I enjoyed Claire McGowan's The Push, a story of 6 couples who meet at a class for women expecting a baby. I loved meeting the 6 couples, diving into their backgrounds, their diversity, and their secrets. Of course, they all have secrets!

One of the new moms invites the other 5 couples to her family's home for a party to celebrate the babies, except not all of the couples end up with a baby, and ultimately one of the adults ends up dead.

Even though I had things figured out before the big reveal, I loved watching the story develop, and i especially enjoyed learning who was hiding what.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Wow. Claire McGowan has done it again. This is a book which just begs to be read in one sitting. I loved the fact that we don't actually know who has died until well into the story. Each member of the ante-natal group is hiding something and I have to admit that while I had an idea what a couple of the secrets might be most came as a total surprise to me. I thought the character of Alison, the detective investigating the death, was a strong one that could be expanded on and used in future books. All in all, another great read from this talented author.

The Push is a gripping psychological thriller told from the multiple points of view of guests at a BBQ where a woman fell to her death. Or was she pushed? DS Alison Hegarty thinks there was more to it and pursues the investigation. I found all the characters interesting and the plot speeds along with plenty of hooks and end of chapter cliffhangers. I did guess the “twist” very early on but nonetheless found The Push an enjoyable and entertaining read.

Firstly a big thank you to the publishers for approving my request to read on netgalley. I had the pleasure of meeting Claire at capital crime last year so was really excited to read her newest book.

This is a who done it and the story builds up to reveal who and what happened at this party.

Unlikely friendships are formed at a baby group but are people really who they say they are? These friends are from all walks of life and all with their own secrets to hide.

A fast page turner of mystery thriller.

Packed with suspense ,twists and turns.

Published 12th November

Fantastic page-turning stand alone thriller from Claire McGowan whose Paula McGuire series is so sucessful.

An accident occurs at a BBQ where a group of people who were in the same ante-natal support group have got together to celebrate the birth of their children. But was it really an accident?

As well as being an effective crime/ procedural, The Push explores the anxieties and pressures of parenthood and the societal expectations on new mothers.

Highly recommended.

I loved this book! It was so annoying when I had to put it down to attend to real life. I thought I had it figured out half-way through, but I was wrong! I loved the perspectives of the different guests and the time-lapses. This writing reminds me quite a bit of Liane Moriarty, which is a very good thing! I'm super excited to read Claire McGowan's other books and I will keep an eye out for her future books. I highly recommend this one, my only slight criticism would be to have less swearing in the book, but I am admittedly an old fashioned gal who does not enjoy foul language in books. Thank you so much to the publisher and to NetGalley for the opportunity to preview this ARC. 5 (I can't put this book down) stars!!

The premise is there for this book! The setup takes a minute, because there are so many voices and there's a lot of jumping around in time, but the reveal of who's actually died is delayed a fair bit and that alongside the plot setup hooks you.

And that's it for me on the positive list for this book. It took me nearly a week to read (which is a LONG TIME for me), and I considered DNFing it several times. So many uncomfortable things are happening throughout the book - lots of moments of sexism, racism, ageism.

What a great read! I wasn't looking forward to this one, after reading bad reviews on goodreads suggesting that the story involved racism, sexism, ageism etc

Can I start by saying DON'T BELEIVE THESE REVIEWS yes it is true, a couple of the characters have points of view that might be old fashioned and not politically correct in todays society, but that's the point - the book is about 6 different couples all either pregnant or trying for a baby, and not everyone is life has the same views or has been around different cultures, sexualities etc - it's just a fact of life, and explains the way the chracters think and their actions. It isn't offensive in any way and is quite obviously not the point of view of the author. Anyone taking offense in this manner really is one of those 'woke' individuals always looking to make a mountain out of a molehill.

In actual fact, I found this story challenging and true to life in many ways. Each couple have their issues, their secrets and whilst some twists were quite obvious, some were really shocking and it made for a great read. I havne't previously read anything by Claire McGowan but I love the writing style and will be looking out for more of her books.

In all a solid 4 star read, I finished it in one sitting and am glad that I didn't pay any attention to things I had read previously. if you enjoy a good domestic thriller this is one for you.

Thanks to netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Fricking spectacular. I loved this book. Enough twists and turns to keep me very happy. Not your usual subject (pregnant women) for a mystery/thrillers. Great characters, great storyline, great writer. Buy this book.

