**3.5-stars rounded up**

After fleeing an abusive relationship, Sadie Miles, with her toddler, Izzy, in tow, ends up at the L’Arpin Hotel, a historic property on the edge of Lake Eerie. She's not there for rest and relaxation though, she's there for a job. When she's offered a position as a housekeeper, which includes a free room at the hotel, she jumps at the offer. She's beyond desperate.

We follow Sadie as she tries to navigate her new circumstance, having to do things that make her uncomfortable, such as leaving Izzy alone with an elderly woman she just met, so that she can get her work done. It's not just those necessary actions that are making her uncomfortable though, there's a lot around the hotel that is odd; including, but not limited to, the people.

Individuals go missing, and there's definitely something in the water, or the pipes, or food. The higher-ups seem to be covering-up, but what? And what about the man from the power plant, always yelling and carrying on, like she's done something to him. What is going on here?

Sadie, like many great Horror characters before her, isn't willing to let any of this stuff go. She's determined to figure out the truth behind the hotel, even if she needs to put herself in peril in order to do so.

I had fun with this one. The Cut has a great set-up, and it did succeed at keeping me guessing and compelled to move forward with the unsettling narrative. It reminded me of one of those Creature Feature movies from the late-70s/mid-80s, that had like ants that had grown to the size of houses and ate entire towns. Were they super logical? No. Did they keep you entertained on a rainy Saturday afternoon? Absolutely. This is the vibe I got and I'm not complaining about it.

This is solid B-Horror, and don't take that as an insult, because it's not. I love B-Horror. It's pure entertainment, that doesn't take itself too seriously. It tells a story, gives you thrills, chills, and keeps you at the edge of your seat. I will say, Sadie's daughter, Izzy, drove me absolutely nuts. I would have enjoyed this even more if she hadn't been in it. I know that seems mean, but it is what it is.

Overall, though, this was a fun ride. It had some issues, but at the end of the day, I didn't really care. I actually Buddy Read this and it was a fun one to try to guess what was really happening. Which by the way, I was no where near guessing.

Thank you, St. Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with a copies to read and review. I highly recommend the audio format if you have it available to you. The narration was a great fit for the tone of the story!

This audio was just okay. I was really intrigued by the cover, but it wasn’t really what I expected it to be.

A young woman and her toddler on the run from her abusive fiancé finds what seems to be safety and shelter and a slightly run down inn on Lake Erie.

I live near a Great Lake so this left me particularly squeamish. The monsters were all slimy, wet and tentacled. I really loved how you weren’t quite sure if Sadie was actually seeing what she was describing or if her fear and anxiety from her fiancé had her jumping at shadows.

Great narration!

Would definitely read more from this author. You might not want to listen to this one while in the shower.

This story was an eerie, suspenseful slow burn that kept me engaged with worry for the pregnant main character, Sadie Miles, and her three-year-old daughter, Izzy. With the story being solely in Sadie's POV, I found myself wondering which other characters Sadie could trust, especially with characters disappearing throughout the story. Fans of mysterious horror will enjoy this book.

Really not my type of book. I was SO excited to read this because I thought it might be related to body horror or supernatural elements, something similar to The Troop by Nick Cutter but I was disappointed. The story was underbaked and felt like it was crammed full of irrelevant information to make it seem interesting. The weird occurrences never expand into anything substantial and implores the question what does this have to do with the story.

I found the story of her working at the hotel to escape her abusive ex convenient for the plot but certainly odd how she jumps into it with seemingly no concern for her very recent past. When they re-introduce her ex and connect him to the overall plot it falls flat and seems like an afterthought. It seemed like they just needed a reason to place her at this weird hotel. I found the writing extremely shallow for instances like this when the simple 5 W's were not considered when diving into a characters motives - why would she actually be there? And if she experienced all these things, why wouldn't she leave. Is this paranormal torture porn?

I also yearned for more lore on the hotel. The Shining does a great job of keeping the mystique and reveling in the chaos but this underdelivered. It felt like reading the first draft of a book that has yet to be revised. So much missing information and continuity with the added bonus of ignored plot holes.

Thanks to MacMillan Audio & NetGalley for providing an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This one left me a little cold - based on the cover, I was hoping for a little more "Slither" and a little less ick. This book is touted as a slow burn, and it is, but maybe a little too slow for my taste. It takes *forever* to get to a point where we know what's going on, and while Dotson is good at ramping up the dread, the plot, which deals with a pregnant mom of a toddler escaping from a domestic abuse situation, is a bit repetitive and difficult to believe (you didn't block your abusive ex on your phone? You took a job as a hotel maid without figuring out childcare before or after?). Still, the writing is atmospheric and enveloping.

