Bree grew up poor with a single mum but her life changed when she met & married wealthy Trey. She was a happy stay at home mom with two lovely teenage daughters & Robert- the surprise baby. Whilst attending her daughter's play rehearsal Robert is taken. She sends her daughters off to stay with her mother & awaits alone for the ransom as Trey is away on business. The call she gets is nothing like she expects & she is thrown into turmoil. Along with Marshall, the husband of her dead best friend she has to follow a trail to get to the baby before it's too late.

It's difficult to say too much about this book without giving the plot away. I don't often read books set in the US much these days but for some reason this one appealed & I was really glad I'd chosen it. This book was often hard hitting & dealt with some difficult subjects. I really liked Bree, Trey not so much!

Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book- I couldn't put it down!

Bree meets her three children after school and while turning her back to watch the girls, her baby son disappears, with a note left telling her to go home and tell no-one.

We follow the distraught Bree as she does as instructed, with spectacularly unexpected results. The trail leads on, as she discovers more about the kidnapper and why her son was taken. She then has some serious decisions to make in order to try to get him back safely.

Its a real nail biter, with some unexpected turns. Bree is a really rounded character, you feel her pain and her drive. It helps that her husband has money, so they have resources the rest of us would not, but even that is part of the coils in this twisty plot. Very enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bloomsbury Publishing Plc (UK & ANZ) and Raven Books for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

‘I woke up to see a witch peering in my bedroom window. She was little more than a dark shape with a predator’s hungry eyes, razor-wire skinny but somehow female, staring in through the partly open drapes.”

My thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing U.K./Raven Books for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘Mother May I’ by Joshilyn Jackson in exchange for an honest review.

The above is the terrifying opening to this taut domestic thriller. I won’t say too much about the plot in order to avoid spoilers, rather just some background. Bree and Trey have a comfortable settled life, which is about to be blasted apart. Trey comes from money and is an equity partner in a law firm. Bree had raised their two daughters, then was surprised as they entered their teens to find herself pregnant with Robert.

While Bree is at her daughters’ school, she thinks that she spots the witch-like woman again. Then Robert is snatched practically from under Bree’s nose. A note is left advising her that if she ever wants to see her baby again to go home and not tell anyone what has happened including the police or her husband.

This nightmare premise leads into a fast paced thriller that proved impossible to put down. A great read that took many unexpected turns.

Mother May I is a fast-paced thriller that never lets up on the tension. It's a story that shows the damage actions can do, and a cautionary tale about the primal urge to punish those who harm our child.

Bree and Trey are living a good life with three children. Until the day their 10 week old baby is snatched and so begins a cat and mouse hunt for the kidnapper. Bree knows she will do anything to get her son back, but the kidnapper will also do anything to avenge the wrong that was done to her daughter.

As the truth emerges Bree has to reconsider all she thinks she knows about her husband. In a nail-biting race against time, Bree's son is in more danger than she can imagine. Will justice be served?

A sure hit with fans of thriller fiction, this is an exciting read that asks important questions.

Thank you Bloomsberry amd Netgalley for this ARC.
This is the second book I’ve read by Ms Jackson and While I don’t read a lot of thrillers, she is my go to author of choice. This book did not disappoint it was enthralling and I couldn’t wait to find out how it ended.
Highly recommended

A great read.
This book flows well with believable and relatable characters. What I liked about it was that it didn't follow a stereotypical path but went to places that I had not expected. I especially found the second half of the book hard to put down as the story continued to develop and I did not anticipate the ending.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the ARC in return for my honest review.

Mother May I is a fast-paced, engaging domestic thriller with very well-developed characters and solid writing. The question is: how far will a mother go to protect her family? When Bree Cabbat receives a note telling her to go home and wait for instructions if she ever wants to see her baby again, she has to act fast. What Bree doesn’t know is this is an act of revenge for something her husband did in the past. Can Bree get her baby back or find out who is behind this abduction before something worse happens? The story explores privilege and money, power, guilt, revenge, consent, and so many things that aren’t quite clear from the start. Highly recommended to anyone looking for a gripping thriller from start to finish. Be sure to check out Mother May I today!

