Reviews tagging 'Blood'

The Push by Ashley Audrain

101 reviews

spazk27's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Love at first sight. That's how many mothers feel upon seeing their baby for the first time. But what if this doesn't happen to you? What if you don't have that instant connection? What if you never feel it for your child? Does that make you a bad mother? Blythe struggles with these questions when Violet is born. She doesn't see in herself that unconditional love she sees in other mothers. That is, until Sam is born. Blythe and Sam have that connection she dreamed of. And she'll do anything to keep it that way. 

Love, motherhood, a tragic accident, and loss. Written from a unique perspective. Characters you won't love, yet will pull strong emotions from you. A psychological thriller that will keep you reading all night. And an ending that you won't forget...

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death and Suicide

Moderate: Blood and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Infidelity, Miscarriage, and Violence

sylvestra's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Infidelity, Grief, Car accident, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Dementia

robbiclaire's review against another edition

challenging emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book. Phew. I read it in only two days, unable to set it aside until I had read it in its entirety. It’s one of those thrillers that leaves the reader questioning the reliability of the narrator, wondering just how true this story is as it unfolds. The book  explored the impact of motherhood on a woman’s identity but it did so through the lens of this imperfect narrator who was - quite honestly - often very unlikeable but somehow still relatable, redeemable. 

Fwiw, it’s also very difficult to read as a parent. Folks with infants or younger children at home should consider whether it’s the right time to take this on. Lots of digging into the role of generational trauma, too. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Child death

Moderate: Mental illness, Blood, and Abandonment

Minor: Suicide

sjchoe1234's review against another edition

dark sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicide, Blood, and Grief

lkelly36's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Violence, Murder, Pregnancy, and Abandonment

Moderate: Bullying, Blood, and Abortion

dramaqueentears's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

The way I BLASTED through this book. 

After ages of back and forth, Blythe and Fox finally have a baby. Their first child, Violet, is immediately loved by Fox and Blythe just can’t seem to connect with her. What Fox (along with everyone else, honestly) believes to be postpartum depression, Blythe believes is a problem with Violet. She is ultimately convinced she’s right when she has another baby, Sam, and she bonds with him immediately. When Sam dies unexpectedly, everyone believes it’s an accident but Blythe swears that Violet did it. 

What makes this such a wild ride is that throughout the story, you learn about Blythe’s family and how her mother and grandmother were raised by their mothers. You see a cycle of abuse that really makes you stop and question whether Blythe can be trusted as a narrator. It was everything I love about books: mystery, suspense, family drama. 

If I were going to take off points for anything, it would be that the plot really leaves nothing untold. It was all very predictable but I couldn’t put it down, so it’s keeping all 5 stars for me. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, and Alcohol

crememii's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

although it was a great read with an important topic that not many people are willing to discuss regarding motherhood and children's behaviors, this book still left me wanting for more. i felt like the story lacked more nuance in the narrative for some characters, the husband in particular. but overall, i still enjoyed reading this and i would still highly recommend people to pick this up as your next read. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Infidelity, Misogyny, Self harm, Suicide, Blood, Grief, and Abandonment

tatih's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

Moderate: Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Murder

lesbianlis's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

i never want kids bc of reasons like this 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Blood, Grief, and Abandonment

katyannreads's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Suicide, and Grief

Moderate: Blood