Temples and Characters

OSIRIS’ MISSING PART

Sensual romance but not erotic.

According to the legend, the evil Egyptian god, Seth, killed his brother Osiris, chopped him into fourteen pieces and flung them all over Egypt. Isis, goddess of family, reassembled thirteen of his body parts. Since she couldn’t find his supernatural male member, where his godly power was stored, she reattached a human one.

Isis has always loved Osiris, the charming god of labor, and helps him fight Seth. Together they search for his missing organ so he can recover his godly attributes, but can Isis forgive the sins of his past and their unexpected consequences?

For sale at Jasmine Jade for $5.24

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Temple of Isis in Philae

Philea is an island in the Nile River and the previous site of an Ancient Egyptian temple complex in southern Egypt. The complex was dismantled and relocated to a nearby island by UNESCO. The project started because of the construction of the Aswan Dam, after the temple was partly flooded by the earlier Aswan Low Dam for half a century.

Beyond the entrance into the principal court are small temples, one of which, dedicated to Isis and a wide range of deities related to midwifery. The site is covered with sculptures representing the birth of Isis ' son, the god Horus.

Part of my story is set in the Temple of Philae.

The story of Osiris is represented on the walls of this temple. Two of the inner chambers are particularly rich in symbolic imagery.

Roman Temple of Isis in Pompei

This Temple of Isis is a Roman temple dedicated to the Egyptian goddess, Isis. The small and almost completely intact temple was among one of the first discoveries during the excavation of Pompeii in 1764. In the aftermath of the temple's discovery many well known artists and illustraters swarmed to the site. The preserved Pompeian temple is actually the second structure; the original building built under Augustan was damaged in an earlier earthquake of 62 CE.

The famous composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is known to have visited the Temple of Isis in Pompeii in 1769, at the age of 13, just a few years after the temple was unearthed. His visit and the memories of the site are considered to have inspired him 20 years later in his composition of The Magic Flute

Temple of Osiris in Abydos

The town and district of Abydos is located west of the Nile, on the border between the valley and the desert some 145 km from Luxor. It was here that the ancient kings of Egypt were buried and from predynastic times the area grew to become an important religious centre. This temple is associated with Osiris, one of the great gods of Ancient Egypt, known as the "Lord of Abydos." His mysteries were celebrated there annually during the Festival of Abydos. The ritual re-enactment of Osiris' death and resurrection brought pilgrims from all over Egypt.  Two chapters of my story depict the Festival of Osiris in Abydos.


Temple of Seth in Kom Ombo

Seth, god of storms, is the villain in Osiris' Missing Part. I visited his impressive temple located on a hill right on the Nile River, in the industrial city of Kom Ombo where the air pollution is one the highest in the world.

Beauty Care

I challenge you to find a magazine or newspaper that doesn't have a single reference to beauty care. More probably you will notice the latest fashion in clothes, the new trend in hairstyle, different cosmetic products, or new skin creams guaranteed to remove most of the thin lines on your face. Or better advertisements for the best spa in town.

I live in Florida where so many women fight the aging process with Botox injection or Restylane products that add volume and fullness to the skin and correct facial wrinkles and folds. A good percentage of wealthy Floridian women brave their fears and undergo surgical facelifts. Whether these procedures are effective or not is another story and a risk they are willing to take.

Years ago I tried a new cream right before my son's wedding. Instead of losing a few lines, I developed an incredible rash that lasted a month and sent me crying to a dermatologist and begging him to help a desperate mother of the groom. Only a thorough treatment of cortisone allowed me to avoid scratching my face out during the wedding ceremony. I learned my lesson and wisely accepted the lines --I don't like the word wrinkles-- the Lord has given me.

But recently my cousin convinced me to experiment with natural products I mix in my kitchen: A concoction of honey, yogurt and one egg with one crushed vit. E for mask.

A cream made with 1 tbp of yogurt + 1 tbp of honey + a quarter of a banana to soften the skin. Don't forget to cover your closed eyelids with slices of cucumber while relaxing and plotting your next book.

Caring for your beauty, my lady, is a concept as old as the world. Several Bathes of Cleopatra have been discovered in Alexandria, Egypt. They are natural whirling pool encased between rocks-- the ancestors of our Jacuzzi.

In this excerpt from Osiris' Missing Part, you'll see how Ancient Egyptian women cared for their beauty.

Excerpt:
The two priestesses ushered Isis to a small room at the end of a narrow hallway. A white and gold beaded silk dress lay on the couch. A bath had been prepared for her in a ceramic tub. She gladly shed her dusty clothes and stepped into the warm water sprinkled with rose petals. The priestesses fussed over her. Shadia sponged her back with a lotus-scented soap and Foza lathered her hair.

