 Everybody, E here. Welcome back to another audiobook review. Today we are talking about The Need by Helen Phillips. I got this book on a whim. I had no idea I was going to be reading it. I was scrolling through Scribe looking for certain things and it recommended it because I read or I tried to finish Rules of Prey by John Sanford. I never finished that one. I don't know why this one is being marketed with people who like that book because I don't think people who like John Sanford will. Well, I think damn near everybody would like this this book. I hope. I don't know. I haven't looked at ratings. I'll probably go look at ratings. It'd be like 2.5 average. I don't know. There are some elements in the story that could that could chase a lot of people off especially if they were you know John Sanford fans. If you if you get my drift. There are certain things in this book that would scare off someone who who likes more of a procedural thriller that kind of deal. But this book is utterly amazing. It's I feel like I came across a hidden gem. I'd never heard of Phillips before. Never heard of this book. I only got it because I like the cover and it was only six hours long. So I was like what the hell right? So I tried it. I listened to it for the first hour and a half. I listened to it while I was playing Dark Souls 3. I was just kind of goofing off trying to take my mind off stuff. And I started I started paying more attention to the audiobook than I did the game. I started dying in the game. So I turned the game off and I restarted the audiobook to make sure that because there was obviously something there that you know that was more than just your average thriller. And there are several curveballs in this story that I maybe I would have I still haven't read the description. Maybe there are hints in the description what's to come in this book. But because I read it blindly I'm going to suggest you do the same thing. Don't look up the the description description might not have any spoilers at all. I don't know. But I had a lot of fun and I didn't read the description. So whatever. The book I'm trying I'm trying not to talk too much about the story itself. And of course we don't have Ebert today because I don't want you guys reading the description unless you absolutely need to. And then you guys can hop over to Amazon and read it for yourself. I'll leave a buy link down there in the doobly-doo. But this one of those books that I feel like it came across a hidden gem. It's one of those stories where I'm like I had no idea this could even be this good. It is up there with some of the newer stuff that I found like a hashtag fashion victim. By Octar. And then you have Bunny by Mona Awad. I see here. Amina. Sorry. Amina, Octar, and Bunny by Mona Awad. And there's been a couple other ones. But this one I really really loved how it ended. I love I think it's the second I think it's the chapter oh man it's the it's like the bible quote chapter. If you get excuse me if you get to that part you know what I'm talking about. I especially love that one. Oh I'm thinking of ending things is another one. If you enjoyed I'm thinking of ending things by Ian Reed. You definitely need to check out this book. The audiobooks fantastic. I will be getting the hardcover. I already have it on order. I'm waiting for that to come in. But I will be rereading it once I get the actual physical edition and I hope I hope the writing's as good as it's sounded. That's one problem that you do tend to run into with audiobooks is the narrator makes the entire the entire thing worthwhile. But the story meant a lot to me so I will at least probably finish it in hard format also. Now as far the the reason why I like this book so much is it's a character-driven piece from a character named Molly's perspective. It's not uh yeah it is it is first person because her milk does she say my milk chopped or her milk I can't remember but it's either first person it's been like a week since I finished it so my apologies. But uh in the story you you deal with Molly and you deal with this other individual and you also deal with Molly's kids but with Molly you were looking at a woman reduced to motherhood. That's the best way that I can put it. Everything about her the way she sees herself the way she interacts with the world everything is as the mother of these two children and the book feels like this woman is trying to find herself to to to find a piece of her somewhere anywhere she she wants to find her own humanity individuality whatever it might be she wants to find that and not be this object and it's not an object of desire unless you want to the child desires milk but every single scene is tense in my mind you never you have no idea what this woman is capable of and here she is possibly losing her mind with two very very young children one of them is still breastfeeding there's Vivian and I think it's Ben yeah it's I believe it's Ben I'm also listening to it in Naya Alburn's book right now and I don't want to get the names of the kids confused because I'm bad with kids names. Vivian in the book is a little girl I remember that one very very well because she was hyper annoying but that was good because like in the Babadook in that movie you see the mother crumbling through the actions of the child the more the child acts out the more the mother withdraws at the same time the more she withdraws the more the child acts out so there's that constant circular that there's that tension you know it's going to happen you know they're going to drive this woman crazy but this one is much more about the breaking than the break that makes sense this story once again I think I've said this a lot this week so far it's all about the journey for me and the journey watching this woman break or not break or however you want to read the end of this one this is another one of those books where some people are going to like the book went nowhere no the book went to amazing places a fantastic ending I enjoyed the entire experience so far I have read five books this year and three of those books have been five star reads I don't know if it's where I'm at mentally or if it's if it's because life doesn't really suck right now but I'm not in the best place emotionally so I'm not entirely sure but it feels like I'm enjoying this stuff because I need more escapism either that or I'm just finally doing what my buddy Kevin at well red beard says you know if if you're not enjoying your books you know if you're not enjoying your read you're reading the wrong books I can't remember exactly how he says it but every time he says it I'm like yes that's that's a smart-ass outro anyways have you read the need by Helen Phillips I would love to hear from you whether you loved it hated it indifferent to it if you are any of those things explain to me why you loved it why you hated it why you're indifferent any of those things down there in the doobly-doo but until next time I have any you've been you this has been another book review I'll talk to you guys later bye