**Review ~ Demons in the Big Easy ~ Jamie Marchant**

Title: Demons in the Big Easy
Author: Jamie Marchant
Release Date: January 4, 2013
Source: I received an ecopy from the author in exchange for an honest review

Synopsis:
Adventurous in her youth, Cassandra built gateways between Domhan and its parallel realm of Earth. Now she’s too old for that kind of thing. But something is making it easier for demons to pass into Domhan. Not only that, but their behavior becomes inexplicable: whenever Cassandra banishes one, it laughs at her rather than resists, and it promises it will soon devour her essence and that of every resident of her small village. Cassandra is certain such a thing is impossible, for strong wards protect her village. 

But then Cassandra’s granddaughter Aine falls through an unstable gateway. Cassandra is the only one within a hundred miles capable of creating a gateway and bringing Aine back. Despite her aching joints, Cassandra goes after her, and the gateway lands her in New Orleans. But something goes wrong with her tracking spell, which indicates Aine exists in four different places at once. As Cassandra struggles to find the true location of her granddaughter in the Big Easy, she discovers the source of the demons’ confidence. Now, with an unlikely pair of allies—her timid granddaughter and a homeless man who may or may not be crazy—she has to not only save her granddaughter but also prevent both Domhan and Earth from being overrun by demons.

Demons in the Big Easy is a quick read. I was impressed with the amount of world building and character development Ms. Marchant packed into such a short story.

Cassandra is a witch and resides in Domhan, a realm connected to Earth. Travel between realms is done through gateways - either magically created ones or randomly occurring ones. Cassandra has always stood as sentry for her village, protecting it from demons who might cross the veil.

Cassandra's granddaughter, Aine, feel through a random gateway. To get her back, Cassandra and Caronwyn, Aine's twin sister, travel through a gateway to the city of New Orleans. There they meet Jake, a homeless man who believes he's crazy because he can see demons.

The story revolves around Cassandra, Caronwyn, and Jake's search for Aine. Their search entails dealing with zombies, demons, voodoo, a cruel mother and one very power hungry man. Sound about right for New Orleans? :)

Demons in the Big Easy managed to pack in some action, build some suspense, and keep me entertained. My only complaint is that I wanted more! :) 

Jamie Marchant lives in Auburn, Alabama, with her husband, son, and four cats, which (or so she’s been told) officially makes her a cat lady. She teaches writing and literature at Auburn University. Her first novel The Goddess's Choice was released in April 2012 from Reliquary Press. She is hard at work on the sequel, tentatively titled The Soul Stone. She also has published a novella, titled Demons in the Big Easy. Her short fiction has been published in Bards & Sages, The World of Myth, and Short-story.me.

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