Spoiler-Filled Review: The Push by Ashley Audrain
Before diving into my review, please note that it is based on my opinion of the book. As you consider my thoughts, remember that you are allowed to have different feelings about this book. If you haven't read it yet, feel free to pick up a copy and form your own opinion on it.
Content Warnings: Grief, Mental Illness, Child Abuse, Child Death, Emotional Abuse, Blood, Domestic Abuse, Violence, Medical Trauma, Toxic Relationship, Self Harm, Infidelity, Murder, Miscarriage.
Note: This book contains some sensitive topics that may be triggering for some readers, please proceed with caution.
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Review:
The Push by Ashley Audrain was a gripping, really quick read. I read the book in just one sitting and I could not put it down for even a minute. There were early red flags and signals of problems brewing for Blythe and her boyfriend, and later husband, Fox. I could tell almost immediately that this story would be very intense and at only a little over 300 pages, the plot was definitely very fast-paced.
I loved the flashback scenes that we got of Blythe growing up with her mother and really get to see what her family life was like. We even get flashbacks of what Blythe's mother's childhood looked like growing up with her own parents. Both Blythe's mother and grandmother suffered from mental illness and were abusive parents who mistreated their daughters. I appreciated how it showed that this abusive behavior was cyclical because that felt extremely realistic. Unfortunately, it also impacted Blythe's relationship with her own daughter, Violet.
Throughout the novel, I was always on the edge of my seat trying to figure out if Blythe was having hallucinations and some form of psychosis or whether the events that played out really occurred. That was the masterpiece of having the book focus always following Blythe's perspective, it was impossible to tell if the crazy events really happened or just played out in Blythe's mind. I really despised Blythe's husband as a character and his lack of support of Blythe when it was proven that there was something very clearly wrong with their daughter. As a whole, Fox was a horrible and infuriating man and husband, but who clearly loved his children for which I really can't fault him. The problem was his refusal to accept that his children and especially Violet were anything less than well-behaved children.
My heart really went out to Blythe throughout the entire second half of the novel when things take a turn for the worse in her marriage. She struggled in both her career and family life and when all is said and done, she is left alone without the husband she loved and her beloved son, Sam, who was tragically killed by their daughter, Violet. After they lose Sam, Blythe and Fox's relationship was really never the same and they reached a breaking point. With his infidelity, their divorce, and Blythe's difficult relationship with Violet, Blythe was living in misery and the depths of despair. Her friendship with Fox's new wife filled me both with a sense of hope that things could improve for Blythe, but also dread knowing that things would not end well.
The ending of the novel brought tears to my eyes and made the book absolutely unforgettable. I really couldn't believe that history was repeating itself with Violet's half-brother but at the same time, it wasn't entirely surprising. The last conversation that Blythe has with her ex-friend and Fox's wife is bone-chilling and made my mouth drop. It was such a cliffhanger to end the novel on and I think that Audrain really made a brave choice to end the book with such an unfinished ending.
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Author: Ashley Audrain
Genre: Adult Psychological Thriller
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf (Penguin Random House)
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