• Deck Name: Bonefire Tarot 2^nd Edition 
• Author & Artist:  Gabi Angus-West – tarotavatara.com 
• Publisher:   Red Feather – redfeathermbs.com 
• Recommended Retail Price :    34.99 / approx. £25 
• ISBN #:     978-0-7643-6622-2 
• Reviewed by: Clair Telford

How can I express my delight at this beautiful deck that arrived? It has ignited a magnificent explosion of colour and symbols like nothing I have seen before!

The very comprehensive full colour 248-page guide book is most impressive.  It has four parts and 10 chapters to immerse yourself in Gabi’s work as an artist, how she intended her work to come across, and the interpretations of each of the cards. The deck is based on the RWS, yet has a much deeper, richer symbolism within. The book has a glossary at the back where Gabi has gone to great lengths to consolidate a key for those said symbols. It is a handy guide! 

A bit about Gabi from the book gives you enough to know that as an artist she has been enjoying Sailor Jerry-inspired tattoos and the Rockabilly style for years; the latter being something I grew up with and also experienced during working life. The art itself was created from Gabi’s mind using pencil drawings on canvas with an acrylic medium to bring it to life.  Gabi explains she wants you to “venture toward self- knowledge in an effort to know your higher self.” Gabi also says “I felt it had the power to transform other lives. I saw it as putting people on the road to finding their own best selves,” when describing how she wants this deck to be come across. 

I absolutely wholeheartedly think that this deck is a beautiful experience. The cards are matte finished with red edge. It is thick card so needs time to shuffle in order to get used to it. I was happy that it wasn’t too flimsy!

The images themselves are busy yet somehow the palette mutes this and you are able to draw all the elements and symbols from each card. The titles are within the image as some don’t look like traditional RWS; for example, the wands are replaced with fiery pinecones.

The card dimensions are 4×3 inches, which is perfect for the smaller-handed folk like myself. The backs aren’t quite reversible, the subtle difference being in the four corners of the outer artwork. 

For anyone who has tattoos, I love how each card is unique and individual as the very pieces of art we choose to put on our body. Some cute little things like dice, playing card suits, and cherries of the Rockabilly style, with some epic scenes and characters who have tattoos themselves! 

So how does this deck read? 

Allow me to let you in on a reading I did for a friend. I asked if she would mind doing this for review. Three clear cards defined a new job venture she was moving into, and there were some key things that jumped out – please see the cards below. The image of the pocket watch indicated to me that my friend would have more time to sit back, and reap the rewards of her labour. The ladder showing how she has worked hard in her climb to success. Then the cherry blossom and horseshoe both symbolising the good fortune that await her in this new job. 

Overall, I think this treasure trove would appeal to anyone who enjoys the enrichment of a playful set of characters that are within the 78 cards. They look like they want to be part of a personal experience that gives you a straight-up-tell- it-like-it-is vibe.  What Gabi says was created by accident is actually a deck I truly look forward to exploring and using for many years to come.