The Whispers by Ashley Audrain

One morning on Harlow Lane, four families' lives are changed forever.

Whitney Loverly can only sit by her son's hospital bed after he falls from his bedroom window in the middle of the night. She refuses to speak to anyone.

Back at home, the Loverlys' neighbours must reckon with their own roles in the tragedy - their selfless best friends who live across the street, the ambitious Goldsteins who desperately want a family of their own, and the quiet elderly couple who spend their days people watching on the front porch.

But what happens next, when over the course of a week, the hidden and explosive truths that connect these families must come out?

Exploring envy, motherhood and the intuitions that we silence, this is a novel that asks what happens when good people make bad choices.

Kindle Edition, 317 pages

Expected publication June 6, 2023

 by Penguin

4/5 stars

Exciting news, folks! The Whispers is hitting the shelves next week and it's already getting some serious hype. If you loved the author's debut novel, The Push, then you're in for a treat because The Whispers has a similar vibe.

The story is told from the perspectives of four women who are all at different stages of motherhood and life. But be warned, this book deals with some heavy stuff, so make sure you're ready for it.

One of the moms, Whitney, seems to have it all together, but things take a turn when she ends up at her son's hospital bedside. The story takes place over just a few days, but it jumps back and forth in time to reveal some dark and heartbreaking secrets.

Now, I wouldn't necessarily call this a psychological thriller. It's more like a suspenseful women's fiction story. The neighborhood where the story takes place is full of whispers and secrets, and everyone seems to be watching each other.

I will say that the characters aren't always the most reliable or likable, but that just adds to the suspense. There are plenty of red herrings to keep you guessing, and I found myself unable to put the book down until I knew what had happened.

The ending did feel a bit rushed, but it was still satisfying. I also had to suspend my belief a few times, but overall, this was a really entertaining read. So if you're looking for a gripping story that will keep you on your toes, give The Whispers a try.

My thanks to Penguin Random House CA (via Netgalley) for a digital arc in exchange for honest review.

Review: The Push by Ashley Audrain

A tense, page-turning psychological drama about the making and breaking of a family–and a woman whose experience of motherhood is nothing at all what she hoped for–and everything she feared.

Blythe Connor is determined that she will be the warm, comforting mother to her new baby Violet that she herself never had.

But 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.

Or is it all in Blythe’s head? Her husband, Fox, says she’s imagining things. The more Fox dismisses her fears, the more Blythe begins to question her own sanity, and the more we begin to question what Blythe is telling us about her life as well.

Then their son Sam is born–and with him, Blythe has the blissful connection she’d always imagined with her child. Even Violet seems to love her little brother. But when life as they know it is changed in an instant, the devastating fall-out forces Blythe to face the truth.

The Push is a tour de force you will read in a sitting, an utterly immersive novel that will challenge everything you think you know about motherhood, about what we owe our children, and what it feels like when women are not believed.

Paperback, 320 pages

Published January 5th 2021

 by Viking

4/5 stars

Just excuse me for a moment while I process this book. 

It's one of those books that made big waves when first released, which is why sometimes I like to let the dust settle before diving in.  In the end this was a buddy read with bestie reading buddy Laurie from TheBakingBookworm fame (click to see her review).

I struggled to find the right way to describe this book and came up with enticingly off-putting. I read it in like 2 1/2 days (and that's super fast for me).  This was like a roller coaster ride, the first few pages had me questioning what was going one, then the next few chapters started rolling right along until I got to a point I couldn't stop reading.  Then a lull in the middle and off it went again until I had to finish her off.

Told from Blythe's POV with pieces of her extended past giving light to her history. The characters were messed up as was the story (I mean that in a good way).  Honestly I didn't like the lot of them and that's what made the story what it was.  Unreliable, scary and kinda sad and disturbing really.  The ending was ok but I wanted a little more, even just another chapter or two. But what I really craved was hearing from the men in this story.  They came off as insensitive and spineless, I would have loved to hear their thoughts.

The Push is a story of motherhood, the struggles, bonding and even the desire to be a mother. This book will actually stay with me for awhile due to the emotional impact it had.

For a debut this was solid and given the 2 book deal the author signed I can't wait to see what the author comes up with next.

This book was part of my 2021 Reading Off My Shelf Challenge #32