‘The women in this family, we’re different . . .’
Blythe Connor doesn’t want history to repeat itself.
Violet is her first child and she will give her daughter all the love she deserves. All the love that her own mother withheld.
But firstborns are never easy. And Violet is demanding and fretful. She never smiles. Soon Blythe believes she can do no right – that something’s very wrong. Either with her daughter, or herself.
Her husband, Fox, says she’s imagining it. But Violet’s different with him. And he can’t understand what Blythe suffered as a child. No one can.
Blythe wants to be a good mother. But what if that’s not enough for Violet? Or her marriage? What if she can’t see the darkness coming?
Mother and daughter. Angel or monster?
We don’t get to choose our inheritance – or who we are . . .
The Push is an addictive, gripping and compulsive read that asks what happens when women are not believed – and what if motherhood isn’t everything you hoped for but everything you always feared?
Title : The Push
Author : Ashley Audrain
Format : eARC
Page Count : 320
Genre : Psychological Thriller
Publisher : Michael Joseph
Release Date : January 7, 2021
Reviewer : Micky
Rating : ★ ★
Micky’s 2-2.5 star reivew
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.
A Take from Two Cities 