Customer Reviews

Rites of Pleasure: Sexuality in Wicca and Neo-Paganism

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First off, no matter the subject matter this book is incredibly well written. It "dares" to openly discuss the many nuances of sex practiced in the incredibly varied Pagan community (yes, Ms. Hunter really does cover Paganism and not just Wicca). Material that could be considered sensitive in some context is handled candidly yet without being titillating just for the sake of sales. The author takes a very complete big picture view, not holding back when it came to describing the myopic practice pagans sometimes take against one another no matter what we preach.

The well chosen and diverse selection of contributors are intelligent, well spoken and educating. Not being people that I would normally run into (a loss for me), their comments introduced me to new ways of thinking about my sexuality and my spirituality. And how the two can and should be blended into each other.

As a solitary who doesn't have a lot of contact with other Pagans this book was an enlightening look into the diversity of the larger community and in way that I didn't expect, the spirituality that brings us together.

You won't find technical tips on Tantra or a how-to guide to a hotter Great Rite in this book. Nor will you find fantasy material about witch orgies under the moonlight, nor advice on how to get yourself laid at Starwood. What you will find is a frank and detailed exploration of the role of sexuality for Pagans, both within circle and outside it, and how Pagan philosophy and attitudes affect the rest of our sensual lives. Jennifer Hunter orchestrates a large and diverse personal group of voices collected from interviewees gathered from all over the Pagan community. She takes the time to explore some concepts which are not Pagan per se, but which are core parts of the lives of some Pagans, including homosexuality, non-standard gender identities, polyamory, (...), and BDSM. This book is an optimistic, life-loving kaliedoscope of ideas and personal stories. Recommended as a gift to a Pagan friend or lover for Valentine's Day, Beltaine, or anytime!

_Rites of Pleasure_ is a popular-press book written by a practitioner of contemporary Paganism. It includes a history of Pagan sexuality, Pagan sex gods and symbols, Pagan relationships, sexuality in the Pagan community, gender and queer Paganism, BDSM, sex work, and sex magic. Hunter treats all of these topics in a colloquial, sex-positive voice, supplementing her own thoughts with interview clips from other Pagan practitioners, some of them very well-known (including Carol Queen, Oberon Zell-Ravenheart, Raven Kaldera, Judy Harrow, Don Kraig, Annie Sprinkle, and others).

Hunter shows a great deal of sophistication in many of the chapters. Her Pagan relationships chapter includes a balanced, common-sense introduction to polyamory, while also supporting monogamy as a legitimate relationship style. The chapters on BDSM and sex magic are both provocative and down-to-earth. Hunter emphasizes consent and safety while providing a strong theoretical framework for the use of sexuality and BDSM techniques for spellwork, to achieve ecstatic or visionary trance, for initiatory purposes, and to explore new depths of bonding with a partner or partners. _Rites_ is excellent in its treatment of safer sex, looking in depth at negotiation techniques among networks of lovers and exploring condoms and other latex barriers as magical tools. Finally, Hunter provides a theological grounding for the importance of sexuality within Pagan practice, giving clear explanations of the Pagan belief in immanent deity and providing models of how sexuality can be used as a devotional practice in contemporary Paganism.

The book is somewhat marred, however, by weak introductory chapters, which is where Hunter ventures outside her specialty (contemporary Paganism and sexuality) into history. Hunter gets academic points for pointing out that most narratives of prehistoric Goddess worship are speculation, and for her references to Ronald Hutton's excellent work on Pagan history. Her overuse of Riane Eisler (whose scholarship is notoriously flawed and biased), however, leads to a number of overgeneralizations. Hunter is alive to the diversity of contemporary Paganism; it is a shame she is not more aware of the immense diversity of Christianity and other world religions.

With the exception of these opening chapters, however, _Rites_ is a well-researched, intelligent, accessible book that deals with issues of sexuality in contemporary Paganism with insight and subtlety. I would whole-heartedly recommend it for anyone interested in sex-positive spiritual practice.

It seems to me that the people interwieved in this book have a somewhat similar take on sexuality. I would have enjoyed a more diverse group of voices that also exist in the pagan community like someone who think BDSM is opressive, someone who think polarity and male/female coupling is the only form of true wicca, someone who belives you should be legally handfasted to have sex or kids, celibacy etc. This book as it is now just gives me nothing new. Sad on such an interesting subject.

I really, really, really liked this book. I've pretty much been reading anything I can get my hands on as far as BDSM and sex magic goes, and so the chapter in this book on that topic was what first attracted me. I'm not surprised I like it, though-I think that her 21st Century Wicca is one of the best (and most underappreciated) Wicca 101 texts out there (and you know it has to be good to impress me ;)



This is definitely a unique book in the existing corpus of knowledge regarding paganism and sexuality in general. Rather than a how-to guide for sex magic, it's an excellent discussion of ethics and the role of sex and sexuality in the pagan community. You want your paganism 201 material? Here it is, with intelligent, mature discussion of what can sometimes be sticky (literally and figuratively) subject matter. Hunter punctuates her writing with quotes from a wide selection of interviewees ranging from Annie Sprinkle and Dossie Easton to Donald Michael Kraig and Raven Kaldera.



