- Santa Muerte Lenormand
- by Dan M. Pelletier & illustrated by Callie L. French
- Published by Schiffer. RRP $24.99 / £20.00
- ISBN 978-1-7643-6377-1
One disappointing thing for tarot readers who find themselves drawn to the tradition of Lenormand is that there aren’t quite as many decks out there. This may be because Lenormand is still coming into its own, at least in my home base of the UK – so I was particularly glad to hear about La Santa Muerte Lenormand, because it promises to bring something a little bit different to your readings beyond the basic symbols.
La Santa Muerte is Spanish for ‘Our Lady of the Holy Death’ and the booklet that comes with the deck explains that she is a skeleton goddess, saint, or folk-figure revered in certain Catholic communities in Mexico. Despite her clear connection with death, the author assures us that she ‘is associated with love, healing, protection, financial well-being, justice, and assurance of a path to the afterlife.’ He also cautions us that ‘she answers prayers that other saints often will not’ and states that the deck creators ‘shall not be held responsible for unintended consequences of devotional requests.’ Some could find this statement a little unnerving, but to me it only serves to enhance the spooky, mysterious vibe inherent in a deck that dances so closely with death. I’m in.
But first, practical matters: the box it comes in is sturdy with a satisfying magnetic flap, and the booklet is, at 104 pages, quite substantial (none of these forgettable, easily-lost little white books!). The booklet includes a short explanation of the figure of La Santa Muerte, a brief introduction to the Lenormand system, a small write-up on each card along with a full-size illustration, and some suggested spreads to try. The cards are slightly larger than my more traditional Lenormand decks, but you can still easily manage a grand tableau (that is, a laying out of all 36 cards from the deck in the ultimate spread of spreads!). The cards are matte and shuffle easily, and the card back design sports an esoteric-looking sigil that adds to the mysterious mood when using the deck.
The card images themselves are vibrant and enjoyable to look at. Yes, there are skeletons and reminders of death, but not in every card (the Fish, for instance, is just fish), and even in the ‘darker’ cards like the Mice there are a lot of colours to be found. When I did a reading for a friend to get a feel for the deck, I actually cautioned him that he might see a lot of skeletons and it wasn’t to be taken as anything beyond the aesthetic of the deck – but, surprisingly, every card we drew for his nine-card box was surprisingly ‘normal’. All this is to say, don’t be intimidated by the skulls and the idea of ‘muerte’! The images do require a more adventurous spirit from a reader, but it’s not all blood and coffins and darkness (I mean, the Sun card does depict a freshly dug grave, but this is the only card where the ‘muerte’ theme seems slightly out of place).
One thing that has to be said is that the names of the cards are all in Spanish. Readers familiar with the Lenormand system will be absolutely fine (there are still the usual numbers and playing card inserts to help you out), but readers new to the system who don’t speak Spanish will probably find themselves confused. To these readers, I say start off with something more generic, and then perhaps later, if La Santa Muerte is calling to you, you may confidently answer.
Finally, I have to say that I very much appreciate the extra Man and Woman cards in this deck. In Lenormand, the Man and Woman are usually used to signify the person you are reading for plus their romantic interest, and what are you supposed to do with a traditional deck and a client who is not heterosexual? Thankfully, most Lenormand decks coming out nowadays throw in these extra cards – you just have to remember to remove whichever cards you do not need before conducting your reading.
All in all, this is a really fun deck to use, and I do also think it will be a fantastic one to crack out for Halloween parties and other themed occasions. The readings I have so far conducted with it have been insightful, informative, and helpful for the querent – what more could a Lenormand reader ask for?
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