The Push

Blythe Connor is convinced something is wrong with her daughter Violet, though no one else sees it. Her concerns are dismissed by her husband Fox and others, who suggest she is being overprotective or projecting her own difficult childhood onto her child. The birth of Blythe's second child, Sam, presents an opportunity for the maternal connection she desperately craves. As she navigates motherhood with two children, the contrast between her relationships with each of them becomes stark and unsettling. A devastating event forces Blythe to confront questions about her daughter's nature and her own sanity. Her marriage begins to crack under the weight of her suspicions and Fox's unwavering defense of Violet. The Push examines the inheritance of trauma and the blurred lines between maternal instinct and paranoia. Through Blythe's narrative, the novel raises questions about nature versus nurture and the shadows that family history casts on the present.

Readers report feeling unsettled and emotionally drained by this psychological suspense novel, with many saying they finished it in one sitting. The book maintains a 4.0/5 rating on Goodreads from 300,000+ ratings. What readers liked: - Raw, honest portrayal of difficult motherhood experiences - Builds tension throughout - The unreliable narrator keeps readers guessing - The writing style felt intimate and immersive What readers disliked: - Too dark and disturbing for some - Second-person perspective felt gimmicky to some readers - Some found the pacing slow in the middle - Several readers wanted more closure at the ending Ratings: Goodreads: 4.0/5 (300,000+ ratings) Amazon: 4.3/5 (50,000+ ratings) Barnes & Noble: 4.4/5 (3,000+ ratings) "Couldn't put it down but felt physically ill reading parts" - Goodreads reviewer "The second-person narrative creates uncomfortable closeness" - Amazon reviewer

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🔖 The author wrote this debut novel while working full-time as a publicist at Penguin Books Canada 🔖 The Push explores a controversial psychological concept called "attachment disorder," which can affect the bond between mother and child 🔖 The book sparked a bidding war between publishers and sold in 23 territories before it was even released 🔖 Audrain was inspired to write the novel after experiencing anxiety about her own journey into motherhood 🔖 The story's structure was influenced by the format of a letter, as the entire narrative is written as one mother's message to another mother