In The End of May by Kem Richards, Marcella ''Marcy'' Burke, a woman from Ohio seems to have everything anyone would desire — a loving partner, a wonderful best friend, and career. But what will Marcy do when everything comes tumbling down? She fights. She is determined to rise back to her former status of success, glitz, and glamor. The cost is what she doesn't envisage yet as she finds herself navigating the dangerous, dark part of New York City, a world littered with drugs, shady connections, and prostitution. In her quest to succeed, can she uphold her moral code?

Kem Richards creates a setting in New York City that feels like a character in its own right, capturing locales and moments with strong imagery and the relationship between the characters and the social environment is brilliantly portrayed. The prose is elegant and the writing atmospheric. The plot sizzles as much as locales where the events narrated in this novel play out. The inner voice of the female protagonist is captured through the streams of consciousness and it resounds with many different emotions — uncertainty, rage, fear, and determination. The End of May features enriching details about the characters, a solid plot, and conflict that steadily drives the narrative forward. This is a triumph for fans of literary fiction with believable and solidly written characters.