I remember playing the game “Mother May I” on the playground as a kid, we didn’t have as much fancy play equipment back then. It was a fun game with a group of kids, along the lines of “Simon Says”.

There is nothing fun about the “game” that is being played in this book. It is terrifying and the thing that nightmares are made of for any mother. The idea that you turn away for a minute and your child is “gone” !!! That is what happens to our main character Bree and how she plays this “game” will determine whether her son lives or dies. It also will ask the question “how well do you really know another person, even your husband of 13 years”. Can we be held accountable for something we did when we were young? Does money and privilege protect you from bad consequences?

Bree’s day starts in a foreboding way. She wakes to see a witch peering into her bedroom window! “She was . . . .razor-wire skinny but somehow female, staring in through the partly open drapes. Sunrise lit up the thin, silvery hair that straggled out from under her hat”. She bolts upright and lets out a strangled sound that was only loud enough to wake her husband Trey. He spends a lot of time looking around the house and reassuring her that everything is fine. She doesn’t ask him to go outside and check, by that time she is sure that it was all a dream.

Bree has three children, two young teens, Peyton and Anna-Claire and a 3 month old baby, Robert. She is a stay at home mom, because she can be. Her husband comes from money and is an equity partner in a prestigious law firm. Bree comes from the “other side of the tracks”. She grew up with a single mother who had to work two jobs to provide for her. She had a good childhood but not a privileged one.She never met her father. Most would say she won the husband lottery when she met Trey.

The first half of the book is setting us up for the rest of the novel. I found this part to be a bit slow moving but persisted and I’m glad I did. The second half more than makes up for the first!!

While Bree is watching her daughter practice for a musical at school, she leaves Robert’s side for what seemed like a few minutes, when she turns back he is gone. What she finds is a note telling her that if she wants to see her son again she should go home, not call the police and wait for contact.She asks her mother to watch the girls and goes home to find an ominous package at her front door with explicit instructions as to what she must do if she wants to get her son back.

What unfolds is not simply a story of kidnapping, it is a cleverly plotted, frightening examination of what a mother will do to get her child back. The woman who took Robert isn’t interested in money, she’s out for revenge and she wants Bree to help her.

Bree eventually turns to her long time friend Marshall whom she has known since they were young. He is recently widowed from Betsy, who was also Bree’s best friend. Together they work through clues and intel that they are able to obtain, to find out the identity of the woman who took the baby.

They find that this woman wants revenge for something horrible that happened to her daughter a long time ago, something that derailed her college education and ruined her one chance at a better life. This event involved not only her husband’s business partner but Trey himself!! The discovery is enough to challenge all that she believes her husband to be.

This would have been a 5* except for a bit of a slow start and an ending that was a bit unbelievable but satisfying nonetheless.

I hope that this is enough to make you want to read this novel and go along on the white knuckle ride that I did. This is my first read by this author and I was impressed.

The novel is set to publish on April 6, 2021 so you don’t have long to wait!!!

I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley

I will post this review to Amazon upon publication.

Oh my! I am definitely a Joshilyn Jackson fan, but this book!!
The tension mounts from the time small Robert Cabbat goes missing, snatched by the 'witch at the window', all the way to the unexpected climax. Bree Cabbat's tiny son is snatched while she is watching her pre-teen daughter rehearse the school musical. She must tell no one, but is given detailed instructions as to what she must do to get him back. As any mother might, she is more than willing. The consequences, not only of her actions, but the actions of people from years ago are played out in terrible detail.
I attempted to listen to this audiobook. Ms Jackson is an amazing narrator, but the topic and her performance were so heart wrenching that I had to give up on the audio and proceed with the book itself. I could not put it down.

“He’d always believe a fingerprint over an eyewitness. As time passed, events became mutable. People justified their actions, and the more shame they felt about a memory, the more they chewed it over, fretting and defending and editing, until they could live with it.”

We start out in wonderful Decatur, where it’s greater. (well, usually, but not right now) Bree and Robert are an old money couple with 3 lovely kids. They’re best friends of the late Betsy, husband (and investigator extraordinaire) Marshall, and daughter. One day WHILE AT SCHOOL, Bree looks away for a few moments, and Robert is missing. She gets a note that just says, “GO HOME”. So, she does. What she doesn’t realize is that she is going to have to fight for her family in ways she never thought possible.

This book touches so many important topics that we do not need to shy away from. I really appreciated how the story transpired and especially that ending. It’s true, life doesn’t always give us those happy endings. Those that should pay, don’t. Those that deserve justice, don’t really get it. I’m also not a fan of child abduction plots, but this was (again) so much more.

I really enjoyed this book. Y’all know if there is a Georgia based book, I’m home. I really felt like the parallels between “the witch” and Bree was phenomenal. I sat back afterwards and thought of some of their dialogue and it hit a little harder the second time around. So, if you’re looking for a twisty thriller that will keep you on your toes and starts off with a bang, look no further than Mother May I!

