I love tarot and oracle decks. I have been reading since I was 16 and I have loved them ever since. I think they are a divination tool of such beauty, and each deck is unique with new insights to share. I am a bit of a collector when it comes to decks and I have well 6 right here beside me and an additional 8-10 more. I may be underestimating that amount as well. I might have a problem (nah!). In the last month I received a new oracle deck as a gift and I received a tarot deck my husband kickstarted for me as well. I am awash in new divinatory tools and I love it. I thought I would share my first impressions of both decks in case you were looking at them, or so you might want to.

Deck 1: The Literary Witches Oracle written by Taisia Kitaiskaia and illustrated by Katy Horan – The artwork for this oracle is lovely. The cards are divided into two types: The Witches and The Witches’ Materials. There are 30 witch cards with portraits of famous literary women and 40 material cards which are common images found in literary work like wolf, cauldron, white dress, etc. The deck comes in a sturdy box and has a guidebook that has basic meanings for each card as well as sample spreads. Here is a quick look through the guidebook.

The cards are well made and solid, but a little large for my hands when it comes to shuffling. The imagery on the cards is gorgeous and lush for the Witches and beautiful but simple for the Materials. I love the idea of working with imagery as a divination tool and I look forward to using this deck. Here are some examples of my personal favorite Witches and some of the Materials I liked a lot.

Deck 2: The Oriens Tarot by Ambi Sun – The imagery for this deck drew me right in when Seth showed it to me on Kickstarter and I knew I needed it. The artwork is stunning and comprised of animals and insects. The colors are lush. I have been waiting for this for a while. The deck came in a beautiful sturdy box, and I also got a reading cloth in the design from the back of the cards. The deck does not come with a physical book, but I was able to download a copy onto my computer and phone, and you can look at the meanings of the cards on the website.

The sides of the cards are gilded in an amazing holographic silver that catches the light beautifully. The cards are of a nice thickness and fit really well in my hands. I could shuffle them all day if given half the chance. (I find shuffling super meditative and relaxing.) I am massively in love with the animal imagery and the beautiful colors. I am so excited to get into using this gorgeous deck. Here are some of my immediate favorite cards.

Do you read tarot? Or do you collect them like me? What do you think makes a great deck? Do you enjoy oracle decks as well?