Cover Image: The Hush

The Hush

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Member Reviews

I'm usually a HUGE fan of feminist dystopian stories but for some reason I struggled with this one. Perhaps a little darker than I'm used to or maybe I did myself a disservice listening to the audiobook and not loving the narrator? For whatever reason, this one wasn't for me. Will still keep an eye out for more by Sara Foster though. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest thoughts!

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A intergenerational, female-led thriller with a disastrous conspiracy at the core of the British government.

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Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience

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Every once in a while you'll find a book that leaves you crying and suggesting it to every person you know. I have about one of these a year and this is 100% the book of the year. As the US comes to terms with each stare being responsible for ROE vs Wade laws and abortion talk is in every conversation, the characters and plot just hit closer to home. I always though Handmaids Tail could have been so much more than it was and this book took that leap. It made the most horrific future feel not only possible but almost now. I Can't say enough about it, it is a book that truly all students should read as this is the future that especially my girls will be facing in regards to their choices about their lives and bodies.

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Thank you to HarperCollins and Netgalley for an advanced readers copy of this book for my honest review.

Set in the not so distant future this fiction novel about woman losing control of their reproductive rights is close to the reality we are living in now. While the details are not exactly the same the underlying theme of big corporations and big headed men thinking they know what is best for a woman and her body is the same.

But this is not the story of the men. It is the story of the women who fight back. It is a fast paced and exciting read and I think it is very important read. I highly recommend for women and men to add to their TBR.

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I love a dystopian thriller and this one had the handmaids tale crossed with 1984 vibes all over it.

In a not so distant future where everyne is being monitored by the government Emma is a midwife whose teenage daughter, Lainey, becomes pregnant. Now the danger is at their doorstep in this scary new world.

The Hush is also a story of female friendship and is so authentic and dynamic with excellent tension.

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Relevant and timely novel that is about pregnancy in the near future. Quite scary to read yet I couldn’t stop.

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My Review: Chilling and Realistic

Although this is a dystopian novel, I could easily picture this happening, making it quite chilling. What a great speculative fiction story!

The Pros: What Worked For Me

The novel is action-packed from the start, with a fast pace that keeps reader engaged.
This is a smartly written novel, with many thoughtful moments that make the reader assess what it means to be a feminist.
The story itself is so complex but it never gets boring or too heavy; it is well-balanced and creative in its approach. Nothing is ever “in-your-face” and I appreciated that.

The Cons: What I Didn’t Like

I would have preferred if the characters had more nuance to them. There are so many characters introduced but they didn’t have much depth.

I’m still struggling to articulate all of the reasons why I liked this book and would urge others to read it. Suffice to say, this is a great piece of speculative fiction and it is worth reading. I’m giving this a solid 3/5 stars!

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When I hear the words "female-led science fiction", this is the kind of book I expect. While the realism of it was terrifying, the writing, the characters, and the plot were absolutely phenomenal. This story felt just realistic enough to happen in real life, which only added to its eerie greatness. I heartily recommend it.

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I love how much feminist dystopian fiction is emerging to meet this current moment as women's and human rights feel increasingly fragile. This is a powerful book of mother-love in its many varieties, including the love of an absent mother.

We are in a very near future in this novel, as the after-effects of Covid are still being felt, with everyone subjected to regular health scans before they can go to work or school. Civil rights are usurped as one crisis after another "forces" the government to take measures to protect its citizens. The crisis at the heart of the book is a huge increase in babies born alive but unable to draw breath. Abortion rights are the first to go, then even the right to a private pregnancy is taken as pregnancy tests are monitored and reported.

Single mother Emma is an obstetrics nurse worn thin by the horrors she is facing at work. Her daughter Lainey suspects she's pregnant but can't buy a pregnancy test to find out.

Women support one another in this novel. Friends and co workers (with the occasional bitchy exception) care for and about one another. If I had to live in a dystopian future, I'd want friends like the ones in this novel. Highly recommend.

I am grateful to Netgalley for giving me a free ecopy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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Wow! This was a nail biter! I was engaged from the beginning to the end. The ending felt unfinished though but all in all, it was an exciting, terrifying, and well written novel.

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*Thank you NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for this ARC*

Set in the near-future after the COVID crisis, the UK is being ravaged by a new public health threat - seemingly health pregnancies are resulting in stillbirths. With this new epidemic and the ongoing climate crisis, the government has implemented new protocols to monitor citizens via tracking watches. And on top of all of this, pregnant teenagers are going missing. This story follows midwife Emma and her pregnant daughter Lainey as they navigate this corrupt government and try to uncover the truth.

I absolutely loved this book! It is the perfect blend of dystopian, thriller, sci-fi, and YA all wrapped in one. The strong female characters and the issues of reproductive autonomy in a dystopian society were very reminiscent of "The Handmaid's Tale" - with a bit of "1984" mixed in. This was such a unique premise for a story and felt eerily plausible.

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I had to DNF this one. I liked the premise but it just wasn’t for me in the end. From what I read it was well written and the idea unique but it didn’t keep my attention like I thought it would so I unfortunately stopped a quarter of the way through.