Mother May I is a gripping, fast paced domestic thriller from Joshilyn Jackson.

“A note. Handwritten in large block print. IF YOU EVER WANT TO SEE YOUR BABY AGAIN, GO HOME—“

When Bree Cabbat realises her ten week old son has been abducted, the only thing she can think to do is exactly as the kidnapper demands in the note left for her. So she goes home, leaving her teen daughters with a friend, assuming Robert is being held for ransom given both her lawyer husband, Trey, and his family are conspicuously wealthy, feeling certain that once the demands are met her son will be returned safely to her. Waiting for Bree is a gift bag hanging from her front door, inside is a cell phone and a bottle of pills.
The phone rings and Bree learns the woman on the phone who has her son doesn’t want money, she claims to want justice. All she asks of Bree is to follow a few basic rules and complete a relatively simple task that will allow for redress against the man, Bree’s husband’s friend and colleague, who hurt her daughter, and then she’ll return Robert to her. But Bree soon realises the woman isn’t seeking justice, she wants revenge, and if Bree wants her son back, she will have to learn why he was taken, and decide how far she will go to ensure his return.

The kidnap of a child is an emotive hook, a nightmare scenario every mother has likely imagined. Through the first person narrative, Jackson nurtures our sympathy for Bree, appealing to our own protective instincts. From the moment Robert is taken we are on Bree’s side, eager for mother and son to be reunited, and quick to judge his abductor as an irredeemable human being. It’s not that simple of course, the woman who has taken Bree’s son is a mother too, and she is convinced she is granting her daughter justice. The ambiguity of her character, as we learn bits and pieces of her story, is challenging.

The themes of motherhood, justice and privilege are crucial elements of the story. Jackson explores questions about the lengths a mother will go to protect and defend her child, and where the line is drawn between justice and revenge. She exposes the disparity between the rich, who are so often insulated from their mistakes, and the poor who are not. She reveals the privilege of men who, in never facing the consequences for their actions, believe there are none for their victims.

Jackson introduces suspense from the first page of Mother May I, and it never fades as Bree fights for the life of her infant son. With the spectacular pacing, and steadily increasing tension I flew through the book. Though realism is a little elastic at times, I enjoyed the twists, willingly suspending disbelief where required.

Addictive, dramatic and thought-provoking, I found Mother May I to be a sharp and satisfying read, equal to her genre debut, Never Have I Ever.

Mother May I hooks you in from the start, Bree is woken by what she thinks is a witch staring in at her through her bedroom window. The story that unfolds from this point is what will a mother will do to protect her child, or to avenge an injustice carried out against them. The stories running alongside the main story build the tension and bring the story to life. The ending is dissapointing, a bit too happy every after and not in keeping with the rest of the story.

I was given a copy of Mother May I by NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

Joshilyn Jackson is not a new author to me and I absolutely loved her previous book "Never Have I Ever" so when I saw her new offering I went and got it without reading the blurb.

Wow, what a ride this one has been! The story kicks off at a fast pace and doesn't let up for a minute. You just have to keep reading until that very last twist. I can't imagine what I would have done or how I would react in Bree's situation. She has been a really strong character throughout

I had previously read Never Have I Ever by this author which I really enjoyed. I thought this book was very different to that story and like nothing I have previously read (and I read a lot of thrillers!)

The story is about money/privilege, family, consent and to a degree-how far you would go to protect the ones you love.

I don't know if it is a particularly long book as I read it on my Kindle but it took me a really long time to read, although I did enjoy reading it, it wasn't the type of book I can't put down.

The writing is good and I enjoyed the characters.

A deftly plotted, nightmarish domestic thriller about privilege, consent and revenge. This is the second book I’ve read by Joshilyn Jackson. Never Have I Ever was one of my all-time favourites and very hard to beat but this powerful drama held me captive. What I love most about her writing is that a scene most authors would reserve for the climax is only the start and those stakes keep rising. I also love the gladiatorial aspect with two strong characters up against each other. The method of revenge is a little far-fetched, but who cares when the story’s so brilliantly told?

