We LOVE An Unreliable Narrator
This book tells the story of not only a woman struggling with her mental health, paranoia, and off-putting maybe-murdering daughter, but also of the generational trauma passed down through women by their mothers, and their mother's mothers. This is the best book I've read in a VERY long time, and the only one I've ever rated a full five stars.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Get ready to have chills, constantly!!!
WOW. I could not put this book down. There are so many feelings to be had when reading this book. Definitely check this out if you're looking for a good psychological thriller. This book provides readers with an opportunity to feel the frustration of a narrator whose concerns are frequently ignored and overlooked. If you enjoy being depressed and love a page turner, I would recommend this book.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Sad motherhood
We see her life from her point of view. She couldn't connect with her daughter.her daughter scared her. she felt something was wrong with her daughter. Love, loss, depression, and death. Amazing story.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Not what I expected, but still decent.
It is an ominous book; however, I was expecting a more riveting plot. I expected more action.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Addictive, Coming from a Fantasy Reader
I often don't read books that are too anchored in the mundane because I find myself easily bored. Horror/Thriller novels are my reprieve in this instance and I heard many reviews of this book on tiktok and how it was in a "what the f*** did I just read" category. That piqued my interest and I'm so glad it did. I'm not a mother, but I think everyone can relate to having thoughts they feel ashamed of that they are far too scared to share, and even when they do, they get dismissed. This book expertly handles this topic, while simultaneously showing its worst-case scenario. It took me about 20 pages to get used to the 2nd person narration. Still, once you figure out who "you" is, it's like reading demented one-sided letters from people far away from each other in distance and even farther emotionally. I adored how short the chapters could be as they kept my attention very well with blunt prose. Audrain has a very unique way of writing that illuminates twists early and yet still keeps them stupefying when they actually happen. I actually don't consider the main character Blythe to be an unreliable narrator in this book, rather, I think she was convinced by others that she was unreliable even when her suspicions rang true multiple times. I am obsessed with the questions this book raises on nature/nurture and how generational trauma in the family can impact our genes. Many books claim that they are "unputdownable" but this book is the best instance of this that I have ever read, I finished it last night and had dreams about it until I woke up this morning. Phenomenal Read
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
ADDICTING
This book was hard to put down! I loved the story, the ending, and the short chapters. Read it now!!
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Unnerving but Compelling!
Book Review The Push by Ashley Audrain I’ve seen this compelling cover all over Bookstagram, but I was CHICKEN. I don’t like unreliable narrators or psychological drama, and the premise made me uncomfortable, as did the possible child endangerment. From Goodreads, “In the thick of motherhood’s exhausting early days, Blythe becomes convinced that something is wrong with her daughter–she doesn’t behave like most children do.” Her husband thinks it’s all in her head. But. A reading buddy called in a favor. She and I started our reading journey when I asked her to read a book so that I could talk about it. She tried to call in her marker on THE PUSH, but I walked away, palms out, no eye contact. The next day I had a text. “Ummm…you have to read it so we can talk about it.” It was compelling-terrifying-addicting-awful-wonderful letter from a mother to her ex-husband about their children and shared history. The Second-person narration was unique, as was being inside the head of this fascinating woman. Was she an unreliable narrator, or was her perspective correct? She sounded so credible, but NO ONE in her life believed her. This psychological drama made me TENSE, but I couldn’t put it down. I read this Audiobook as a library loan using the LIbby App.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Motherhood is A LOT. And is my daughter evil?
There is so much to say about this book. As a mother, as a woman, as a human who is old enough to have seen the landscape around the mythos of motherhood change and change again. This book hits on all counts as a tense and never eases up story of fear and discomfort and tension and longing in the one place where all those emotions are least expected: the mother daughter bond. Generational trauma is front and center in this novel, as well. Society has expectations of mothers. Husbands have expectations. MILs have expectations. Other women have expectations. And we ourselves as woman and mothers have expectations. It's A LOT to carry. This story shows the weight of all those expectations. And so little non-judgmental support is offered. This story also delved into the push - pull dynamic of the father-daughter-wife triad and the jealousy and the longing and the fear of love lost. That in itself is an aspect of motherhood that is so rarely discussed or even acknowledged. And all of these discomforts and exposed wounds and too real cringe moments are layered on top of, spooned over, and mixed in with the central horror of wondering if your child is a psychopath while terrible thing after awful thing after cruel thing after murderous thing happens all around them. And no one believes you. Because of course a child is sacrosanct and couldn't possibly be bad. Because of course it's the mother who is losing her mind. Because of course it's the mother who is responsible. It's A LOT for any woman, for any mother to bear. And through the course of the story, the weight just keeps getting heavier and heavier. Until the final, crushing, brutal ending. Yes, it was definitely reminiscent of We Need To Talk About Kevin. I saw that masterful film years ago, and if you haven't seen it, and if you can stomach a wild ride that you won't be able to leave behind, I highly recommend it. I thoroughly devoured this story. I did feel like the story lost its way for a tad in the last third, but really, that's so nothing in light of the overall story. I highly recommend this and would give it as a gift to any friend, and especially to my fellow mothers who will all understand too well the weight of motherhood. Especially when you yourself haven't had any good or healthy role models in your life. This is worth reading.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com