REVIEW: THE PUSH by ASHLEY AUDRAIN

Click the following links to read the book synopsis on Goodreads or The StoryGraph.

I binged this book in 3 days and have no regrets. When I finished, I immediately wanted to restart it, and see if there was anything I missed, anything that would make my head spin a little more or a little less than it already was. I cannot believe this was Ashley Audrain’s debut. I’ve read so many great debuts over the last 6 months or so, and this one definitely falls in the top 5, earning it 5 ⭐️ from me!

Here’s what I loved about this book:
❤️I couldn’t stop listening to it. I was squeezing in 5 min everywhere I could – while I was in the bathroom, while I was washing dishes, whatever I could because I was on the edge of my seat.
❤️It was compulsively readable. I had to know what was going to happen.
❤️It had me questioning my own sanity – did I miss something? Was I wrong about my gut instinct about certain characters? Only an excellent writer can give me these feelings, and while unsettling, I love a book that can evoke emotions from my cold heart.
❤️I related to some of the feelings that our main character had about motherhood – as a mom who struggled with postpartum depression both times I had a baby, I completely related to some of the dark, scary thoughts Blythe had.
❤️The ending had me saying “WHAT DID I JUST READ?” And immediately made me want to restart the book and listen again.

While some classify it as a psychological thriller, I wouldn’t say anything about this book was really “thrilling”..it was just compulsively readable. Mysterious. I had to know what was going to happen. I had to know the truth. The feelings I got while reading it reminded me of how I felt when I read All the Ugly and Wonderful Things – while the books are completely different from one another, I had that same tense feeling in my chest every time I was reading and for a long time after.

Content warnings – I did my best to list them all below, but feel free to message me with questions about them:
Child death
Self harm
Mental illness
Miscarriage
Toxic relationship

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