“Am I massaging too hard, my lady?”

“Is the water temperature to your liking?”

“Everything is fine.” Isis reassured them with a smile.
“Now, my lady, a tub of heifer milk and honey awaits to soothe your body."

Isis had never indulged in such vanity although she had often heard that a mixture of heifer milk and honey provided the best lotion to keep the skin fresh and soft. Without hesitation, she immersed her aching body in the soothing bath. She chuckled and brought her wet thumb to her lips. It tasted good, sweet and refreshing. If she used milk baths, would her skin become softer? Would Osiris notice the difference?

A moment later, Shadia draped her body in a cotton towel and dabbed her face, neck and chest with a napkin dipped in the fragrance of jasmine and lotus blossom. Until today, no one had ever dared pamper the proud goddess and frankly she had never allowed herself to depart from her intimidating attitude and indulge in such vain frivolities. Maybe not that vain if they could help smooth the way to Osiris’ heart.

Foza proceeded to untangle her long tresses with a silver comb and rubbed them with geranium oil to a glowing shine. She braided strands on each side of Isis’ head and brushed her dark bang over her forehead.

Together Shadia and Foza slipped the gown over Isis’ head. “Please sit down for the final touch, my lady.” Shadia brushed rice powder over Isis’ face and contoured her eyes with a line of kohl that extended and widened at the outers corners.

Isis resisted the urge to hurry her pampering. When the priestess finished her task, she backed up, admired her art work and crossed her hands over her heart. “Oh my lady, you are so beautiful. Now allow me to put on your shoes.” She crouched and slipped a pair of golden sandals on Isis’ feet.

Isis examined herself in the long gilded mirror hanging on a wall. “A bit transparent.” The diaphanous white skirt woven with gold thread revealed Isis’ long legs. Golden sequins highlighted the round deep décolletage. “Who chose this dress?” A dress made for seduction. Isis suppressed a chuckle as she tried to imagine Osiris’ reaction. Would his face flush with desire, his fingers touch hers with eagerness?

“We did, my lady,” Shadia said with a trembling voice. “If it doesn’t meet your approval, we can bring another. Although, you look gorgeous, my lady. The white and gold contrast so dramatically with your dark hair.”

Isis smiled. “The dress is lovely. You have good taste. Thank you.”

“Oh my Goddess, you are so beautiful.” Both girls touched their hearts and bowed.

“Let me adjust your crown over your hair,” Foza added.

“I don’t have my ceremonial crown here. Only a coronet in my bag.”

“Toutmess gave me the crown Almighty Osiris kept in his shrine for you.”

Isis’ eyes moistened and her breath caught in her lungs at the tall conical headdress. Two plumes flanked representations of the asp and the sun, emblems of Osiris’ power. The sacred crown he saved in his shrine for his future wife and queen.

Could it be possible he already had feelings for her before his death? Feelings other than lust or friendship? Had he decided to officially introduce her to his subjects as his chosen one?

But he hadn’t even asked her to marry him.

OSIRIS’ MISSING PART

When the evil god, Seth, killed his brother, Osiris, cut him into fourteen pieces and spread them over Egypt, Isis, goddess of family, found and reassembled thirteen body parts. She used a human substitute to replace the fourteenth missing part, his male organ, where his godly power is stored.

Love blooms between the charming Osiris and Isis as they fight evil gods and search for the missing member, but can Isis forgive the sins of his past and their unexpected consequences?

At Amazon.com:

http://www.amazon.com/Osiris-Missing-Part-ebook/dp/B005950KR4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1309748044&sr=1-1

At Ellora’s Cave Blush: http://www.jasminejade.com/p-9394-osiris-missing-part.aspx
discounted at $5.24

Shape shifters in Mythology

Today shape-shifters, werewolves, and others are a big hit in romances. While doing intensive research for my paranormal fantasy set in mythological Egypt, I discovered that the concept of shape shifters is as old as the world and often associated with Romance.

In Greek Mythology, the god of gods, Zeus seduced many pretty women, but he had to switch to bull or shift his lovers to swan, or heifer, or other animals to protect them from his jealous wife Hera.

In the Egyptian Mythology, the gods use their shape-shifting power to perform their duties, attack enemies or defend followers. I will let each of the gods acting in my paranormal fantasy, OSIRIS’ MISSING PART, introduce himself or herself.

                        Seth: I am the god of storm and darkness.

