The Push is a quick, if unsettling, read — more potboiler than true psychological thriller — that treads some familiar ground about mothers and daughters and the inheritance of intergenerational trauma. Author Ashley Audrain does have some nicely observed moments — which helps to elevate this story above pure soap opera — and she uses a time-jumping formula to good effect. I can’t say that I was exactly entertained by this read, and it’s not like I learned anything new about the human condition, but I did keep reading to see how Audrain would wrap everything up. Three stars would be a rounding up.

Ashely Audrain’s debut novel The Push will have people talking. This psychological drama is bone chilling and beautifully written. It is not a fast-paced novel, yet you will find yourself rapidly turning the pages. I read the book in a day, I needed to know the full story. This is not for the lighthearted as it deals with mother daughter relations, death and marriage. I feel this is one of those novels that is best to say less than more. The Push is a dark and intriguing thriller that I feel we will be hearing a lot about this year.

Thank you #netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I could not get into this book. I gave it a try but after 3 chapters I realised, the narrative style was weird and the clipped sentences were not inductive to further reading.

(3.5 stars)

I wanted to read this book because I love a tense psychological drama. Stories about motherhood are not necessarily my thing, but I went into this not really knowing what to expect.</p>

Blythe’s story, which was intertwined with that of her mother and her mother’s mother, was a frustrating and sad, at times heart-wrenching, read. It was also hard to read at times and made me uncomfortable.</p>

This was certainly a really tense page-turner, but it also left me feeling kind of wrung out and bleak by the end. I was thinking about nature vs nurture, and whether sometimes people are just born a certain way or whether something in our upbringing, no matter how early on, can have a lifelong impact on who we become.</p>

If you are looking for a dark psychological thriller, this might just fit the bill!

The Push (2021) by Ashley Audrain is one of the most highly anticipated books to be released in 2021, so I was lucky to get my hands on an advance reader copy this past fall. It follows a woman, Blythe, who nervously prepares for motherhood, knowing that the women in her family have not adapted well historically. As expected, Blythe struggles with her newborn daughter Violet and things only go further downhill from there. Violet seems to have a nasty streak...but is it real, a consequence of Blythe's distance, or is it entirely imagined?

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the digital advance reading copy of this book.

This was a weird and interesting book about the beginning and end of a family with interspersed stories from Blyhte's childhood and that of Blyhte's mother. The book has you trying to guess what you are reading and why, but you do not want to put it down.

I absolutely love the very last line of the book! I don't want to give away anything but I was waiting for that the whole book.

First thank you to PRH & Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book. I can say for certain that this book is an incredible thriller & is a book that I could not put down. I think it will be a big book for the year, and I also think there is a lot to discuss and would make an excellent book club pick.

As I saw in another review, though, I found it hard to read for me personally. [this is behind a spoiler link on Netgalley] There is a lot of things about becoming a mother, both psychologically and physically, that really rang true for me, especially for a first-time mother and I don't necessarily think one has to have had a traumatic past for that transition to be complicated and isolating. I just kept wishing that Blythe could get into some therapy...I felt like that part of the story was very well-told. The generational trauma was disturbing & sometimes difficult to read. But I had a hard time trying to understand if we are supposed to assume that Violet is a victim of this trauma as well, or her own monster. Maybe I was thinking about it too much. I wish the book had ended before that final phone call...I think it would have been a better ending. Like it almost gave too much away and also made the mother/daughter relationship less complicated. Teenage girls get such a bad rap in so many mediums (I have two daughters & seriously the first thing 50% of people would say to us when they found out we had girl babies, was "watch out when they're teenagers" It made me livid) & I would have preferred an ending that didn't play into that urban myth/stereotype.

I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley, but only got to it now due to the chaos of my life! Ha!

This was emotionally gripping and difficult to read at times. It will not leave you feeling content and will stick with you for quite awhile. It’s a mix between psychological thrillers but also horror. There are a lot of triggers that I wasn’t entirely sure I could get through, including child neglect, death and suicide, so be forewarned.

Well-written but a cliffhanger ending leaves me with so many unanswered questions!

