Happy Feast of Lupercalia
Let me whip you into a frenzy (with a book)
Hey, babes!
It’s Lupercalia! If you don’t know what that is, allow me to give you a brief rundown.
Lupercalia is an ancient Roman festival held from the 13-15 of February (officially on the 15th) and is considered by some to be the precursor to Valentine’s Day. It’s a feasting and fertility rite associated with Lupercus (connected to the god Faunus), the god who protects farmers and the harvest; Juno, the goddess of marriage and fertility; and with the legendary she-wolf who nursed Romulus and Remus in the Lupercal at the foot of the Palatine hill.
Celebrations of this festival include ritual sacrifice of goats and a dog, feasting, a naked foot race of women around the Palatine hill in which they were whipped with hide from the sacrificial animals to ensure their fertility, and public intercourse.
Today, we’re going to do something a little less scandalous: I’m giving you a free copy of Defiance, published last year on 14 February. It’ll be available for download until the 17th of February (that’s this Saturday), so don’t wait!
Hope this month is treating you well, and I’ll catch up with you again soon!
XOXO,
Mariah
He he… so scandalous!
That festival would be quite the sight. I feel like my reaction would be like when you're a kid watching a movie with your parents and a sex scene comes on. Where do you look? If you watch it, you're being "inappropriate," but if you look away then you're "immature." There's no winning! 🤣