My mother and father favored my older brother, the handsome Osiris. My mother betrothed me to Nephtys when she knew I was in love with Isis, the most beautiful goddess in the pantheon. I couldn’t stand to see Isis fool around with Osiris. I killed him, cut him into fourteen pieces and spread them all over Egypt and beyond the seas and the desert.

I usually wear a red mantle to match my red hair and eyes. Because of me, Egyptians consider the bright red to be a color of evil. I can switch to a black pig or hippopotamus, or even to a crocodile or a shark. I am often represented with a human body and jackal’s head.

Isis: As the goddess of family and health, I protect young family and dot on small children. With my key of life I can perform miracles. I wish I could have a son—Osiris’ son.

I can shift to a cow, a generous animal who gives her milk, or a woman with a cow’s head. My crown is adorned with a throne or decorated with the horns of a cow encasing a solar disk. I have always loved Osiris, even when he cheated on me. When Seth killed him, I cut my tresses and searched for his body pay parts all over the earth and the seas, until I found thirteen of his body parts and put him back together.

Osiris: I am the god of knowledge, work and agriculture. I am probably the only Egyptian god who never shifts to another form. I like to wear my Atef cone over my head and hold my scepter.  I take good care of my subjects who adore me but call me a womanizer. Is it my fault if I appreciate beautiful woman. Isis is my lover and friend. When she couldn’t find my male member where my godly power is stored she reattached a giant’s phallus—as if a man, a god, could live without his own organ. Isis has done so much for me but can she forgive the sins of my past and help me find the missing part?

Nephtys: I am betrothed to the ruthless Seth, but I love Osiris. I am a protective goddess who symbolizes the death experience. In the funerary role, I am often depicted as a bird of prey called a kite, or as a woman with falcon wings, usually outstretched as a symbol of protection. My association with the kite or the Egyptian hawk (and its piercing, mournful cries) evidently reminded the ancients of the lamentations usually offered for the dead by wailing women.

Anubis: I am Nephtys’ son, but who is my father? Seth or Osiris? I was associated with the mummification and protection of the dead for their journey into the afterlife. I am usually portrayed as a half human, half jackal, or in full jackal form wearing a ribbon and holding a flail in the crook of my arm.

Nut: I am Isis’ mother and the goddess of the sky. I spend hours bending over the earth or reading the star constellations to decipher the future and wisely explain the world plans



Kismet, also called Sekhmet, the ferocious goddess of destruction: with my statuesque woman body toped with a lioness head adorned with the solar disc and a cobra, I am wisely feared by everyone, but I love Osiris. He was such a good lover in his first life. Why did he stupidly become faithful to Isis in his second life? My hatchet man, Nekhoret the vulture, helped me in my attacks.

Min, the gloating dwarf  and god of sexuality: I instruct young men on improved performance. Osiris doesn’t like me because I try to court the beautiful Isis or maybe because my male member beats all others in length. 

Sobeck, the crocodile god: I protect the justified dead in the netherworld, restoring their sight and reviving their senses, but I often ate their insides before mummifying their bodies. Because of my ferocity, I was considered to be the patron of the army.

Horus, son of Osiris and Isis: My favorite shape is a human body with a falcon head bearing an orange sun disk wrapped with a golden cobra serpent. I lead the dead to the Afterlife. Ancient Egyptians believed that the Sun was my right eye and the Moon my left eye.

OSIRIS’ MISSING PART

    When the evil god, Seth, killed his brother, Osiris, cut him into fourteen pieces and spread them over Egypt, Isis, goddess of family, found and reassembled thirteen body parts. She used a human substitute to replace the fourteenth missing part, his male organ, where his godly power is stored.

   Love blooms between the charming Osiris and Isis as they fight evil gods and search for the missing member, but can Isis forgive the sins of his past and their unexpected consequences?

This book is dedicated to the many friends, readers and fans who love Ancient Egypt, a fabulous civilization, shrouded in mystery, glamour and mysticism.

At Amazon.com:

http://www.amazon.com/Osiris-Missing-Part-ebook/dp/B005950KR4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1309748044&sr=1-1

At Ellora’s Cave Blush: http://www.jasminejade.com/p-9394-osiris-missing-part.aspx

OSIRIS' MISSING PART

GOD BLESS AMERICA.

To Celebrate the Fourth of July I will give a free copy of this book to a lucky commentator. 

 http://www.jasminejade.com/p-9394-osiris-missing-part.aspx
Publisher: Ellora's Cave Publishing Cover Price: $5.24


amazon.com

Last year, I had the unique opportunity of traveling to Egypt, cruising the Nile River and touring the monuments of Ancient Egypt. 