Thank you NetGalley and WM for the gifted copy. Mother May I is out April 6th and should not be missed!

Mother May I by Joshilyn Jackson captured my attention from the beginning and kept me interested throughout. How far would a mother go to avenge a wrong done to her daughter? How far would a mother go to protect her son? Bree Cabbat grew up poor but she has married into money. She has an easy life with her husband, two daughters and bonus infant son. Until the morning she wakes up and sees a “witch” peeking through her bedroom window. Bree shakes it off as a dream she hadn’t quite awakened from. But later the same day she sees the woman at her daughter’s school. And, in one minute of inattention, Bree’s infant son disappears. In his place is a note – “If you ever want to see your baby again, GO HOME”. Somehow the disappearance is tied to her husband and his cousin Spencer. Can Bree figure out how to save her family before time runs out?

What a fascinating book. I was impressed by the storyline and the characters were all well written and complex. Where there are complex storylines combined with intriguing characters the reader experience is magnified tremendously. To have a book that is well written as well as entertaining is a delight. Reading is about escaping your world and entering another one. Here I forgot about my own life and was immersed in the world created by the author. I would recommend this book.

Overall, I liked the book and thought the author did a great job of building suspense and making you think about what you would do especially as a mom in that circumstance. I identified and liked the main character and thought the author did a great job of building a crescendo of suspense. Although, I liked the ending, I didn't love it. It left me a little unsettled and I am not even sure why.

In Joshilyn Jackson's upcoming novel we have Bree, a mother of three who has everything she could want in her life. Until one morning when it all comes crashing down by the sighting of a strange old woman peeping in her bedroom window. Later that same day her 3rd child, the baby, is kidnapped. The old woman leaves only a note telling Bree to go home. Once there she finds instructions on what she is to do to get her baby back.  What Bree thinks will be one simple act to get her baby back opens up a pandora's box Bree didn't even know about. 

This novel is fantastic!!!!!!  Un-putdownable, fast paced, emotional!!!!!  I loved this book & how it speaks to you as a moral human being butalso makes you think.  What would you do to get your child back from a kidnapper?? How far would you go?? I devoured it & I know every reader will as well. I highly recommend this book

Great character development that created a connection with everyone in this book. Started with a bang. Kept me guessing the whole way through.
Enjoyed the POV and well done storyline.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

I tend to avoid this story line. As a mother, reading about a kidnapped child just feeds into my worst fears. But the plot sounded so compelling I had to put that aside and read this book.

The cover is striking and after reading the story, there is key symbolism in the artwork which I always appreciate. I think relevant cover imagery adds to the novel. And after you've read the book and fully appreciate the significance, just looking at the cover can strike a chord in you and pull back vivid memories of the story.

Mother May I mainly focuses on Bree Cabbat. Bree is happily married with two daughters entering teenage status and a new baby boy. Her baby, Robert, couldn't be classified anything other than as a surprise, but he's the happiest surprise.

Getting back into the habit of parenting a newborn is an adjustment, but honestly, Bree and her husband Trey are thrilled to do it. Robert feels a little bit easier and it may be his personality and temperment or their years of parenting experience, but either way, it just feels good. Sometimes you can be a little too comfortable though. And after Bree takes her eyes off Robert snoozing in his infant car seat for just a few minutes at her daughter's theater practice, he's gone.

She's frantic. Her stomach is roiling, her heart pounding in her throat and stomach, a cold sweat breaking out. In place of Robert's car seat is a note with careful instructions. Bree doesn't think twice. She immediately follows the instructions. She'll do whatever it takes to get her baby back, even the unimaginable.

What follows is part thriller, part suspense, part drama, part mystery. I was tearing through the pages trying to figure out just where this story would head. The writing was engaging. I know this won't be my last read by Joshilyn Jackson!

Warning, this book is not for the feint of heart. It’s an emotionally upsetting, disturbing, and maddening story! I cursed this book out throughly, several times, and still wanted to rage out.

Bree’s baby is kidnapped and she does whatever it takes to get him back. Her horror is just beginning when she finds out her husband may not be the man she thought he was.

I am a mother and all my worst nightmares are in this book. Kidnapping, murder, money, power, privilege, and rape are all factors in the story.

I could say so much, but to avoid spoilers this will be a short review. I don’t want to ruin the impact it has. You need to go in blind.

Even after waiting a while to write this review, I still want to shout a ton of F bombs and Other really nasty words! This book took a toll on me! It gets you right in the heart and your mind.

I highly recommend Mother May I. It’s dark, it’s twisted, and full of secrets, that will make you an emotionally unstable mother!

Whoa. 5 stars. If you are looking for your next thriller, this is it. Gripping, riveting, compelling, fast paced - all the adjectives!

Bree Cabbat must go to extraordinary lengths to save her kidnapped infant. But what wouldn’t a mother do to save her child?

Trigger warning: rape, rape culture on a college campus; not described in detail

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for this advanced eBook copy.

The book could use another round of copy editing, I believe.

