Sadly, this was not as good as I thought it was going to be. I liked the intriguing idea of a witchy character taking the main character's baby for some unknown reason. But this book follows the typical storylines once police get involved. I did like the ending, the book was underwhelming and mediocre in my opinion. 5 days I could have been reading something else. I also liked the cover.

All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thanks to Netgalley, Joshilyn Jackson and William Morrow & Custom House for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 4/6/21

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow/Custom House for an ARC of this title in exchange for my honest review. I've read other books by this author, and I really liked them. This was my favorite, by far. Bree Cabot, a mom grew up poor, but married into a wealthy family. They have a loving relationship, teen daughters, and a newborn baby boy. Everything a woman could want. Until the baby is kidnapped, and she's asked to do one thing, seemingly fairly simple, to get her son back. This spirals out into multiple events, and the stakes grow more and more difficult. Bree develops a dialogue with the old woman who took her son, and she tries to buy time to keep her family together. This book was amazingly good, and I hated to see it end. Highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book! I liked how the story unfolded and discovering how everyone was connected! I liked the characters very much as well. I would read more books by this author and would recommend this book to other readers if revenge is your type of story! Thank you again to NetGalley!

This book was a surprise. What started out as a witch looking through a window ended as a thought-proving book that touched on a lot of serious topics such as entitlement, sex, murder, suicide, and kidnapping.

Bree is a stay at home mom who has 3 fantastic children, a loving husband, and plenty of money. When her infant son is kidnapped from her daughters'a school it set up a sinister series of events. If she wants to see her son alive again, she has to agree to do some pretty messed up things and she learns some pretty disturbing things about those she thought she knew.

I enjoyed this book a lot. I found it well-paced. It raises many “what if it happened to me” type questions to the reader. It quickly draws you in and was a quick suspenseful read.

Mother May I by Joshilyn Jackson

Revenge doesn't ask for permission. 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.

Bree will do whatever it takes to protect her family—but what if the cost tears their world apart?

Mother May I was an AMAZING read!! I was hooked from the first chapter. I hated having to put it down for even a second! I felt I could relate with the characters. Just when I thought I was through one suspenseful moment, it just exploded into another one! I highly recommend this book for those readers that love a thriller.

Mother May I is a revenge thriller by Joshilyn Jackson. The story grabbed be from the start and I could feel the urgency with Bree and the desperation to find her son. There are twists and turns and the characters are compelling. I thought there were too many callbacks to Bree's past and her dead best friend that didn't really advance the plot. I also thought the story ended too neatly and the very last twist was kind of jarring and maybe out of place? This was my first novel by this author and I will definitely look at reading additional books by her in the future.

As far as domestic thrillers go this is a solid one.

The writing was steady and mostly satisfying.The plot wasn't telegraphed from the beginning and realistic.Even the the antagonists was understandable.

I disagreed with some of the characters conclusions but understood them.

This was a fast read and a nice addition to the genre.

This book took my breath away. Powerful, action packed and centering on what can happen when people want revenge. I can see where it could trigger bad thoughts in some people. Very well written, well developed characters. Heartbreaking in so many ways, I lost sleep it was that good..

Bree wakes up one morning and looks out the window and a face is staring back at her.. Bree is concerned something bad is about to happen but she prefers to believe that everything is ok and goes about her day. Later that afternoon Bree is at her teenage daughters school with her baby son and middle daughter watching her teenage daughter practice in a play. Bree turns her back on her infant to talk to her middle daughter. When she turns back around the car seat with the baby is gone. There is a note stating for Bree to go home and wait for further instructions. No police, do not talk to anyone or you will not see your baby alive. So begins a fast paced thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the end.

Whoa! This book, oh my gosh, this book grabbed me in ways beyond a mystery thriller. It brought back college memories where the cautionary tale of the story rang too close to home. Our main character Bree, seems to have it all. Two beautiful girls and a baby boy that rounds out the set. She didn’t have to become a stay at home mom, but it happened. She’s not complaining, but a moment of attention to her daughter’s on stage performance is enough to let the worst happen. Now, Bree is at the mercy of another mother, one utterly convicted and bent on justice. She doesn’t care for an apology; she’s not asking for one. She wants blood and she’s already had it. She’ll have more if she gets her way. I could NOT STOP READING THIS BOOK!!! Looking for a thrilling ride that will also challenge you to think hard about how the world deals with certain issues, this is it. Thank you to the publisher for the advance reader copy. I will be highly recommending this book to all my friends.

Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow

I’ve enjoyed Joshilyn Jackson’s books for a long time. This one just very well may be my favorite. Mother May I, like Never Have I Ever, is a departure from her previous books. The things I enjoyed most about her earlier works are still there - the character development and compelling storyline, but when you add in the thriller/suspense element it just makes it that much better. There were a few things that were a little predictable, but overall this was a solid 4.5 stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Joshilyn Jackson and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

Bree Cabbat, our main character, has grown up poor in rural Georgia. Her single mother has an overwhelming belief that the world is dark, and bad people are waiting to do you harm. Bree manages to escape this upbringing and marries into a family with wealth. She has everything she could imagine, including three lovely children. She awakes one night, believing there is a witch outside her window. Later, she sees a similar person in her child’s private school parking lot. It’s not long after that her youngest child, two month old Robert goes missing. She only looked away for a minute during her daughter’s play rehearsal. Bree is left a note, with very specific instructions on what to do and what not to do. As any mother would be, Bree is panicked. She will do anything to get her child back. The story takes us through twists and turns as we discover what is behind this kidnapping. How far will Bree go to reclaim her child? This story moved along with twists and turns and kept you wondering what would happen. The tension builds to a climax, which was a little too perfect in my opinion. That being said, I did enjoy reading this book and would recommend it and I will look for other books to read by this author.
Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Mother May I by Joshilyn Jackson is a captivating story right from the start. The main character Bree, lives the perfect life. Loving, (wealthy) husband, great kids, beautiful home in a seemingly safe neighborhood. The plot itself is ingenious. The author does a great job with creating suspense and suspicion. Right away I needed to know how Bree’s situation was going to be resolved.

There were two things that irked me in regards of Bree’s character development. The constant reminders of Bree’s acting history, for one. It was pages and pages of describing Bree and her acting abilities. It got to the point that I know longer cared about Bree’s well-being as a character. I wanted to know about everyone else and how it would end. It became boring to hear about Bree’s backstory, especially when I wanted more of her husband’s backstory. The other was how Betsy, Bree’s best friend, was introduced. Any time Betsy was brought up, it just didn’t feel natural. I also couldn’t take one more reference to Betsy’s Black Visa card. The was the worst part for me.

Betsy, acting, and the Visa card are necessary for the formation of the story, but any time those were brought up, it pulled me out of the story. I’d have to refocus and force myself to read those paragraphs (or pages in some chapters.) It was just too much.

Again, the rising action, climax, and resolution of the plot were brilliant. Very well done. By the end, I felt relieved with how it was wrapped up. However, I would have preferred more information about the protagonist and her daughter as opposed to any more background info of Bree. When I compare Bree to any of the other central characters, she was boring and I wanted the other characters to be as developed as Bree had been. The information that was developing for the other characters, was what kept me reading. I needed to know how everyone was connected and where their problems originated from, and Joshilyn does a great job of fulfilling that need.

I received an advance copy of, Mother May I, by Joshilyn Jackson. I found this book too dark and sinister for me, but others like this kind of book.

Very good suspense novel with the most surprising twist (to me, anyway) early in the book. I was planning to give this five stars, as I turned pages quickly to see what happened next. But the final 50 pages of the book took a turn I didn’t care for. It was ok but the book dropped from 5 stars to 3 at that point, for me.
Two things:
1. The details of the “3 way” are gross and unnecessary. The scene is bad enough without adding those extra details. Having ANY photos distributed of a sex scene would be a nightmare and damaging to the girl in that situation. In my opinion, putting so much focus on that detail and the graphic is distracting to the overall story. And it makes the book go into a bit of porn slide that does nothing for the story.
2. The intense focus of the last 50 pages on rape is a narrative for another book. The photo of Lexie’s face and implications of rape are a real horror and have a big impact on the story. But the book didn’t need a soapbox of commentary on the millions of “nice men”, “rich men”, “spoiled college boys”, etc that get by with rape and abuse. I felt like I had walked into a Brett Kavanaugh hearing. I’m not discounting or disputing the importance of the issue....just saying it hijacked the book and stole Bree’s story.

Mother May I was a nail biting thriller. Extremely hard to put down. My heart was pounding the whole time. From page one this takes off and holds you almost paralyzed till the last page.

