Girls Night Out - Women's Authors Debut New Books

Six local authors will discuss their new books at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 16 at the East Bank Regional Library, 4747 W. Napoleon, Metairie.

This event is free of charge and open to the public. There is no registration.

The Faith of New Orleans, by Kathy Chapetta Spiess

Faith of New Orleans is the story of Catholicism in New Orleans. It is a tale of a faith that transcends mere belief to become the soul of the city. Faith of New Orleans explores the impact of Catholicism, a force that shaped history and nurtured a culture as rich as gumbo. From the fervor of the Code Noir's demand for Roman Catholic adherence to Bienville laying the cornerstone of the first church, the city's Catholic roots run deep, stretching back to an era when papal authority was distant, and the king's emissaries held sway.

This book illuminates more than New Orleans' streets, historic buildings, and unique culture; it kindles a flame within the reader's spirit. It is an exploration of the city's heartbeat, a key to unlocking the sacred and the spectral. More than mere facts, these pages reveal the lifeblood of a city that once pulsed with a faith that, while today is still strong, it is a shadow of its former self.

Kathy Spiess has more than 35 years of experience in planning and construction management, with a diverse background spanning airport, educational, community, and port projects across the country. At VergesRome Architects, she contributes her expertise in feasibility studies, small and disadvantaged business outreach, and regulatory reporting for state and local municipalities. She is a published author and editor of four books highlighting the history of New Orleans.

How Lonely Sits the City, by Kathy Crighton 

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, New Orleans journalist Maggie McBride and her housekeeper Eloise Jackson find themselves living in the empty city in a time nothing has prepared them for. Together they must learn to navigate a harsh new reality as they face personal tragedies and challenges beyond their worst nightmares. How Lonely Sits the City deals with issues of race, loss, betrayal, faith, and love. Originally published in 2019 as The New Normal, an honorable mention award winner in the Writer's Digest Self-Published Book Awards.

Kathy Crighton serves as pastor of First Presbyterian Church New Orleans. Kathy published her first novel in 2019, The New Normal, a story of life in New Orleans immediately after Katrina. She’s also a certified Louisiana Master Gardener and an occasional knitter. And she has never outgrown her childhood passion for horses – she rides intro dressage at a farm in Folsom. 

The Fallen Guardian, Dawn Chartier

Gracyn James has made vengeance her life's mission. Haunted by the brutal murder of her family, she survives on the streets with The Inciters, a vigilante group that delivers justice to society's worst. But her ultimate goal remains elusive: finding her father and uncovering why he destroyed her world. When a deadly encounter with the seductive and powerful Angel of Death leaves her faction annihilated, she’s forced into an uneasy alliance.

Dawn Chartier is a contemporary and paranormal romance author known for crafting emotionally resonant stories with compelling characters and vivid worlds. She has published several romance novels, earning praise for her ability to blend romance with suspense and supernatural elements. Chartier lives near New Orleans with her family, where she finds inspiration in the lush landscapes and unique culture of her surroundings.

The Gates of Guinee (The Casquette Girls series, book 4), Alys Arden

Hailed as “the Anne Rice of the text message generation,” Alys Arden’s debut, The Casquette Girls, entranced over a million readers online, and the series has since garnered a cult following around the world. The fourth volume, The Gates of Guinée, picks up where the third book left off with Macalister LeMoyne held hostage by the Ghost Drinkers’ coven and Adele willing to risk it all to save her father. Even if it means opening a portal to the Voodoo Afterworld to hunt down the spirit of one of the greatest witches who ever lived. A trip to the Afterworld might be the end of the supernatural world. As the Ghost Drinkers seep into the crevices of the Crescent City, leeching the French Quarter of magic, the local witches are consumed with a new fight for survival. Adele has one chance to save everyone she loves, but it means breaking away from her coven and trusting a vampire.

Alys Arden was raised by the street performers, tea leaf-readers, and glittering drag queens of the New Orleans French Quarter. She cut her teeth on the streets of New York and has worked all around the world since. She either talks too much or not at all. She obsessively documents things. Her hair ranges from eggplant to cotton-candy colored. One dreary day in London, she missed home and started writing The Casquette Girls series. Her debut novel garnered more than one million reads online before it was acquired by Skyscape.

SHTF (NOLA Zombie series), Gillian Zane

It's Friday night in New Orleans and Tim "Romeo" Voiter has the night off. A night of rest and relaxation is something new for the former Marine, and he's looking forward to enjoying a fun night out with his buddy, Lucas Martinez. The two men try to ignore the emergency broadcasts and news about the spreading iKPV virus and just enjoy the evening. Romeo, true to his name, even hooks up with a hot redhead and plans on ending the evening at her place. Plans come crashing down, though, as he comes face to face with what the iKPV infected really looks like–and it is not like any infection he's encountered before.

Gillian Zane is an Amazon bestselling author that specializes in dark genre fiction for adults. She defines herself by the city where she grew up, New Orleans. At the age of ten, she decided she would be a writer. Between that decision and when she actually finished a book that she believed was good enough to publish, she’s served in the military, worked as a bartender, became a cog in the corporate marketing wheel as a person “that makes things pretty” and has been laid off many times. She currently writes full-time, but still continues to “make things pretty” by designing book covers and websites for her fellow authors and bloggers.

Edge of Reality, D.M. Bourgeois

When Carsyn Trahan, still grieving the death of her sister, is carjacked, abducted, shot and left for dead, she receives help from an unlikely source and together they go on a journey to not only keep Carsyn alive but to discover the truth about what her assailants want from her. Before long, she learns that her attackers believe she has something of value and will stop at nothing to get it back. She meets Levi at a local tattoo parlor, and he becomes an important player in finding answers. Carsyn, injured and on the run, is unsure who she could trust but puts her faith in Levi and together they fight to stay alive and expose a shocking revelation that has the potential to alter the course of humanity.

Born in New Orleans, D. M. Bourgeois resides in Crown Point, Louisiana, with her husband. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Nicholls State University in Thibodeaux, where she graduated Cum Laude in Interdisciplinary Studies with a minor in English and Humanities. Bourgeois loves to read and is a member of several book clubs. She enjoys listening to music and spending time with family and friends. She is writing her second novel.  

Program inquiries should be directed to Chris Smith, Adult Programming, at 504-889-8143 or wcsmith@jefferson.lib.la.us.