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Seekers #1
May Day
If the murderer you’re tracking is a vampire, then you want a vampire detective. Just maybe not this one.
It’s not that Jack Valentine is bad at her job. The youngest member of Oxford’s Seekers has an impressive track record, but she also has an impressive grudge against the local baron, Killian Drake.
When a human turns up dead on May Morning, she’s determined to pin the murder on Drake. The problem is that none of the evidence points to him. Instead, it leads Jack into a web of conspiracy involving the most powerful people in the country, people to whom Jack has no access. But she knows someone who does.
To get to the truth, Jack will have to partner up with her worst enemy. As long as she can keep her cool, Drake will point her to the ringleaders, she’ll find the murderer and no one else will have to die.
Body bags on standby.
May Day is the first book in Josie Jaffrey’s Seekers series, an urban fantasy series set in Oxford, England.
It’s not that Jack Valentine is bad at her job. The youngest member of Oxford’s Seekers has an impressive track record, but she also has an impressive grudge against the local baron, Killian Drake.
When a human turns up dead on May Morning, she’s determined to pin the murder on Drake. The problem is that none of the evidence points to him. Instead, it leads Jack into a web of conspiracy involving the most powerful people in the country, people to whom Jack has no access. But she knows someone who does.
To get to the truth, Jack will have to partner up with her worst enemy. As long as she can keep her cool, Drake will point her to the ringleaders, she’ll find the murderer and no one else will have to die.
Body bags on standby.
May Day is the first book in Josie Jaffrey’s Seekers series, an urban fantasy series set in Oxford, England.
392 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 9, 2020
22 people are currently reading
422 people want to read
About the author
Josie Jaffrey
56 books172 followersJosie is a dark fantasy, paranormal romance and historical fiction author who writes about lost worlds, dystopian societies and morally-ambiguous monsters (vampires are her favourite). She has published multiple novels and short stories. Most of those are set in the Silverse, an apocalyptic world filled with vampires and zombies.
Josie is the founding editor of indie fantasy magazine Indie Bites (www.silversunbooks.com) and the writer of the urban fantasy podcast Jack Valentine, Vampire Detective (www.jackvalentinepod.com).
She’s currently working on vampire murder mysteries (the Seekers series) and a YA series centred around Atlantis and the lost civilisations of the Mediterranean (the Deluge series). Researching the latter is the first time she’s used her Classics degree since university.
Josie lives in Oxford with her husband and two cats (Sparky and Gussie), who graciously permit human cohabitation in return for regular feeding and cuddles. The resulting cat fluff makes it difficult for Josie to wear black, which is largely why she gave up being a goth. Although the cats are definitely worth it, she still misses her old wardrobe.
Josie is the founding editor of indie fantasy magazine Indie Bites (www.silversunbooks.com) and the writer of the urban fantasy podcast Jack Valentine, Vampire Detective (www.jackvalentinepod.com).
She’s currently working on vampire murder mysteries (the Seekers series) and a YA series centred around Atlantis and the lost civilisations of the Mediterranean (the Deluge series). Researching the latter is the first time she’s used her Classics degree since university.
Josie lives in Oxford with her husband and two cats (Sparky and Gussie), who graciously permit human cohabitation in return for regular feeding and cuddles. The resulting cat fluff makes it difficult for Josie to wear black, which is largely why she gave up being a goth. Although the cats are definitely worth it, she still misses her old wardrobe.
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January 10, 2025
R A T I N G: 4 stars to May Day ! ★ ★ ★ ★
'I'm smarter than that. So why are you back here, haunting my doorstep?'
'Because one day, I'm going to take you down,' I say. 'Youre careful, but you're not perfect. I'll pin something on you eventually. I'm in no rush.'
'You know, there's a thin line between vendetta and obsession. The longer you walk it, the more likely it becomes that you'll end up crossing it, one way or another. So which side are you on?'
'In our long lives we become chimeras several thousand times over, comprised of little pieces of everyone whose blood we have ever drunk. We are a patchwork of DNA.'
Josie Jaffrey is liable to amass a devoted readership, an author sure to compel an avalanche of bellowing supporters. This is an author who cleanly and artfully typifies Indie literature as a design to never trivialise. May Day is a burnished model of the self-publishing hustle.
Plucky, irascible Jack Valentine is the barefaced and brazen lead protagonist in Josie Jaffrey’s first-in-series, May Day. An emotionally-driven dissident to the disciplinarian, she charges hastily at provocation, resistance emancipates her fortitude and she’s as duly unrefined as a dusky rock content to be in the rough. A laid-back attitude may write her off as just another insubordinate with the temper to match, but her stats are stellar, they speak for themselves, and if anyone has the projectile to challenge a tempest, it's this Seeker who has just found herself at the heart of winding conspiracy.
When a dead human is gracelessly dropped from the the heights of Magdalen College School, Jack and her fellow cohorts are there to witness the murder and are first-on-scene to investigate. A grisly slew of public murders pose a head-turning threat and this latest one is no exception. But what worries the vampire community (known as the Silver) is the potential risk to the preservation of Silver life. Exposing and bleeding into the human spotlight could unmask the Silver after a perennial history of covert co-existence.
The Seekers exist to safeguard their time-hallowed and immortal race, and a Seeker though Jack is, she’s not at all in the business of making a sizeable impression on her superiors (at least not a good one). With the Solis Invicti - their sovereign’s established guard - now in immediate partnership with Jack and her division, she’s not about to change up tactics. Her friends and Seeker comrades may have a fine-tuned attention for authority, but her marginal regard for supremacy and its influential gravitas does not go by undisguised. In fact, a new murder you say? If you’ve taken a read of the prequel novella to this series, Killian’s Dead, well, you know who’s fits the bill as a ripe target for Jack…
Armed with venom, a super-sized grudge and an itch to lick her wounds, Jack has pointed all the pincers of her enmity towards one of Oxford’s elite, it’s very Baron. He’s also secured her unending bitterness. She has her own ideas of righteous justice to humour, and if this bizarre investigation enables a personal hunt, let’s just say Killian Drake’s blood comes second to her favourite drink of choice. Just call her a starved Silver, a bloodhound eager to taste the fragrance of his undoing. Because Jack had plastered a price on his head two decades prior and she’s thirsty to lay a claim.
But as her flaws compromise her clarity and the height of this labyrinthine case only becomes leaps more confusing and bounds more threatening, Jack is forced to leaven her hackles for an entirely different reason altogether. And no, he’s not tall, dashingly provocative and imperious. As she did 20 years earlier, Jack is reminded of how wide the powers that be can penetrate, how the powers that be might be the powers at play.
Allying with Drake is about as fun as placing faith in a hornet’s nest, but Jack might have to swap out bad blood for the Baron’s support, and if he’s to possibly endanger his good faith among the Silver, she’ll have to lay down her Drake-whittled acrimony. Doesn’t mean she has to like it, but chipping away at her own credibility isn’t doing her any favours. But as the riddle intensifies, so does the relish of a ill-fitting love triangle. *Cue zesty excitement because I am HERE for this!*
Josie Jaffrey has quickly secured my busybody curiosity and upbeat dependability with May Day. If reading this is anything to go by, which it is, then I can easily call myself a decided admirer of her work after just a one-time read. It’s a hallmark of a great story when you’re inspired enough to pace restlessly for a following installment, not ready to close the cover just yet. So impatient that I sent and a request for the next-in-series. I’m beyond the typical margin of excitement and only making a start on Judgment Day will pacify the craving. :D
Set in Oxford, England, a dwelling for an imperishable race, Jaffrey envisions an atmospheric but deeply down-to-earth chronicle of investigative justice, patriarchal immortality and mystery-condensed guesswork, a whodunnit edged with warped deviance, disturbing perversion and a hapless, hot-blooded love triangle. The layered investigate mystery and the romance itself were both shining parts of this story for me.
Vampire lore isn’t saturated with the heft of its perpetuated stereotype and this isn’t your carbon copy model that sports the same collective vamp quirks. Jaffrey almost bars little difference in human and inhuman behaviour, a deeply human component paints the Silvers and humans as jarringly alike. Sordid sin eludes no race. The author almost strips the unparalleled sense of dominion from the supernova species by placing them on a level plane while simultaneously imbuing them with leverage and cloaked power.
Ironically, the Silver aren’t detectable sore thumbs in an isolated syndicate. They blend, they acclimate and they fit fairly neatly within society. I get the picture that Jaffrey doesn’t strictly invest in the framework of the extraordinary prodigy fated for the phenomenal. Rather, Jack is the unromantic hard-head, inconspicuous by name of the Seeker rank. Thrust into Silver life wasn’t planned and she’s not the exceptional ‘one’ favoured for genius.
She’s driven to call out misdeed and monstrosity. She’s unvarnished. She’s raw. Your average person faced with a situation she can’t ignore. That’s what makes her a rather important lead for this story. That and her unrepressed compulsion. The fear won’t stymie her, her emotional whims conductive to Jack-specific handiwork. An interesting mix of careless and caring. May Day is almost as terrestrial as the day-to-day, spiced with paranormal and grotesque elements. I could easily imagine this story as a real-world script, vampires included!
I’m always up for the off-beat kindling of a good love triangle and you’d be charmed to find an attractive one in May Day. You’ve got the impish, sweetened pathologist, Dr. Tabitha Ross. A trouble-free, incentivising fragrance that gives Jack pipe-dream hopes. A light beam nestled in this grim mystery. Then there’s the sumptuous, charismatic and irksome Killian Drake. Their chemistry is combustible and ferocious, quick to flame and nettle. He might be her personal irritant but he inflames her hypersensitive Silver senses like the darkest variety of molten ore.
The romance excites and inspires! I love the diverse option to integrate both a male and a female love interest. With Jack as a bisexual leading protagonist who engages in same-sex relationships, I can’t liken this to any other fantasy if I’m recalling correctly. I didn’t know if this triangle of love would excite, but gosh am I provoked enough to find out. The meet-cute versus the love-hate, and I think I know who I’m rooting for with an irresistible itch… and because I'm weak in the knees for the edgier, rockier enemies-to-lovers dynamic, Drake is MY silver of choice. Jack's veins might be burning up with straightlaced antagonism for him, but mine are frayed with a different kind of passion.
Jack’s cannon-balling stubbornness makes for a great investigator but not a good subordinate. But with this seemingly inconclusive case spreading wakeless unrest within the Seeker circle, one that only grows more indefinable, the answers may as well fester underground for how reachable they appear. Perhaps that’s what needs to be done though; dig deeper. Good thing Jack works like a spade.
It doesn’t take long for her to accumulate a spate of her own suspicions. Profiling a saboteur and probing the life of a profoundly unsavoury man opens the box that was once dubbed Pandora’s. The truth comes at a healthy price, the price of digging, and though Jack doesn’t have the idle brawn to sit back, she’s not immune to the fear of it. She doesn’t ascribe to blind faith or devout rule, and those just might be her best assets yet.
May Day is an absorbing series starter by Josie Jaffrey. Jaffrey’s urban fantasy is an original and smart first-in-series that crosses a medley of pick-and-mix. A hybrid, intercrossed blend up of a investigative procedural, crime murder mystery, modern urban fantasy and paranormal mystique with vampire mythos that feeds into a complex, duly interesting and almost macabre existence. Jack is nothing if not a hellcat in the face of the time-honoured, prevailing patriarchy. If you like your reads with an interesting slew of characters, compelling groundwork, incriminating intrigue with an operative fit to smite the status quo, this is for you.
It’s true that when glass shatters, the pieces can be too numerous to assemble. Darkness sows the arcane and the cryptic. It can also hide a bounty of secrets as much as pretense can cover a myriad of sins. So when the deeply distasteful crawls out of the Silver woodwork, Jack is not content to let sleeping Silver, nor is she partial to let blood fill the cracks lest it drip from the most worthy. But amid it all, to choose between an artful nightmare or painless daydream makes me a fourth wheel desperate to see this triangle play out. A highly recommendable read!
C O N T E N T W A R N I N G: Abduction, violence, blood, gore, murder, blood drinking, liberal use of f bombs and drinking alcohol. Makes reference to comatose states due to forced drug overdose (including rohypnol), drugging humans, drug use/snorting. Briefly mentions suicide and miscarriage. Sexual assault and rape mentioned retrospectively. Misogynistic attitudes and behaviours.
A big thank you to the author for offering me a copy of May Day in exchange for an honest review!
------------------------------------------
Visit my blog for more reviews: V.L. Book Reviews
T W I T T E R: @VicariousHearts
I N S T A G R A M: @Vicarious.Hearts
------------------------------------------
S O M E_C O N C E R N S:
1) I held quite a bit of reservation for Jack as a protagonist after reading Killian’s Dead - It was a great read but I wasn’t sure if Jack was the type to garner my trust as a reader. I kept asking myself whether she would be a reliable narrator. Her almost manic emotions made me dubious of her level-headed judgement. Jack isn’t known for putting currency in caution and it’s fair to say that she is quite impulse-driven. That being said, she's very unique; chaotic yes, but very relatable in ways a reader may perceive as too close for comfort. I'm excited to see what comes of her in the series, because I can honestly say that I've never read from a protagonist quite like her.
2) We know the Seekers are combat-trained, but for me, I really did want to see some physical combat situations.
'I'm smarter than that. So why are you back here, haunting my doorstep?'
'Because one day, I'm going to take you down,' I say. 'Youre careful, but you're not perfect. I'll pin something on you eventually. I'm in no rush.'
'You know, there's a thin line between vendetta and obsession. The longer you walk it, the more likely it becomes that you'll end up crossing it, one way or another. So which side are you on?'
'In our long lives we become chimeras several thousand times over, comprised of little pieces of everyone whose blood we have ever drunk. We are a patchwork of DNA.'