A faster pace would've helped enormously, as would an ending that didn't feel so rushed. Dotson has talent, it just needs to be a little more directed.

Jenn Lee does a fine job of voice acting, even doing well with the annoying toddler daughter of the FMC, whose vocal idiosyncrasies set my teeth on edge (not Lee's fault, just how it was written).

Thanks SMP and Macmillian Audio for the ARC.

Respectfully, Dotson, what the fuck was that.

This story was both a horror story, but also one where a woman reclaims her strength and stands up to monsters, both literal and metaphorical. I loved that she learned to rely on herself, and her own strengths, instead of those around her. The mystery around the hotel and the tentacle things was so well done, I was grossed out in parts.

Definitely never showering in a hotel again.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for my copy of THE CUT.

I really enjoyed the first half of this book, but then it got super slaggy and boring. I figured it out pretty soon, and then the horror left much to be desired. I don't recommend this one.

The Cut
A Novel
by C. J. Dotson
Narrated by Jenn Lee

A tense and disturbing novel set in the historic yet fading L’Arpin Hotel on the shores of Lake Erie.

Sadie and her three-year old daughter Izzy, are on the run from Sadie’s violent fiancé, Sam. Sadie had stumbled into a relationship with Sam after the death of Izzy’s father in a car accident. Sam took advantage Sadie’s grief, her trauma, and her anxiety and used it to manipulate and abuse her. When Sadie learns she’s pregnant with Sam’s child, she RUNS. She gets a job as a housekeeper in the hotel and she and Izzy move in.

I love the way Dotson uses Sadie’s inner voice, her anxious, wounded negative self-talk and her memories of Sam’s abusive words to reveal Sadie’s backstory and motivations. It is painfully effective, helping to expose Sadie, flaws and all, making her feel real to the reader, her plight so stressful, her reactions very fitting to her situation. And her situation is SCARY! Noises, shadows, secrets, smells, missing people, things in the tub… slimy, glistening, briny horror.

Narrator Jenn Lee is perfection. She captures Sadie’s earnestness and anxiety and Izzy’s three year old angst. Lee’s performance had me completely engaged.

The Cut is a taut thriller, well-paced and emotional with moments of sheer terror.

Thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the digital copy of this book; I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I don’t know what I was expecting with this book when I requested it, but it’s not quite what I expected. That doesn’t make it bad, just different. It’s sort of a paranormal mystery/horror/thriller/Hollywood B-movie vibe.

What I did like about this book was that it was different than what I normally read/listen to. I appreciated some of the scarier parts of the story, yet some of it also seems predictable. I like protagonists who ask a lot of questions and don’t simply accept what is told them.

As a woman running from an abusive relationship, I was really rooting for her, her daughter, and her unborn child. The abuse is in the past. I don’t need flashbacks to that horrible time in her life, described in detail. It felt gratuitous.

If you like those 1970s monster horror movies like Ben, I’d recommend this book. It’s good to pass the time, but not great.

Excellent. Well-written. Suspenseful.

Definitely, recommend.



Thank you to the publisher for the Advanced Reader Copy.

I want to thank NetGally for the ARC!
I've never been in a situation this woman ran from but I can assume it would cause a person to be over vigilant and jumpy and that was most of this book, only turns out it was to her benefit if not annoying. This definitely gives a great creep factor to the hotel and the tension is off the charts but it was a little easy to figure out the plot.
My favorite character was Izzy, her cute toddler lisp and the very end was interesting. I might have an aversion to water tonight when it comes time to shower.

I liked the premise of this book. Estranged pregnant mother with a toddler, looking for a way to become independent and stay clear of an abusive relationship who finds herself embroiled in a series of mysterious happenings... or is she just succumbing to the stress of the burden of her life.
I had a lot of high hopes for this book, but it was not right for me. I felt like the characters were repetitive and shallow and that the plot dragged on for too much of the story. I enjoyed more of the end than I thought I would though. It was nice to have the hinted-at action realized as the tale wrapped up. There is a good story here and with some tighter editing, it could be a fun read. IMO it is too long for the current content.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this title.

