 Louisiana Voodoo or New Orleans Voodoo is a set of practices and beliefs stemming from Africa. Followers fled Haiti in 1791 and moved to New Orleans as free people of color. They became spiritual and political figures of powers in the following century as the practice grew in popularity.
The core belief of Voodoo is that spirits interact in our lives and it is possible to connect with them through various rituals including chanting and dance. Ceremonies are still used even today to help people suffering from various disorders including anxiety and addiction. New Orleans is home to a spiritual temple and a museum dedicated to the practices. Tours are available throughout the city including to Marie Laveau's tomb, which is a popular spot to visit.
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 She's the daughter of the infamous Delphine LaLaurie, serial killer of the French Quarter.
He's a broken soldier fresh from war. *** Buying the decrepit mansion in New Orleans was supposed to be a fresh start for Spencer, instead he finds his PTSD sent into overdrive. He's not just seeing his dead best friend now; he's seeing a woman haunting the rooms of his newly-acquired home too. For Marie, her spiritual torture has lasted well over a century. A new inhabitant of her prison means another chance at salvation. But sanity is a tightrope walk for both Spencer and Marie. And saving each other might mean losing their minds completely. *** Trigger Warning One of the main characters of this story is suffering from PTSD. He lost his best friend whilst serving his country upon foreign soil. Despite ‘Scatter My Ashes’ being a work of fiction, we would like to urge anyone reading who might be suffering from wounds of war to seek help. Please also know that you have our thanks and our respect.  New Orleans was founded by the French, ruled by the Spanish for forty years, before being bought by the United States in the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. It became the largest port in the South in the 19th Century.
Known for its jazz music, tourism and of course the annual Mardi Gras celebrations, New Orleans faced devestation in 2005 when Hurricane Katrina hit. Over 1800 people died and many buildings were destroyed. The residents have worked hard to rebuild the city, but faced many hardships. I chose New Orleans as the setting for my latest series because it has a rich history with magic and mystery, making it the perfect setting for a supernatural series.  Gifted to the New World by the King of France, the daughters of the Vieux Carre will rise from the shadows and into power as their sacred bloodline is awakened by a cursed love...
Setting off for a new world an entire ocean away was the beginning of my end. Aboard the ship I met a startling handsome man who changed my life... after ending it. My scent. His blood. Our fates. All intertwined in the shadows. Our mating created a dark curse and I’ve been waiting nearly three-hundred years for my Phillpe’s awakening... When my mate finally opens his eyes, instead of love and desire, I see hate and betrayal. His distrust shatters my lonely heart. We must set aside our differences to stop a feral vampire from terrorizing the streets of New Orleans. I desperately want my mate back, but first I need his help to protect the life I’ve built for us. Awakened after spending centuries locked in a cursed slumber, I discover my mate has betrayed me with the very blood she was sired with. Giselle was different from the other casket girls, I knew it from the moment I breathed in her intoxicating scent. She was a daughter of the Vieux Carre. Giving her my blood sealed our fates... But before I can uncover the secrets of the curse, I’ll have to learn to trust the dangerously beautiful one who guarded me for centuries while I slept. I have to know why she did this to me... to us. Will we ever be the mates we were fated to be or are we doomed to forever be apart? Shadowed Awakening is the first book in the new thrilling paranormal series, The Daughters of the Vieux Carré. Join this family of vampires as they awaken to a new world and changes they never expected. Shadowed Awakening was formerly titled “Phillipe”.  Marie Laveau was born in 1801, in colonial Louisiana. She was a well known practitioner of Voodoo and she worked as a midwife. Born a free woman of color, she had several children, but only two of them survived into adulthood. She married a man called Jaques Paris, who later died, leaving her a widow. She remarried and starting working as a hairdresser, where she would offer advice to her clients who were dealing issues at home. She became their confidant, helping to bolster her reputation.
Marie was respected in her community for her healing and spiritual work, but myth mixes with fact as certain records were lost or missing on her. We know she used charms and powders to help cure ailments. She has inspired many works and characters in TV shows about her, including American Horror Story, although these characters are wildly exaggerated versions of her. She died peacefully in her home in 1881. Tourists still visit her tomb today, leaving offerings to her.  Isabelle Van Helsing comes from a long and proud lineage, descended from the same man that went face-to-face with Dracula himself. Now that the world knows the supernatural exists, she is tasked with arresting and exterminating them, working for a government entity called The Initiative. And there are shadows lurking just waiting for the opportune moment to take it all down. After the death of a fellow Exterminator, Izzy and her snarky cohort and boyfriend Jonas McGrady, go to work investigating her death, finding that things aren't as black and white as they seemed.
 The month of April will be dedicated to books set in New Orleans and posts on the history of New Orleans, to celebrate the release of the first book in my new series - City For Lost Souls.
