The Daughters of Cytherea
Sari Shepard
Merry forms an unlikely friendship with Chloe Goldthorne, her husband’s partner in his most recent affair. Chloe has a dark past, but her unbolted approach to sexuality leads Meredith to accept a long-standing offer from coworker Hannah O’Neil and delve into partner-sharing.
Seeking answers to their tawdry but satisfying soirées, they ask another of Merry’s eccentric coworkers to explain the philosophy of the Order of Cytherea, an organization that endeavors to celebrate the ways of the Aphrodite, also known by that name. But they find themselves privy to far more than emulation when a little-known legend of the Goddess of Passion and Desire is explained to them.
Kelly Varhue, another instructor at the college, enters the picture once Cytherea’s prophesy is ordained. Each of them having been stung by a honeybee queen during her mating flight, they find themselves eligible to fulfill Cytherea’s ancient promise to the Titans—that her slain daughters would live again in each and every generation.
Sequestered on a luxurious yacht named Cygnus, the potential sisters discover their own actualities, as well as their potential for group dynamics. As they become closer, they even mange to expel the demons haunting Chloe’s past.
Should they prove themselves worthy, Merry, Chloe, Hannah and Kelly will each receive a gold bracelet that once belonged to the Goddess herself, and take their place as the four chosen Daughters of Cytherea.