OMG OMG OMG This is so good and so creepy. I do not want to reveal any spoilers but you will be absolutely stunned by the last few hours. I love the narration. Also I usually listen to my audio books at 2X but this one is best at 1. Those pauses are something special, trust me on that. The ending is awesome.
I am just in love and stunned and grossed out right now.

If Rosemary's Baby met A Cure for Wellness, you would get The Cut. As a story of a young mother escaping an abusive relationship and ending up a maid at a creepy hotel - that premise immediately hooked me and didn't let go the entire time. I wanted to give this 5 stars, but the conclusion felt a bit long for me, there was a lot of action but I think it might have been too much at the end.

I enjoyed listening to this one. It was a little weird and a little random, but that didn't bother me - I felt that it all came together in the end well enough that I was satisfied while still leaving possibilities open in a way that kept it feeling creepy right up to the last minute. I thought the narration suited the story very well. There was some repetition in the storytelling, as other reviewers have noted, but it didn't really bother me and things moved along at a pretty consistent and suspenseful clip. It was just unusual enough to keep me curious as to whether this was going to turn out to be a psychosis/mental health book or an actual horror/supernatural one. I liked the ambiguity and felt it contributed to the tension in a way that I enjoyed.

Unique, fun, suspenseful read! You know that cover drew me in and once I started I couldn't stop! I needed to know!!!! I felt bad for Sadie but also wanted to know so much more about her life before her starting over at this creepy hotel! I knew that sweet little old lady was far too helpful!!!

2.5/5 Stars

The Cut started off strong with a great premise and an eerie atmosphere. I was immediately drawn to the story of Sadie, a pregnant mother fleeing her abusive husband, trying to protect her toddler while starting over as a housekeeper at the L’Arpin Hotel on Lake Erie. The locked-room vibe and supernatural hints had me hooked early on.

But the story started to lose me as it went on. The plot became repetitive and dragged in places, and some of the twists took strange turns that didn’t quite land. I was hoping the domestic violence backstory would tie more directly into the horror elements, but instead it felt like two disconnected storylines. While Sadie’s character arc was one of the book’s strengths, I think the themes could have meshed together more effectively.

I really enjoyed the creepy hotel setting and the early supernatural buildup. But once the story shifted into full-on creature horror, it lost some of that grounded tension. The ending felt rushed and didn’t quite work for me.

Overall, The Cut had a lot of potential, and I was disappointed it didn’t end stronger. The setup pulled me in, but the execution fell flat. Still, if you’re into atmospheric horror with a locked-room feel and a creature twist, it might be worth a read.

Book Review: The Cut by C.J. Dotson
🎧 Narrated by Jenn Lee
⭐️ 3.75/5 Stars

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the ALC of The Cut, which releases today!

This atmospheric mystery/thriller follows Sadie Miles, a woman fleeing her abusive ex-fiancé with her toddler and unborn child. She lands a job as hotel staff at an aging hotel near Lake Erie in hopes of starting fresh. But from the moment she arrives, things feel off. The long-term residents are too nosy, the staff too evasive—and Sadie starts seeing things she can’t explain. Monsters/creatures lurking in the drains and rooms. Most chilling of all? She hears a woman drowning... in an empty pool, with no one in sight.

As the secrets of the hotel unravel, Sadie realizes she must escape before her past—or the evil presence in the hotel—catches up to her and her children.

The audiobook, narrated by Jenn Lee, has a gripping pace and does a great job enhancing the story’s tension. Dotson’s vivid descriptions bring both the hotel and Sadie’s memories to life, and the final twist genuinely took me by surprise. The last 20% of the book had me completely hooked.

That said, Sadie as a main character could be hard to root for at times. Her choices felt frustrating, and her constant use of a nickname for her daughter came across as unnatural—but maybe that was intentional, given how flawed and complicated her character is.

Overall, The Cut is a twisty, eerie story that’s perfect if you like a blend of mystery, thriller, and the supernatural.

2.75 /5

While there were some things about this book I enjoyed, I couldn't help but feel it missed the mark throughout. It could just be a personal preference thing ... It's just that some things were nailed so perfectly, so you can tell the talents are there ... But, I don't know ...
It's like ... There's all the freshest, most high grade ingredients ... But, adding them all together seems to throw one thing off, then you start noticing how every aspect seems slightly off.
And the ending was just ... not great, IMO.
Like I said, personal preference and all that. I can picture many getting a lot of enjoyment from it, so I recommend checking it out. There IS some good stuff here ... Dotson is great with atmosphere.

2.75/ (rounded up) 5