Thursday, January 21, 2021

Book Review - The Push; Ashley Audrain

 

TITLE/AUTHOR: The Push Ashley Audrain

PUBLISHER: Penguin Audio 

YEAR PUBLISHED: 2020

GENRE: Fiction / Domestic / Psych thriller

FORMAT:  audiobook/LENGTH: 8 hrs. 38 min.

SOURCE: Penguin Audio download

SETTING(s): unsure (author is Canadian)


ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY:  A chilling story about the sometimes darker side of motherhood.


BRIEF REVIEW:  The birth of first baby Violet should have been the happiest of times for Blythe Connor, an aspiring writer and her husband Fox. Yet from the very beginning something feels off for Blythe as she feels unable to bond with her difficult baby.  As Violet grows things fail to improve.  Husband, Fox does not see any of the issues that concern his wife and, he has had no problem bonding with his daughter. Despite this Blythe does not feel it is all her fault, especially as she seems to have no difficulty bonding when the second child is born.  Spending the majority of time with Violet she sees first hand that Violet is not like other children her age and seems to have a mean streak. When things reach a crisis situation and the unimaginable occurs, the reader is made to wonder whether the child or an unstable mother is to blame? 

Told from the POV of Blythe and  is a story that grips you early on.  My feelings about Blythe changed as we learn about her sad childhood at the hands of her own troubled mother, Cecilia and her grandmother Etta.  The writing is very good and some the vivid details still linger with me. As a debut novel, this one is exceptional so I'm pretty sure this talented author has a promising future in store for her.  Although the ending was a "wow" moment, it's also one that I felt was open to interpretation. This book gives the reader plenty to discuss especially if you had the right group of readers however, I can understand why this one might not appeal to everyone - the subject matter is tough.  The audio book version read by Marin Ireland who did an excellent job.

RATING: 4.5/5

MEMORABLE QUOTES: " Marriages can float apart. Sometimes we don't notice how far we've gone until all of a sudden, the water meets the horizon and it feels like we'll never make it back."

29 comments:

  1. Motherhood is can be so fraught with anxiety and worry that we're messing up our children with our actions that this book sounds good

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    1. Well put Helen, Blythe wanted to be a good mother when she found she was pregnant.

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  2. Ooh I can see where this would be a good discussion book! I read something else like this a while back although it had more of a spooky element. And a debut? Nice.

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  3. Another one that interests me, but also gives me pause. I am intensely curious about it, but....

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  4. I like how you are numbering your books as you read this year. You have got me interested in this one.

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    1. Thanks Judy. I thought this was well done and one I did not want to put down.

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  5. I'm curious to see where this one is going...and that poignant quote you clipped is the clincher.

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    1. Sometimes books that are hyped like this one don't work out for me but this was good.

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  6. Oh, this sounds like something I should read. I have been seeing it around but never stopped long enough to see what it was about. Motherhood is so hard. My daughter was a pistol from the moment of conception and is still that way to this day!

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  7. I won't read this now, it looks dark, but I'm adding it to my TBR because it looks interesting :)

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  8. Have you read Baby Teeth by Zoe Stage? This definitely reminds me of that. I'm intrigued by this one and would read it!

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    1. I did read Baby Teeth when it first came out. I thought this was better though.

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  9. I wasn't going to read it Vicki but, I really am glad that I did.

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  10. Thank you for your great review, Diane. I have been wondering about this one and was anxious to read your thoughts on it. I would really like to read this one, I think. Your statement about the reader wondering "whether the child or an unstable mother is to blame" after a particular incident clinched it for me.

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  11. Anything like Agatha Christie's The Bad Seed?

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  12. Oopas, The Bad Seed was not by Agatha. Please disregard that comment!

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  13. I've been wondering what this book was about - it does have a lot of good reviews. I don't know if I can read about difficult childhoods (esp if abuse is involved) but sounds like this one is well worth a read.

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  14. This sounds a little creepy, thanks for sharing your thoughts!

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  15. This book is everywhere lately! Glad to know it worked for you. Marin Ireland has become a favorite narrator lately... will add it to my list.

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  16. Marin Ireland is always a terrific narrator -- so I should get the audio. This one looks a bit intense & dark -- but I'm game for it! especially since you say the writing is well done.

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  17. I do love dark books, especially in the cold of winter!

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