Josie Jaffrey is liable to amass a devoted readership, an author sure to compel an avalanche of bellowing supporters. This is an author who cleanly and artfully typifies Indie literature as a design to never trivialise. May Day is a burnished model of the self-publishing hustle.
Plucky, irascible Jack Valentine is the barefaced and brazen lead protagonist in Josie Jaffrey’s first-in-series, May Day. An emotionally-driven dissident to the disciplinarian, she charges hastily at provocation, resistance emancipates her fortitude and she’s as duly unrefined as a dusky rock content to be in the rough. A laid-back attitude may write her off as just another insubordinate with the temper to match, but her stats are stellar, they speak for themselves, and if anyone has the projectile to challenge a tempest, it's this Seeker who has just found herself at the heart of winding conspiracy.
When a dead human is gracelessly dropped from the the heights of Magdalen College School, Jack and her fellow cohorts are there to witness the murder and are first-on-scene to investigate. A grisly slew of public murders pose a head-turning threat and this latest one is no exception. But what worries the vampire community (known as the Silver) is the potential risk to the preservation of Silver life. Exposing and bleeding into the human spotlight could unmask the Silver after a perennial history of covert co-existence.
The Seekers exist to safeguard their time-hallowed and immortal race, and a Seeker though Jack is, she’s not at all in the business of making a sizeable impression on her superiors (at least not a good one). With the Solis Invicti - their sovereign’s established guard - now in immediate partnership with Jack and her division, she’s not about to change up tactics. Her friends and Seeker comrades may have a fine-tuned attention for authority, but her marginal regard for supremacy and its influential gravitas does not go by undisguised. In fact, a new murder you say? If you’ve taken a read of the prequel novella to this series, Killian’s Dead, well, you know who’s fits the bill as a ripe target for Jack…
Armed with venom, a super-sized grudge and an itch to lick her wounds, Jack has pointed all the pincers of her enmity towards one of Oxford’s elite, it’s very Baron. He’s also secured her unending bitterness. She has her own ideas of righteous justice to humour, and if this bizarre investigation enables a personal hunt, let’s just say Killian Drake’s blood comes second to her favourite drink of choice. Just call her a starved Silver, a bloodhound eager to taste the fragrance of his undoing. Because Jack had plastered a price on his head two decades prior and she’s thirsty to lay a claim.
But as her flaws compromise her clarity and the height of this labyrinthine case only becomes leaps more confusing and bounds more threatening, Jack is forced to leaven her hackles for an entirely different reason altogether. And no, he’s not tall, dashingly provocative and imperious. As she did 20 years earlier, Jack is reminded of how wide the powers that be can penetrate, how the powers that be might be the powers at play.
Allying with Drake is about as fun as placing faith in a hornet’s nest, but Jack might have to swap out bad blood for the Baron’s support, and if he’s to possibly endanger his good faith among the Silver, she’ll have to lay down her Drake-whittled acrimony. Doesn’t mean she has to like it, but chipping away at her own credibility isn’t doing her any favours. But as the riddle intensifies, so does the relish of a ill-fitting love triangle. *Cue zesty excitement because I am HERE for this!*
Josie Jaffrey has quickly secured my busybody curiosity and upbeat dependability with May Day. If reading this is anything to go by, which it is, then I can easily call myself a decided admirer of her work after just a one-time read. It’s a hallmark of a great story when you’re inspired enough to pace restlessly for a following installment, not ready to close the cover just yet. So impatient that I sent and a request for the next-in-series. I’m beyond the typical margin of excitement and only making a start on Judgment Day will pacify the craving. :D
Set in Oxford, England, a dwelling for an imperishable race, Jaffrey envisions an atmospheric but deeply down-to-earth chronicle of investigative justice, patriarchal immortality and mystery-condensed guesswork, a whodunnit edged with warped deviance, disturbing perversion and a hapless, hot-blooded love triangle. The layered investigate mystery and the romance itself were both shining parts of this story for me.
Vampire lore isn’t saturated with the heft of its perpetuated stereotype and this isn’t your carbon copy model that sports the same collective vamp quirks. Jaffrey almost bars little difference in human and inhuman behaviour, a deeply human component paints the Silvers and humans as jarringly alike. Sordid sin eludes no race. The author almost strips the unparalleled sense of dominion from the supernova species by placing them on a level plane while simultaneously imbuing them with leverage and cloaked power.
Ironically, the Silver aren’t detectable sore thumbs in an isolated syndicate. They blend, they acclimate and they fit fairly neatly within society. I get the picture that Jaffrey doesn’t strictly invest in the framework of the extraordinary prodigy fated for the phenomenal. Rather, Jack is the unromantic hard-head, inconspicuous by name of the Seeker rank. Thrust into Silver life wasn’t planned and she’s not the exceptional ‘one’ favoured for genius.
She’s driven to call out misdeed and monstrosity. She’s unvarnished. She’s raw. Your average person faced with a situation she can’t ignore. That’s what makes her a rather important lead for this story. That and her unrepressed compulsion. The fear won’t stymie her, her emotional whims conductive to Jack-specific handiwork. An interesting mix of careless and caring. May Day is almost as terrestrial as the day-to-day, spiced with paranormal and grotesque elements. I could easily imagine this story as a real-world script, vampires included!
I’m always up for the off-beat kindling of a good love triangle and you’d be charmed to find an attractive one in May Day. You’ve got the impish, sweetened pathologist, Dr. Tabitha Ross. A trouble-free, incentivising fragrance that gives Jack pipe-dream hopes. A light beam nestled in this grim mystery. Then there’s the sumptuous, charismatic and irksome Killian Drake. Their chemistry is combustible and ferocious, quick to flame and nettle. He might be her personal irritant but he inflames her hypersensitive Silver senses like the darkest variety of molten ore.
The romance excites and inspires! I love the diverse option to integrate both a male and a female love interest. With Jack as a bisexual leading protagonist who engages in same-sex relationships, I can’t liken this to any other fantasy if I’m recalling correctly. I didn’t know if this triangle of love would excite, but gosh am I provoked enough to find out. The meet-cute versus the love-hate, and I think I know who I’m rooting for with an irresistible itch… and because I'm weak in the knees for the edgier, rockier enemies-to-lovers dynamic, Drake is MY silver of choice. Jack's veins might be burning up with straightlaced antagonism for him, but mine are frayed with a different kind of passion.
Jack’s cannon-balling stubbornness makes for a great investigator but not a good subordinate. But with this seemingly inconclusive case spreading wakeless unrest within the Seeker circle, one that only grows more indefinable, the answers may as well fester underground for how reachable they appear. Perhaps that’s what needs to be done though; dig deeper. Good thing Jack works like a spade.
It doesn’t take long for her to accumulate a spate of her own suspicions. Profiling a saboteur and probing the life of a profoundly unsavoury man opens the box that was once dubbed Pandora’s. The truth comes at a healthy price, the price of digging, and though Jack doesn’t have the idle brawn to sit back, she’s not immune to the fear of it. She doesn’t ascribe to blind faith or devout rule, and those just might be her best assets yet.
May Day is an absorbing series starter by Josie Jaffrey. Jaffrey’s urban fantasy is an original and smart first-in-series that crosses a medley of pick-and-mix. A hybrid, intercrossed blend up of a investigative procedural, crime murder mystery, modern urban fantasy and paranormal mystique with vampire mythos that feeds into a complex, duly interesting and almost macabre existence. Jack is nothing if not a hellcat in the face of the time-honoured, prevailing patriarchy. If you like your reads with an interesting slew of characters, compelling groundwork, incriminating intrigue with an operative fit to smite the status quo, this is for you.
It’s true that when glass shatters, the pieces can be too numerous to assemble. Darkness sows the arcane and the cryptic. It can also hide a bounty of secrets as much as pretense can cover a myriad of sins. So when the deeply distasteful crawls out of the Silver woodwork, Jack is not content to let sleeping Silver, nor is she partial to let blood fill the cracks lest it drip from the most worthy. But amid it all, to choose between an artful nightmare or painless daydream makes me a fourth wheel desperate to see this triangle play out. A highly recommendable read!
C O N T E N T W A R N I N G: Abduction, violence, blood, gore, murder, blood drinking, liberal use of f bombs and drinking alcohol. Makes reference to comatose states due to forced drug overdose (including rohypnol), drugging humans, drug use/snorting. Briefly mentions suicide and miscarriage. Sexual assault and rape mentioned retrospectively. Misogynistic attitudes and behaviours.
A big thank you to the author for offering me a copy of May Day in exchange for an honest review!
------------------------------------------
Visit my blog for more reviews: V.L. Book Reviews
T W I T T E R: @VicariousHearts
I N S T A G R A M: @Vicarious.Hearts
------------------------------------------
S O M E_C O N C E R N S:
1) I held quite a bit of reservation for Jack as a protagonist after reading Killian’s Dead - It was a great read but I wasn’t sure if Jack was the type to garner my trust as a reader. I kept asking myself whether she would be a reliable narrator. Her almost manic emotions made me dubious of her level-headed judgement. Jack isn’t known for putting currency in caution and it’s fair to say that she is quite impulse-driven. That being said, she's very unique; chaotic yes, but very relatable in ways a reader may perceive as too close for comfort. I'm excited to see what comes of her in the series, because I can honestly say that I've never read from a protagonist quite like her.
2) We know the Seekers are combat-trained, but for me, I really did want to see some physical combat situations.
September 22, 2020
Check out the review on my blog: https://sophsbookworld.wordpress.com/...
Vampires (among angels of course) are one of my favorite creatures in paranormal books and movies. There are so many books about vampires, and I’ve read a lot of them, so I was curious to see if this book was following the usual troupes. But, I was glad to see that it was different.
It follows our main character Jack Valentine, a member of Oxford’s Seekers, who starts an investigation to find a vampire murderer. And although she’s very good at her jobs, the fact that she has to work with the infamous Killian Drake makes her job that much harder.
Jack is a type of heroine I adore, fearless and strong. She doesn’t let anyone put her down but sometimes she lets her guard down and then you can see how self-conscious she actually is. That is mostly when she talks with her crush Tabitha. I love how the author portrays a main character who seems perfect and strong but also has issues.
I haven’t read a lot of books (especially in the fantasy genre) where the main character is bisexual and I love that part here. Although Tabitha might be better for Jack, I really love the toxic chemistry she had with Drake. I’m a fan of hate-to-love romances so I’m interested to see how it’s going to turn out in the next book.
I love the mystery part here even more than the fantasy aspect. It seemed like an episode of Criminal Minds. In the beginning it was a bit similar to Vampire Academy but as the book progressed it took it’s own turn.
In conclusion, this was a very fun book to read. I think it’s the perfect read for the spooky season that’s just around the corner. If you like vampire books (but you’re also fan of mystery) you should definitely check this out!
Vampires (among angels of course) are one of my favorite creatures in paranormal books and movies. There are so many books about vampires, and I’ve read a lot of them, so I was curious to see if this book was following the usual troupes. But, I was glad to see that it was different.
It follows our main character Jack Valentine, a member of Oxford’s Seekers, who starts an investigation to find a vampire murderer. And although she’s very good at her jobs, the fact that she has to work with the infamous Killian Drake makes her job that much harder.
Jack is a type of heroine I adore, fearless and strong. She doesn’t let anyone put her down but sometimes she lets her guard down and then you can see how self-conscious she actually is. That is mostly when she talks with her crush Tabitha. I love how the author portrays a main character who seems perfect and strong but also has issues.
I haven’t read a lot of books (especially in the fantasy genre) where the main character is bisexual and I love that part here. Although Tabitha might be better for Jack, I really love the toxic chemistry she had with Drake. I’m a fan of hate-to-love romances so I’m interested to see how it’s going to turn out in the next book.
I love the mystery part here even more than the fantasy aspect. It seemed like an episode of Criminal Minds. In the beginning it was a bit similar to Vampire Academy but as the book progressed it took it’s own turn.
In conclusion, this was a very fun book to read. I think it’s the perfect read for the spooky season that’s just around the corner. If you like vampire books (but you’re also fan of mystery) you should definitely check this out!
Read
April 15, 2022
‘I’m Jack Valentine and I am fucking untouchable.’
I read Josie's vampire book The Gilded King a while back, and really loved it, so I couldn't wait to dive into this new vampire series. May Day gives me Veronica Mars meets A Discovery of Witches - with a dash of True Blood - vibes.
The book follows Jack Valentine, a tough-talking, expletive-wielding, gin-slinging vampire detective still mourning the loss of her girlfriend years before. She blames one Killian Drake, and when a murder case in Oxford leads the Seekers – the vampire investigators- to him, Jack is all too happy to pin the death on Drake. Very quickly, however, she realises that nothing is what it seems. Not even Drake.
The characterisations in this story are done so well, and I really enjoyed the dynamics between everyone, especially Jack and Killian. BRING ON BOOK TWO, YO!
Jaffrey paints a vivid world inside our modern one and you can’t help but fall face first into the Silvers and their mysteries!
Buddy read this book with The Book Trove. We’re hoping to shine some attention on independent books and authors. These books are picked totally at random and selected by vote amongst the group.
Thank you to the author for an ARC.
☆ Blog | Twitter ☆
I read Josie's vampire book The Gilded King a while back, and really loved it, so I couldn't wait to dive into this new vampire series. May Day gives me Veronica Mars meets A Discovery of Witches - with a dash of True Blood - vibes.
The book follows Jack Valentine, a tough-talking, expletive-wielding, gin-slinging vampire detective still mourning the loss of her girlfriend years before. She blames one Killian Drake, and when a murder case in Oxford leads the Seekers – the vampire investigators- to him, Jack is all too happy to pin the death on Drake. Very quickly, however, she realises that nothing is what it seems. Not even Drake.
