The Santa Muerte Book of the Dead Tarot - Review

The Santa Muerte Tarot....Fabio Listrani

I like it.  I usually use my Halloween Oracle cards for that festive Fall season I love so much, but I remembered this deck was in my wish list and has been for awhile.  I wanted to get it early, so I could work with it properly before using for readings. I had read mixed reviews about the deck and decided as usual to ignore them because I make my own mind up thank you.

And I am glad I ignored the negatives because this deck is just lovely.  It isn't over the top skeletons and wonky halloween type imagery. It is very well done and often the cards show a lot of humor too. The Hierophant is reading a Ouija board, which made me giggle.

The card stock is nice, glossy but shuffles well.  The imagery is gorgeous and very layered. Sometimes that can be a detractor but in this case, I think it works well. Some of the meanings vary from the usual RWS meanings but not too much and it is explained in the book and matches the imagery in the card so it is, for me, intuitive. 

One thing I wasn't sure I liked at first was that all the minor arcana 10's are butterflies. Then I realized that butterfly = transformation and decided it was well done after all!

The cards and images celebrate all who have gone before us. It is in their memory and our collective unconsciousness that we will continue to nourish and which we can tap into with Tarot. Death represents transformation and rebirth in the present. We all face death and in death we are all equals. (from the book)

The cards are almost borderless which really makes them pop. I could add this to my list of decks that I use daily, they are that well done. I love a good intuitive deck and this one is very intuitive. Very much worth the $25.