A few weeks ago, Antonio, the person behind Star and Strength Tarot reached out to me to see if I’d be interested in doing a Star and Strength Tarot deck review. Of course, I said yes. And Antonio even offered up a deck for me to giveaway to you! So, with that, let’s talk about this deck and who it’s best for.
Before we get into it, let me give a few disclaimers. I’m not the only tarot opinion on the internet. I acknowledge that openly. So, my Star and Strength Tarot deck review may not be the same as someone else’s. Also, I come to tarot with a background in western literature, but as an Iranian-Mexican-Citizen Potawatomi Nation woman. So, my life experience shapes what I look for in a deck. And you should definitely let your life experience guide you when choosing a deck.
And finally, I’m a tarot reader who doesn’t mind the Smith Rider Waite deck. Yes, it can seem antiquated when you compare it to all the rad indie decks out there. But it is the foundation for a lot of those new, rad indie decks. that doesn’t mean I’m explicitly condoning all the Christian symbols in the deck or the gender essentialism there. I’m simply saying this deck is pretty much the foundation of modern tarot reading.
Alright. Now, let’s talk about how I review a tarot deck.
The Process: Tarot Deck Review for Beginners
I’m always buying new tarot decks whenever I see them in the wild. And when I buy for myself, I pretty much buy what looks cool. But when someone asks about how to find a good tarot deck for beginners, here’s what I tell them:
- Find a deck with clear imagery that resonates with your cultural background. Tarot is a system of stories and archetypes, and you can really hit the ground running with your first reading if you recognize the stories and archetypes in a deck.
- Find a deck that you like. Tarot decks are like clothes. If you buy a pair of jeans you hate, you aren’t going to wear them. And if you buy a deck you hate, you won’t use it.
- Pick a deck you won’t be too precious with. These cards are meant to be shuffled and played with. If you get a deck that you want to keep pristine, you won’t take it out of the box, and it’s really hard to read tarot cards you won’t even touch.
- Pick a deck that vibes with your tarot materials. There are tons of tarot books and study materials out there. If you’ve been working with Thoth deck materials, then you need to find a Thoth deck. Same goes for working with the Smith Rider Waite. For more tarot resources, check out the best tarot books for beginners.
I go more into how to pick your first deck in this post on what is a good beginner tarot deck. I know you probably want me to give you a specific tarot deck recommendation, but I don’t like to do that unless I know something about the person I’m making the recommendation for. With that said, I think you may like the Star and Strength Tarot deck.
Star and Strength Tarot Deck Review
The Star and Strength Tarot is a deck designed for use by beginners. The idea behind the deck is to make tarot less confusing and complicated. Each card has the upright and reversed meaning printed on it, as well as whether or not the card indicates a yes, no, or maybe in the upright or reversed position.
If you’re a complete beginner, or someone who has tried tarot in the past but felt lost, I do think the Star and Strength Tarot deck could be helpful for you. And, if you have a young tarot reader in your life who wants to do readings but isn’t quite at the age where reading a 400-page book about symbols and archetypes is possible, this deck is also a great option.
Here are my general thoughts on the deck:
The Pros:
- The deck uses the Smith Rider Waite imagery. Using the foundational deck for modern tarot means you get exposed to the images and meanings of the cards, which can make it easier to use other decks in the future.
- The cards have the meanings printed on them. I love a good guide book with tarot cards, but I have found that I tend to avoid a deck if I have to check everything in the guide. With the meanings on the cards, there’s no need to look anything up since it’s all right there.
- You can really flex and bend the cards. These cards were made to be shuffled, which is nice. That means you can really use them, and do as many spreads as you want without having to break them in first.
- There’s a website full of resources. The Star and Strength website has posts about learning the cards and doing different spreads, so it’s a great supplement to tarot deck.
The Cons:
- The deck uses the Smith Rider Waite imagery. So, while this is a pro of the deck too, I know a lot of people really don’t like the Smith Rider Waite deck. So, keep that in mind when you’re thinking about purchasing these cards.
- The printed meanings could become a crutch. Part of learning anything is looking up information, and that act can help cement that information in your brain. When you have it at the ready, you’re less likely to retain it. And in the case of this deck, you may find that you struggle to use any other deck because you’re used to having the information right there on the card.
With that being said, I do think this deck could be a great resource for beginners, as well as a nice supplement to my Tarot Card Meanings Journal. If you want a tarot deck that will help you progress, quickly in your understanding of the cards, head to Star and Strength to check out all the information and get a deck of your own.
Frequently Asked Questions About Tarot
Real quick, let’s get a few thing out of the way that come up any time I write about tarot.
Can tarot reading be dangerous?
Honestly, no? I don’t see how it could be. You’re a human with critical thinking skills and free will. Tarot decks don’t follow nonsensical horror movie rules, so there’s no supernatural entities hiding between the rectangles of cardstock trying to get you. When you receive a tarot reading, you have to look at the cards and decide if they make sense for you. And if you don’t like what the cards are showing you, you get to ignore it.
Can tarot readings be trusted?
Remember, the cards don’t hold the power. You do. Your intuition is the one doing the reading. The cards are simply there to help your subconscious mind pull information forward. Your intuition is the thing you have to trust. And only you know if you can trust yourself or not.
Can tarot readers be wrong?
Absolutely! Tarot isn’t a science. Tarot readers look at the cards with their biases and cultural experience to interpret a reading. It may resonate with you and it may not. That’s why it’s important to remember that you can also use your intuition to look aat the images on the cards and think about what the reading is tell you while the reader is giving you a reading. That way, you can think about what the reading means to you.
How many tarot decks do you own?
Listen. It’s a lot. I’m neither ashamed or proud of this. But you need a different deck for different occasions. And I like to use them for my monthly tarot readings I do for my newsletter subscribers. If you want to see some of my decks or get a free monthly tarot reading, make sure you’re subscribed to Saturday Morning Donuts.
Star and Strength Tarot Deck Giveaway
And now, for the giveaway! Enter below to win a copy of the Star and Strength Tarot deck, The Tarot Card Meanings Journal, and a tarot coloring book. But be quick. The giveaway closes on April 23, 2026 at 11:59 PM CDT.