The characterisations in this story are done so well, and I really enjoyed the dynamics between everyone, especially Jack and Killian. BRING ON BOOK TWO, YO!
Jaffrey paints a vivid world inside our modern one and you can’t help but fall face first into the Silvers and their mysteries!
Buddy read this book with The Book Trove. We’re hoping to shine some attention on independent books and authors. These books are picked totally at random and selected by vote amongst the group.
Thank you to the author for an ARC.
☆ Blog | Twitter ☆
July 9, 2020
This review can also be found on my blog: https://phanniethegingerbookworm.word...
DISCLAIMER: A review copy of this book has been sent to me by the author/publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own!
We follow Jack, a fierce, bi-sexual Seeker and a badass at her job. She is a vampire for 20 years now and wants to show everyone that she’s capable. Which she is if I may add that. She has to solve a murder case which is a pretty messed up one. Jack Valentine wants to frame the Baron of Oxford, however, she soon discovers that he has nothing to do with the case. So who murdered the victim? That’s for you to find out!
I loved Jack. She was a funny narrator and I loved reading everything from her point of view. I also liked the authors writing style. Especially her way of describing the characters. It was fascinating.
Sometimes I found the pace to be too slow but it didn’t disturb me as much because we got to follow the case in real-time. I don’t know if I made myself clear, but we got every information needed to solve the case at the same time Jack and her colleagues did. But the suspense was still there which is why the slow pace didn’t disturb me at all.
Last but not least I loved the world-building and now I have to wait impatiently for book 2 to come out!
Overall, if you love vampires and you love a badass (female) main character, then this is your book!
DISCLAIMER: A review copy of this book has been sent to me by the author/publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own!
We follow Jack, a fierce, bi-sexual Seeker and a badass at her job. She is a vampire for 20 years now and wants to show everyone that she’s capable. Which she is if I may add that. She has to solve a murder case which is a pretty messed up one. Jack Valentine wants to frame the Baron of Oxford, however, she soon discovers that he has nothing to do with the case. So who murdered the victim? That’s for you to find out!
I loved Jack. She was a funny narrator and I loved reading everything from her point of view. I also liked the authors writing style. Especially her way of describing the characters. It was fascinating.
Sometimes I found the pace to be too slow but it didn’t disturb me as much because we got to follow the case in real-time. I don’t know if I made myself clear, but we got every information needed to solve the case at the same time Jack and her colleagues did. But the suspense was still there which is why the slow pace didn’t disturb me at all.
Last but not least I loved the world-building and now I have to wait impatiently for book 2 to come out!
Overall, if you love vampires and you love a badass (female) main character, then this is your book!
August 22, 2020
"i go after what I want. I'm not going to apologise for doing what millions of men do every single day without criticism, just because the world expects women to be nice" - Killian's Dead 🧛🏻
Thank you to Josie for kindly gifting me with an ARC of her latest novel, May Day, and also the prequel novella, Killian's Dead, to read and review.
If the murderer you’re tracking is a vampire, then you want a vampire detective. Just maybe not this one.
This book follows Jack Valentine, who is the youngest member of Oxford's Seekers with an impressive track record. When a human turns up dead on May Morning, Jack is determined to pin the blame on her worst enemy Killian Drake. However, when the evidence isn't pointing in Killian's direction, she realises she's actually going to have to enlist his help to figure out who the murderer was.
Josie's writing blows me away every time I pick one of her books up. I adore the Silver-verse (that's what I'm calling it now 😂) that Josie has created and I love coming back to it. Although very self-destructive and insecure of those around her, Jack is a sassy sexy vampire and I adore everything about her. Killian blows my mind and I absolutely have the hots for him, I hope we get more of him in the sequel. I need and want more from Jack and Killian's situationship and I need it immediately. 😅
If you're looking for sexy, hot, adult vampire stories from an indie author, then look no further. The Solis Invicti series, Sovereign series and now the Seekers series will give you all you want and more!
I gave Killian's Dead 4🌟 and May Day a massive 5🌟. As always Josie, an absolute pleasure to read your work. 😍
Thank you to Josie for kindly gifting me with an ARC of her latest novel, May Day, and also the prequel novella, Killian's Dead, to read and review.
If the murderer you’re tracking is a vampire, then you want a vampire detective. Just maybe not this one.
This book follows Jack Valentine, who is the youngest member of Oxford's Seekers with an impressive track record. When a human turns up dead on May Morning, Jack is determined to pin the blame on her worst enemy Killian Drake. However, when the evidence isn't pointing in Killian's direction, she realises she's actually going to have to enlist his help to figure out who the murderer was.
Josie's writing blows me away every time I pick one of her books up. I adore the Silver-verse (that's what I'm calling it now 😂) that Josie has created and I love coming back to it. Although very self-destructive and insecure of those around her, Jack is a sassy sexy vampire and I adore everything about her. Killian blows my mind and I absolutely have the hots for him, I hope we get more of him in the sequel. I need and want more from Jack and Killian's situationship and I need it immediately. 😅
If you're looking for sexy, hot, adult vampire stories from an indie author, then look no further. The Solis Invicti series, Sovereign series and now the Seekers series will give you all you want and more!
I gave Killian's Dead 4🌟 and May Day a massive 5🌟. As always Josie, an absolute pleasure to read your work. 😍
April 16, 2022
So dear reader, I am going to employ the device of honesty when I am talking about this book, and I beg that you stay with me until we get to the end. There may be a twist, something that you don’t expect, but there will be an end. There may be a few revelations along the way, but I beg you please stay with me.
Right, let’s sit in the pulpit and confess everything conspiratorially. You see, when I came to May Day on my TBR. I wasn’t sure that I was going to fancy it to be honest. You see, reading the blurb it started my internal reader alarm bells ringing. There was quite a few ticks registering on my internal checklist that generally sends me scooting off in the opposite direction. You see, when I read the blurb, the first thing that I noticed was THE ROMANCE! When I see this, my inner ten year old pops his head up and says with a euchh face ‘Is there kissing in it?’ ‘Well, what do you think?’ I said to him.
He just went off and sulked muttering something about swords and dragons.
Then to my horror of horrors, there was a love triangle!
Right, no way! This is a step too far! I don’t do love triangles. I mean love triangles mean that we are building a romance bleeding sandwich doesn’t it?
And I can’t say that I am really bothered about Vampires, unless they are done well and they surprise me. You see after *mumble mumble* amount of years watching every vampire film and reading goodness knows how many books, I didn’t think that there was anything that would surprise me. And, when it comes to crime fiction and urban fantasy, I am a little so – so. In fact, my Mrs bans me from watching any sort of crime fiction due to the fact that I sit there annoyingly convicting everyone (even the budgerigar) of the murder, shouting out at regular intervals that he did it, she did it and that it might have been the horse, aggrieved for not get a scrumptious apple that morning who had then gone into the kitchen drawer and stolen its owners favourite vegetable knife and savagely offed its owner.
So you see, it was not on my top fancy list.
So there we have it! By the end of this, you will be thinking ‘why the heck did you read this book then?’
Weeeelllll. I was having a bit of trouble with my last book so I thought I would be brave and have a look inside.
Aaaand as soon as I read the line ‘Let me tell you the problem with university students: they’re stupid as f*@k’ my inner snark meter was hitting eleventy stupid and I was hooked!
I literally inhaled this book and finished it in two days, not being able to put it down until I got right to the very end.
I was intrigued by the murder mystery. I loved Jack Valentine and the rest of the characters.
I oohed and aahed at the developing romance between Jack and Tabitha (even though jack did have some pretty naughty thoughts towards Tabitha). I smacked my hand on my forehead when there was all those shenanigans with Killian Drake, the Baron of Oxford. I really liked the stuff that Josie Jaffrey brought with the vampires, the lore and the vampire police force.
One of the things that kept me interested was Josie Jaffrey’s writing, with its snappy dialogue, and the fast pace that she maintained all the way through the book.
In fact, this book was the perfect breath of fresh air that I didn’t know that I needed.
(Told you there would be a twist at the end, didn’t I?)
And yes, I did blame the horse (and don’t tell me there isn’t one in there coz I know there was one in there! It was hiding in the pantry waiting for its chance to strike with its trusty vegetable knife!)
Right, let’s sit in the pulpit and confess everything conspiratorially. You see, when I came to May Day on my TBR. I wasn’t sure that I was going to fancy it to be honest. You see, reading the blurb it started my internal reader alarm bells ringing. There was quite a few ticks registering on my internal checklist that generally sends me scooting off in the opposite direction. You see, when I read the blurb, the first thing that I noticed was THE ROMANCE! When I see this, my inner ten year old pops his head up and says with a euchh face ‘Is there kissing in it?’ ‘Well, what do you think?’ I said to him.
He just went off and sulked muttering something about swords and dragons.
Then to my horror of horrors, there was a love triangle!
Right, no way! This is a step too far! I don’t do love triangles. I mean love triangles mean that we are building a romance bleeding sandwich doesn’t it?
And I can’t say that I am really bothered about Vampires, unless they are done well and they surprise me. You see after *mumble mumble* amount of years watching every vampire film and reading goodness knows how many books, I didn’t think that there was anything that would surprise me. And, when it comes to crime fiction and urban fantasy, I am a little so – so. In fact, my Mrs bans me from watching any sort of crime fiction due to the fact that I sit there annoyingly convicting everyone (even the budgerigar) of the murder, shouting out at regular intervals that he did it, she did it and that it might have been the horse, aggrieved for not get a scrumptious apple that morning who had then gone into the kitchen drawer and stolen its owners favourite vegetable knife and savagely offed its owner.
So you see, it was not on my top fancy list.
So there we have it! By the end of this, you will be thinking ‘why the heck did you read this book then?’
Weeeelllll. I was having a bit of trouble with my last book so I thought I would be brave and have a look inside.
Aaaand as soon as I read the line ‘Let me tell you the problem with university students: they’re stupid as f*@k’ my inner snark meter was hitting eleventy stupid and I was hooked!
I literally inhaled this book and finished it in two days, not being able to put it down until I got right to the very end.
I was intrigued by the murder mystery. I loved Jack Valentine and the rest of the characters.
I oohed and aahed at the developing romance between Jack and Tabitha (even though jack did have some pretty naughty thoughts towards Tabitha). I smacked my hand on my forehead when there was all those shenanigans with Killian Drake, the Baron of Oxford. I really liked the stuff that Josie Jaffrey brought with the vampires, the lore and the vampire police force.
One of the things that kept me interested was Josie Jaffrey’s writing, with its snappy dialogue, and the fast pace that she maintained all the way through the book.
In fact, this book was the perfect breath of fresh air that I didn’t know that I needed.
(Told you there would be a twist at the end, didn’t I?)
And yes, I did blame the horse (and don’t tell me there isn’t one in there coz I know there was one in there! It was hiding in the pantry waiting for its chance to strike with its trusty vegetable knife!)
September 27, 2020
Published first on my blog: Papertea & Bookflowers
Firstly, I want to mention that I really appreciate Josie adding content warnings in the back of her book! I’d love more authors to do that. So definitely bonus points here.
But let’s start with the actual story, shall we? And oh boy, did I enjoy reading May Day! Actually, I loved it! It was the perfect book to read this last few days. With me currently writing my thesis and having a lot of other organizing stuff to do for Uni I was a stressed little cupcake and reading May Day was so relaxing and addicting and I’m in love!
Jack Valentine is an interesting character. She’s determined, stubborn and has a vendetta. I can totally see why people may not like her, but surprisingly enough I did, right from the start. And she only grew more and more on me. She is a little whiny sometimes, has no care for hierarchy or authority, a great appreciation for gin and really bad impulse control. In short, she is a bit of a disaster. And I’m here for it.
While May Day has a romance subplot (that I really enjoyed, but more later) it has also a really nice friendship that made me smile multiple times. Cam is the sunshine to Jack’s grumpiness and they work so well together. We don’t get too many scenes with them both, but the ones we do get are really showing how well they work together. They bicker and tease each other, but also talk about their relationship problems (or don’t talk about them … )
I quite liked Cam. He has a bit of his own relationship trouble but we don’t really go into depth with him and Ed. So I didn’t connect to that part really. The same with Naia, I find that I actually don’t really care for her. She is one of Jack’s colleagues and the more I read about her the less I liked her. The reverse happened with Ed and Boyd. I didn’t really care about either of them until we get some more little snippets about their personalities and then I instantly liked them. Ed and his love for his petri-dishes and not understanding that others might not share the same interest (moodTM) and Boys and his anti-social personality and not being good with people (again, moodTM)
There were a lot of minor characters where it was really interesting to see Jack (and Cam) interacting with them and see how the dynamics change. I thought that was really very well done.
And when we are already talking about changing dynamics … I loooved how the relationship with Killian Drake and Jack evolved and changed constantly throughout the book. The love triangle between Jack, Dr Tabitha Ross and Killian Drake was one I actually really liked. It was well done and didn’t feel unnecessarily dramatic (largely because of Tabitha and how she handled everything!!) and I love all three of them. Tabitha and Killian are so different and I’m all for how the book ended in regard to those three.
Buuuut the book isn’t all relationships, far from it. The mystery is incredibly intriguing and just gets more and more complicated, convoluted and frankly … dangerous. I’m living for it. (Lately, I’m really into mysteries again!) The resolution worked perfectly with everything and I definitely didn’t guess it. If you’ve already read Josie’s other series The Gilded King than you are already familiar with the Silvers like I am. But I really enjoyed getting to know them, the Seekers and the Solis Invicti in this modern-day setting. How their justice system works, what is actually illegal and what the punishments are.
