so cleverly described, the erosion of this couple’s bond is palpable.

Definitely in the running for one of my books of 2022.

Deb and Marc have reached a crisis point in their marriage and they don’t really know how they got to this stage. It’s the night before Christmas Eve and with their two children upstairs in bed, things begin to boil over and emotions run high.

The relationship has turned sour, nasty, and toxic and you know from the start that this can’t possibly have a fairy tale ending, but Tina holds our hands and guides us through the twists and turns and occasionally puts an arm around our shoulder when she reminds us happier times for Deb and Marc.

This is a dark, twisted tale which will leave you feeling uncomfortable at times but also wonder what goes on in Tina’s head for her to come up with a story as dark as this!!!! Wonderful characters that you really invest in – a brilliant read.

Nasty Little Cuts is a very dark and disturbing story. It was a bit of a slow burner at the beginning but there was plenty of tension which kept building throughout. I wanted to like it but it was just a little too much for me although looking at other reviews I can see I am in a minority.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC.

Nasty Little Cuts by Tina Baker is a soul destroying story about people in an abusive relationship and how destructive this can be.
Deborah and Mark are married with two children, it is Christmas Eve and life is not working out the way both of them thought it would. By the morning who will live and who has died remains to be seen.
A very destructive storyline of relationships that can become so toxic that only death can be the outcome.
Highly recommended

Nasty little cuts by Tina Baker.
A nightmare jolts Debs awake. She leaves the kids tucked up in their beds and goes downstairs. There's a man in her kitchen, holding a knife. But it's not an intruder. This is her husband Marc, the father of her children. A man she no longer recognises.Once their differences were what drew them together, what turned them on. Him, the ex-army officer from a good family. Her, the fitness instructor who grew up over a pub. But now these differences grate to the point of drawing blood. Marc screams in his sleep. And Debs hardly knows the person she's become, or why she lets him hurt her.Neither of them is completely innocent. Neither is totally guilty. Marc is taller, stronger, and more vicious, haunted by a war he can't forget. But he has no idea what Debs is capable of when her children's lives are at stake...
Wow. What a read. A very dark read. Violent and twisted. Goid story. 5*.

This domestic noir explores the breakdown of the marriage of Marc and Debs. Through both of their perspectives we timehop from their present brilliantly brutal battle in the kitchen of their family home to how they met and other pivotal moments throughout their relationship and own individual back stories.

This is a book layered with tension and torment. Highlighting the damage that can be caused by generational trauma, dysfunctional childhoods, toxic masculinity, addiction and physically and mental abuse. The focus being on two damaged individuals and that fragile balance between love and hate.

The author is never afraid to dig deep into the scars of secrets unspoken and delve into the darkest parts of the human psyche. Opening fresh wounds for the characters that pore with emotions of anger, pain, resentment and vulnerability just like a knife that can slice through delicate skin .

This may be an uncomfortable read for some but as a trauma survivor I find the book strangely cathartic.

Nasty Little Cuts is palpable, powerful and packs a punch. The dark dialogue draws you in like an old friend interspersed with warmth and wit but then spits out its violent venom again if you let down your guard.

Parts of the story are even written from the thoughts of the family’s pet cat and are so believable that they again show the talent for writing that the author has.

What a tense novel. Desperately sad throughout but really allowed you to get to know the characters. Thanks for the opportunity to read

Very very sadly not for me i'm afraid. I can see lots of people love this, so am clearly an odd one out but found the language uncomfortable.

I read this authors debut novel last year and thought it was superb. When I heard she had a new book out I just had to read it. I’m always a bit nervous reading an authors next book after their debut, what if I don’t like it as much. Well let me tell you Nasty Little Cuts is another fantastic read . To say I enjoyed this book sounds a bit strange as it is a deeply dark and very disturbing read. This book will get right under your skin and will have you gasping out loud at times as it did me. This is a story about a seriously messed up husband and wife. The author has an amazing way with words and descriptions that makes you feel you are there with the characters . Just brilliant.

Hello my name is Toni and I stan Tina Baker! This is the true face of someone definitely fangirling! Give this lady all the literary awards!

Let me start with a confession… Nasty Little Cuts has been in my possession long before the tour was announced. In fact it was on my NetGalley shelf way before I was gifted my physical proof. What I’m trying to say is I was so excited for Tina’s second novel I simply couldn’t read it. I wasn’t in fear that I’d dislike it, quite the opposite. I knew that when I turned the first page I wouldn’t move until the end. Guess what folks! This is indeed what happened on Saturday - I was that engrossed I barely heard the storm!

Nasty Little Cuts is an easy five star read for me and it had everything I yearn for in a psychological thriller. It is dark, unnerving and relentless in the suspense it creates - I barely let out a breath. From the offset I was intrigued by Deb and Marc’s marriage, which was far from the wedded bliss expected in middle class suburbia. Through the shifting timeline we explore the past and present of their relationship: the good, the bad and downright ugly. We witness the lengths a mother will go to to protect her children and the strength to survive. What an intoxicating ride - I will think about this book for a long time!

Received this as AFC - was excited to start and really got into it from the start however this is one of those books that bring the reader on a journey and for me the journey was all a bit mixed up - you have the one main story which’s plays out very well and then sub stories about the individuals involved in the main story (follow me ???) …… these were what confused me there is no reference to time in these “memories” or infact whose memory it is but then BOOM it all comes together !!!!! So am feeling just a bit hit and miss with this title - would I recommend - Yes I would - will I read this author again - Yes I would - I feel like this author is just going to get better and better and am looking forward to reading more

Nasty Little Cuts by Tina Baker. A hard hitting domestic drama set in the family home on the morning of Christmas eve, Debs and Marc have been married for nearly 10 years, two children, a beautiful home, good jobs and friends, from the outside they have everything but on the inside, the demons sit awaiting release.
From the outset this is a violent story but as the morning progresses it gets worse, the couples history is revealed in a retrospective, piecemeal way, which I felt a little haphazard however, it was done to reveal the events in order of severity rather than chronology.
The cast is small, so a great depth is achieved in the characters, I felt for them both in different ways.
The read was definitely a page turner, moving between events of the day and the various time points in the couples history and being written in such small chapters, 100 in total, made it a quick pace read, just one more chapter being said more than once!
Overall, a rather sad, violent story of abuse, love and loss. Well written from a frank perspective which some readers may find difficult. I’m not sure I enjoyed it but an interesting read. 3.5*

⭐️ 4 ⭐️

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC, in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

What can I say? Brilliant, just brilliant!

Nasty little Cuts is a dark, chilling read. Well-written, with short, snappy chapters, which flit seamlessly between different timelines.

Fantastic characterisation and such realistic dialogue. I loved Debs and really rooted for her. The sense of tension and foreboding throughout is palpable, you can almost cut the atmosphere with a knife.

A toxic relationship, expertly depicted by Tina Baker, showing how each nasty little cut can cause lasting damage.

Overall, a fab read and a total page-turner.
Agadoo!