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Futuristic. Scary yes, plausible yes. It speaks to all the worries that come to the surface when you surrender your rights to the government in the name of progress. Young pregnant women are disappearing. A midwife is determined to give the best possible care. A young woman close to the midwife’s sphere brings the reality of this mystery to her doorstep. Culminating in a race to survive you will find yourself breathing hard through the conclusion.

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Set in the near-future, England grapples with a mysterious phenomena where babies born are unable to take a breath. Following this, the government implements stringent rules and regulations, observing civilians with a stringent eye. In this new world, pregnant women begin to go missing.

As the main character Emma - a midwife - struggles to make it through the traumatic and difficult work she does in the face of this new phenomena, she encounters a new obstacle, when her teenage daughter finds herself in trouble,

I really enjoyed this book. It was a beautiful blend of action, character development and kept me on the edge of my seat.

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This was a wonderful female-centric thriller set in a post-covid, near future British, with a very intriguing premise. Women around the world started giving birth to ‘doll babies’. These babies were completely healthy and moving up to the point of birth where they would cease to breathe for no explainable reason. It got so severe that it affected half of the population, and people got scared of having kids. Of course, the political minds used the phenomena to assert control over women in the name of ‘protecting’ the future. Women were no longer given choice about having babies, and once pregnant they became the property of the government.

Our main characters, Emma and Lainey, were mother-daughter couple who got thrown right in the middle of it all, with Emma’s job as a midwife and Lainey’s involvement in her school’s movement to find out why her pregnant friend suddenly disappeared.

With a setup like that, who wouldn’t be enticed to pick up the book?

I personally loved how the book highlighted the power of women banding together. It definitely had a parade of strong, intelligent women trying to navigate and solve the issue. Even the British Prime Minister in the book was a female. Unfortunately though, 50% through the book, I still felt like I learnt nothing new as it slowly gave readers details of what happened.

While the build-up was relatively slow paced, there were a few action-packed events that happened later in the book that I thought happened too fast! Without giving too much away, one of them was Lainey’s adventure at a secret place, which I thought could’ve been flushed out a bit more.

Another thing that I wish was done better was around the scale of the story. Given the phenomena was worldwide and the plot involved British government and high ranked politicians (and someone else who was revealed to have an international pull in the story), I thought the stakes and scale could’ve been much wider (even involving international waters, perhaps). Instead, the main conflict and resolution in the book were too localised and dependant upon just Emma and Lainey, who were supposed to be ‘nobodies’ in the grand scheme of things.

At the end of the day, I did enjoy this book tremendously. There was this one particular quote that I thought reflected today’s age quite well:
“In the information age, because we all have access to information, everyone considers themselves an expert. It’s a horrible twist to something that’s essentially so wonderful and should have finally allowed for classless access to education.”

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This thriller was action-packed right from the beginning.
much recommended
The Hush is a dystopian thriller

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Chaos begins with babies failing to breathe as soon as they are born in an English hospital. With already the government restricting people’s freedom and everyone under constant surveillance, the loss of the babies called as doll babies and pregnant girls going missing creates a sense of jeopardy and insecurity among the public.

Emma, a midwife is determined to help the suffering mothers. When her seventeen-year-old daughter Lainey becomes pregnant, the dangers become more real to both mother and daughter who have to make impossible choices to deal with the damning new laws and the authoritarian government. They seek the help of their friends and Emma’s estranged mother Geraldine Fox.

Dystopian novels are not my go to genre. So, what convinced me to pick this book is the cover and the intriguing blurb. And this book blew my mind with its powerful and dynamic narration. This is a women centric dystopian thriller that closely resembles the current society and its treatment of human rights and women. The book is parallelly narrated by Emma and Lainey who took me through a labyrinth of emotions.

Let me list down the reasons to read this book
1. A fast-paced dystopian thriller full of compelling twists and suspense.
2. A book that sharply reflects the current situation of mass ignorance of the impact of climate change, blatant denial of women’s rights and a society that is slowly sacrificing privacy for security.
3. An array of remarkable and sensible characters.
4. Powerful statements and dialogues that leave a lasting impact.
5. An incredible portrayal of the power of female friendships
6. An honest and lovely portrayal of teenage friendships, their curiosity and concern for the future.
7. The author has adroitly weaved some uncomfortable truths in this gripping novel.

I highly recommend this riveting dystopian thriller for fans of novels like The Handmaid’s Tale. If you want to read a female centric thriller set in a world that faces the aftermath of COVID, look no further. The Hush is one of the best books I have read this year.

Thank you @netgalley and @sarafoster for this gifted eBook in exchange for an honest review.

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The government wants to monitor all citizens., young pregnant women too. Then young girls start missing.
Emma and Lacey are living in this new world and it is not easy, But, when Lacey is stealing a pregnancy test and it's only a matter of time until the police are catching her.
Thanks to Netgalley for this book.

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First I want to thank Blackstone Publishing, NetGalley, & Sarah Foster for this mystery/thriller ARC.

This book kept me enthralled from the beginning. I love Dystopian Books ....and movies. Makes you wonder if this might be our future?
Great original story!

I recommend this book to anyone who likes dystopian books.

#TheHush #NetGalley #Goodreads #SarahFoster

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