Zaidi Features: Jami Gray Chats About Her "Big Easy" Experience, Palm Reading and All!

My friend Jami Gray is visiting again with some intriguing info about her visit to New Orleans. Personally, I love the above-ground cemeteries. Jami's also got a free book for a limited time (until August), so don't delay and miss out. It's "Shadow's Edge," and a great opportunity to get started on this series. Here's Jami...

It’s All in the Lines

I’m a writer of Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romantic Suspense, which translates to—I not only believe in the strange and unusual, I’m generally promoting it. During my first trip to New Orleans I managed to tick a few things off my bucket list. Of course I’ll be back, because there were too many things left unvisited—cemeteries, the swamp, plantations, just to name a few. However, I did make time to visit Marie Laveau’s House of Voodoo (http://www.voodooneworleans.com) for a palm reading.

First to give you a sense of setting—in the French Quarter, especially the closer you get to Bourbon Street and Royal Street, the smell can knock you into the next life faster than a horse drawn carriage. Cobbled streets lined with bars, shops and art galleries crouch below balconied homes. There are relator signs letting you know if a condo comes with it’s own ghost or not. (Kid you not!)

People abound, on the sidewalk, in the shops and bars, and on the streets themselves. I’m not sure I’d be brave enough to try forcing a car down those narrow strips. My hubby, BFF, and I made our way down the sidewalk when we saw the sign: Marie Laveau’s House of Voodoo.

We stumbled up two cement steps, brushed by a couple with a stroller heading out, and found ourselves surrounded by strange masks, chicken feet, hand crafted mojo bags, gris-gris, and voodoo dolls. Any and everything designed to help you maneuver your way through the modern karmic world.

Immediately, I’m drawn to the colorful collection of candles nestled next to the beautiful, but strangely disturbing alter to the Voodoo Queen herself, Marie Laveau. There are gris-gris, cooled wax, bits and pieces of past offerings while signs stand guard and warn customers “NO TOUCHING”. Not to mention the shop’s proprietress who reiterates the point to one or two customers who somehow miss the signage.

For all the strange items cluttering the walls, shelves and ceiling (oh yes, there were things hanging from the rafters—voodoo dolls, masks, hand-made crosses), there was a quiet peacefulness to the shop.

Eventually BFF and I make it to the back, and submit our names for a palm reading. We patiently wait our turn, debating if we want to pick up some chicken feet or a decorative skull (yep, that’s me).

Our readings are individual. I slip inside to find a white haired woman who could have been any one of the many authors invading New Orleans that week. Her smile is sweet and she has the steadiest gaze I’ve ever encountered. She reads my palm, giving me some interesting insights.

Then she picks up a well-worn stack of playing cards with, of all things, playing kittens on the back. They dance through her hands. I keep my questions silent and let the cards fall where they will. She used a standard Tarot layout the first time, but with each following draw, the layout changes. It’s been awhile since I’ve dusted off my own Tarot deck, so I’m not sure which patterns she used, but what she gave me—hmmm, the future holds some interesting times.

Nope, won’t share, because I’m a firm believer readings are to be kept personal. I will tell you, I’m curious to see how much she gave me comes about.

My BFF and I did compare notes, because you have to enter some of these readings with a dose of skepticism. Yet, there was enough individual predictions in the readings to make us both believe there may be nuggets of truth.

Now, is it a chicken and egg thing? Will our futures fall as predicted because that’s what we believe will happen? Or will it happen that way because that’s the way it’s supposed to? I’ll leave the answer up to higher powers to answer, for now I’ll keep on, keeping on and we’ll see what the future brings.

Pick up SHADOW’S EDGE for FREE for a limited time and dive into the shadows of the Kyn…

THE KYN KRONICLES (Urban Fantasy series w/Black Opal Books)

WRAPPED IN SHADOWS, Kyn Kronicles .5

(Things That Go Bump For The Holidays Anthology)

The magic of the holidays can be hell…

Celebrations abound during the holidays, but this Christmas an engagement celebration goes horrifically wrong. What appears to be a simple murder/suicide hides a vicious surprise. The type of gift Raine and Gavin, elite member of the Kyn, didn’t want humans to unwrap, because revealing the monsters in the shadows isn’t the way to spread holiday cheer.