The writing flows very well and I didn’t want to put the book down. (I actually tried reading while eating but it proved difficult … my roommate can attest to that. Although it was quite the nice workout for my little finger. Poor thing had to hold the book open on its own)
I’m a little miffed at the fact that there is no sequel yet because the end made me so giddy to continue! What would I give for being able to continue right now!!!
Firstly, I want to mention that I really appreciate Josie adding content warnings in the back of her book! I’d love more authors to do that. So definitely bonus points here.
But let’s start with the actual story, shall we? And oh boy, did I enjoy reading May Day! Actually, I loved it! It was the perfect book to read this last few days. With me currently writing my thesis and having a lot of other organizing stuff to do for Uni I was a stressed little cupcake and reading May Day was so relaxing and addicting and I’m in love!
Jack Valentine is an interesting character. She’s determined, stubborn and has a vendetta. I can totally see why people may not like her, but surprisingly enough I did, right from the start. And she only grew more and more on me. She is a little whiny sometimes, has no care for hierarchy or authority, a great appreciation for gin and really bad impulse control. In short, she is a bit of a disaster. And I’m here for it.
“Alright Valentine”, he says, “Whatever you say. I suppose you are going to storm out again now?”
“You suppose right.”
I lift my chin and do exactly that.
While May Day has a romance subplot (that I really enjoyed, but more later) it has also a really nice friendship that made me smile multiple times. Cam is the sunshine to Jack’s grumpiness and they work so well together. We don’t get too many scenes with them both, but the ones we do get are really showing how well they work together. They bicker and tease each other, but also talk about their relationship problems (or don’t talk about them … )
I quite liked Cam. He has a bit of his own relationship trouble but we don’t really go into depth with him and Ed. So I didn’t connect to that part really. The same with Naia, I find that I actually don’t really care for her. She is one of Jack’s colleagues and the more I read about her the less I liked her. The reverse happened with Ed and Boyd. I didn’t really care about either of them until we get some more little snippets about their personalities and then I instantly liked them. Ed and his love for his petri-dishes and not understanding that others might not share the same interest (moodTM) and Boys and his anti-social personality and not being good with people (again, moodTM)
There were a lot of minor characters where it was really interesting to see Jack (and Cam) interacting with them and see how the dynamics change. I thought that was really very well done.
And when we are already talking about changing dynamics … I loooved how the relationship with Killian Drake and Jack evolved and changed constantly throughout the book. The love triangle between Jack, Dr Tabitha Ross and Killian Drake was one I actually really liked. It was well done and didn’t feel unnecessarily dramatic (largely because of Tabitha and how she handled everything!!) and I love all three of them. Tabitha and Killian are so different and I’m all for how the book ended in regard to those three.
Buuuut the book isn’t all relationships, far from it. The mystery is incredibly intriguing and just gets more and more complicated, convoluted and frankly … dangerous. I’m living for it. (Lately, I’m really into mysteries again!) The resolution worked perfectly with everything and I definitely didn’t guess it. If you’ve already read Josie’s other series The Gilded King than you are already familiar with the Silvers like I am. But I really enjoyed getting to know them, the Seekers and the Solis Invicti in this modern-day setting. How their justice system works, what is actually illegal and what the punishments are.
The writing flows very well and I didn’t want to put the book down. (I actually tried reading while eating but it proved difficult … my roommate can attest to that. Although it was quite the nice workout for my little finger. Poor thing had to hold the book open on its own)
I’m a little miffed at the fact that there is no sequel yet because the end made me so giddy to continue! What would I give for being able to continue right now!!!
September 17, 2020
4.5
Book source ~ Tour
Jacquelyn ”Jack” Valentine was 18 when she was turned into a vampire. Or Silver as they are called here. For 20 years she’s been working as a Seeker in Oxford. Seekers are part of the Silver police force and their job is to keep other Silver from bringing attention to their community. Humans are not supposed to know about Silver. Period. When a human is killed by a Silver in a very public manner (and not the first in a series of murders) the Oxford Seekers are on it. Then the London higher ups come to town and take over because they believe the murder is tied to their cases from London. Or is it? There is some shady shit going on and Jack’s team is stuck stepping in it.
Vampire detective isn’t a new thing, but who says it has to be new to be good? Jack is a great character. Brilliant at ferreting out clues and putting them together, but totally self-destructive personally. What a mess she is. And her hatred for the Oxford Baron, Killian Drake, is single-minded to the point of career suicide. Killian is a great villain, if you want to call him that. I’m not really sure at this point if he’s on anyone’s side except his own long-lived self. He’s fascinating and irritating.
There is some serious underhanded crap going on. There’s intrigue and mystery galore. There’s the whole who-can-you-trust paranoia. There’s also a murder to solve. And the icing on the cake is the personal life of Jack and how she just careens through her days and nights doing her job and making a mess of her personal life. She’s like a train wreck you can’t look away from and it’s glorious. I mean, a train wreck isn’t glorious. It’s just that Jack is a hot mess. Hell, you know what I mean. Anyway, to top it all off with a giant cherry is that ending. Holy shit. I can’t wait to grab book 2 when it comes out.
Book source ~ Tour
Jacquelyn ”Jack” Valentine was 18 when she was turned into a vampire. Or Silver as they are called here. For 20 years she’s been working as a Seeker in Oxford. Seekers are part of the Silver police force and their job is to keep other Silver from bringing attention to their community. Humans are not supposed to know about Silver. Period. When a human is killed by a Silver in a very public manner (and not the first in a series of murders) the Oxford Seekers are on it. Then the London higher ups come to town and take over because they believe the murder is tied to their cases from London. Or is it? There is some shady shit going on and Jack’s team is stuck stepping in it.
Vampire detective isn’t a new thing, but who says it has to be new to be good? Jack is a great character. Brilliant at ferreting out clues and putting them together, but totally self-destructive personally. What a mess she is. And her hatred for the Oxford Baron, Killian Drake, is single-minded to the point of career suicide. Killian is a great villain, if you want to call him that. I’m not really sure at this point if he’s on anyone’s side except his own long-lived self. He’s fascinating and irritating.
There is some serious underhanded crap going on. There’s intrigue and mystery galore. There’s the whole who-can-you-trust paranoia. There’s also a murder to solve. And the icing on the cake is the personal life of Jack and how she just careens through her days and nights doing her job and making a mess of her personal life. She’s like a train wreck you can’t look away from and it’s glorious. I mean, a train wreck isn’t glorious. It’s just that Jack is a hot mess. Hell, you know what I mean. Anyway, to top it all off with a giant cherry is that ending. Holy shit. I can’t wait to grab book 2 when it comes out.
June 29, 2020
Full Review:
https://thecaffeinatedreader.com/2020...
4.5/5
Jack Valentine is part of the Seekers now that she’s a vampire, well, she has been for 20 years but that’s still barely a blink to the vampires.
Working in Oxford, the job is easy enough, they’re not cops, they’re just there to make sure that no vampire goes rogue and breaks their cover. Such as throwing a body drained of blood into a crowded Uni event.
When something like that occurs, well, her and the other seekers are on the case. Valentine though feels this one is connected to them all in a way that suggests a sort of ‘corruption’ that hasn’t been considered before. When things start to click, who can she trust with the truth, especially when the truth doesn’t matter in her world?
All through the investigation, Jack also has her eye on Killian Drake, the Baron vampire of Oxford. She has held a grudge against him since the night she was turned, but does he really have something to do with all this?
While the book is chockfull of stuff, some may find the pacing slow, I didn’t particularly have that problem but I also enjoy slow-paced books anyway. The last third did seem to get a bit bogged down, I just wanted to know who did it, but man that ending!
I give this 4.5 cups of coffee. Thank you so much to Josie Jaffrey for sending me an ARC of this in exchange for my honest opinion.
https://thecaffeinatedreader.com/2020...
4.5/5
Jack Valentine is part of the Seekers now that she’s a vampire, well, she has been for 20 years but that’s still barely a blink to the vampires.
Working in Oxford, the job is easy enough, they’re not cops, they’re just there to make sure that no vampire goes rogue and breaks their cover. Such as throwing a body drained of blood into a crowded Uni event.
When something like that occurs, well, her and the other seekers are on the case. Valentine though feels this one is connected to them all in a way that suggests a sort of ‘corruption’ that hasn’t been considered before. When things start to click, who can she trust with the truth, especially when the truth doesn’t matter in her world?
All through the investigation, Jack also has her eye on Killian Drake, the Baron vampire of Oxford. She has held a grudge against him since the night she was turned, but does he really have something to do with all this?
While the book is chockfull of stuff, some may find the pacing slow, I didn’t particularly have that problem but I also enjoy slow-paced books anyway. The last third did seem to get a bit bogged down, I just wanted to know who did it, but man that ending!
I give this 4.5 cups of coffee. Thank you so much to Josie Jaffrey for sending me an ARC of this in exchange for my honest opinion.
September 21, 2020
Trigger warning: Abuse | Sexual Assault (mentioned) | Rape (Mentioned) | Drugged | Mentioned Miscarriage | Gore | Mentioned Suicide.
It started as a curious journey on what a detective vampire would be like... and i was amazingly surprised when i met jack valentine... boy did i fall in love with her, with her sass, with her raging hormones and more than that her hate/love relationship with Killian Drake (one of the best parts in the book... i swear you can cut the sexual tension with a knife)
There are parts where the story slowed down and i wanted to rush to get to the parts am waiting for but honestly i didn't feel the passing of time.... i kept giggling, had my mouth drop at certain points and slightly frustrated at certain parts (only cause i was anticipating something but the author just teased me mercilessly).
I really can't wait fort he next book to see what would happen as Jack continues with her work and her attempts at avoiding a certain person ^^
Highly recommend this book if you are interested about vampires, enjoy diving head first into mysteries and love a hate/love relationship.
It started as a curious journey on what a detective vampire would be like... and i was amazingly surprised when i met jack valentine... boy did i fall in love with her, with her sass, with her raging hormones and more than that her hate/love relationship with Killian Drake (one of the best parts in the book... i swear you can cut the sexual tension with a knife)
There are parts where the story slowed down and i wanted to rush to get to the parts am waiting for but honestly i didn't feel the passing of time.... i kept giggling, had my mouth drop at certain points and slightly frustrated at certain parts (only cause i was anticipating something but the author just teased me mercilessly).
I really can't wait fort he next book to see what would happen as Jack continues with her work and her attempts at avoiding a certain person ^^
Highly recommend this book if you are interested about vampires, enjoy diving head first into mysteries and love a hate/love relationship.
April 15, 2022
I can see why it won the Book Bloggers Novel of the Year Award.
One of the best indie books I have read in a long time.
Is May Day a detective story? Is it a paranormal thriller? Another ‘sexy vampires kicking butt story’? Well, put simply, its all of the above and more. There may be a lot of tropes but they are done very well - and, you know, tropes are tropes for a reason - they are often very good to read!
I really loved Jack. She is a real badass with a lot of attitude. Teaming up with Drake she is taking on the immortal patriarchy in this fast paced detective story/paranormal romance/sexy badass vampires kicking butt opener to the ‘Seekers’ series.
Put simply, if you love sexy vampires and badass female leads you are pretty much guaranteed to love May Day
I got this book for free as part of a BBNYA/TheWriteReads tour.
One of the best indie books I have read in a long time.
Is May Day a detective story? Is it a paranormal thriller? Another ‘sexy vampires kicking butt story’? Well, put simply, its all of the above and more. There may be a lot of tropes but they are done very well - and, you know, tropes are tropes for a reason - they are often very good to read!
I really loved Jack. She is a real badass with a lot of attitude. Teaming up with Drake she is taking on the immortal patriarchy in this fast paced detective story/paranormal romance/sexy badass vampires kicking butt opener to the ‘Seekers’ series.
Put simply, if you love sexy vampires and badass female leads you are pretty much guaranteed to love May Day
I got this book for free as part of a BBNYA/TheWriteReads tour.
August 31, 2020
3.5 Stars.
RTC.
In the meantime, see my blog for other reviews :)
The Book in Hand Blog
RTC.
In the meantime, see my blog for other reviews :)
The Book in Hand Blog
July 20, 2020
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to the author and to the editor
I have one of the other series by this author on my wishlist and so when I found the opportunity to read for review this title I was really curious and I just had to request it! It is true that my expectations were quite high, and that my hard to please mood is persistent and won't let me alone, so in the end, I didn't enjoy it as much as I was hoping, but it was an enjoyable reading nonetheless.
The starting was quite slow, and I wasn't so invested in it, but then things really picked up for me with "Killian fucking Drake" (I am quoting our MC here, who has quite the attitude and strong opinions about poor poor Killian!).
He added something to the story, a bit of spicy and I really liked him as a character. It is not that Valentine is a bad MC, she is strong-willed, determined, she has a mind of her own and she doesn't fear to tell you what she is thinking. And usually, I would fell for a character like her but... But she was lacking something.
And I can say the same for Cam. He is one of the secondary characters, that's true, but we see a lot of him around and I would have loved for him to feel more real to me. Both Valentine and Cam are lacking some sparks, something that would make them feel more like people than characters in a book.
The spark wasn't missing in Killian, although. He felt more real than all the other characters and he was my favorite thing in the entire book!
And speaking about favorite, this book quotes The Rocky Horror Picture Show! I was just so happy when I read this:
"Come on out to the lab. See what's on the slab"
My internal fangirl was screaming and jumping around. I liked Tabitha and this was just the cherry on the top!
