The Book Bazaar 2026 is an exciting collaborative crowdfunding event on Backerkit of 39 indie authors who have come together to raise funds for their campaigns. In celebration, and to help promote these authors, we’ll be featuring spotlights through the fundraising period for you to check and out and support! Within The Book Bazaar, you’ll find a variety of genres, including fantasy, sci-fi, horror, queer, and romance, as well as a variety of formats such as novels, novellas, series, anthologies, and audiobooks. There’s something for everyone!
The fundraising period runs from October 29 – November 19. Back 3 or more projects to earn unique bookmarks, and 10 or more projects to receive an exclusive anthology. Want a taste of these projects? Check out the free sampler bundle on Itch.io!
Please welcome May Day by Josie Jaffrey in the spotlight!
May Day is the first book in the Seekers series, a set of urban fantasy novels following vampire detective Jack Valentine and her squad as they solve vampire murders in the shadows of Oxford’s dreaming spires. It was first released in 2020, and won the Book Bloggers’ Novel of the Year Award 2021.
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 an adult novel featuring terrible people who make terrible decisions, often with terrible results. Check out the content warnings here.
The author is raising funds for a 7th year anniversary special edition hardcover with gorgeous art, a dust jacket, foiled case, custom endpapers, and sprayed edges. Backer rewards include a prequel short story, art prints, and unique playing cards.
About the Author
Josie 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 and the writer of the urban fantasy podcast Jack Valentine, Vampire Detective.
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.
- Website: www.JosieJaffrey.com
- Bluesky: bsky.app/profile/JosieJaffrey.bsky.social
- Instagram: @josiejaffrey
- Patreon: patreon.com/cw/josiejaffrey
- TikTok: @josiejaffrey