Mother May I by Joshilyn Jackson is a fast-paced baby-snatching story whose kidnapper is obsessed with avenging her daughter’s ill-thought deeds in college. Bree Cabbat has it all -- a loving husband, three children, a fine home, and plenty of money in the bank – until her baby Robert is snatched.

Paralyzed with fear, Bree does everything the kidnapper tells her to, including poisoning a man who is not only a friend of her husband’s but also his colleague. Eventually enough clues pile up that Bree knows her husband has been involved with the kidnapper’s daughter Lexie in some way, and she keeps forming the question, “What did you do?” in her mind until she finally confronts him.

Lexie lived a wild life in college with plenty of sex and drugs. She seemed to have no limits. When she suggested a threesome that included Bree’s husband, she had not counted on another person at the fraternity slipping in and taking photos. Soon the photos were spread across campus, and Lexie was asked to leave the school because of an agreed-upon morals clause. Her life descended from there into a spiral of prostitution and drug addiction.

Bree’s husband Trey never told her about this escapade, which he is not proud of and blames on being drunk and then taking drugs that Lexie brought to the fraternity. He is profoundly ashamed of that one wild night and does not buy into Bree’s suggestion of rape…something never suggested by Lexie herself.

While I was enjoying the intensity of the book nearly to the ending, this heavy-handedness toward Trey did not set well with me. Lexie wanted a threesome, she brought the drugs, she initiated it all. That photos were taken and distributed was not part of her plan nor Trey’s and his friend’s…that was purely on the photographer. All three men are eventually murdered, but their deaths did not go down well with me as I believe Lexie’s actions did have consequences. Too much blame is put on the others with no responsibility assigned to Lexie. Just my two cents. The pat ending with Bree and a male friend ending up together, even though I could see it coming throughout the book, did not fit.

Joshilyn Jackson is a bestselling novelist with works including Never Have I Ever, Gods in Alabama, and The Almost Sisters. She reads the audio versions of her books and has been nominated for the Audie Award. The author is a resident of Decatur, Georgia.

My review will be posted on Goodreads starting February 6, 2021.

I would like to thank William Morrow and Custom House for providing me with an ARC in return for an objective review.

Bree, 38, grew up poor in rural Georgia, but managed to reinvent herself enough to become the wife of successful attorney Robert “Trey” Cabbat. They now live in the wealthy suburb of Decatur, Georgia and have three children, the youngest of whom, Robert, is only ten weeks old.

While Bree was thoroughly immersed in watching a school show rehearsal in which her daughter had a leading role, Bree’s son, near her side in his car seat, was stolen away from her. In place of his seat a note was left, telling her to go home for further instructions if she ever wanted to see her son again. Above all, she was not to contact the police or even tell her husband, who was away on business at the time.

After following the rest of the instructions she was given, her old friend Marshall inadvertently becomes involved, and together they try to find out who did this and why. They embark on a tense race against time to save Robert, if indeed he is still actually alive.

Although it would spoil the plot to reveal any of what they discovered, one can at least say that the issues unearthed by Jackson are not only topical and realistic, but her treatment of them is much more nuanced than how they are usually covered by the media. For these reasons it would be an excellent choice for book clubs.

Like Jackson’s other female protagonists, Bree is fiercely protective of her children, and passionately loyal to her friends and family. This book also echoes Jackson’s previous entry in the “domestic suspense” genre, <em>Never Have I Ever: A Novel</em> in that a woman who thinks she has everything she has dreamed of finds her safe and protected world upended by secrets from the past.

Evaluation: Jackson is an excellent author, writing intelligently about concerns of women, importance of families, and contemporary issues. In this book, all of this unfolds on a roller coaster ride of suspense.

Yes! While I immensely appreciate my NetGalley account, being able to read these ARC’s free of charge, I’ve been in a bit of a slump lately. My feedback ratio is sinking due to the last few “suspense” novels I was approved for. I either couldn’t get into them or couldn’t enjoy them enough to finish. However, Mother May I has ended that streak. WOWZER! This is my type book. As I type this review @ near 2 am. If you enjoy domestic suspense, domestic thrillers. Read. This. Now. You’re welcome!!😁

I was hooked from the very beginning. The story drew me in and kept me on the edge of my seat until almost the end, when it fell a little flat- hence the 4 stars.