Ashley Audrain's debut novel is so very dark and enthralling. Blythe and Fox meet at college and fall in love. They marry and decide to start a family to complete their perfect little world. Blythe desperately wants to be the perfect mother. The type of mother that Blythe never had. Right from the beginning, things begin to go wrong no matter how Blythe tries and she is forced to confront the unbelievable about her daughter.
This was a painful and uncomfortable read for me. How many mothers are shell shocked expecially after their first birth? I had a traumatic birth with my first one and did have that sense of disconnection in the sense of "that little thing actually came from my body?" but at the same time a fierce protectiveness that I have never felt before. I couldn't help but feel the parallels and connection with Blythe. She had no idea how to be a mother. All mothers wing it but some have better role models than Blythe did. She had the inevitable self doubt as to how much she was to blame for everything or if there is really something deeply wrong with her daughter.
I have to admit that I really... really disliked Fox but then it did add some spice to the novel itself. He is so very blind when it comes to his daughter and not paying attention to what his wife tried to tell him. I found him to be a weak character but his character is part of what kept me interested in the novel. He had an oblivious, head in the sand type of behavior and I was so disgusted with him. Thisis what I meant by "weak". The author created complete 3 dimensional characters who were normal people with flaws. Violet was a very difficult mystery to unravel. Sometimes she seemed so cold and heartless but at other times you caught a possible glimpse of the hurt deep inside.
The essence of the novel is nature vs nurture and how much one plays over the other and is more responsible for the way someone develops. All in all, this is a solid debut and well worth the read.

Wow! The Push by Ashley Audrain is her debut novel and what a wonderful beginning to her career in writing.
I haven't been this deeply affected by a book in a very long time.
The author gives us an engrossing, page-turning psychological drama about a woman whose experience of motherhood is nothing at all what she expected or hoped for and everything she feared.
An incredibly compelling novel which includes three generations of the darker side of motherhood.
Impossible to forget or put down!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for an arc of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Wow, what a riveting page-turner! The complex mother/daughter dynamic between Blythe and Violet is the main driving force of the story. My feelings towards Blythe and Violet shifted throughout the book. What an excellent ending!

3.5 stars

I must say this one had me guessing right to the very end!!

Blythe and Fox have been married for some years now and naturally the subject of children come up. Blythe knows that Fox will be the best father but she questions whether she will be the best mother. They have a beautiful little girl; Violet but Blythe just cannot make a connection with the little girl no matter how hard she tries. Violet starts exhibiting some strange behaviors which Fox pushes aside as Blythe just adjusting to motherhood but she thinks there maybe something wrong with the child; or is she conjuring things up in her mind and she's really the one with the problem.

Soon the two have a little boy; Sam. He is the light in her life and the feeling she had been searching for with Violet is finally there and she cannot imagine her life without this perfect boy in her life.

Suddenly tragedy befalls the family and everything spirals. Were the happenings with Violet really just delusions made up by Blythe or was her daughter really the bad guy in the story. All we know are that not everything is as it seems.

Kudos to AA on this debut novel. I have to say it did drag a little too slowly at times and while the flashbacks added a bit to the storyline I felt that the story would have been fine if that was added just a bit more vaguely. Sometimes it did make the story a little confusing.

**Received ARC through NetGalley. Voluntarily reviewed**

What a way to start 2021! With a new thriller by Ashley Audrain. The plot is engaging but the writing style may leave some readers disoriented. The story is at times painful to read and definitely shocking!

What a story full of suspense and intrigue. A mother’s expectation of her child and motherhood are not what she thought. Everyone thinks Blythe has made it up, thinking the child is different. Impossible to stop reading until you find out the truth.

THE PUSH is a gripping psychological thriller by Ashley Audrain.
Blythe Connor is an aspiring writer. Happily married to Fox they decide to start a family.
After Violet is born Blythe has a difficult time connecting with her newborn. Since Fox does bond with their daughter, the feeling is that Blythe is suffering from postpartum depression and things will work themselves out. However things do not sort themselves out and the mother daughter relationship continues to be strained.
A few years later Sam is born. The instant motherly bond Blythe was hoping for with Violet happens with Sam. It appears the family is finally on track until...
THE PUSH grabbed my attention within the first few pages. Compelling and engaging it promises to be “the book you must read” this year.
There has been a substantial amount of buzz and anticipation surrounding this debut novel. I feel THE PUSH has lived up to the hype.
Highly recommended!
Thank you to Penguin House Canada for the opportunity to read an advanced digital edition of THE PUSH.