And the plot was intriguing. The mystery part was interesting and well developed, and the things are way bigger than they seem, it put in motion a lot of things for the sequel, but we get closure on the case, and this was unexpected, in some ways, but it makes me happy. And that's not to say that I doubted the author or that the story is not well developed. It is just that the murder they are investigating here is tied to a lot of things, bigger things, and so I wasn't sure we would get some end, but hey! We did, yay!
Another weak point is the worldbuilding. This is an urban fantasy, so I wasn't expecting something really peculiar, and it is not poorly done, but... there is something lacking in there, too. We get to see how the Silver (vampires) are and how their society and culture works but... but I was hoping for something more.
All in all it was a fast read, with some good moments and interesting characters, but I was hoping for something more compelling, and I wasn't as invested in the book as much as I was hoping. It is not a bad start for a series, but it wasn't the best possible, either. I don't know if I would continue this series. On one hand I am curious to see more of Killian, on the other... well, as I was saying I wasn't so invested in all of that so I think I would wait a bit before taking a decision.
I have one of the other series by this author on my wishlist and so when I found the opportunity to read for review this title I was really curious and I just had to request it! It is true that my expectations were quite high, and that my hard to please mood is persistent and won't let me alone, so in the end, I didn't enjoy it as much as I was hoping, but it was an enjoyable reading nonetheless.
The starting was quite slow, and I wasn't so invested in it, but then things really picked up for me with "Killian fucking Drake" (I am quoting our MC here, who has quite the attitude and strong opinions about poor poor Killian!).
He added something to the story, a bit of spicy and I really liked him as a character. It is not that Valentine is a bad MC, she is strong-willed, determined, she has a mind of her own and she doesn't fear to tell you what she is thinking. And usually, I would fell for a character like her but... But she was lacking something.
And I can say the same for Cam. He is one of the secondary characters, that's true, but we see a lot of him around and I would have loved for him to feel more real to me. Both Valentine and Cam are lacking some sparks, something that would make them feel more like people than characters in a book.
The spark wasn't missing in Killian, although. He felt more real than all the other characters and he was my favorite thing in the entire book!
And speaking about favorite, this book quotes The Rocky Horror Picture Show! I was just so happy when I read this:
"Come on out to the lab. See what's on the slab"
My internal fangirl was screaming and jumping around. I liked Tabitha and this was just the cherry on the top!
And the plot was intriguing. The mystery part was interesting and well developed, and the things are way bigger than they seem, it put in motion a lot of things for the sequel, but we get closure on the case, and this was unexpected, in some ways, but it makes me happy. And that's not to say that I doubted the author or that the story is not well developed. It is just that the murder they are investigating here is tied to a lot of things, bigger things, and so I wasn't sure we would get some end, but hey! We did, yay!
Another weak point is the worldbuilding. This is an urban fantasy, so I wasn't expecting something really peculiar, and it is not poorly done, but... there is something lacking in there, too. We get to see how the Silver (vampires) are and how their society and culture works but... but I was hoping for something more.
All in all it was a fast read, with some good moments and interesting characters, but I was hoping for something more compelling, and I wasn't as invested in the book as much as I was hoping. It is not a bad start for a series, but it wasn't the best possible, either. I don't know if I would continue this series. On one hand I am curious to see more of Killian, on the other... well, as I was saying I wasn't so invested in all of that so I think I would wait a bit before taking a decision.
September 20, 2020
*4.5 star but rounding up*
Before I even start talking about the book, I want to say how impressed I was to find that before the story begins, it tells you that there is a full list of content warnings in the back of the book. I think more books need to do this! I particularly liked that they had been put at the back, because people who don’t want to read trigger warnings could easily avoid them, but they were still there for those who do want to read them.
Now, on to the story. From the very beginning, the story piques your interest. I have always been a fan of Vampire stories, but a Vampire being hunted down by Seekers (Vampire detectives), for murder, while they all try to avoid being discovered by humans? THAT is my sort of story! The events of the murder leave you desperate to dive in to the investigation, and get some answers.
Jack Valentine is a brilliant protagonist. She takes no shit, she’s funny, sarcastic, and she doesn’t always stick to the rules, which often gets her in to trouble, but she doesn’t care as long as it gets the job done. She also has a very interesting way with words, and “particularly wanky breed of wanker” is possibly my new favourite insult.
There did seem to be more focus on Jack’s romantic relationships than the case (although in some situations, they were connected), but despite the fact that I’m not a huge romance fan, I did enjoyed this aspect of the book. Her relationships were confusing, exciting, and unpredictable. It was made much more interesting with the love triangle element, and I really don’t know who I want Jack to end up with more, and to be honest, I don’t think she knows herself.
The case itself is a bit of a slow burner, but that in no way hinders the story. There are so many complex elements to it to keep you invested, and you won’t be able to stop thinking about it, or trying to figure it out for yourself. I still was not expecting that ending, it kept me on the edge of my seat, and I was thoroughly entertained. It also sets you up perfectly for the next book of the series.
May Day was intense, exciting, and exactly the type of book I was looking for. It also had quite a lot of LGBTQ+ rep. This was my first time reading anything by Josie Jaffrey, but it certainly won’t be my last. I love her writing style, and I can’t wait to continue this series!
Once again, a huge thank you to Dave @ The Write Reads, and Josie Jaffrey for allowing me to be a part of the tour, and providing me with a copy of the book, in exchange for an honest review.
I give May Day a 4.5 star rating!
Before I even start talking about the book, I want to say how impressed I was to find that before the story begins, it tells you that there is a full list of content warnings in the back of the book. I think more books need to do this! I particularly liked that they had been put at the back, because people who don’t want to read trigger warnings could easily avoid them, but they were still there for those who do want to read them.
Now, on to the story. From the very beginning, the story piques your interest. I have always been a fan of Vampire stories, but a Vampire being hunted down by Seekers (Vampire detectives), for murder, while they all try to avoid being discovered by humans? THAT is my sort of story! The events of the murder leave you desperate to dive in to the investigation, and get some answers.
Jack Valentine is a brilliant protagonist. She takes no shit, she’s funny, sarcastic, and she doesn’t always stick to the rules, which often gets her in to trouble, but she doesn’t care as long as it gets the job done. She also has a very interesting way with words, and “particularly wanky breed of wanker” is possibly my new favourite insult.
There did seem to be more focus on Jack’s romantic relationships than the case (although in some situations, they were connected), but despite the fact that I’m not a huge romance fan, I did enjoyed this aspect of the book. Her relationships were confusing, exciting, and unpredictable. It was made much more interesting with the love triangle element, and I really don’t know who I want Jack to end up with more, and to be honest, I don’t think she knows herself.
The case itself is a bit of a slow burner, but that in no way hinders the story. There are so many complex elements to it to keep you invested, and you won’t be able to stop thinking about it, or trying to figure it out for yourself. I still was not expecting that ending, it kept me on the edge of my seat, and I was thoroughly entertained. It also sets you up perfectly for the next book of the series.
May Day was intense, exciting, and exactly the type of book I was looking for. It also had quite a lot of LGBTQ+ rep. This was my first time reading anything by Josie Jaffrey, but it certainly won’t be my last. I love her writing style, and I can’t wait to continue this series!
Once again, a huge thank you to Dave @ The Write Reads, and Josie Jaffrey for allowing me to be a part of the tour, and providing me with a copy of the book, in exchange for an honest review.
I give May Day a 4.5 star rating!
August 31, 2020
Thank you to Josie Jaffrey for the review copy in exchange for an honest review. This does not change my opinion in anyway.
Trigger/Content Warnings: Abuse | Sexual Assault (mentioned) | Rape (Mentioned) | Drugged | Mentioned Miscarriage | Gore | Mentioned Suicide
Josie Jaffrey has been an author on my list (I have The Gilded King) so when I got the chance to read May Day I was right on board for that. I was slightly hesitant because vampires can be such a hit or miss for me, but in the end I enjoyed this book all the same.
This book follows Jack Valentine, a newly turned vampire who is apart of the Oxford's seekers team. The seekers take care of the supernatural crime (which is mainly vampires like them) that live beneath the public eye. Some vampires don't follow the rules however and do kill or need to be set straight. So when a body falls of a tower on May Morning they are ready to investigate.
One thing that I have always been interested in are special teams that deal with the supernatural alongside the police. I like the bits of detective work and tip toeing around the humans not finding out. The idea that they live among us, is mightily interesting. And that is what this book gives us.
But not only that. May Day has a great set of characters that you can't help but warm up to. Jack who wants to be the best but also super brass. Cam who is nursing a broken heart. Their team leader who wants to prove himself so much. Killian who has a bit of a crush and sends sparks flying.
I have two complaints. The vampires are greatly at large here but there is little that makes them vampires. They drink blood from a bottle but there is no mention of fangs. They easily move through the day. There is little history given on the origins of the Seekers etc. I missed those bits of world building. This is set in the same world as Solis Invicti so maybe there is more explanation there? However as this is a new start to a series we should be getting it here as well.
And the romance. There is a sapphic romance between Jack and another character. It is cute. But on the side she has a very strong on the page chemistry with Killian. And I feel like the cute sapphic romance will be thrown to the side for that chemistry with Killian in the future (as she almost does now).
Trigger/Content Warnings: Abuse | Sexual Assault (mentioned) | Rape (Mentioned) | Drugged | Mentioned Miscarriage | Gore | Mentioned Suicide
Josie Jaffrey has been an author on my list (I have The Gilded King) so when I got the chance to read May Day I was right on board for that. I was slightly hesitant because vampires can be such a hit or miss for me, but in the end I enjoyed this book all the same.
This book follows Jack Valentine, a newly turned vampire who is apart of the Oxford's seekers team. The seekers take care of the supernatural crime (which is mainly vampires like them) that live beneath the public eye. Some vampires don't follow the rules however and do kill or need to be set straight. So when a body falls of a tower on May Morning they are ready to investigate.
One thing that I have always been interested in are special teams that deal with the supernatural alongside the police. I like the bits of detective work and tip toeing around the humans not finding out. The idea that they live among us, is mightily interesting. And that is what this book gives us.
But not only that. May Day has a great set of characters that you can't help but warm up to. Jack who wants to be the best but also super brass. Cam who is nursing a broken heart. Their team leader who wants to prove himself so much. Killian who has a bit of a crush and sends sparks flying.
I have two complaints. The vampires are greatly at large here but there is little that makes them vampires. They drink blood from a bottle but there is no mention of fangs. They easily move through the day. There is little history given on the origins of the Seekers etc. I missed those bits of world building. This is set in the same world as Solis Invicti so maybe there is more explanation there? However as this is a new start to a series we should be getting it here as well.
And the romance. There is a sapphic romance between Jack and another character. It is cute. But on the side she has a very strong on the page chemistry with Killian. And I feel like the cute sapphic romance will be thrown to the side for that chemistry with Killian in the future (as she almost does now).
November 28, 2020
I do like myself a vampire read and had been keeping an on this book on Josie’s twitter page. So, you can imagine how excited I was when Dave (@The_WriteReads) sent out the email to say there was a blog tour on its way for this book, it was perfect timing!!!
As I said I like me a good vampire read but in the past I’ve found that a majority of them have not gone down too well for me so when I first opened the book on my Kindle I made sure I went in with an open mind, and reminded myself not to get too excited and ahead of myself, just in case I didn’t like it. Well I had nothing to worry about because I really loved this one.
The plot was really intriguing. Yes, we’ve had similar plots of Vampire detectives before but they’ve not been done as good as this one. The mystery aspect of the book was really well done it kept me wanting to read.
The writing was very detailed and I liked how the reader is presented with the finding of the investigation as they see it. This made the book more interesting and made me feel like I was right there with the Seekers, seeing everything they were doing.
At the time of reading the book I did feel the pace was a little jumpy but now that I’ve finished the book and thinking about it some more, I can see that in fact this jumpy pace worked well in the end as it added to the build-up.
May Day had a great set of characters who worked well together. I don’t really think there were any characters that I really didn’t like. But I know for a fact that Jack (Jacquelyn) was definitely my favourite. I loved how she never took no for an answer and how she was determined to be the best at her job. While she came across as quite a serious character while working she also had a fun side, were her dark humour comes out.
Even though I really enjoyed this book. I didn’t give it a full 5 out of 5 and that was because of the romance. This is definitely a personal preference and I have nothing against the way it was done in the book but it just didn’t work for me, because I find romance in crime set books to be very distracting.
If you’re looking for a great new vampire read with great queer representation then this is the book I recommend.
Can’t wait to see what the next book in the series has to offer!!!! Ok, I’m now off to add some more of Josie’s books to my already long TBR list.
As I said I like me a good vampire read but in the past I’ve found that a majority of them have not gone down too well for me so when I first opened the book on my Kindle I made sure I went in with an open mind, and reminded myself not to get too excited and ahead of myself, just in case I didn’t like it. Well I had nothing to worry about because I really loved this one.
The plot was really intriguing. Yes, we’ve had similar plots of Vampire detectives before but they’ve not been done as good as this one. The mystery aspect of the book was really well done it kept me wanting to read.
The writing was very detailed and I liked how the reader is presented with the finding of the investigation as they see it. This made the book more interesting and made me feel like I was right there with the Seekers, seeing everything they were doing.
At the time of reading the book I did feel the pace was a little jumpy but now that I’ve finished the book and thinking about it some more, I can see that in fact this jumpy pace worked well in the end as it added to the build-up.
May Day had a great set of characters who worked well together. I don’t really think there were any characters that I really didn’t like. But I know for a fact that Jack (Jacquelyn) was definitely my favourite. I loved how she never took no for an answer and how she was determined to be the best at her job. While she came across as quite a serious character while working she also had a fun side, were her dark humour comes out.
Even though I really enjoyed this book. I didn’t give it a full 5 out of 5 and that was because of the romance. This is definitely a personal preference and I have nothing against the way it was done in the book but it just didn’t work for me, because I find romance in crime set books to be very distracting.
