A proper page-turner and not at all what I expected. The Push is an accomplished debut, well-written and reminiscent of We Need To Talk About Kevin. The dynamic between Blythe and Violet is electric and at points I found myself holding my breath. Some seriously heart-wrenching twists and a chilling premise, I really enjoyed this book. Huge thanks to Michael Joseph and NetGalley for the ARC!

The Push has had rather a lot of hype of Twitter and naturally it made me curious so I requested an ARC and I am SO GLAD I did. The story is mainly from Blythe's perspective, her experiences of motherhood and the unexpected challenges, stresses and in some aspects disappointments, but we also see glimpses of her mother and grandmother throughout the book. None of them have had an easy relationship with their own mothers for various reasons and this raises the question, is this something which can be overcome or is it inevitable that it will continue down future family lines.

Motherhood, what it means and the long perpetuated myth that it is what every girl wants and will ease into like a duck to water are large parts of the book but by no means the whole thing. There are plenty of other themes which make it such a compelling and gripping read. The story will potentially horrify those who live in a 'Mother Earth' style 'motherhood is the best and most rewarding thing you ever do' world with rose tinted specs on. Motherhood is hard and when you don't bond immediately, you can't sleep and your husband makes supportive noises but leaves you to flounder, it is even worse.

I stayed up well into the wee small hours so I could finish this book because putting it down seemed utterly ridiculous. I had to know what would happen next and how things would pan out. There are very definite similarities with We Need To Talk About Kevin although the story is also very different in many ways. Having questioned my own ability to mother having been bailed on by my own at an early age, this book really spoke to me. I hate when reviewers talk about 'the end' of a book so I won't say more than I was desperate for it not to finish where it did. A very well written and thought out story. It won't be for everyone but I think that it should be.

I fully agree with the tag line best debut of 2021. Easily reads like a true story, really realistic and I’m still thinking about the book days later..
High praise indeed.

2-2.5 stars

This was one of the most unsatisfying books I’ve ever read and it presented a completely messed up family, situation and bunch of relationships. There was little hope in this story and lots of dread. That title was innocuous at first but it quickly conjured foreshadowing and actually, I found a fair bit of the story predictable.

If I listed all the trigger warnings, it’d be an essay but what I struggled with most was reading about neglect. There’s something about that form of abuse that cuts me deep. This story was about legacy, three mothers but mostly Blythe, all products of their nature/nurture and how that played out with the fourth generation…Violet. It felt like a horror movie at times.

There was a whole lot of mental illness, especially in the previous generations and dare I say, psychopathy and sociopathy. It made for discomforting reading for sure. With Blythe however, things seemed somewhat diluted in terms of her own health but that legacy was strong.

The narrative style was odd. The story was written like a letter to a significant character in the book using both first and third person. Short, abrupt sentences were often the order of the day. However, there was a compelling element to this story that kept me reading, even when I disliked the subject matter rather intensely. The ending was exasperating though.

I think people will either love or hate this book. I expect it to be polarising and you can see which pole I neared. I do like thrillers but I am choosy with the context matter, this wasn’t my cup of tea with the abuse focus. However, those able to read about these subjects more easily may find The Push to be more up their street.

Thank you to Michael Joseph for the early review copy.

To be honest it took me a few chapters to get into “The Push” by Ashley Audrain but once I did I really enjoyed it. Nice snappy short chapters. Good character definition. But the ending was so abrupt and questions left unanswered.....

Blythe has had a hard childhood, her mum left when she was ten and her dad tried his best to bring her up but she missed her mother. Now grown and pregnant with her first child Blythe is worried she will not be a good mother, Blythe struggles to bond with Violet finding her a cold calculating child, when she falls pregnant again her bond with Sam is instant but when tagsgedy happens Blythe questions if Violet really did the unthinkable.

A sad story but kept me gripped.

The Push is a thriller with the complexities and difficulties of motherhood at its heart.