The topics covered include various sexualities (hetero, homo, bi, etc), polyamory, transgendered people and gender fluidity in the pagan community, BDSM and even sex work, among others. Hunter does an excellent job of treating every topic fairly and evenly. There's also a good chapter on sex magic and preparations thereof, making this a really good guide overall. And, I am absolutely pleased to say that she makes good use of endnote citations and has a wonderful bibliography. (Those of you who have been reading my reviews a while, or my journal, or talking to me in person, or...well...you get the idea, know that the lack of internal citations in pagan nonfic is one of my major pet peeves.)



Overall, I highly recommend this book to any pagan. Hunter offers a lot of food for thought that I think the pagan community really needs to be paying attention to, especially in light of recent social shifts towards the mainstream. As paganism gets more exposure from outside the community, other people will be asking about our views on sex and sexuality. This book addresses a lot of the controversial issues about sex and sexuality in paganism in a manner that not only can help the individual pagan get a better handle on hir own thoughts on the matter, but could even be offered as a text for non-pagans to read.

Insightful and inclusive, conversational yet well-researched, and full of obvious passion for the topic. Highly recommended to anyone interested in the intermingling of sexuality and modern paganism.

Researching academic studies on neo-paganism, the title naturally intrigued me, so I checked this out. It's not scholarly but popular in its direction, although endnotes and sources are dutifully cited. A general survey interspersed with 22 accounts from (all but one) American "Witches, Wiccans, and NeoPagans," the result's certainly not nearly as sober or somber as other introductions to this charged and potent topic.

The subtitle's "Sexuality in Wicca and NeoPaganism." But it's not an anthropological treatise of a little-known subculture. It's meant to reassure those already inside (or peeking into) the emerging tradition. It's written in a very breezy-- if for me rather nudge-nudge, wink-wink tone of "we've all been there, we're all in this together" against the system-- tone of solidarity. Understandably given the caution that kept me, reading this at my workplace, to conceal the cover. The supportive, here rather coy, there very explicit style of the presentation may not surprise, on the other hand, the intended audience for this brisk work. I sympathize with the difficulties faced by those popularizing not only marriage and "fluid-bonded" relationships but "condom compacts," a "play party," polyamory and similarly if even more daringly open-minded sexual expressions among those long feeling persecuted for their right to pursue pleasure in life-affirming, yet dramatically subversive or imaginative new-old ways. Hunter's fair-- more than earlier reviewers on Amazon US may have given her credit for-- in appealing to everybody on the continuum from celibates to sex workers; she keeps in mind risks and challenges for all involved.

The author of two books previously on Wicca, Hunter reminds us how rare a religion which encourages open sexuality for all remains. As a researcher, that brought me to read this. That novelty accounts for interest many may have in this subject. Symbolism, relationships, rituals, magic, body-positive thinking, ethics and safety, gender issues, poly & queer paganism, and rites of passage follow a quick history of sacred sex. She tends towards works by pagans themselves but includes scholarship from primarily feminist and sexuality authorities also. Websites, a glossary, and the often frank comments from the informants themselves help orient the reader.

As I've mentioned, the book, despite its rapid pace, tends towards a compendium for practitioners and, it seems, experienced pagans rather than newcomers or academics. I think that the sources for what remains historically an elusive subject to account for solidly-- due to the prejudice and bias heaped upon it for millennia-- could have been stronger, but in time, a more subdued, less giddy text may follow. Hunter writes for her fellow circle, and this is a first start towards a needed conversation and elucidation of sacred sex past and especially present in a nature-based, magically and spiritually flexible context. That being said, the readership for it may be narrower or broader than I'd expected-- but in either case more than the esoteric sociological monograph I'd figured this for unseen, to be sure.

I bought this book because I'm an acquaintance of the author. I'd never read her other books, and I had no idea whether she was a good author. I know now!

This was far better than average fare. The writing style was well-organized and easy to read, the material both deep and fun. I was glad to read the reminders of important concepts, like "sexuality can be powerfully positive" and "safety and consensuality are required", and their repetition was never overwhelming or even misplaced. The interview excerpts were well-chosen. Even the spelling, grammar, and choice of font were great.

The book was great. It makes me wish I identified as a Pagan, so I could get more out of her other books. ;)

"Some Netspeak is used in this book. If you see some strange 'punctuation,' or an acronym you don't recognize, just ignore it--and buy a computer at your earliest opportunity."

To be honest, this kind of attitude from a writer does not encourage me as to their ability to explain anything. While it is (regrettably) true that "Netspeak" has become nearly ubiquitous, it's hardly something to use as a way of putting oneself above the reader. Ms. Hunter would have been well-served to include a short lexicon in place of this "recommendation" which only serves to alienate.