This set of 52 beautiful cards comes as a deck-and-book set only, which makes a lot of sense since it is a complete system within itself.  Subtitled as "A Way to Wholeness Through the Goddess and Ritual," these cards are a lovely meditative tool for gaining personal empowerment and self-esteem.  The author also presents workshops on this system at various outlets across the country.

The cards have no numbering system in place and, not being tarot cards, there are no Major and Minor Arcana and no suits or court cards.  The fifty-two goddesses contained within this system represent one of the most completely cross-cultural tools I have seen.  Of course there are thousands of goddesses throughout the history of humanity, but the ones selected here do an excellent job of representing some of everyone's goddesses.

The cards are larger than standard with white borders and bear a painting of the goddess indicated with the name of the goddess as the title of the card, with a keyword underneath which sums up the meaning of the meditation for the goddess in the book.  Initially the reader should read the meditation for each one when a card is drawn.  Eventually the keyword triggers that knowledge.

The book is substantial in size and contains several pages for each goddess.  The material for each goddess begins with a poem written as a message from the goddess, then there is a paragraph or two detailing the Mythology behind that goddess' inception and powers within her culture.  After that is a lengthy description of the card's meaning, and finally, a ritual meditation for that card.  Small black-and-white pictures of the card are included with each.  At the end of the book is a quick reference list for the cards.  A section on ritual and a selection of spreads designed specifically for this system is also included.

The cards are coated heavily with a glossy laminate that makes them stick together when shuffling them, and their size makes them awkward to handle.  Though the large format shows off the art to its best advantage, I can't help but feel that they could have made the cards sized somewhat more comfortably.  Other than that, I heartily recommend this deck for anyone who is interested in working with the goddesses to build their self-esteem and confidence.  It will also make a nice addition to any collection.

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Review Copyright 1998 by Gina M. Pace