SHADOW’S EDGE, Kyn Kronicles #1

Everyone fears what hunts in the shadows—especially the monsters…

When the supernatural lurks in the shadows of the mundane, hunting monsters requires unique skills, like those of Raine McCord. A series of deaths threatens to reveal the Kyn community and forces her to partner with the sexy Gavin Durand.

As the trail leads to the foundation haunting Raine’s childhood, she and Gavin must unravel lies and betrayals to discover not only each other, but the emerging threat to them and the entire magical community.

SHADOW’S SOUL, Kyn Kronicles #2

Some nightmares are born of love…

A simple assignment turns into a nightmare when Raine McCord follows Cheveyo to the Southwest on a consulting gig. When the most feared beings of the Kyn kidnaps Cheveyo and leaves Raine for dead, her ability to heal her mind and spirit hinges on the one man who can touch her soul, Gavin Durand.

Unraveling the Southwest Kyn’s web of secrets and hidden vendettas will either bring them together or tear them apart forever.

SHADOW’S MOON, Kyn Kronicles #3

Even wild hearts can be broken…

Tracker, Xander Cade, confronts an enraged Shifter in a crowded human nightclub, fraying the thin secrecy shielding the supernatural community from public scrutiny. Danger stalks the pack and she must protect her alpha and mate, Warrick Vidis, even if he doesn’t want it.

If they don’t find a way to trust each other and accept their rare bond they risk losing everything-their pack, their friends and each other.

SHADOW’S CURSE, Kyn Kronicles #4

Death and chaos can devastate even the best-laid plans…

After tragedy strikes the Northwest Kyn, leaving the houses in chaos and the Wraiths hungry for blood, the fallout threatens Natasha Bertoi’s carefully laid plans. When the Council sends Darius Abazi, the one man guaranteed to skew the odds, she faces her toughest opponent yet.

As death stalks the Northwest Kyn, can Natasha trust Darius, a man well versed in subterfuge, to uncover the truth before treachery destroys them all?

Coming Fall 2015:

A collection of Kyn shorts, including WRAPPED IN SHADOWS

PSY-IV Teams (Paranormal Romantic Suspense series w/MuseIt Up Publishing)

HUNTED BY THE PAST, PSY-IV Teams #1

Sometimes death is the only way to out run the past…

Changing the past is impossible, a fact ex-marine, Cynthia Arden, understands all too well. Struggling with the aftermath of a botched mission, a panicked phone call brings her home to face a killer’s game. Unfortunately, the distracting Kayden Shaw returns as well, the one man she thought would stand by her, until he chose his job over her.

To survive, will Cyn risk her heart or lose the man she loves and her life?

Coming Spring 2016:

TOUCHED BY FATE, PSY-IV Teams #2

Trusting him with her secrets is dangerous. Trusting him with her heart could be fatal.

As a specialized consultant for the Department of Defense, Risia Lacoste understands the bargaining chip of a well-kept secret. When her current assignment threatens to unearth her deeply buried skeletons, she’s forced into a high-stakes game of lies and loyalty where even her ability to foresee the future can’t predict the winner.

Darkness lies under the skin of every man, and PSY-IV Team operative and touch empath, Tag Gunderson, has the demons to prove it. Scarred by betrayal and disillusionment, he’s not Risia’s top pick for a partner in the game, but he’s all she’s got.

As the game draws them deeper into a pit of intrigue and their list of enemies grow, will Risia trust Tag with more than her secrets or will his demons destroy them both?

BIO:

Jami Gray is the award winning, multi-published author of the Urban Fantasy series, The Kyn Kronicles, and the Paranormal Romantic Suspense series, PSY-IV Teams. She can be soothed with coffee and chocolate. Surrounded by Star Wars obsessed males and two female labs moonlighting as the Fur Minxes, she escapes by playing with the voices in her head.

You can find me at:

Black Opal Books: www.BlackOpalBooks.com

Muse It Up Publishing: http://museituppublishing.com

Website: www.JamiGray.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jamigray.author

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/JamiGrayUFWriter

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Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/JamiGray

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Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.com/e/B006HU3HJI

Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/LvoZn

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/jamigrayauthor/