Are some women not suited for motherhood? Audrain explores this question through the stories of three generations of women in The Push. This novel is partly a commentary on women and motherhood that is well blended into a jarring thriller. Between Blythe's gaslighting husband and her suspicions about her daughter's true nature, The Push is often upsetting and unsettling. I couldn't put it down until I finished the last page!

This was very similar to Baby Teeth but still had an original feel, so I really enjoyed it. Blythe tells the story directly to her husband, which was an unusual format for a book but worked. I also liked the parts where you learn about the lives of Blythe’s mother and grandmother. Just wish there was a little more to the ending, but it also worked really well!

Wow! The Push is most definitely a showstopper! I was hooked from the very beginning and ended with my jaw on the floor. Highly recommend this one for an unputdownable read!

Wow, this book! What a great multi-leveled story about a family and mothers. I loved this one and would highly recommend it!

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read the Push and give an honest review. At first I was a little confused in how the characters were all related. It didn't take long before I figured out who was who and what was going on. This is a very complex novel about many different things. It is multigenerational and how the childhood from one affected the next generation. It had some difficult topics but was beautifully written. This is a good book and I couldn't put it down. I hated the way it ended because I wanted to know more!!

This book. Wow. One of the best psychological suspense books by a debut author that I’ve ever read. Audrain has created a complex narrative in which Blythe shows us both motherhood and the effects of generational trauma. When Blythe becomes a mother to Violet, it’s not how she imagined it would be, and it doesn’t become that bond that others talk of. So she tries again and gives birth to Sam, who she connects with and adores. But when something happens..., and Blythe suspects Violet is behind it, no one will listen.
There’s so much more to the story that I want to talk about! This would be an excellent book club read or to pass along to friends. Highly recommend but maybe with a trigger warning for those with small children.

While I thought that this was a really good book, I would not recommend it to anyone because it could be very traumatic for readers. I have purchased it for my library because I think it has literary value. I recently read another book that has a lot of possible triggers for readers that I probably will not buy because I just did not feel like it was a good enough book in light of the subject matter.

Blythe is very excited to become a mother and determined to be nurturing towards her newborn daughter. But when she isn't the child she had imagined, she becomes convinced that something is wrong with her daughter. Then she bears a son with whom she does have that motherly connection. Was everything about her daughter's fussiness in her head? Fast paced and intense, this book is not to be missed!

I was mesmerized by this book the second I heard about it. I could't put it down. This book is really complex - tough content to get through for sure. The Push is a multi-generational family history story but this book is very much Blythe. Oh, Blythe. There's a lot of toxic characters, a lot of impactful characters but unfortunately a lot of loss so please look up the trigger warnings if you are hesitant. I can't believe this is a debut novel - I'll be thinking of this book for a long time.

Based on other reviews, I had high hopes for this book. They didn't pan out, however.

I really struggled with this book. The writing style is choppy, and the storyline was confusing to follow. It was hard to keep the characters straight. The author switches between first and second POV, which was a bit strange. What I could follow was predictable, including the ending.

I honestly started this book and did not finish. What a truly disturbing novel. Evil child and what goes through your mind is "What do you do???". Thankful to NetGalley for allowing me a copy to read and review of this title.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to preview The Push by Ashley Audrain. At first i was a little lost in the plot, but i kept on going, and I am so glad i did. This is a complex novel and it delves into alot of areas of motherhood, puberty, love, hate, and much more.
We are taken into the world of three generations of women who have been influenced by their mother and their children. But the journey is delicate and sometimes difficult to bear. Written in first person with flash backs that are vivid, sad, and sometimes heartbreaking.
This is really a good book and i found it different and was addicted - i could not put it down.
Great debut - 5 stars - great ending!!!!

I really appreciated the writing abilities of the author as she described the anxiety and fear that come with motherhood. In her attempt, however, to show the generational failures of mothers, the inserted chapters showed no particular order and most of the time I was left trying to figure out who was being written about. The story itself did not hold any big twists or surprises and really ended the only way it could. This was told from just one POV and may have benefitted from other viewpoints.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC to read and review.

A thank you to Netgalley for sharing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

One word: mind-blowing! Is that a cop-out? Maybe, maybe not? But this is one of those rare books that you just have to read - and interpret - for yourselves (then discuss with others, of course.)

A nail-biting, page-turner that is entirely unsettling. A psychological thriller that will stick with you long after the story's conclusion. Haunting.

Utterly explosive and heartbreaking, this is a very disturbing domestic drama about the other side of motherhood.

Blythe Connor and her husband, Fox, are very much in love and happy with their life and marriage. Until the baby comes. Violet is nothing like what Blythe thought her little baby girl would be, and since she didn't have any kind of relationship with her own mother, Blythe is at a loss. There is something not quite right about the way that Violet behaves and Fox just brushes off her concerns. In fact, Violet adores Fox and the feeling is mutual; soon Blythe is left on the sidelines always fearful and always concerned. Perhaps everyone is right and Blythe just doesn't have that mother instinct even though she tries so hard. And then their son, Sam, is born. Things are so wonderful and different this time around and Blythe is determined to do everything she can to protect her family unit and forge those important, loving bonds. Until the accident when everything blows up. NO SPOILERS.

I dare you to put this down once you start. The narrative is so compelling and the character of Blythe so complex that your emotions will be on a twisty roller coaster ride from beginning to end. So much to think about and analyze between the pages. I ended up having such mixed feelings about all the characters but definitely finished knowing where my ultimate pity and sympathy lay. This debut novel contains psychological content that begs to be discussed with others. There are so many triggers within that many may find too scary to examine. What makes a good mother? Is there really such a thing as a "bad seed" and what are the ramifications of growing up unloved or unwanted? Even at the very last sentence, I was wondering how it all could have been prevented, turned out differently. I'm giving this one 4.5 stars for the excellent writing, the chilling story, and the way in which it totally held my interest as I held my breath in fear of what was coming.

Thank you to the publisher, Pamela Dorman Books, for this e-book ARC to read, review, and highly recommend. I will be thinking about this for a very long time.

Wow, this was an excellent book and lived up to the hype it’s getting. The story sucked me right in and I read it over two days (it was hard to put down!!).

When Blythe becomes a mother to Violet, she doesn’t bond to her the way she thinks a mother should. She feels there is something wrong with Violet, but her husband Fox disagrees. When her son Sam is born, Blythe finally feels those motherly feelings and can’t get enough of him....the whole family is smitten with Sam. But then a tragedy happens and Blythe is forever changed.

The cover is accurate when it says, "The Push is a tour de force you will read in a sitting". I started it late afternoon, took a break for dinner and didn't go to bed until I turned the last page. It's a different kind of psychological thriller in that it's more of a slow burn. You know something's off but you're not quite sure what it is. Hence, the reason you can't put it down. There are some dark moments and there's triggers so a warning if there are certain things you can't read about. I was certainly impressed with this debut novel about the multilayered complexities of motherhood.

The Push, in my opinion was a mix of Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage and We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver. I loved both of those books, but when they were combined the outcome was horrifying and tragic. However, I loved this book. The range of emotions I felt reading it were so realistic I had to take breaks from reading it. Not for the faint of heart! I once told a woman how much I disliked a book and she said well that's a sign it was a good book, it made you feel something. This book made me feel everything.

Holy cannoli, this was such an addicting and twisted read--I finished it in one night! A thrilling family drama focused on the stresses of becoming a new mother, and what it’s like when a woman is not believed. Revealing anything about the plot will spoil it completely, so all I’ll say is this: chilling, emotionally-charged and with a shock ending full of thrills and questions. Pick it up and you’ll never put it down!