I was eager to read this book after our Reps told us it was the next hottest thing. They weren't wrong! I liked that the reader is never quite sure whether the characters are likeable or not. We want to feel empathy for Blythe but something is holding us back. We want to love Violet but she's just so unlikeable. The generational storylines are great for background, it makes what happens to the family somewhat inevitable. I will definitely be selling this to my customers!

I was intrigued by this book as it would not be one I would usually pick up but heard many good things about it and decided to give it a go!

First off, I don’t know about others but it was an emotional roller coaster for me. We are introduced to Blythe and her husband whom are expecting. While both excited, Blythe is a little worried own experiences growing up with her mother had not been great but believes she can be a good mom. However, things aren’t all sunshine and rainbows once her daughter is born.

What I enjoyed (other than giving me an emotional roller coaster that I had to put the book down a few times) is that The Push gives us a little insight what mothers can go through once they have children both mentally and emotionally and its isn’t always pretty. Its not a commonly talked about topic so its nice to see some perspective, especially for those who aren’t a parent yet since it shows that going through certain things aren’t as strange as we think. The family dynamic in The Push definitely gives you a perspective.

Like a few have mentioned, you find yourself bot hating Blythe at points but also sympathizing with her. You can both agree and disagree with her thinking and actions but this all boils down to our own perspective of things. Maybe if we were in her shoes we might do things differently or the same which is what I lobe about this book as really it me think. I say I would do this differently but in her situation, in her shoes, is that really the case? I enjoy learning and perceiving different perspectives on all matters and this book wonderfully contributed to that, definitely would recommend!

A big thank you the NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this book! It had me on the edge of my seat the whole time. I wasn't sure what to expect, and being a mom of two, right around those ages it hit a little differently for me. I openly sobbed and raged at different parts in the book. This is a must-read psychological Thriller for 2021.

An exceptional and suspenseful read that will force you to re-examine the perception and ideas of motherhood, family, childhood innocence and parenting. I loved the pacing of this book, and especially the way Audrain was able to weave the past narratives into the current-day storyline so beautifully, all the while revealing tiny pieces of the backstory. Blythe's family influences become clear as you begin to realize that the women in her family have never prescribed to or demonstrated conventional mothering ideals.
Blythe's journey into motherhood is every woman's dream that slowly turns into a nightmare in front of her eyes. As you read, your empathy switches from her to her children and back again, until the looming horror of the situation settles in you and you find you cannot tear your eyes from the page.
While this is a book about motherhood, you do not need to be a mother to recognize and to feel the societal expectations of motherhood - especially with how a mother and child are supposed to relate to each other. At times I felt uncomfortable, as if I was spying on Blythe but soon realized that it was my own personal discomfort with the situation that was making me uneasy.
The concept of parental love is wide and open to interpretation, as is the idea of childhood innocence. After reading this book, I'll be thinking about those ideas for a very long time.

My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This novel starts off well. I was expecting something completely different. This story line made me think of a movie I had once watched: The Bad Seed. Also, The Other by Thomas Tryon. All these demon children running around! No one is safe! Three generations of mentally/emotionally challenged women apparently culminated in creating Blythe's daughter, the wicked Violet.

I can't say that I enjoyed this one. TOO MANY flash backs, which kept me in a constant state of confusion because if I put the book down for a bit, I couldn't keep my train of thought, because there were too many characters and too many of these interruptions to the flow of the main story. Etta, Cecilia and even Blythe were hopelessly tangled in my head at one point. I actually sighed at one point and thought: this is interminable.

The ending was a foregone conclusion, but I couldn't understand why Blythe did so little to stop Violet or get her some help. I get that everyone thought Blythe was not mentally well, butt I had a hard time suspending my disbelief - no one saw through Violet's machinations? Seriously?

But then I suppose Blythe was just as lost and alone as her mother and grandmother before her, despite the therapy sessions. This is your typical modern sociological and psychological horror story. I don't think I liked the movie, the Bad Seed. Likewise, despite the excellent writing, I did not enjoy reading this book: it made me TOO uncomfortable. I gave this extra points for the author's riveting writing style, and excellent characterization. I rate this one a 3.7 out of 5.