If you’re looking for a great new vampire read with great queer representation then this is the book I recommend.
Can’t wait to see what the next book in the series has to offer!!!! Ok, I’m now off to add some more of Josie’s books to my already long TBR list.
July 3, 2020
I received an ARC of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
I read Killian's Dead - the novella of this series - before I started this first book in the series and I really recommend doing that because it definitely gave me more of an insight into Jack's personality, fears and feelings before the events of this book.
As soon as I start this book, I was hooked. I've always loved vampires and this book had so much going for it, especially because of how original the plot was. I love fantasies, urban fantasies, mysteries and paranormal elements, so this book was right up my alley.
The characters were great, especially Jack. I loved her so much, she was so sassy, she didn't take no for an answer, she has a really sarcastic and dark humour side and you have to take her with a pinch of salt, but I loved her and she is definitely up there with some of my favourite characters now.
In this book, we follow Jack and her colleagues as they try to solve a bunch of murders by other Vampires, and as Seekers (an investigative team of the Silver - vampires), they have to uncover the culprit before the criminal exposes the existence of Silver to humans. I really liked this plot and I really enjoyed the investigation. I was really surprised by the ending and didn't see it coming, it was a great ending and there is definitely potential for so much more in the next books.
I wrote a full review on my blog (readtoramble.com), but overall, I really loved this book, it had everything I love and it was such a nice experience, I haven't been hooked like that for quite a while. I gave this book 4 stars as it was just missing the 5-star-feel, it was great and I can't wait for the next one. I would definitely recommend.
I read Killian's Dead - the novella of this series - before I started this first book in the series and I really recommend doing that because it definitely gave me more of an insight into Jack's personality, fears and feelings before the events of this book.
As soon as I start this book, I was hooked. I've always loved vampires and this book had so much going for it, especially because of how original the plot was. I love fantasies, urban fantasies, mysteries and paranormal elements, so this book was right up my alley.
The characters were great, especially Jack. I loved her so much, she was so sassy, she didn't take no for an answer, she has a really sarcastic and dark humour side and you have to take her with a pinch of salt, but I loved her and she is definitely up there with some of my favourite characters now.
In this book, we follow Jack and her colleagues as they try to solve a bunch of murders by other Vampires, and as Seekers (an investigative team of the Silver - vampires), they have to uncover the culprit before the criminal exposes the existence of Silver to humans. I really liked this plot and I really enjoyed the investigation. I was really surprised by the ending and didn't see it coming, it was a great ending and there is definitely potential for so much more in the next books.
I wrote a full review on my blog (readtoramble.com), but overall, I really loved this book, it had everything I love and it was such a nice experience, I haven't been hooked like that for quite a while. I gave this book 4 stars as it was just missing the 5-star-feel, it was great and I can't wait for the next one. I would definitely recommend.
July 23, 2020
May Day is Josie Jaffrey’s latest book in a new series called Seekers. It’s an urban fantasy story that follows newly turned vampire Jack (turned at 18, currently 20 in vampire years) as she gets a complicated case as a Seeker.
Jaffrey already wrote books about the Silver, vampires, and their hierarchy was already familiar to me because I read her Sovereign series. Cameron also returns as a character, but May Day only follows Jack’s perspective. I like how she ties her series together with things like these. It keeps people around to read the next series. It certainly made me interested. I don’t read a lot of urban fantasy or crime books, but when they’re mashed together, I’m willing to give it a try. And knowing that I like her take on vampires definitely helps.
I already met the characters of Jack and Killian in the short story Killian’s Dead. I didn’t like Jack much as in the beginning but she grew on me. I like her hardheadedness, her passion, her want for love. She has principles and isn’t afraid to act up on them. I’ve been rooting for her and Killian since the beginning and this one of those times where I don’t mind the enemies to lovers trope. I love it, I’m here for it.
The murder case is interesting and has so many layers. I’d say it’s perfectly written, but then again, I don’t have much experience with crime novels. I enjoyed it very much and it added more layers to the world of the Silver.
I give May Day five stars. A fast paced, vampire crime story, with interesting characters and deep world building. You don’t have to be familiar with the universe to enjoy this book, or have read the short story. If you like crime and vampires, you’ll love this.
Jaffrey already wrote books about the Silver, vampires, and their hierarchy was already familiar to me because I read her Sovereign series. Cameron also returns as a character, but May Day only follows Jack’s perspective. I like how she ties her series together with things like these. It keeps people around to read the next series. It certainly made me interested. I don’t read a lot of urban fantasy or crime books, but when they’re mashed together, I’m willing to give it a try. And knowing that I like her take on vampires definitely helps.
I already met the characters of Jack and Killian in the short story Killian’s Dead. I didn’t like Jack much as in the beginning but she grew on me. I like her hardheadedness, her passion, her want for love. She has principles and isn’t afraid to act up on them. I’ve been rooting for her and Killian since the beginning and this one of those times where I don’t mind the enemies to lovers trope. I love it, I’m here for it.
The murder case is interesting and has so many layers. I’d say it’s perfectly written, but then again, I don’t have much experience with crime novels. I enjoyed it very much and it added more layers to the world of the Silver.
I give May Day five stars. A fast paced, vampire crime story, with interesting characters and deep world building. You don’t have to be familiar with the universe to enjoy this book, or have read the short story. If you like crime and vampires, you’ll love this.
April 20, 2022
CW: For a full list of content warnings: https://kbbookreviews867789450.wordpr...
Synopsis:
If the murderer you’re tracking is a vampire, then you want a vampire detective. Just maybe not this one.
It’s not that Jack Valentine is bad at her job. The youngest member of Oxford’s Seekers has an impressive track record, but she also has an impressive grudge against the local baron, Killian Drake.
When a human turns up dead on May Morning, she’s determined to pin the murder on Drake. The problem is that none of the evidence points to him. Instead, it leads Jack into a web of conspiracy involving the most powerful people in the country, people to whom Jack has no access. But she knows someone who does.
To get to the truth, Jack will have to partner up with her worst enemy. As long as she can keep her cool, Drake will point her to the ringleaders, she’ll find the murderer and no one else will have to die.
Body bags on standby.
May Day is the first book in Josie Jaffrey’s Seekers series, an urban fantasy series set in Oxford, England.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
I received this book to read and review as part of the BBNYA 2021 tours organised by the TWR Tour team. All opinions are my own, unbiased and honest.
BBNYA is a yearly competition where Book Bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors. If you are an author and wish to learn more about the BBNYA competition, you can visit the official website http://www.bbnya.com or twitter @bbnya_official.
The sign-ups are now open for BBNYA 2022 for authors and panelists. Click here to enter:
https://www.bbnya.com/how-to-enter/au...
https://www.bbnya.com/how-to-enter/pa...
So BBNYA 2021 has wrapped up but it was an absolutely amazing year for the competition! May Day, by Josie Jaffrey was the 2021 winner – and it was SO well deserved! A big thank you to TheWriteReads for a spot on this #BBNYA blogtour!
May Day, by Josie Jaffrey is an adult urban fantasy with modern day vampire detectives! If there is one thing I love it is a paranormal detective mystery, especially when it includes vampires – and this book definitely delivers all of this.
We follow Jack, our MC and a Vampire (aka Silver) detective, known as a Seeker. Since we follow Jack this means we watch the case unfold from her perspective. This pov works perfectly with the story as we watch the murder case unravel, it allows us to learn information alongside Jack and theorise as to who the killer is without getting too much information! The narrative and prose is well paced throughout the story, and the book is very well written – the descriptions are vivid, the dialogue is natural and the characters are realistic – I was thoroughly engaged from start to finish.
The actual plot follows Jack, and a team of Silver detectives, as they try to solve a murder committed on May Day – the team take on the case due it’s Vampiric nature as there is a separate system to deal with Silvers in order to keep them from being discovered by the humans. I love a good detective/murder mystery, and this one was incredibly good. From the moment the murder occurs Jack runs with a belief that the murderer is Drake, a Baron against whome she appears to have a grudge. This gives the investigation an excellent start and immediately starts to reveal the dynamics between the characters, while simulataneously opening up the mystery of who the murderer really is (Drake or someone else) and pulls you into the intrigue of why Jack and Drake are at odds.
I really enjoyed following the murder plot, watching the case all come together as we learn bits of information over the course of the book. The mystery is well crafted, I didn’t figure out the truth at all! As the case all came together and clicked it was so interesting to see how it all interlinked and pointed to the truth. What I really enjoyed was that the murder case lead to more questions forming that both had to do with the case but also did not. Jaffrey did an amazing job at building up multiple lines of intrigue and keeping some of them open for the next book (which I am really excited to read!!) I loved how the case remained a murder case, with evidence and suspects being questioned, and the supernatural elements complimented it incredibly well – it truly worked wonderfully.
I don’t want to spoil the plot but it was brilliantly crafted and I enjoyed every minute of it. One of the best parts was the world building was the way the Silvers have their own social constructs, hierarchy, and laws that mirror or compliment that of our own human society, it was meticulous and realistic – it added realism to the books and gave it a concrete foundation that allowed the story and characters to flourish.
The actual characters themselves are brilliant, in particular Jack! Jack kind of gives me Jessica Jones vibes but if Jessica Jones was a bisexual Silver. By this I mean Jack is chaotic to say the least, but she is headstrong and driven. She has drive but is sarcastic and stubborn, has a tendency to cross lines and authority, and can drink like nothing else. Jack is an amusing narrator, even is she can be a bit grumpy, but it just adds more to her character.
There is a lot of focus around Jack and her relationships too – which was actually quite interesting to watch unfold throughout the book. Jack’s friendships and romantic connections are so much fun because the dynamics between all of the characters are just so good. Each character is well built and they all bounce well of each other – giving us fun, tense or angsty atmospheres.
Overall, May Day, by Josie Jaffrey is an excellent read with murder, Silvers(Vampires), conspiracies, and some romance. The story is full of mystery and tensions, the characters are fantastic and realistic, and the narrative is fun and descriptive.
Synopsis:
If the murderer you’re tracking is a vampire, then you want a vampire detective. Just maybe not this one.
It’s not that Jack Valentine is bad at her job. The youngest member of Oxford’s Seekers has an impressive track record, but she also has an impressive grudge against the local baron, Killian Drake.
When a human turns up dead on May Morning, she’s determined to pin the murder on Drake. The problem is that none of the evidence points to him. Instead, it leads Jack into a web of conspiracy involving the most powerful people in the country, people to whom Jack has no access. But she knows someone who does.
To get to the truth, Jack will have to partner up with her worst enemy. As long as she can keep her cool, Drake will point her to the ringleaders, she’ll find the murderer and no one else will have to die.
Body bags on standby.
May Day is the first book in Josie Jaffrey’s Seekers series, an urban fantasy series set in Oxford, England.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
I received this book to read and review as part of the BBNYA 2021 tours organised by the TWR Tour team. All opinions are my own, unbiased and honest.
BBNYA is a yearly competition where Book Bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors. If you are an author and wish to learn more about the BBNYA competition, you can visit the official website http://www.bbnya.com or twitter @bbnya_official.
The sign-ups are now open for BBNYA 2022 for authors and panelists. Click here to enter:
https://www.bbnya.com/how-to-enter/au...
https://www.bbnya.com/how-to-enter/pa...
So BBNYA 2021 has wrapped up but it was an absolutely amazing year for the competition! May Day, by Josie Jaffrey was the 2021 winner – and it was SO well deserved! A big thank you to TheWriteReads for a spot on this #BBNYA blogtour!
May Day, by Josie Jaffrey is an adult urban fantasy with modern day vampire detectives! If there is one thing I love it is a paranormal detective mystery, especially when it includes vampires – and this book definitely delivers all of this.
We follow Jack, our MC and a Vampire (aka Silver) detective, known as a Seeker. Since we follow Jack this means we watch the case unfold from her perspective. This pov works perfectly with the story as we watch the murder case unravel, it allows us to learn information alongside Jack and theorise as to who the killer is without getting too much information! The narrative and prose is well paced throughout the story, and the book is very well written – the descriptions are vivid, the dialogue is natural and the characters are realistic – I was thoroughly engaged from start to finish.
The actual plot follows Jack, and a team of Silver detectives, as they try to solve a murder committed on May Day – the team take on the case due it’s Vampiric nature as there is a separate system to deal with Silvers in order to keep them from being discovered by the humans. I love a good detective/murder mystery, and this one was incredibly good. From the moment the murder occurs Jack runs with a belief that the murderer is Drake, a Baron against whome she appears to have a grudge. This gives the investigation an excellent start and immediately starts to reveal the dynamics between the characters, while simulataneously opening up the mystery of who the murderer really is (Drake or someone else) and pulls you into the intrigue of why Jack and Drake are at odds.
I really enjoyed following the murder plot, watching the case all come together as we learn bits of information over the course of the book. The mystery is well crafted, I didn’t figure out the truth at all! As the case all came together and clicked it was so interesting to see how it all interlinked and pointed to the truth. What I really enjoyed was that the murder case lead to more questions forming that both had to do with the case but also did not. Jaffrey did an amazing job at building up multiple lines of intrigue and keeping some of them open for the next book (which I am really excited to read!!) I loved how the case remained a murder case, with evidence and suspects being questioned, and the supernatural elements complimented it incredibly well – it truly worked wonderfully.
I don’t want to spoil the plot but it was brilliantly crafted and I enjoyed every minute of it. One of the best parts was the world building was the way the Silvers have their own social constructs, hierarchy, and laws that mirror or compliment that of our own human society, it was meticulous and realistic – it added realism to the books and gave it a concrete foundation that allowed the story and characters to flourish.
