Otherworld Tarot

“I first discovered Tarot shortly after being struck down by a debilitating illness known as M.E. or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I have been an avid reader of Tarot cards for many years now and have collected many beautiful decks along the way. Looking at some of the other decks out there, I started to wonder how difficult it would be to do my own but I knew that my artistic skills weren’t really up to the job. Then I thought of Sarah…Thankfully, Sarah was excited about it as I was and so Otherworld Tarot was born. The only thing left to say is that we hope you get as much enjoyment using this deck and book as we have had designing them.” – Alison Williams (from the Otherworld Tarot companion booklet)

Replete with bold, bright coloring, the Otherworld Tarot—conceived by Alison Williams and illustrated by Sarah Nowell—features Rider-Waite style Majors with mostly static Minor Arcana imagery.

What struck me about the Otherworld Tarot were the alarmingly emaciated figures populating this deck. Gaunt faces, protruding bones and stick-then people distracted me from the otherwise vivid renderings in most of the cards. (In fairness, I showed my husband this deck to see if he got the same impression, and didn’t mention the anorexic folks on the cards—but did remark on the vibrant artwork.)

I forged past the negative first impression though because there are times I don’t like a deck at first blush but, after working with it, the cards presents delightful revelations upon further examination.

Unfortunately, even after two months of attempting to bond with this deck, I’m afraid to say that the Otherworld Tarot and I are still at odds.

Measuring approximately 5 x 3 ½ inches, the thick, difficult to shuffle cards have way-too-big-and-busy borders that distract from the central image. The color choice of Minor Arcana borders are a bit perplexing, too: olive green for Wands, rust for Pentacles, sage green for Cups and blue for Swords (well, the latter makes sense, since Air=sky).

The fronts of the Otherworld Tarot depict card name and a key word/phrase at the bottom. This may help those new to Tarot, but I find them limiting (as with any cards that include keywords). The reversible card backing shows two purple flying unicorns with blue wings, floating among an S shape ring of pink flowers.

The Minor Arcana depicts mostly static imagery (e.g. Nine of Pentacles shows a tree with nine pentacles on and around it, the Four of Swords shows four swords with a snake coiling around them, the Six of Cups shows six cups with a heart and some flowers, and so on).

The coloring of the Otherworld Tarot reminds me somewhat of the Tarot of the Sweet Twilight, although I feel the latter is a far superior deck in execution.

I found the 96-page companion booklet to be a bit shallow both in its card interpretations and in the author’s understanding of Tarot. For example, the description of the Queen of Wands reads:

“Although the suit of Wands is largely to do with movement, action, and career, the Queen of Wands cuts a very homely figure. She has a very loving caring nature and also boundless enthusiasm for the positive things in life, especially anything to do with nature. If you meet a real-life Queen of Wands then beware—cross her at your peril, for you will feel her wrath. She is one to keep on the good side of! Ultimately, this Queen teaches us to put our thoughts and ideas to creative use.”

If you’re drawn to the imagery of this deck and don’t mind the drawbacks that I mentioned (if, indeed, you would even consider them as such), then you may want to give the Otherworld Tarot a try. However, I’d advise most to pass on this particular Tarot, especially given the wonderful array of truly original, stunning decks already on the market.