Blythe is writing to her ex-husband, Fox, explaining their lives together and since exploring, in particular, her role as a mother to their children Violet and Sam. Blythe’s history as a daughter haunts her mothering and confuses Fox whose family has always been tight-knit, his relationship with his mother a loving and positive one.
The focus of Blythe’s narrative is her daughter, Violet. Given her own difficult history with her mother, and in turn her mother’s relationship with her own mother who committed suicide, the story allows rooms for us to question natural mothering instincts and to ask whether Blythe might have been predisposed through nature or nurture, to struggle with the demands of motherhood. And the book is full of these difficult questions about how society views motherhood and how those ideals then torture the lives of individual mothers attempting to embrace them.

These questions that Blythe ask herself over and again, are compelling enough, but when Violet’s subtly unusual behaviour is added to the mix, the compulsion to find out whether Blythe’s suspicions are true makes it hard not to read the novel in one long sitting.

I can’t discuss the book too much more without spoiling the plot, but it’s safe to say that it explores similar territory to We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver. Interesting that Shriver’s novel too has letters between the parents in it, as if exploring parenthood and its pressures, especially when things go wrong, requires distanced, considered words to the other partner in the parenting family, as if guilt, as well as love, responsibility and care, has to be apportioned and negotiated and unfairly that guilt is often handed in full to the mother. In this novel, that guilt is given over to a chain of mothers and though the book is fast-paced and thrilling, underneath the drive of the plot are very serious questions about why society still blames mothers for their children’s mistakes and how the human character is truly formed.

I wouldn’t say I enjoyed reading The Push - it was too discomforting to feel pleasurable - but there is no denying the power of this exploration of love, motherhood and the development of character. Out in January 2021, preorder it now for some scary new year reading.

Wow! This novel about motherhood is phenomenally good in that it captures so well what it is to be human. The writing has a poetic and visceral quality which quickly draws you in and there's also an honesty that you rarely see. The characters are complex and convincing and the plot compelling. A startling portrayal of the poison that can run through families, but also an intense and gripping psychological thriller.

Ashley Audrain is definitely going to be a very successful writer if her debut novel, The Push, is anything to go by. The film rights have been snapped up even before the novel's release. Not many authors get that confirmation of their ability so early in their career.

The Push is a tight, doom-laden telling of any parent's worse nightmare, the death of a child - particularly when that death may have been caused by a psychotic sibling. Was the sibling involved? Or was it just a freak accident as everyone else claims? And was nurture fine and nature to blame, given the matriarchal history?

Excellent, believable characters, and superb writing should make this a solid 5-star review, but I found it slightly frustrating in places, so dipping to a 4.

Chapters were short (there were 85 in total) in the James Patterson style - punchy, in media res, all ending on a hanging or a revelation. This is fine, as is the taught writing, but it was unrelenting. Yep, it created the atmosphere, but even the flashbacks to happier times had the same claustrophobia - it needed an occasional change of gear to create that contrast with the fear and dread. One final thought was that while the story was very good, it was also very thin. It could've done with a few more twisty turns to keep the reader on their toes.

This was such a beautifully written book about motherhood & the expectations on mothers to have unconditional love for their children. It explores the relationships between mothers and daughters and spans 4 generations jumping between present day and 2 other timelines.
The main character Blythe didn't have a good relationship with her mother and is looking forward to being a mother herself however when her daughter is born she doesn't feel the connection she is expecting and becomes paranoid about her daughters behaviour. Is she paranoid though?
A gripping read that is both dark & twisty.

This is a beautifully written, heartbreaking book about mothers and children and relationships.

Blythe is keen to break the cycle within her family. However, when her daughter, Violet is born, she senses something wrong.

What follows is a tense story of motherhood and family that maintains suspense throughout.

A solid 3* Good Read.

This is an incredibly intense novel, you might well want a light filler book before your next!