After immersing myself in the pharaonic civilization, I brought back hundreds of pictures and brochures about Egyptian gods, and even a map of Ancient Egypt to help in my research. 

The Island of Philae, picture taken from a boat on the Nile River


The Temple of Isis, in the Island of Philae, where part of my story is set.

Osiris’ Missing Part, my first paranormal romance, is set in mythological Egypt.



Colossus of Memnon

 This book is dedicated to the many friends, readers and fans who love Ancient Egypt, a fabulous civilization, shrouded in mystery, glamour and mysticism.

Temple of Queen Hatchepsut built in the calcairous rock of the mountain.

According to the legend, the evil Egyptian god of storm, Seth, killed his brother Osiris, chopped him into fourteen pieces and flung them all over Egypt. Isis, goddess of family, reassembled thirteen of his body parts. Since she couldn’t find his supernatural male member where his godly power was stored, she reattached a human one.



Isis, goddess of family and health

   Isis has always loved Osiris, the charming god of labor every woman adores. While dreaming of marriage, family and a son, she helps him fight Seth. Together they struggle to survive iniquities and perils.
  His trip to the Afterlife has changed Osiris. He’s attracted to Isis and regrets his past womanizing. Guided by oracles she utters when they make love, they search lands and seas until they find his missing organ and he recovers his godly attributes. Osiris has fallen in love with Isis but the sins of his past and their unexpected consequences threaten to separate them more painfully than Seth’s mayhem and curses.

Chapter One
Ancient Egypt, at the dawn of time.




A stone sarcophagus

 Isis, goddess of health and family, bent over the gilded sarcophagus and laid her cheek upon the lifeless face. “Osiris, my love.” Grief raked her and soft sobs escaped her lips as she stroked his chest with tender caresses.
After a moment of desolation, she exhaled at the futility of her moaning. Desperate words and kisses had never revived a dead body, especially one cut into several pieces. Determined to bring him back to life, she swallowed her wailing and stiffened her back. Adjusting his severed parts close to each other, she pressed them tightly together and sealed the junctions with her tears.

  With the greatest care, she pressed her key of life to Osiris’ forehead, swept it over his chest and belly, and tapped his groin a few times while she recited a litany of prayers from the Book of the Dead. “Osiris, god of knowledge and work, I command you, leave the Afterlife.”
  The body squirmed against the walls confining him. Clutching her key of life with all her strength, she brushed his lips with a cautious kiss and blew her godly vigor into his mouth. His chest rose and fell.
  Joy exploded in Isis’ heart. “Almighty Osiris, you’re alive. Finally.” Her voice resonated like a triumphant hymn.

His eyelids fluttered and he squinted. “Isis,” he muttered in a guttural voice she hardly recognized. “Where…what…?”



The Nile River bank

 Dropping to her knees in the mud and the dewy grass on the bank of the Nile River, Isis watched him anxiously as he patted his neck and torso. His hand skated to his belly, skimmed down to the junction of his thighs and lingered over his shaft. Shock and fear twitched his face. He yanked back his fingers and heaved up his head for a better look at his groin.


“By my ankh-specter and its tau, this isn’t… Where is my…my…?” Osiris’ loud interjection ended in a groan that gnawed at Isis’ heart. It hadn’t taken him long to notice the unfamiliar member. Panic filled his eyes at the absence of his most prized organ and his gaze flitted from his crotch to her face.


Osiris wearing his Atef crown
and holding his key of life



A sigh escaped Isis’ quivering lips. Unable to detach her gaze from the area that should have harbored his fabulous shaft and now displayed a human penis, void of supernatural power, she debated how to reveal the tragedy.

“You’re alive and awake.” To reassure him, she caressed his chest with her open palm and leaned forward to rain kisses over his taut flesh. “Still more handsome than any desert knight, my lord. A generous king of the earth that Egyptians revere.”





Her loving gesture elicited another growl of frustration. With a disgusted grunt, Osiris grabbed her hand and lowered it between his thighs. “This is not my glorious member, my pride. Isis, my godly power is missing. What happened?” His voice curt, his tone impatient, Almighty Osiris scrambled to a sitting position in the wooden coffin. “Where is my own penis?” His thunderous voice echoed across the clouded skies. “Answer me, woman.”

OSIRIS' MISSING PART available at Ellora's Cave Blush.
A paranormal fantasy set in Egyptian Mythology. Feel the humor and emotion, share the action and suspense, as you explore Ancient Egypt from the Valley of the Nile to the Red Sea shore and beyond.