‘The Push’ is told from multiple POVs at different times. The biggest mystery isn’t The Who has done it, it’s who was the victim? The book did draw me in, but I didn’t connect with the any of the extremely flawed characters. The end of the book was rushed and not wrapped up as you’d expect. There were many different things going on and they were easy to guess before the reveals, so not too much of a mystery in my eyes. I’d like to thank NetGalley for a ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Another excellent read from Claire McGowan. This book is told from the multiple perspectives of the attendees of an antenatal class. Great characters and storyline although I did guess a few of the little twists and turns along the way. It didn’t detract from my enjoyment though,

Thanks to Netgalley and Amazon Publishing UK for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Six couples meet at a baby group and reunite at a get together following the birth of the babies. One person falls off a balcony and dies. Allison, the detective investigating, thinks this may not have been a fall, but instead the person was pushed. The story alternates between the baby group some weeks before the party and the actual party, mostly from the points of view of 1 new mom, Jax and Allison with other people's points of view occasionally thrown in.

I liked this book for the most part. I found it to be pretty readable and it held my attention. The issue I had is that almost every couple had something they were hiding and the things they were hiding were pretty easy to sniff out pretty early on, so there weren't a lot of surprises, it was just waiting to see what would happen when the secrets came to light. I think this is my second book from this author and I will probably read more.

Who is guilty? Reminiscent of the Agatha Christie books that narrowed down suspects... A superb cut above the other reads of domestic thrillers that I have read lately!

An antenatal class with 6 widely differing couples, is invited to a party given by Monica after the birth of all of the babies. All 5 couples plus Monica, 44 years old, her husband, Ed, and her daughters - Chloe (15) and baby, Isabella are at the party. More than wanting a party, Monica wants to show off her beautiful house with the glass windows and rockery...

It is quite obvious that Monica feels "better than" the others, (So why the party?) To put them in their place, the reader might guess.

The party - the great BBQ at Monica's wonderful house - turns sour....

Enter DS Alison Hegarty on the scene... Alison has infertility problems. Maybe not the best DS to be in charge, here - with four babies?

I have not YET read any books by Claire McGowan but I certainly intend to do so!

This is not one to miss...

Many Thanks to Thomas & Mercer, Amazon, UK and NetGalley for a great preview of a solid mystery/thriller.

The push off a balcony just after the push of labour seems arduous. Yet the new thriller from McGowan makes light work of the motives for motherhood and for murder.

The story follows DS Hegarty as she investigates the fall from a balcony of a party guest. The guests are new parents from various backgrounds, having all met at a local ante-natal group. But as the crime scene is examined, it would seem that every guest has something to hide from the police and from each other.

There were many twists and turns to the story, but I was able to guess at a few of them. Having said that, watching them unravel was still entertaining and I appreciated the exploration of the diverse journeys to motherhood as well as the story being told from the viewpoints of the different characters.

Wow y’all this one was really really good!! Definitely a thriller and will leave you wanting more. I’m glad I was able to read this one. Loved the storyline!

The Push, by Claire McGowan, is a phenomenal book with well developed characters and a fantastic plot loaded with twists! I absolutely loved this book! It was an astounding psychological thriller because any one of the characters could’ve been guilty of doing more than they admitted to at the party, and more than they admitted to in their relationship with their significant others. Claire McGowan did a brilliant job writing The Push because it pulls you in from the very beginning and will keep you hanging on until the end. It’s an irresistible page turner and is guaranteed not to disappoint readers! How could couples who were so different and have so very little in common seem to pull together over what happened at the party and claim to have seen nothing? This book is sure to be a hit, and is a must read! The Push is stunning, and is crammed full of unexpected twists and ending that you surely won’t see coming! The story weaves back and forth between characters from different points of views with timelines that countdown to the date of the party. Thank you Claire McGowan, Thomas & Mercer, Amazon Publishing UK, and Netgalley for allowing me the opportunity to read this extraordinary book. My Feedback is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

The book starts off in the aftermath of a tragedy that occurred during a party. Despite each of the individual’s claims to have witnessed nothing, Detective Alison felt a strong sense from the moment she arrived that it was murder. Were her initial feelings because of her personal situation with her difficulties conceiving, or was it because there was more going on than what the party guests admitted to? Claire McGowan gives the reader just enough information about the tragic death at the beginning, but doesn’t reveal so much that it spoils the intrigue and curiosity. This book was impossible to put down!

The death occurred at a perfectly planned party that was meant for six couples and six babies. The hostess and host (Ed and Monica) were overly attentive to making sure that every detail was carefully attended to. Monica was thrilled about showing off her and her husband’s new (and very elaborate and expensive) house. Monica was proud to show off her wealth and was strongly opinionated. She had a teenage daughter from her previous marriage, and much to her satisfaction, her ex husband seemed to want nothing to do with their daughter. The guests she had invited were diverse couples who she and her husband had met when they attended a class for expectant parents. Although the class lasted for several weeks, the party was the first time they were all getting together with their babies..

