Gothic Tarot by Leilah Wendell   This is an art deck, 22 Major Arcana only, with photographic images of cemetery statues and architecture, enhanced by hand-coloring and some collage work.  The result is a spectacular collectible which I have to say I would recommend to just about anyone.  In fact, the artist's style is such that a large coffee-table book in glossy full-color would be an ideal medium for her work.   A few of the cards bear new titles, such as Chance for the Wheel of Fortune and Innocence for the Fool.  The rest have the traditional titling and order.  This deck comes packaged in a small paper box which is virtually identical to the ones you get as gift boxes for inexpensive necklaces and the like.  A label on the top marks the set with an image from the deck.   The cards themselves are printed on heavy card stock in full color with a glossy finish.  The corners have not been rounded off.  The whole deck almost has more of a feel of looking through someone's photographs just back from the developers, you want to handle them that carefully.  The glossy coating shows fingerprints easily and the stock would crease all too quickly with careless handling.  The images are bordered in solid black frames and the back design is a busy hodgepodge of swirling black-and-white lines.   Each image consists of a single photograph of a cemetery statue or related scene, and then scenic backdrops are added to bring a complete warmth and sense of life to the cards.  The sense of what each card is about is in some form conveyed with each of the pictures.  While this deck is meant to be a collectible (it's a signed, numbered, limited edition of 1000 decks) it's still nice to see that an attempt to be true to the spirit of the tarot is still made.   I highly recommend this deck for anyone who is interested in Gothic art and architecture, Gothic style, and anyone who collects decks in general.  Since it is a limited run of decks, I have to say, grab them while you can!   Click here for pictures   or here to return   Please use your browser's back button to return from pictures   also by Leilah Wendell: The Necromantic Tarot   Review Copyright 1998 by Gina M. Pace