Hoodoo Series by Adrian Phoenix

"There will be times, girl, when all your magic ain't going to be enough, times when it will seem to dry up like mud under the noonday sun, or even make matters worse . . ." Kallie Riviere, a fiery Cajun hoodoo apprentice with a talent for trouble, finds herself smack-dab in the middle of one of those times her mentor warned her about when she visits New Orleans to attend the Hecatean Alliance's annual carnival: her hard-bodied conjurer hookup ends up dead in her blood-drenched bed... more"There will be times, girl, when all your magic ain't going to be enough, times when it will seem to dry up like mud under the noonday sun, or even make matters worse . . ." Kallie Riviere, a fiery Cajun hoodoo apprentice with a talent for trouble, finds herself smack-dab in the middle of one of those times her mentor warned her about when she visits New Orleans to attend the Hecatean Alliance's annual carnival: her hard-bodied conjurer hookup ends up dead in her blood-drenched bed. And he was killed by something that Kallie would never dream of touching -- the darkest of dark juju, soul-eating juju -- a black dust hex that may have been meant to kill her. Now Kallie has to use every bit of hoodoo knowledge and bayou-bred mojo she possesses to clear her own name and find the killer -- even as that dark sorcerer hunts Kallie and her friends. But Kallie's search for the truth soon leads her in a direction she never anticipated -- back home to Bayou Cypres Noir, and to Gabrielle LaRue, Kallie's aunt, protector, and hoodoo mentor . . . who is looking more and more like she just might be the one who wants Kallie dead. less

"An eye for an eye is never enough.” Kallie Riviere, a Cajun hoodoo apprentice with a bent for trouble, learned the meaning of those ominous words when hoodoo bogeyman Doctor Heron targeted her family for revenge. Now, while searching for her still-missing bayou pirate cousin, Kallie finds out the hard way that someone is undoing powerful gris gris, which means that working magic has become as unpredictable as rolling a handful of dice... more"An eye for an eye is never enough.” Kallie Riviere, a Cajun hoodoo apprentice with a bent for trouble, learned the meaning of those ominous words when hoodoo bogeyman Doctor Heron targeted her family for revenge. Now, while searching for her still-missing bayou pirate cousin, Kallie finds out the hard way that someone is undoing powerful gris gris, which means that working magic has become as unpredictable as rolling a handful of dice. The wards woven to protect the Gulf coast are unraveling, leaving New Orleans and the surrounding bayous vulnerable just as a storm–the deadliest in a century–is born. As the hurricane powers toward the heart of all she loves, Kallie desperately searches for the cause of the disturbing randomness, only to learn a deeply unsettling truth: the culprit may be herself. To protect her family and friends, including the sexy nomad Layne Valin, Kallie steps into the jaws of danger . . . and finds a loup-garou designed to steal her heart–literally. less

Deep in the bayou, justice comes in many forms. When Cass finds her partner lying on the floor of their New Orleans tattoo shop in a pool of blood, the world as she knows it ends. Alex, her ink-slinging Michelangelo, lies in the hospital comatose, perhaps permanently. Lacking faith in the police and their ability to find whoever shot Alex, Cass puts the word out that she's seeking justice, justice she will willingly pay for... moreDeep in the bayou, justice comes in many forms. When Cass finds her partner lying on the floor of their New Orleans tattoo shop in a pool of blood, the world as she knows it ends. Alex, her ink-slinging Michelangelo, lies in the hospital comatose, perhaps permanently. Lacking faith in the police and their ability to find whoever shot Alex, Cass puts the word out that she's seeking justice, justice she will willingly pay for. When a Voodoo mambo offers the services of her mysterious godson, Cass finds herself stepping into a dark, deadly world, one that she may not walk out of again intact. This is a short story set in the world of my Hoodoo novels, Black Dust Mambo and Black Heat Loa, and features Gabrielle LaRue and Devlin Daniels from those books. It is not necessary to read the novels in order to enjoy the story. "Phoenix is a beautiful storyteller--her prose flows like poetry." --Explorations: the BN SciFi & Fantasy Blog less