New Orleans is rich in history, folklore and magic and I will be sharing some of the most interesting stories from The Big Easy over the next few weeks.  1) Tell us about your story Beginnings is a tale of werewolves and witches, desire and defiance in the face of love. It’s also tells of one female taking control of her own fate and destiny. Even if it does take three witches and a werewolf to pull it off. ;) 2) Is your witch a little wicked or very wicked? She’s not really very wicked, at all. She leaves any deviousness up to her sister. And occasionally her mother, too. ;)3 3) Is this a standalone or part of a series? It can totally be read as a standalone, and was written in a way to enable as such. However, it is the historically-set prequel to the modern-day Holloway Pack series. 4) If you had a witchy power what would it be and why? Ooooh, I dunno, because I’d want aaaaaaallll the powers. Ha! I’d probably want to be a master at a housework spell. Just wiggle my fingers and everything would be magickly cleaned up. ;) 5) What's next for you? A lot? LOL. Seriously, though … I’m currently working on a Christmas novella for release early December. I’m also working on a contemporary romance, as well as a dark romance, and an erotic romance, all of which I hope to have released before end of 2021. No definite release date for those, yet, but they’re in the works and happening.  Best known for her Holloway Pack Stories and The Therapist, J.A. Belfield lives in Solihull, England, with her family, a spoiled dog, and a cat who likes to vomit in unfortunate places.
Once upon a time, she was a little girl with a vivid imagination. Not much has changed in the last forty years. J.A. Belfield writes paranormal romance, with a second love for urban fantasy. And now she writes saucy romance, too. Because she can. ;)  1) Tell us about your story Maverick Revealed is the prequel/teaser to Salem’s trilogy, The Corbett Files. Salem was raised embracing one set of beliefs only to discover the Council which governs magic users, like herself, hasn’t been totally honest. She then meets Quinn, and he offers her options, especially when her new powers could be perceived as being wicked. Salem’s story is about finding her place and fitting in, all according to her wants and needs. 2) Is your witch a little wicked or very wicked? At first, Salem is a little wicked as she figures out exactly what her powers are. I can’t reveal the rest. 3) Is this a standalone or part of a series? This is a prequel and teaser to her trilogy. 4) If you had a witchy power what would it be and why? Fun question! I think most of us would like to have a power. Since so many powers interest me, my answer for today would be a fire user. Just imagining the ability to wield and use fire is very cool. 5) What's next for you? I am working on Salem’s stories in between other deadlines for contemporary and paranormal romances. Thanks for having me.  Laurie Treacy grew up in NYC and currently resides in the beautiful Hudson Valley with her family. Living in an area steeped in supernatural lore and legends certainly inspires this author of YA and NA fantasy, urban fantasy, paranormal & contemporary romance. Laurie enjoys urban exploring and photographing forgotten places. A proud Whovian, she’s also a Miyazaki fangirl, loves playing video games and settling down for marathons of K-dramas with lots of frozen Goobers.
 1: Tell us about your story. I’ve been really enjoying writing about witches and hexes lately, and got this idea to write a story where one witch has been cursed by another. I thought it would be fun to play with the idea of an inconvenient but potentially, slowly, life-threatening hex – such as one that makes a bunch of cats show up at the apartment of the main character, who has a cat allergy. 2: Is your witch a little wicked or very wicked? Tori is definitely just a little wicked. I think she would love to be more wicked, but she doesn’t have it in her. At least, not at this point in her life. 3: Is this a standalone or part of a series? At first it was just going to be a standalone… BUT, I had such a fun time writing it that I *think* Tori and co might end up getting their own series! We’ll see if that’s what the readers want before I commit. 4: If you had a witchy power what would it be and why? I would love the ability to control the weather. I always used to pretend I could when I was a kid. It’s come into play in a fair bit of my writing (not this book though!) and will no doubt be a theme I touch upon again. The idea of being able to influence something so vast is exciting, smacking someone with a bolt of lightning when they annoy me? Hell yes. Blast wind to get out of a tough situation? I’m so there! 5: What’s next for you? Right now, I’m working on a new paranormal chick lit series. I swore I would never write vampires, but… Well, I’m writing vampires, just maybe not as you might normally see them. It’s a lot of fun! I guess the moral of the story is ‘never say never’ right? After that I’ll be diving into some paranormal cosies and more witchy fun. Bio
I’m Nova Blake and I love writing witchy, magical, fun, spooky, sexy stories. While there isn’t any sexy in THIS particular story, everything else is there. You can find me online at |
 
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About the Author:S. K. Gregory is an author, editor and blogger. She currently resides in Northern Ireland. “Description begins in the writer’s imagination, but should finish in the reader’s.” 
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