Review: "The Cut Line" by Carolina Pihelgas

The Cut Line by Carolina Pihelgas, translated by Darcy Hurford
English translation published February 2026 via World Editions
★★★★

Rural Estonia: Liine has fled to her rural family cottage in the wake of a much-needed breakup. It's peaceful, and it's not: war hovers just around the corner, climate change is making its mark, and more than anything Liine doesn't really know what's next.

When everything is quiet, when the guns aren't firing, this is the most beautiful place in the world. (loc. 119*)

I'm fond of novels in translation for a couple of reasons—first, I often get to read about places that aren't so commonly written about in English; second, the rhythm and style of books written in different languages is often different. (Think, e.g., about the recent uptick in interest in translations of Japanese novels—could be wrong, but I assume one of the reasons for this is just that the style of writing is different than what most English-medium authors are doing.) As far as I can remember this is the first novel out of Estonia that I've read(!), so far be it from me to paint all Estonian novels with the same brush, but...nice to see contemporary things from places about which I know little.

Anyway, back to more specifics: The Cut Line is told in a not-quite-stream-of-consciousness style, as Liine works and ruminates and tries to avoid falling back into the angry orbit of her ex; as her family asks if he was so bad, really; as gunfire echos nearby; as nothing happens and everything changes anyway.

The description highlights climate change and the threat of war; the mention of climate change made me a little hesitant to read this (I already read too much real-life news), but I found nearby military action to make more of a impact when reading. (Also stressful, and also a little too close to real life! But worth noting that this is not a war story.) I don't know any Estonian, so I can't speak to the translation accuracy, but this made for a smooth read, and I never found myself wondering about the original—a good sign.

One for readers of lit fic and those looking for something slow, quiet, deeper currents moving under deceptively calm waters.

Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.

*Quotes are from an ARC and may not be final.