What I like most about Kink Magic is its understanding of kink and of magic as two complicated practices, which can go together. Taylor and Lupa demonstrate thorough understanding of both areas. In the book, they share history of the Western esoteric tradition, including Crowley, Golden Dawn, and Gardnerian Wicca. Lupa and Taylor even discuss the spiritual principles of a Gardnerian initiation.
Additionally, Taylor and Lupa describe concepts from the kink community. The authors bring kink and magic together, writing about pagan rituals involving BDSM. Spiritual BDSM rituals invoke submission in a mystical sense. A top, representing a divine force, punishes the bottom, uncovering hir deep fears and pushing hir to a threshold. Taylor and Lupa combine BDSM practices (submission) with pagan values (perfect love and perfect trust) (p. 24).
In “Chapter Two: The Principles of Kink,” Taylor and Lupa give the traditional definition of a fetish, “an object or action without which a person absolutely cannot become aroused” and its relaxed definition, “anything that is outside the pale of commonly acceptable sex practices” (p. 31). Taylor and Lupa discuss edgeplay, kinky activities directly on a boundary, for example, whipping a person beyond the safe word (p. 32).
Taylor and Lupa prepare their readers, giving definitions more sexual orientations and magical practices. In the introduction/first chapter, Taylor and Lupa write that readers familiar with their work may be surprised at the elementary information in the first section. Apparently, Taylor and Lupa have covered risqué material already. The reader of Kink Magic: Sex Magic Beyond Vanilla probably expects what the title promises. By the end of Chapter Three, Taylor and Lupa are still covering the basics. I appreciated their introduction to kink and to magic, but was anxious for the advanced material.
“Chapter Four: Sex and Sex Magic” introduces more complicated concepts and practices. Taylor and Lupa discuss pagan attitudes towards sexuality, harmful gendered stereotypes, and sex magic with sigils.
“Chapter Eight: The Scene as Sacred Ritual Space” most accurately describes the book’s spine. “Scene” is a term directly from kink, indicating the enactment of sexual play. In kink magic, the scene becomes a spiritual experience.
The benefit of this book is that authors cover new aspects of kink and magic. Their definitions and theories of each are developed. The book includes general history of western magical traditions and kink specific terms, such as Safe, Sane, and Consensual and Risk-Aware Consensual Kink.
The book is a quality resource for perverts and magicians alike.
Review by Michelle Mueller
Authors: Taylor Ellwood and Lupa
Megalithica Books, 2007
pp. 221, $21.99