The actual characters themselves are brilliant, in particular Jack! Jack kind of gives me Jessica Jones vibes but if Jessica Jones was a bisexual Silver. By this I mean Jack is chaotic to say the least, but she is headstrong and driven. She has drive but is sarcastic and stubborn, has a tendency to cross lines and authority, and can drink like nothing else. Jack is an amusing narrator, even is she can be a bit grumpy, but it just adds more to her character.
There is a lot of focus around Jack and her relationships too – which was actually quite interesting to watch unfold throughout the book. Jack’s friendships and romantic connections are so much fun because the dynamics between all of the characters are just so good. Each character is well built and they all bounce well of each other – giving us fun, tense or angsty atmospheres.
Overall, May Day, by Josie Jaffrey is an excellent read with murder, Silvers(Vampires), conspiracies, and some romance. The story is full of mystery and tensions, the characters are fantastic and realistic, and the narrative is fun and descriptive.
December 30, 2023
This gave me SVU vibes but with British vampires. The mystery really hooked me and had me turning pages to see what was going on. Josie Jaffrey did a phenomenal job explaining the lore behind the vampires and how they enfold themselves in law enforcement.
I like the plot within the plot and I'm curious to learn more about the Solis Invicti.
I like the plot within the plot and I'm curious to learn more about the Solis Invicti.
September 13, 2020
May Day is a dark detective story with a pinch of grit and a lot of sass.
What I Liked
The fact that the detectives in this story are vampires kindles my fantasy-loving heart. Vampires take keeping their existence secret very seriously, and detectives called Seekers to investigate whether a vampire has potentially exposed their existence to humans. They have their justice system with a hierarchy that is much different from their human counterparts but just as definitive and intolerant.
I found the love life of vampires fascinating. I'm not sure that I fully understand it, but it seems that any time two vampires become romantically inclined, it marks them in a way all vampires can see. The mark only lasts for 24 hours and makes the two vampires yearn to spend more time together. This is a pretty original attribute from my experience with paranormal fiction, and I found it intriguing.
This is a slowly unfolding mystery with a leisurely pace until about the last third when the pace steadily picks up. I enjoyed the increase in the speed as I want stories that keep me glued to the pages from the sheer impact of needing to know who did it.
I loved the sassy main character, Jack, short for Jacqueline, and all her intricate nuances. She was 18 when she became a vampire, and she has been one for 20 years. Sometimes she stills acts like a young adult, especially where her love life is concerned, but other times she's a hard and fast adult who will stop at nothing to catch the criminal. Her spunk and sass drew me into her story and held me there until the pages ended.
To Read or Not to Read
If you are looking for a detective story that is just as strong of a paranormal fiction story, you will love this series by Josie Jaffrey. It's a different take on a vampire story that has a lot of grit.
What I Liked
The fact that the detectives in this story are vampires kindles my fantasy-loving heart. Vampires take keeping their existence secret very seriously, and detectives called Seekers to investigate whether a vampire has potentially exposed their existence to humans. They have their justice system with a hierarchy that is much different from their human counterparts but just as definitive and intolerant.
I found the love life of vampires fascinating. I'm not sure that I fully understand it, but it seems that any time two vampires become romantically inclined, it marks them in a way all vampires can see. The mark only lasts for 24 hours and makes the two vampires yearn to spend more time together. This is a pretty original attribute from my experience with paranormal fiction, and I found it intriguing.
This is a slowly unfolding mystery with a leisurely pace until about the last third when the pace steadily picks up. I enjoyed the increase in the speed as I want stories that keep me glued to the pages from the sheer impact of needing to know who did it.
I loved the sassy main character, Jack, short for Jacqueline, and all her intricate nuances. She was 18 when she became a vampire, and she has been one for 20 years. Sometimes she stills acts like a young adult, especially where her love life is concerned, but other times she's a hard and fast adult who will stop at nothing to catch the criminal. Her spunk and sass drew me into her story and held me there until the pages ended.
To Read or Not to Read
If you are looking for a detective story that is just as strong of a paranormal fiction story, you will love this series by Josie Jaffrey. It's a different take on a vampire story that has a lot of grit.
September 17, 2020
This is my first Josie Jaffrey read and before reading, my expectation was high because I’ve heard positive things about Jaffrey’s writing before. I must say I am not disappointed. May Day is first in a new series called Seekers and introduces Oxford’s youngest seeker, Jack Valentine. I heard that this is not the first book that Jaffrey has written where Jack is introduced nor is this the first book about Silver, the vampires. But even without reading the other books, I didn’t get any problem understanding the world the author has created. I was invested in the world right away.
I love Jack. She was so sassy and has a mind of her own. She doesn’t take no for an answer and is very strong-willed. She’s so passionate about everything. Then there’s Killian. I love Killian so much. I love that Jack and Killian have this complicated history that they have to sort out. I just love it when one character is holding a grudge to the other but ended up working with them. So much fun. Plus the side characters are likeable as well.
As for the main plot…I used to love vampire stories though not anymore because it seems like the plots are just the same for every movie and book I’ve seen but I found May Day very refreshing. It has a lot of things going on. Sure, it started a bit slow but the pace picked up as soon as the murder happened. The crime itself is not that unique but still I love the murder mystery aspect. Crime mystery is one of my favorite genres anyway. I love the detective/solving part and the tension brings by the fact that they should solve the murder soon for the sake of the Silver.
Finally, the writing style is amazing. As I already mentioned, I was invested in the world right away and then there’s Jack as the narrator. She’s amazing and I enjoyed reading the story in her POV.
I love Jack. She was so sassy and has a mind of her own. She doesn’t take no for an answer and is very strong-willed. She’s so passionate about everything. Then there’s Killian. I love Killian so much. I love that Jack and Killian have this complicated history that they have to sort out. I just love it when one character is holding a grudge to the other but ended up working with them. So much fun. Plus the side characters are likeable as well.
As for the main plot…I used to love vampire stories though not anymore because it seems like the plots are just the same for every movie and book I’ve seen but I found May Day very refreshing. It has a lot of things going on. Sure, it started a bit slow but the pace picked up as soon as the murder happened. The crime itself is not that unique but still I love the murder mystery aspect. Crime mystery is one of my favorite genres anyway. I love the detective/solving part and the tension brings by the fact that they should solve the murder soon for the sake of the Silver.
Finally, the writing style is amazing. As I already mentioned, I was invested in the world right away and then there’s Jack as the narrator. She’s amazing and I enjoyed reading the story in her POV.
June 15, 2020
I’m a big Josie Jaffrey fan, and am always eager to dive into the author’s next release. After loving the Solis Invicti series and the Sovereign series, I was desperate for more from the universe. When I found out the Seekers series would have a mystery undertone to it, I was doubly excited as I’m a big mystery fan.
I’m going to be honest and say, even though I came to love this one, it’s my least favourite full-length Josie Jaffrey novel to date. I was hooked, I enjoyed it, but it took far too long for me to get into this one. From the start, it was interesting. However, I felt like it was moving much slower than it could have. I was waiting for something huge to happen, and it took a lot of time before it came about.
Don’t get me wrong, I adored the characters from the start. I was invested in the characters, I was curious about the story, but I wanted things to be a bit more intense. When things did start to move at a greater pace, when things started to really come together, I could not put this one down – I devoured the rest of the book in no time – but it took longer to reach that point than I’d hoped.
My fingers are crossed that the next book is more intense, now this one has set the groundwork for what is to come. There was plenty introduced, there were many things I wished to see more of, and I cannot wait to see how everything comes together.
Although this is more of a rounded up four-star rating, whereas my other Josie Jaffrey reads have been a rounded down four-star rating, this was still a great read. It is a great start to the series, and I’m desperate for more.
I’m going to be honest and say, even though I came to love this one, it’s my least favourite full-length Josie Jaffrey novel to date. I was hooked, I enjoyed it, but it took far too long for me to get into this one. From the start, it was interesting. However, I felt like it was moving much slower than it could have. I was waiting for something huge to happen, and it took a lot of time before it came about.
Don’t get me wrong, I adored the characters from the start. I was invested in the characters, I was curious about the story, but I wanted things to be a bit more intense. When things did start to move at a greater pace, when things started to really come together, I could not put this one down – I devoured the rest of the book in no time – but it took longer to reach that point than I’d hoped.
My fingers are crossed that the next book is more intense, now this one has set the groundwork for what is to come. There was plenty introduced, there were many things I wished to see more of, and I cannot wait to see how everything comes together.
Although this is more of a rounded up four-star rating, whereas my other Josie Jaffrey reads have been a rounded down four-star rating, this was still a great read. It is a great start to the series, and I’m desperate for more.
February 13, 2021
Jack Valentine is a Seeker in Oxford - part of the paranormal police whose main job is to make sure the vampire society remains hidden from humans. When a human body drops at their feet during busy May Day festivities in Oxford, it’s up to Jack and her colleagues to get to the bottom of it. At first, they think it’s a scab (a feral vampire), and just want to stop them from killing publicly again, but soon there are more threads and mysteries than they could possibly follow.
May Day is the first book by Josie Jaffrey that I have read. This is the first book in her new Seeker series but is connected to her Solis Invicti and Sovereign series (all are part of the Soliverse novels). I think this explains why the world that Jaffrey has created feels so solid and believable. There were a few moments where, as a newcomer, I wondered if I was missing something, as some character relationships were already very developed, but overall, I really enjoyed the ride. I thought the vampire lore, the almost-police-like investigation, and the often ill-fated romance were all really strong threads of the story. I felt that all of the parts would have been strong enough to be a story on their own but mixed together, it made a book that was hard to put down. Despite all the serious stuff, there was a lot of light humor threaded throughout, and I loved the interactions between Jack and her friends. I can’t wait to read the rest of the series.
I received a free copy from Readers Favorite in exchange for an honest review.
May Day is the first book by Josie Jaffrey that I have read. This is the first book in her new Seeker series but is connected to her Solis Invicti and Sovereign series (all are part of the Soliverse novels). I think this explains why the world that Jaffrey has created feels so solid and believable. There were a few moments where, as a newcomer, I wondered if I was missing something, as some character relationships were already very developed, but overall, I really enjoyed the ride. I thought the vampire lore, the almost-police-like investigation, and the often ill-fated romance were all really strong threads of the story. I felt that all of the parts would have been strong enough to be a story on their own but mixed together, it made a book that was hard to put down. Despite all the serious stuff, there was a lot of light humor threaded throughout, and I loved the interactions between Jack and her friends. I can’t wait to read the rest of the series.
I received a free copy from Readers Favorite in exchange for an honest review.
July 9, 2020
I received an ARC of this book for review, and I'm glad I did, because after reading Killian's Dead I wanted more!
This story starts twenty years after the events in Killian's Dead, but time has not mellowed Jack. She's still impulsive, reckless, and determined.
I loved Jack and the team she works with. They might not always agree with each other, but when push comes to shove they have each other's back... mostly. I very much enjoyed getting to know them and their work.
As Jack gets deeper into the investigation things get murky and dangerous. And then she has to deal with Killian as well. He makes things a whole lot more difficult than they need to be, I can tell you. And all Jack really wants is get a date with the cute female doctor who's helping with the case.
I was hooked from the start. I love the world building, the atmosphere, and most of all Jack, who just can't help getting herself into sticky situations. I was on the edge of my seat to see if Jack would manage to save the day and get that date!
All in all this is a really cool read with a satisfying ending, but enough still going on that I really am eager to get my trotters on the next book. Because I just know it will be awesome!
This story starts twenty years after the events in Killian's Dead, but time has not mellowed Jack. She's still impulsive, reckless, and determined.
I loved Jack and the team she works with. They might not always agree with each other, but when push comes to shove they have each other's back... mostly. I very much enjoyed getting to know them and their work.
As Jack gets deeper into the investigation things get murky and dangerous. And then she has to deal with Killian as well. He makes things a whole lot more difficult than they need to be, I can tell you. And all Jack really wants is get a date with the cute female doctor who's helping with the case.
I was hooked from the start. I love the world building, the atmosphere, and most of all Jack, who just can't help getting herself into sticky situations. I was on the edge of my seat to see if Jack would manage to save the day and get that date!
All in all this is a really cool read with a satisfying ending, but enough still going on that I really am eager to get my trotters on the next book. Because I just know it will be awesome!
October 29, 2020
Really enjoyed this one. Loved the fact it wasn’t all glitz and glamour and the main character was just a bit of a hot mess! We can all relate. Love a vampire, especially when they have the dark and dangerous vibe!
Drake was the bad boy we all hate to love and secretly wish to see more of. It can’t be helped, he just had that appeal and I’m not ashamed to say I was rooting for him. I have a feeling we’re going to be seeing a lot more of him and the experiencing a lot more tension between him and Valentine!
I’m really looking forward to seeing where the next book takes Valentine and feel like things are really going to heat up a lot! Can’t wait to see what the author has up her sleeve!
Thank you to the author for sending me a copy of your book in exchange for my honest review!
Drake was the bad boy we all hate to love and secretly wish to see more of. It can’t be helped, he just had that appeal and I’m not ashamed to say I was rooting for him. I have a feeling we’re going to be seeing a lot more of him and the experiencing a lot more tension between him and Valentine!
I’m really looking forward to seeing where the next book takes Valentine and feel like things are really going to heat up a lot! Can’t wait to see what the author has up her sleeve!
Thank you to the author for sending me a copy of your book in exchange for my honest review!
July 29, 2020
Full review available from August 3rd: https://inkandplasma.wordpress.com/20...
Thanks to Josie for sending me a review copy of this book, it hasn’t affected my honest review!
Trigger Warnings: blood, vampire-typical consent issues and memory-fuckery, murder, heavy drinking, non-consensual drug use.
