CURRENT ISSUE | Vol 32 No 3 

Spring 2021 Edition

“In this historical novel ,three decades in the making, oracle and miracle connect in a crucible of feminine discovery and self-empowerment. Rufilla Istacidii is born to servants in Pompeii in the first century, BCE. The birth was traumatic and Rufilla’s mother dies. Her disconsolate father orders the midwife to take the baby away.

Found under a sacred tree, Rufilla is adopted by a merchant family that considers her an answer to prayers. Stricken with epilepsy, Rufilla also has prophetic dreams guiding her life quest. From Pompeii to ancient Greece, she discovers healing rituals and sacred rites to help her navigate the journey into womanhood, with its obligation and liberation.

Sandra Hurt deftly blends decades of research about Pompeii and the ancient world with C. G. Jung’s The Red Book to imagine one woman’s odyssey to selfhood. Although Rufilla actually existed, the author’s character is fictionalized. The real Rufilla’s fresco in the Villa of the Mysteries captivated the author in 1991. Now, thirty years later, Rufilla’s tale dances on the page. A website (priestessofpompeii.com)  complements the book; a sequel is underway.” – Kirsten Keppel