Typo loc 1000, chapter 6: “That helped, but I still I didn’t want to ‘interact’.”

Typo loc 1577, chapter _____ : “As rain the broke, patting and tapping at the roof...”

Typo loc 1903, chapter 11: “Besides, there were things he needed be doing.”

Typo loc 2224, chapter 12: “I had a strong maternal urge pull her into my arms...”

Typo loc 2869, chapter 16: “He liked talking to her almost as much as he liked sleeping her” needs a period to end the sentence

Typo loc 3167, chapter 17: “...when the she’d been holed up someplace stationary.”

Typo loc 3469, chapter 18: “...and then he was shuddering into me, and as even as his body shook...”

Typo loc 4956, chapter 27: “...Robbie was only son he’d have.”

Inconsistency, loc 5018, chapter 27: Robbie with an -ie throughout, then Robby with a -y.

Inconsistency, loc 5028, chapter 27: Marshal with one “l”, instead of 2 as Marshall.

Thank you to #netgalley and the publisher for this advanced copy of Mother May I in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve loved EVERYTHING I’ve read by Joshilyn Jackson and this book was no exception! This was a rollercoaster of a ride that kept me up way past my bedtime to read. Just when I thought I knew where it was going, the road turned sharply.

A woman’s baby is kidnapped and in exchange for getting him back, his mother only has to do one small thing. She does it, but it turns out it has much darker and serious implications than she ever thought.

Highly recommend this book. Her writing is phenomenal with a lot of detail and excitement.

Joshilyn Jackson is one of my favorite authors. She is a wonderful storyteller and writes such great characters. This one did not disappoint. It was a tense, suspenseful read with with some twists, revenge, and family secrets.

This is the first book I have read by Joshilyn Jackson and it will definitely not be the last. The book opens with the main character Bree seeing a witch peering in her window late at night, then her baby is kidnapped. What follows is a terrifying adventure for any mom with more twists and turns than an old country road. Ms. Jackson lives in Atlanta and her story happens in several locations around the metro area. Since I am also living in the Atlanta area I was nice to be able to recognize all the locations. A great suspense story that does not disappoint!

Bree, a mother of three, is living a wonderful life in Atlanta, Then her three-month old son is kidnapped, and family secrets, long buried, threaten to tear her life apart.

This is a page-turning thrill ride and I loved it,

Plowed through this advance copy of Joshilyn Jackson’s Mother May I, which releases on April 6. I wanted to put it on all the psychological thriller fans radar because I COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN. Typical books that involve children/kidnapping make me uneasy but I was fine with this one because there were so manyovinh parts. When Bree Cabbot, wife of wealthy Atlanta Lawyer, wakes up one morning and see a witch peering through her bedroom window, she isn’t sure her if she is losing her mind. Until her infant son disappears from her daughters private school during a theatre rehearsal. The witch leaves only the instructions that Bree is to follow without telling her husband or involving the police. You are not going to want to miss this pre-order!

Bree Cabbat experiences a mother's worst nightmare when her son Robert is kidnapped by a creepy old lady! This all happens in the first 10 minutes of reading so it totally hooked me. The whole book is about her quest to get Robert back, but she also discovers a lot about the past throughout. Unfortunately, the situation isn't as cut and dry as she had hoped. Bree and her late best friend's husband Marshall try to uncover secrets from the past, locate Robert and find the kidnapper. Bree's husband isn't a big part of the book til later on. The middle of the novel was a bit slow for me but the ending picked back up and gave some twists I did not predict. I listened to part of the book on audio, and read parts of the book as well. I think I may have enjoyed it more if I just read it rather than listened to it.

I received this ARC courtesy of HarperCollins and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
I think this was a good book, I don’t think it was great. And if you are a person who is triggered easily you may want to pass on this one.
The writing was good and it was a quick read. It got dark for a minute but overall it was a good story. I didn’t see the twist coming near the end, which is always good, in my opinion but I didn’t love the ending.

Excuse me while I pull my heart out of my throat! This was one of the best thrillers I’ve read in a long time. It’s a revenge plot with a kidnapped baby and a mother who will do anything to get him back. With a deft touch, the author maintained the suspense while giving the reader insights into the background stories of the main characters. There were, of course, twists and turns along the way making for a nail biting read.

I have a couple of niggling complaints: some repetitive self talk that could have been cut back, and a secondary plot twist towards the end that I’m not sure I bought. That being said, I encourage any lover of suspense novels to give this one a go. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

I really enjoyed the author's previous work, "Never Have I Ever" and was thrilled to get my hands on this novel, a thriller in the "abducted child" trope. Here we have, Bree, who turns her back for just a minute - and of course, that's all it takes! The reader follows along as she takes a harrowing journey into hell and back to get her missing baby returned. Along the way, she will learn some hard truths that she will not like, for not everyone is who they seem on the surface. It's a very character driven and deftly plotted story that really had me hooked - and I eagerly devoured it. RECOMMEND! My thanks to the author, publisher and Net Galley for the ARC.