Thanks to Net Galley and Bloomsbury Publishing Plc for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.
This is a fast paced page turner. What will a mother do to get her baby back home safely? Anything.
Bree’s baby boy, Robert has literally been snatched from under her nose whilst watching her daughter at a school rehearsal. She didn’t dream a witch was looking in her bedroom window, there is a real witch and she has kidnapped Robert.
A message is left on her phone instructing her to go home, a package will be waiting for her and she must tell no one.
She has simple instructions to follow, a bit scary but Bree feels she can carry them out, anything to have Robert returned to her safely. Things don’t go according to plan and Bree has to rope in the help of her friend Marshall who is an ex cop.
It’s a story of revenge, there are a lot of twists and turns, moral questions raised and the suspense does build. I felt the story was far fetched and unbelievable and the ending was just too nice after the dark twisty tale. All in all a good read.

Mother may I was a great read. Throughly enjoyable. This book asks some very big questions, how far will a mother go to protect her family?
Brilliantly written, characters you could connect with and questions you hope you will never have to ask yourself. Flew through this book. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I had high hopes for this book but sadly, it fell short. It didn't grip me and I found it very unrealistic.

EXCERPT: The dynamite piled around the car seat was old. Very old. So old it was sweating, and the papery layers had begun peeling away. It must be as unstable as all hell, and there was a lot of it, stacked in a horseshoe around the baby.

ABOUT 'MOTHER MAY I': Growing up poor in rural Georgia, Bree Cabbat was warned by her single mother that the world was a dark and scary place. Bree rejected her mother’s fearful outlook, and life has proved her right. Having married into a family with wealth, power, and connections, Bree now has all a woman could ever dream of: a loving lawyer husband, two talented teenage daughters, a new baby boy, a gorgeous home, and every opportunity in the world.

Until the day she awakens and sees a witch peering into her bedroom window—an old gray-haired woman dressed all in black who vanishes as quickly as she appears. It must be a play of the early morning light or the remnant of a waking dream, Bree tells herself, shaking off the bad feeling that overcomes her.

Later that day though, she spies the old woman again, in the parking lot of her daugh­ters’ private school . . . just minutes before Bree’s infant son, asleep in his car seat only a few feet away, vanishes. It happened so quickly—Bree looked away only for a second. There is a note left in his place, warning her that she is being is being watched; if she wants her baby back, she must not call the police or deviate in any way from the instructions that will follow.

The mysterious woman makes contact, and Bree learns she, too, is a mother. Why would another mother do this? What does she want? And why has she targeted Bree? Of course Bree will pay anything, do anything. It’s her child.

To get her baby back, Bree must complete one small—but critical—task. It seems harmless enough, but her action comes with a devastating price, making her complicit in a tangled web of tragedy and shocking secrets that could destroy everything she loves. It is the beginning of an odyssey that will lead Bree to dangerous places, explosive confrontations, and chilling truths.

MY THOUGHTS: Mother May I is the second book that I have read by this author. The second book by this author that I have just hoovered up, reading it in less than twenty-four hours. The second book that has made me breathless, excited, and very vocal as I read. The second book that I am going to go out and buy a physical copy of to put on my shelves.

I loved Bree. She is a strong character, wanting all the available information before she judges or makes decisions. Not an easy task in some of the situations she finds herself. Bree is family oriented. She will do anything to protect her family, and when you know about her past, how she was raised, you can understand why.

I loved the taut plotting in Mother May I. There is something about Jackson's writing that sucks me in at the beginning and spits me out at the end. There are no confusing multiple points of view, or multiple timelines; just a tense, nailbiting, gripping and thrilling story that will keep you wondering just what is going to happen next.

