The Princess of the Wraiths by Peregrinus Hierusalemsis

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Getting Published

When I was writing my memoir book “The Princess of the Wraiths” I discussed in my book how my friend Jana was amazed that in Mexico it is traditional to eat insects. She was surprised to know that I ate grasshoppers (Sphenarium purpurascens), ant larvae (Liometopum apiculatum), and caterpillars (Aegiale hesperiaris).

While I was writing this, I wanted to write down the name of the caterpillar species that I used to eat. However, writing such a name was not easy. I did not know whether the name of that species is tequila giant-skipper butterfly or Tequila giant-skipper butterfly. 

As you can see, writing tequila or Tequila matters. The reason is that both are different words. They have different meanings. If my book was an audiobook the difference would not matter. However, as it was a written book I wanted to make sure that the letter T was written properly.

Now I shall state the history of this word and why its spelling matters. The word “tequila” in Nahuatl, the language spoken by the Aztecs, means “place of workers.” It is the name of a town found in the state of Jalisco, Mexico. As it is the name of a town, the first letter is a capital T. Its spelling is Tequila. 

However, that is not the end of the story of this word. In Mexico there is a distilled alcoholic beverage that is obtained from plants that belong to the genus Agave that is known as mezcal. There are plenty of different mezcals from different parts of Mexico. They are obtained from different species of the genus Agave that live throughout the country.

The most famous Mexican mezcal comes from Tequila, Jalisco. It is made from the famous Agave tequilana. This mezcal is known as tequila, after the place where it is made. As you can see, as this is the name of an alcoholic beverage, its first letter is not capitalized. Its spelling is tequila.

So, what is the correct spelling of the name of the butterfly? Well, it depends. If the name is related to the town of Tequila, Jalisco, its spelling includes a capital T. If the name comes from the alcoholic beverage, its spelling does not include a capital T. 

My first instinct was to think that this butterfly is named after Tequila, Jalisco. I thought that the butterfly might live there, so it was named after that town. 

However, I was surprised to know that it has never been found in Tequila.

That only means that this butterfly is named after the alcoholic beverage. I found that absurd, but I wanted to know the true spelling.

There is a very strange tradition in Mexico. Some mezcals that are sold in Mexico include a corpse of a dead caterpillar that belongs to the species Aegiale hesperiaris. This might sound too strange, but it is true. Due to the ethanol within the bottle, the corpse is never destroyed by bacteria or fungi. People do not mind the caterpillar corpse and still drink mezcal from the bottle. I thought that was unbelievable, but it does happen. Nowadays this tradition is not as common as it was in the past, but people indeed did this.  

This means the butterfly is named after the alcoholic beverage and the right spelling is tequila giant-skipper butterfly. 

You can read more about other species of lepidopterans in my memoir “The Princess of the Wraiths.”

You can read my memoir online on Scribd:

The so-called “Princess of the Wraiths” is the villain at the end of the book.

The lepidopteran shown in the book cover is not a tequila giant-skipper butterfly (Aegiale hesperiaris). It is a black witch moth (Ascalapha odorata). 

The Princess of the Wraiths

Peregrinus Hierusalemsis

Genre: YA Memoir

Publisher: Books to Hook Publishing, LLC.

Date of Publication: 21st of June 2025

ISBN: 979-8-89283-269-4

Word Count: 262,705 

Cover Artist: Katarzyna Burzmińska 

Book Description:

Biologist-turned-author Peregrinus Hierusalemsis presents “The Princess of the Wraiths: an herbal, bestiary, human zoo, and memoir,” a captivating book that intertwines science, spirituality, and personal growth. This memoir offers a profound look at the intersections of love, knowledge, and resilience, all while reflecting on the author's rich experiences. 

Peregrinus describes the cultural experiences that he lived while growing up in Mexico between the years 1984 and 2002. He also discusses his later life in the United Kingdom and Sweden. During this time, the 2000s culture is explored.

At its core, the book conveys a powerful message: knowledge and wisdom are the ultimate tools for living a successful life. Through deeply personal anecdotes, Peregrinus touches on universal themes such as the influence of global events on individual lives, overcoming fears, seeking spiritual teachers, and navigating love and relationships. Richly illustrated with 94 handmade natural history and people-focused illustrations, this memoir provides not only an intellectual feast but also a visual delight. 

Key highlights include childhood fears of ghosts, mystical experiences, navigating young adult relationships, and insights into the biodiversity of our natural world. Peregrinus also sheds light on his experience avoiding toxic relationships, a lesson that inspired the title, “The Princess of the Wraiths.” The Princess of the Wraiths is a woman who is able to produce nightmares using hypnosis. Defeating her was Peregrinus’s greatest challenge. Through this work, readers will uncover how science and spirituality can coexist to offer a broader understanding of reality. 

This unique memoir is available for free online, making it an accessible and enriching read for anyone interested in exploring the depths of science, spirituality, and personal evolution.

FREE Download at Scribd

Excerpt:

 

Regarding death, my grandmother Lorenza used to tell me an anecdote that happened to her while she was a kid. She was an orphan, so she went to live with her grandmother, who became her primary caregiver. My great-great-grandmother lived in Los Ranchos de San José, a village close to Villa Guerrero, State of Mexico. In her house, there was a black cherry tree (Prunus serotina). One night, a great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) perched on a branch of the tree and started to vocalize. My great-great-grandmother thought that such an event was an omen. She claimed that meant that she would soon die. Thus, she told Lorenza to do whatever she could to scare the owl. My grandmother Lorenza was unable to scare the owl. The owl vocalized in the same place for several nights, and my great-great-grandmother died less than a month after the owl started hooting. After the burial, Ismaela arrived to tell her niece Lorenza that she should leave the house to go to live with her, as Lorenza was still a kid. When both were leaving the house, Lorenza claimed that she did not want to leave the building, as she was able to listen to the ghostly voice of my dead great-great-grandmother who was calling her inside…

According to the Graeco-Roman Olympian religion, Ascalaphus was an angel of the Hades God. Hades is the dwelling place of the souls of the dead. The task of Ascalaphus was to snatch the souls of dying people to Hades. Ascalaphus was transformed into an owl by Persephone the Kore, the queen of Hell. Since then, owl Ascalaphus has visited dying people before they finally died. That is why Pliny the Elder stated in his “Natural History” that the Eurasian eagle-owl (Bubo bubo) was an extremely bad omen. Spanish bishop St. Isidore of Seville transferred this superstition to Christian Catholicism in his book “Etymologiae.”

About the Author:

Peregrinus Hierusalemsis is a biologist, writer, and seeker whose life has woven together science, philosophy, and spirituality. A graduate of the University of Edinburgh (2010) with a degree in biology, he has published scientific papers on biodiversity and worked in plant sciences, entomology, and molecular biology since 2009. His professional passion lies in systematics, the classification of living things, while his personal explorations reach into philosophy, metaphysics, and the world’s ancient spiritual traditions.

From early encounters with eastern philosophy in childhood karate lessons in Mexico, to late-night debates on western philosophy with friends, to the guidance of a spiritual teacher during his A-level years in the UK, Peregrinus has always sought to understand life’s hidden patterns. These experiences, alongside his scientific training, shape his unique voice which can be described as a bridge between the empirical and the mystical.

His debut work, The Princess of the Wraiths: an herbal, bestiary, human zoo, and memoir, invites readers into a journey that blends memoir with natural history, spiritual reflection, and philosophical inquiry.