Blyth’s husband really wants a family but Blythe is plagued by concerns she is not maternal given her family history, as the novel progresses you can see quite clearly why she was concerned.

This is an extraordinary novel that is so well written you cannot put it down but you also will feel disturbed!

Quite a disturbing story - and a little hard to follow at times. Flicking from one era to another got a little confusing. But an interesting story and kept me interested to the end.

The Push by Audrey Audrain
This is a tense psychological drama about mothers and their relationship with their daughters. Blythe had appeared to have an almost non-existent relationship with her mother, Cecelia. Cecelia in turn had a troubled relationship with her mother, Etta. Blythe heads off to college, turning her back on her life before and falls headlong into a relationship with Fox. He is the product of a warm family background and has a good relationship with is parents.
As Blythe begins her relationship with Fox she believes they too can create a happy family together. Returning home from a difficult birth Blythe finds it hard to bond with her baby and finds her daughter’s behaviour increasingly troubling. Violet however only has eyes for her father, manipulating him and driving a wedge between him and Blythe.
It is when Blythe and Fox decide to have another children that the situation become increasingly difficult.
The characters are well drawn and the author draws you into this difficult and unsettling situation. The only character I felt was not developed fully enough was Fox. We knew very little about how he was feeling during everything which took place. From the opening of the novel we picture many different endings but it is still a surprise when the book finishes as it does.
I found the story involving and felt compassion for all of the characters with the exception of Fox as I did not feel I knew him enough to become emotionally involved with him. It is definitely a book which I will recommend to others and I am sure will stimulate a great deal of discussion about mothers and the ability to bond.
I would like to say many thanks to the author, the publishers and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Wow this was an excellent psychological thriller! Such atmospheric writing and creepy as hell. I loved the way the story played out over 3 timelines and how the author plays with our minds and leaves us wondering who's side we are on! Fantastic read.

This book was so chilling- in so many ways I could relate as a mother, but in others I couldn’t imagine what she was going through. This book brings the emotional issues of being a mother to the masses. Extremes are hard to read about, but this was done so well. A gripping read for anyone, especially those who have children of their own and those who have experienced unconditional love.

The Push is an intensely un-put-downable novel. It is a dark and unsettling psychological drama concerning motherhood. It explores the nature v nurture debate through three generations of women.
Blythe's story is the main one with her mum and grandmother's stories interspersed throughout. Blythe's upbringing makes her question the whole idea of motherhood, her maternal instincts and her abilities to bond with her baby daughter Violet. Her husband Fox bonds from the first seconds of Violets entrance into the world and from then on in he appears blinkered to real life and Blythe's ongoing struggle. As the story developed I needed to keep on reading, even when some parts were so raw and heart-breaking.
It's powerful, it's compelling, it's chilling, it's thought provoking....and it's also very good.
Thank you to the publisher, the author and NetGalley.

Well this is a hard hitting thriller of a read... it gripped me from beginning to end.

Blythe is worried about becoming a mother, her own mother and grandmother had huge problems and she worries that she's going to become like them. Yet her husband Fox wants children, and soon convinces Blythe that this is the right thing. When baby Violet is born though, Blythe soon realises that Violet is not the child she had hoped for, and that motherhood is not as it's shown in picture books.

Hard and raw at times, this book touches all your emotions - it's heart breaking, angry and sad, you will not forget it. Highly recommended.

Blythe and her daughter Violet do not form a bond and the relationship goes from bad to worse. Blythe believes that her daughters behaviour is not normal but everyone thinks she is a bad mother.
A story looking at the relationships between mothers and daughters.
This book had me hooked from the first page. It was shocking in parts and had some unforgettable characters.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

Somehow it seems wrong to say I enjoyed reading this book. It is chilling and thought provoking and not at all what I expected from the blurb. It led me to question a lot about my experiences as a mother and to wonder how my children really see me. It’s a challenging and disquieting read but I couldn’t put it down. A rare 5 stars from me.