The Magic of Tarot: A Modern Guide to the Classic Art of the Cards

• Author: Leanna Greenaway and Beleta Greenaway
• Genre: Paranormal/New Age
• Publication Date: March 19, 2024
• Publisher: St. Martin’s Essentials

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Essentials for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

From traditional to modern, from magical to mundane, this card-reading handbook is a one stop shop for anyone interested in the ancient art of Tarot. Tarot experts Leanna and Beleta Greenaway tackle romance, marriage, health, careers, safety, children, and much more, as well as situational knowledge for those interested in taking on Tarot as a profession. In The Magic of Tarot, readers will the history and origins of the Tarot, how Tarot is moving with the times, tips on unleashing the power of the cards, housing and cleansing your decks, various card layouts for different situations, as well as full descriptions and explanations of each of the 22 Major Arcana cards, and 56 Minor Arcana cards. The Magic of Tarot also adds illustrations of each card (right way and reversed) from two powerful Tarot decks – the modern One World deck and the traditional Rider Waite deck. Thoughtfully guiding readers through each card, the Greenaways compare the modern and traditional decks, establishing Tarot’s relevance to today’s world while retaining the mystery of the traditional interpretations. With a section dedicated to magic, readers also learn how to enhance the magic of Tarot through the use of crystals, pendulums, affirmations, and spirit guide communication. Perfect for beginners and experienced card readers alike, The Magic of Tarot will take your card-reading skills to the next level to create a magical life.

I’ve been learning about Tarot cards for a while, and I always have an eye open for learning more about it to improve my knowledge and skill. There’s nearly always something that I can pick up from a book about Tarot, and I had high hopes for this one.

Fortunately, this book exceeded my hopes. It’s a joint effort between Leanna and Beleta Greenaway, two experienced professional Tarot readers. The book starts out with a history of Tarot and any items you may need in your ‘Tarot toolbox.’ I like how the authors touch on so many different things that are associated with Tarot, even if it’s peripheral things.

The first thing that I noticed was the focus on learning the cards, through handling them, practicing with them, but also by providing both detailed descriptions of what each card means, but also a few handy phrases to remember, as well as the associated number in the deck, crystals, herbs, and any keywords or a phrase. I especially liked that it isn’t just focused on the Rider-Waite interpretation, but also for the One World deck, and the reversed meaning of both. But what really caught my attention in this book, and that I haven’t seen anywhere else, is the different meanings that can be ascertained with that card when specific other cards appear with it in the reading. 

One small addition to this book really set it apart from all the other books that I’ve read so far, and makes this a great option for not only beginners, but more experienced readers of Tarot as well. Later on in the book, there’s an entire chapter devoted to various groupings that you might see in the cards, another chapter for different spreads to use and the various situations in which these spreads might be best used. It’s clear that the authors have been professional Tarot readers for a long time, because they also provide situations that Tarot readers commonly face, and a chapter on Tarot as a profession. Finally, there’s one last chapter on Tarot magic, and it was so interesting.

Overall, this was a fantastic read. I clearly still have a lot to learn, but books like this give me a lot of hope that I’ll be able to memorize meanings using a more focused approach and clearer, short phrases to remember. But I’m most excited to see these meanings that come from multiple cards appearing together in a reading. Everything is presented clearly and in an easy-to-understand way, with accurate and beautiful renderings of the cards. It’s simple to navigate through the book, and this is one that I’ll be referring to often. It’s also one that I can highly recommend if you have any interest in tarot.

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