by Emilie Autumn
** spoiler alert ** This is easily my favorite oracle deck, and it’s both friendly and accessible to readers at any stage, whether or not you’re already familiar with Emilie Autumn’s music or Asylum world.
The cards themselves are slightly oversized tarot dimensions, 3.5 x 5.75. This makes them a little tricky to shuffle if you have smaller hands, but I usually shuffle using a cutting side shuffle or by doing a bridge shuffle vertically. The card stock is nice and thick with a matte finish & gold foil edging. They come in a matte finish rigid box (lidded) & signed by Emilie. My deck additionally came with a clear crystal point.
The artwork is beautiful, and the cards are grouped into the 4 Elements (Earth, Air, Fire, Water.) In the guide book, each element is introduced and broken down with a song lyric. Each card explanation contains keywords and a narrative explanation, which can be easily interpreted by any reader, and takes on an added depth for Autumn fans already familiar with The Asylum for Wayward Victorian Girls.
The guide also includes a few detailed spreads to use, tips for bonding and cleansing, a blank page for the owner to create a spread of their own, and most intriguing of all: a blank card & blank guidebook page for the owner to create their own card, meaning each deck out there is truly one-of-a-kind, fully personalized to its owner.
The narrative guidebook sometimes reads like a guide, sometimes like a sacred text, sometimes like a secret diary, & always like a friend.
I’ve been brought to tears by the intensity of reading with this deck, and I recommend it to any person struggling with the shadow work of trauma. You will find this deck a great source of strength and safe place for vulnerability.