I can't wait to read whatever Joshilyn Jackson produces next.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

#MotherMayI #NetGalley

I: @joshilyn_jackson @bloomsburypublishing

T: @JoshilynJackson @BloomsburyPubli

#contemporaryfiction #crime #domesticdrama #mystery #psychologicalthriller #suspense #thriller

THE AUTHOR: Joshilyn Jackson is the author of nine books which have been translated into more than a dozen languages. A former actor, she also reads the audio version of her novels. She lives in Decatur, Georgia, with her family.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Bloomsbury Publishing, Raven Books, via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Mother May I by Joshilyn Jackson for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/...

Having read and thoroughly enjoyed Never Have I Ever I was delighted to receive a copy of this title. I am so pleased I avoided reading the blurb on the book before I started it ... it gives far too much information about the tale to be told.
This was a thoroughly absorbing read ... the characters were very well drawn and the relationship that develops between Bree and 'the witch' is both fascinating and frightening and adds another dimension to the story.
Time is of the essence and the tension as the story unfolds is palpable.
Another solid 4 star read!
Many thanks to Netgalley/Joshilyn Jackson/Bloomsbury Publishing for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

‘Revenge doesn’t wait for permission’

TW: Child Abduction, Kidnapping and Rape

The plot of ‘Mother May I’ grabbed my attention when I read the description- Bree Cabbat is the wife of a wealthy lawyer. She has three children who she absolutely adores and has dedicated her life to. She gave up her dreams of becoming an actress when she married Trey and never regretted it for one moment. Attending her daughter’s school events and activities, her involvement on the board of several non-profit organisations and spending time with her precious newborn son Robert, affectionately nicknamed Bumper; her life is complete. In one terrifying moment, this all changes and Bree finds herself hurled into a mother’s worst nightmare; her son has been kidnapped from right under her nose as she watches her eldest daughter’s rehearsal at school. All that is left is a note telling her to go home and wait for instructions on how she can get her son back. The kidnapping is an act of revenge for events from the past but will Bree and her friend Marshall, be able to figure out who the kidnapper is, why he was taken in the first place and where Robert is before it’s too late?

The novel starts off with a fast pace and the plot is original and dynamic which grabbed my attention. The story is told from the perspective of Bree and Marshall, an ex-cop and long-time friend who secretly harbours feelings for Bree after the death of his wife, Betsy (Bree’s best friend). Divided into three sections- Mothers, Sons and Daughters- the book loses momentum in the second half. The novel has quite a bit of description which weighs down the unfolding story. Events are often told from the perspective of both Marshall and Bree; both describing the episode in detail which also slows down the progress of the narrative. I think the story would have been punchier if it was 50 pages or so shorter.

Interesting plot with a nice twist near the end. Slightly shorter, and it would have been a fabulous and terrifying thriller for any mothers out there!

Thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the ARC in return for my honest review.

Bree knows she is lucky, she has a handsome, loving, rich husband, Trey.Two lovely daughters and a 10 week old boy called Robert.
Her perfect life is shattered when her son is kidnapped, Bree is told to tell no one, go home and wait or she will never see him again. When the kidnapper calls they ask Bree to do just one thing but the consequences of a seemingly easy task will be far reaching, not only for her.How far will she go to get her son back and how much will she risk?
This book asks some very big questions, how far will a mother go to protect her family? How many sacrifices will she be willing to make?
Some parts had me so tense I could barely breathe.
Brilliantly written, characters you could connect with and questions you hope you will never have to ask yourself.

Bree's baby is kidnapped and she is devastated. She soon learns its an old woman who has her baby. She needs Bree to do something for her then she can have her baby back. Bree agrees but what has she agreed to and why has this woman targetted her. What did her hisband do to lead to this, can she find out and get her baby back.

Well what a dramatic story this was. Its pulse racing from start to finish as you're never sure what will happen next. The main concept is fairly standard but executed well. Its a familiar story but with an interesting twist of targetting the wife first, The plot is pretty quick but it works with the story, building to a couple of dramatic conclusions. I liked Bree and as a mum could easily relate to her suffering. The only thing I wasn't keen on was the aftermath epilogue. I could see how it fitted with the story but I personally felt it rushed in and just didnt quite work to end the story but that might just be me. Other than that it was a strong, solid thriller.