- Author: Julieta Suárez Valente
- Illustrator: Miranda Guerrero
- Publisher: Red Wheel / Weiser
- Publication Date: October 6, 2025
- RRP: US $22.95 / UK £19.99
- ISBN: 978-1-59003-583-2
- Reviewed by: Amy Bowker
Elemental Spells is a magical oracle deck that helps you identify and optimize the energy of the four elements. While you can find action advice in other oracle decks, Elemental Spells seems to go one step further by offering a wide variety of manifestation options, including intentions, recipes, and rituals. Cleverly conceived by Julieta Suárez Valente and beautifully illustrated by Miranda Guerrero, this unusual 44-card deck should appeal to a wide audience.
What do the Elemental Spells cards look like?
The cards are slightly bigger than a traditional tarot deck and they’re packaged along with the Guidebook in a sturdy two-piece box with a striking red flowered lining. Each card has a color coded banner at the top that corresponds to one of the four elements; Fire is red, Earth is gold, Air is purple, and Water is blue. Within the banner, you’ll find a specific energy source, and then the rest of the card is devoted to a whimsical illustration and a spell to invoke the energy.
The spells offer an impressive number of ways to tap into energy, from lighting candles to meditations to recipes, and this broad variety widens the potential audience for this deck. For instance, I’m not a candle-lighting person but there were so many other intentions and meditations that I won’t miss much by skipping any candle spells.
I found the design of the cards immediately appealing. The illustrations remind me of a book of antiquarian stickers that I love, so it’s a fun, vintage style with a lot of butterflies and Romanesque figures. Also, really, any deck that includes a cat card is going to get my vote of approval. In this case, the cat card in question is Maneki-neko, corresponding to Earth, and this card pertains to attracting good fortune.
The Essential Elemental Spells Guidebook
The 56-page Guidebook does a meticulous job of outlining the four elements – Fire, Earth, Air, and Water – as well as the astrological links to each of the elements. You’ll also find a detailed explanation of how the elements manifest in the Major Arcana, as well as how each element corresponds to a Minor Arcana suit; Fire is Wands, Water is Cups, Air is Swords, and Earth is Pentacles.
Three spreads are included in the Guidebook, using either one card, three cards, or five cards. I would have enjoyed a more in-depth examination of the spreads in action, along with a sample reading, but I was more than able to conduct a five-card spread with the information provided.
Elemental Spells Includes Tarot Influences
Three oracle cards in this deck are inspired by tarot; the Ace of Swords, the Sun, and the Hanged Man, each offering advice on how to invoke the lessons of the tarot card. For instance, the Sun encourages you to pull the corresponding tarot card and perform an active meditation where you ask yourself what you really want. There are also three planet cards; Mars, Saturn, and Mercury (which share some overlap with the Mars, Saturn, and Venus cards that are also found in the Petit Etteilla deck). All three of the planet cards suggest candle rituals as a way to receive the planetary energy.
Elemental Spells Will Appeal to:
Anyone who likes to work with oracle cards, anyone who likes to tap into magical energy via intentions and rituals, and anyone who is curious to learn more about how the energy of the four elements can help us achieve our goals and move forward will likely enjoy this deck.
Elemental Spells Might Not Appeal to:
If you’re someone who likes to create their own action plans or rituals, you might not be drawn to this deck. Or if you prefer to work with cards that rely more heavily on illustrations, this deck might not inspire you.
Elemental Spells in Practice
I opted for the five-card spread in the Guidebook and found the cards really easy to shuffle, despite being slightly larger than a standard deck of playing cards. My reading accurately pinpointed my current career situation to an impressive degree. The Quartz card offered good advice on where I was headed (“put your ideas into more concrete terms”), and the suggested action steps included a quartz-inspired meditation. The Sowilo card, which depicts the Viking rune for the sun, encouraged me to tap into this rune’s energy to help overcome fear and obstacles. Overall, I was happy with how easily I connected with this oracle deck.
More about the Author and Illustrator:
Julieta Suárez Valente is an Argentine writer, tarot reader and astrologer, and the founder of the MultiEspacio school. She is the author of Vibrate Higher, A Guide to Raising Your Frequency With the Four Elements. Her other decks include the Tiger Oracle, the Dragon Oracle, and the Oracle of Archangels.
Miranda Guerrero is a Mexican artist whose work invokes a vintage aesthetic. Her digital collages draw on inspiration from witches, esoterism, and feminism. You can find her on social media by searching @mirandacollage.
Elemental Spells is currently available for purchase from all good online bookstores or can be bought direct from Red Wheel Weiser here:
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