I’m going to talk about the elephant in the room first. This book features a lovely bisexual love triangle! Killian, Jack and Tabitha! And for the first time in my life, I ship the m/f couple more than the f/f??? Who have I become, honestly. In my defense, sapphic friends, I want Tabitha to get a lovely girlfriend and live happily ever after because I adore her. I just think that Jack and Killian are both garbage idiots who deserve each other. It should come as no surprise that I adored the nemesis thing going on with Jack and Killian. After finishing May Day I read the short story prequel, Killian’s Dead, and that fleshed out their complicated relationship even more. I just loved every scene with both of them. The tangled mess of antagonism and attraction is sheer perfection to me, and Jack Valentine is hilarious at the best of times, and on her best game when it comes to sassing Killian.
I actually loved most of the characters in this book. There’s a really strong cast of supporting characters in the Seekers (the team of vampire detectives) and I love all of them. Especially Cam, who is a marshmallow to be protected. And the morals of the group are definitely on a very slidey scale, which made them really fun to read about. In Silver society, there’s the law and The Law. Breaking human laws don’t matter at all, but if you break Silver law, there are Consequences. It made for a much more interesting group of detectives than most books about human detectives, that’s for sure! The Silver society in general was really interesting, and this is my first book in the Silverse but I know I’m definitely going to pick up more when I can – the urban vampire setting is just perfect for me!
The mystery aspect of this book was really well executed. There were enough hints and bits of evidence for me to start putting things together, and I felt really engaged with the way that Jack started to uncover the truth. It took me a couple of goes to get started on this book, but once I was into the meat of the murder investigation, I was utterly absorbed. Not that I managed to guess things correctly until Jack did – but that’s why I’m not a Seeker!
I’m honestly a little bit devastated I don’t already have the sequel to this one in my hands, especially with that ending! The book wraps up perfectly for the genre, with the main mystery solved, but the threads left open for the next book have me a little bit feral with excitement.
Initial thoughts:
I can't wait for the sequel! to! this! book! And if you see me preferring the m/f relationship over the f/f relationship in this book, please look away 😔 I just love Killian a lot
Thanks to Josie for sending me a review copy of this book, it hasn’t affected my honest review!
Trigger Warnings: blood, vampire-typical consent issues and memory-fuckery, murder, heavy drinking, non-consensual drug use.
I’m going to talk about the elephant in the room first. This book features a lovely bisexual love triangle! Killian, Jack and Tabitha! And for the first time in my life, I ship the m/f couple more than the f/f??? Who have I become, honestly. In my defense, sapphic friends, I want Tabitha to get a lovely girlfriend and live happily ever after because I adore her. I just think that Jack and Killian are both garbage idiots who deserve each other. It should come as no surprise that I adored the nemesis thing going on with Jack and Killian. After finishing May Day I read the short story prequel, Killian’s Dead, and that fleshed out their complicated relationship even more. I just loved every scene with both of them. The tangled mess of antagonism and attraction is sheer perfection to me, and Jack Valentine is hilarious at the best of times, and on her best game when it comes to sassing Killian.
I actually loved most of the characters in this book. There’s a really strong cast of supporting characters in the Seekers (the team of vampire detectives) and I love all of them. Especially Cam, who is a marshmallow to be protected. And the morals of the group are definitely on a very slidey scale, which made them really fun to read about. In Silver society, there’s the law and The Law. Breaking human laws don’t matter at all, but if you break Silver law, there are Consequences. It made for a much more interesting group of detectives than most books about human detectives, that’s for sure! The Silver society in general was really interesting, and this is my first book in the Silverse but I know I’m definitely going to pick up more when I can – the urban vampire setting is just perfect for me!
The mystery aspect of this book was really well executed. There were enough hints and bits of evidence for me to start putting things together, and I felt really engaged with the way that Jack started to uncover the truth. It took me a couple of goes to get started on this book, but once I was into the meat of the murder investigation, I was utterly absorbed. Not that I managed to guess things correctly until Jack did – but that’s why I’m not a Seeker!
I’m honestly a little bit devastated I don’t already have the sequel to this one in my hands, especially with that ending! The book wraps up perfectly for the genre, with the main mystery solved, but the threads left open for the next book have me a little bit feral with excitement.
Initial thoughts:
I can't wait for the sequel! to! this! book! And if you see me preferring the m/f relationship over the f/f relationship in this book, please look away 😔 I just love Killian a lot
August 11, 2020
Originally published on nightingfae's blog
In May Day Jaffrey has created a whole world hidden in our society, a society of vampires that exists parallel to the human society, it even has a hierarchy, as it's called in the book, so well-structured and organized that it has no fissures, even those who live out of their laws have a name and are prosecuted by the Seekers, a sort of vampire-police.
As I was reading it, I kept thinking that I’d love to see this book as a TV series or a film, because the characters, the plot and the whole society is so well-created that would make it an intriguing and addictive series.
Jaffrey's writing is very descriptive and fast paced, which makes you fly through the pages while enjoying a good mystery with some romantic drama in the midst. It also has a lot of open plots, creating a spider web that’s not at all a mess, quite the contrary, it's really well thought and knotted, just as if it all was real and Jack was just narrating her life, writing it down as it happens.
I appreciate the fact that May Day is a diverse book, including some characters of colour clearly described so there’s no doubts about their skin colour, and also LGBT+ representation, including the main character Jack, who’s bisexual, and her companion (sweet, wise) Cam, who’s homosexual, among others.
I’ve ended up giving it four stars over five because the last 100 pages (saving the last 30) were a bit slow, they kept repeating some parts of the story you already know by heart because they’ve mentioned them a thousand times before, but the mystery and the whole plot that develops from it is really well thought and can definitely lead to new books in this series, which I can’t wait to read.
To finish, there are a couple of things I can’t left unsaid. The first one is that unexpected plot twist close to the end of the book that solves the case and gives a new definition to all the events, but still keeps some lose ends, creating an intriguing cliffhanger, which hopefully will be solved in the next books. And the second and last one is that the final chapter was really exciting and made my heart race a bit, it was a little act of rebellion form the main character that I’m sure will lead to biggest consequences in the upcoming books, which I’m looking forward already!
Thanks to Victoria Eaton, Josie Jaffrey's publicist, for sending me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
"You can't control a problem if you don't even acknowledge it exists."
In May Day Jaffrey has created a whole world hidden in our society, a society of vampires that exists parallel to the human society, it even has a hierarchy, as it's called in the book, so well-structured and organized that it has no fissures, even those who live out of their laws have a name and are prosecuted by the Seekers, a sort of vampire-police.
As I was reading it, I kept thinking that I’d love to see this book as a TV series or a film, because the characters, the plot and the whole society is so well-created that would make it an intriguing and addictive series.
Jaffrey's writing is very descriptive and fast paced, which makes you fly through the pages while enjoying a good mystery with some romantic drama in the midst. It also has a lot of open plots, creating a spider web that’s not at all a mess, quite the contrary, it's really well thought and knotted, just as if it all was real and Jack was just narrating her life, writing it down as it happens.
"You can be whoever you want to be, Valentine. They're all you."
I appreciate the fact that May Day is a diverse book, including some characters of colour clearly described so there’s no doubts about their skin colour, and also LGBT+ representation, including the main character Jack, who’s bisexual, and her companion (sweet, wise) Cam, who’s homosexual, among others.
I’ve ended up giving it four stars over five because the last 100 pages (saving the last 30) were a bit slow, they kept repeating some parts of the story you already know by heart because they’ve mentioned them a thousand times before, but the mystery and the whole plot that develops from it is really well thought and can definitely lead to new books in this series, which I can’t wait to read.
"You can't control how other people feel, any more than you can control how you feel yourself."
To finish, there are a couple of things I can’t left unsaid. The first one is that unexpected plot twist close to the end of the book that solves the case and gives a new definition to all the events, but still keeps some lose ends, creating an intriguing cliffhanger, which hopefully will be solved in the next books. And the second and last one is that the final chapter was really exciting and made my heart race a bit, it was a little act of rebellion form the main character that I’m sure will lead to biggest consequences in the upcoming books, which I’m looking forward already!
Thanks to Victoria Eaton, Josie Jaffrey's publicist, for sending me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
September 15, 2020
I received an ARC as part of the blog tour in exchange for an honest review. It has not affected my opinions.
MAY DAY is a genre-blending first instalment in a paranormal murder mystery. I loved this noir-esque story as it serves for a very engaging plot line as clues, red-herrings, and new mysteries to solve.
For me, this book was ALL about the voice. From the first chapter and the complete dress down of student (as a student, yes, many of my peers are that stupid), a bitingly funnily, snarky voice is carried throughout. It's self aware and completely unapologetic.
I loved the setting - UK SETTING! It's so obvious that Josie knows Oxford well, with the little details of the buildings or streets. I've been really struggling with contemporary fantasy at the moment because they've been American ones, and I find the culture just a bit too different that it needs more world building than it gets. Therefore, a UK-set contemporary fantasy is so refreshing, a familiar setting interwoven with a vampire underbelly.
I think this is deeply linked to her other series - the Sovereign and Solis Invicti - as there were some terms I recognised from THE GILDED KING, and her website seems to imply they are. However, as I've only read two of her books, I'm not quite sure how they link - given this is modern day Oxford and they are dystopia/post-apocalyptic.
Jack's romantic life is... messy to say the least. What I didn't like was the cheating element of it. Sure, they haven't made promises and "it's an accident", but the other love interest isn't asked if she was OK with Jack making out with the other person. At least it's handled in such a way that makes it clear it was a bad choice, but I wish there'd been a different way to have romantic complications than that.
There's a lot still left hanging at the end of the book, the main mystery solved but it's clearly part of a larger series. I'm interested to see what happens next!
MAY DAY is a genre-blending first instalment in a paranormal murder mystery. I loved this noir-esque story as it serves for a very engaging plot line as clues, red-herrings, and new mysteries to solve.
For me, this book was ALL about the voice. From the first chapter and the complete dress down of student (as a student, yes, many of my peers are that stupid), a bitingly funnily, snarky voice is carried throughout. It's self aware and completely unapologetic.
I loved the setting - UK SETTING! It's so obvious that Josie knows Oxford well, with the little details of the buildings or streets. I've been really struggling with contemporary fantasy at the moment because they've been American ones, and I find the culture just a bit too different that it needs more world building than it gets. Therefore, a UK-set contemporary fantasy is so refreshing, a familiar setting interwoven with a vampire underbelly.
I think this is deeply linked to her other series - the Sovereign and Solis Invicti - as there were some terms I recognised from THE GILDED KING, and her website seems to imply they are. However, as I've only read two of her books, I'm not quite sure how they link - given this is modern day Oxford and they are dystopia/post-apocalyptic.
Jack's romantic life is... messy to say the least. What I didn't like was the cheating element of it. Sure, they haven't made promises and "it's an accident", but the other love interest isn't asked if she was OK with Jack making out with the other person. At least it's handled in such a way that makes it clear it was a bad choice, but I wish there'd been a different way to have romantic complications than that.
There's a lot still left hanging at the end of the book, the main mystery solved but it's clearly part of a larger series. I'm interested to see what happens next!
July 5, 2020
May Day is an excellent start to the Seekers series and I for one, cannot wait to find out what happens next. It’s essentially a murder mystery story with a vampire detective agency tracking down murderers of the paranormal kind.
Josie Jaffrey has a fantastically witty style of writing that brings her characters to life. The story follows Jack Valentine, the youngest of the Seekers as she attempts to find the murderer of a man who was thrown off of a building on May Morning.
Jack is a hilarious vampire protagonist who is determined to solve the case, no matter which way the case may lead. Even if it means having to tolerate others who she dislikes in order to get to the places she needs to be.
It took a while to get into the story initially and the pacing felt slightly slow. However, it felt necessary to build the world around the characters and let the readers feel fully immersed in the Silver world.
Every society has its fair share of weirdos and this is just the same for vampires. There’s a couple of particularly gross characters in this story who live on the fringes of society and are barely legal in what they do, even for vampire standards. One character in particular really creeped me out for a number of reasons and I hope to find out what happens to the character next…
It’s also refreshing to read a book with a main character who is openly bisexual with a gay best friend. The relationships Jack develops in the story are brilliant and I was rooting for her to get with one of the characters and I’m still not sure how I feel about who she chooses.
I need to read more of this author’s writing, it’s brilliant. The story flows effortlessly and is sheer joy to read. The book is exciting, steamy and an adventure from start to finish. I cannot wait for book two!
Josie Jaffrey has a fantastically witty style of writing that brings her characters to life. The story follows Jack Valentine, the youngest of the Seekers as she attempts to find the murderer of a man who was thrown off of a building on May Morning.
Jack is a hilarious vampire protagonist who is determined to solve the case, no matter which way the case may lead. Even if it means having to tolerate others who she dislikes in order to get to the places she needs to be.
It took a while to get into the story initially and the pacing felt slightly slow. However, it felt necessary to build the world around the characters and let the readers feel fully immersed in the Silver world.
Every society has its fair share of weirdos and this is just the same for vampires. There’s a couple of particularly gross characters in this story who live on the fringes of society and are barely legal in what they do, even for vampire standards. One character in particular really creeped me out for a number of reasons and I hope to find out what happens to the character next…
It’s also refreshing to read a book with a main character who is openly bisexual with a gay best friend. The relationships Jack develops in the story are brilliant and I was rooting for her to get with one of the characters and I’m still not sure how I feel about who she chooses.
I need to read more of this author’s writing, it’s brilliant. The story flows effortlessly and is sheer joy to read. The book is exciting, steamy and an adventure from start to finish. I cannot wait for book two!
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