There was a large age difference between Jax and Aaron, and much was speculated about that. Jax worked for a charity organization to help children who were living in struggling circumstances. Aaron had grown up in a struggling environment himself. When emails, notes, and social media messages start targeting her as an abuser (in the sense that she took advantage of young clients), she’s at risk for losing her job and is desperate to keep some things hidden. She runs it over and over in her mind trying to figure out who cold possibly be so vengeful and why, but can’t think of anyone. One night after she wakes up from a nightmare she realizes that there is one person who would want to hurt her that bad. The results of actions and decisions that were made when she was younger could definitely impact multiple people for a lifetime, and possibly even lead someone to seek revenge.

Aisha and Rahul were ethnically different than the others, but they were both excited about their baby. When it came to a real relationship though, they were struggling. Aisha feels the loss and questions their marriage because she can barely get her husband to communicate with her. When circumstances lead to them arriving to the party later than the others, the hostess was quick to make a statement about their tardiness. While she tried to fit in and enjoy herself, her husband seemed to intentionally try to distance himself from her. With a newborn baby who kept her up all night, Aisha was hungry and tired, but he scolded her about wanting to eat or drink something other than what the hostess was planning to prepare. Even asking him to bring her water to drink seemed to set him off. When the police show up at their house to talk to them, she makes the statement that she doesn’t know if she should talk to them without her husband being present. Is there something she is trying to hide?

Hazel and Cathy are a lesbian couple who had chosen artificial insemination with a donor neither of them knew. Although the other couples were accepting of their lifestyle choice, it still gave them all plenty to talk about. They both seem happy, but a strain in their relationship had become more obvious and was noticeable to Detective Alison when she went to question them. The reader is thrown another twist when one of the women receives a text message while at the party, and inwardly chooses to ignore it and not tell her partner. Who is the sender and what is she trying to hide by ignoring the text message?

Anita and Jeremy had a planned adoption of a baby from America, but yet again, the reader is thrown another twist. Where is the baby, and why was neither of them openly and honestly discussing the circumstances?

Finally, there’s Kelly. She was the youngest of the group at 22. Much to everyone’s surprise she showed up at the party. Everyone tries to empathize with her heartbreaking situation, but in the back of their minds is her boyfriend’s behavior when he attended the group session.

With six babies to proudly coo over, how is it that one thing led to another and someone died and no one seems to have witnessed anything? Who could’ve died at such an idealistic party, and who was disturbed enough to have a motive for killing someone there? Or was it really just a tragic slip that no one witnessed because taking care of that many babies is sure to distract everyone’s attention?

A decent thriller. It wasn’t super fast paced, and it didn’t grab me from the first page... but it did have a somewhat compelling story.

I got fairly caught up in the characters’ lives, enough that the ‘twist’, although a little underwhelming, did surprise me.

I really liked the different narrator perspectives, this really drove the narrative for me because I would look to the next chapter to reveal the secrets of the previous narrator.

Overall, fairly enjoyable.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Couples from an antenatal (prenatal) group meet up for the first time since giving birth. One person falls from a balcony to their death. Was it an accident? Or is it murder?

This thriller by Claire McGowan was an enjoyable read. It was a slow burn for the first half but quickly picked up speed in the second half. Great story!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for the opportunity to read and review this book!

Pros:
I enjoyed the overall story line of who dun it. I tried to figure out who was pushed and who did it. That was intriguing so I was shocked at who was the pusher and pushee. Also, the story was told from past and present which I enjoy. Eventually the story met up for the final few chapters. The multiple POV were interesting especially since everyone there was a suspect.
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Cons:
It’s didn’t grab me. I only read it when I had nothing else to read or ran on my treadmill. There were too many characters to keep track of. Some I felt were just fillers to create more suspense but felt like there was more chaos with trying to keep up with everyone. Some characters didn’t need to have their side told. Almost everyone had drama going on that didn’t pertain to the actual crime...more filler.
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It overall was a good read for a quick story if you like multiple POV with MANY characters.

This is a particularly well written story, with the action moving from past to present and from the perspectives of the different characters. However, it is handled so well it is not confusing to the reader. A group of new mothers meet for a post-birth party; however all is not the perfect picture they are presenting to the world, with a maelstrom of secrets being carried. Then someone falls from the balcony (it takes half the book for the victim to be formally revealed) and detective Alison, struggling with her own efforts to conceive, has to sort out who is telling the truth, who is hiding things, and whether the person was pushed or fell.

An interesting read, written very well from many viewpoints, with the evidence of each character forming most of the story. I enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.