Okay, I'm not sure this is the ultimate guide to tarot spreads—I doubt any book could ever fit that description—but publishers do get enthusiastic, and really, there are a lot of spreads in this book. Liz Dean hasn't limited the spreads to work, home, fortune, and love, either: there are also spreads for spiritual insight and creativity. In addition to these spreads with a specific focus, Dean has included some historical spreads from occultists like Etteila, Papus, and the Golden Dawn. One chapter is devoted to spreads based on books such as The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron.

This book is strong in three areas. First, the sheer number and variety of spreads included will give the reader plenty to work with. Second, Dean encourages the reader to develop their own spreads. If you're not interested in any of the books that she based her spreads on, choose a book that inspired you and make up your own spread around its theme. Or choose a symbol or image that appeals to you (Dean's example is a cat) and base a spread on it. And third, this book is fully illustrated in color, with good diagrams for each of the spreads. It's slightly larger than usual, so there's enough space for the diagrams to be shown clearly.

This probably shouldn't be someone's first book on the tarot, and I doubt the author ever intended it to be, since she's got another book out called The Ultimate Guide to Tarot: A Beginner's Guide to the Cards, Spreads, and Revealing the Mystery of the Tarot which goes into the meanings of all the cards. (Plus there are other excellent beginners' books on the tarot out there.) But at some point, it's time to try spreads beyond the Celtic Cross, and that's where this book comes in. Have fun! ( )