Customer Reviews
A classic, but you wonder why. - By: D. Beaver, 21 Apr 2008 
I've used this deck on & off for over 20 years & I still have an awkward relationship with it. I actuallly like the rather simple & dated art work & I want to connect with it, but there are so many faults & irritating images that I can't.
The problems:
The court cards are variable in the ease of interpretation.
The Wheel of Fortune has too much occult imagery
I don't agree with transposing Justice & Strength
It's too much influenced by the Order of the Golden Dawn - who tried to link too many systems together; a futile exercise which distorted the tarot to fit their ideas.
The little white book that comes with it is very poor.
Readings with this deck are often too vague & often just completely wrong; I find it hard to concentrate my intuitive faculties using it!
This deck influenced so many modern decks in the minor arcana, but has been surpassed. Sharman-Casselli, Morgan-Greer, Sheridan-Douglas, to name a few are much better. However, the best of alll is the new Druidic Tarot which - despite the changes to some names - is superb & I cannot fault.
I dont believe in divination but still great - By: Alexander Lewis, 04 Apr 2008 
i bought my tarot cards not for 'divination' but because they can be a useful psychological tool to help you reflect & found the cards interesting & (at the risk of insulting those who claimed on other reports it worked) fun. The acompanying book was naff so i boughtThe Tarot Bible: The Definitive Guide to the Cards & Spreads (Godsfield Bible) (Paperback) which reallly catered for my lack of belief in the otherworldly crap - a great buy even if you're not on LSD
The definitive tarot deck 10/10 - By: M. Knight, 04 Feb 2008 There never has been & there never will be a deck as good as this! I feel that the artist channelled these & they contain alll the magic & answers you will ever need to learn tarot. I always teach people using these cards. love them or hate them they are the definitive tarot.I also use the Morgan Greer & if you are into numerology the Thoth is for you BUT there is only one Rider & it has been around so long for a very good reason, it is special!I taught Jane Goldman the tarot in her series Jane Goldman investigates & she got it straight away. I also use them in my dvd Tarot made easy.
Timeless classic - By: Lilly Penhaligon, 14 Jun 2007 I just bought a pack of these today & I love them already. Everyone must know about the Rider-Waite cards by now so I won't bore you with details of the pictures, you can see cards from this deck on Aecletic Tarot.com.
The cards themselves are laminated & therefore reallly glossy, thick & feel delightful to the touch. It also makes them quite slippery to shuffle sometimes. The cards are a nice size & fit in the hand comfortably.
A lot of people have criticised this edition of the Rider Waite collection citing mute brownes & sepia's & lacklustre nature of the pictures - for a time even I thought they were plain ugly, however, on a closer inspection, I reallly started to appreciate the beauty behind the images. Ok, so there are an infinite number of more aestheticallly appealing decks available, & the artwork on these cards sometimes leaves something to be desired, however, I think if you give these cards a chance & take a reallly good look at them, you will start to find the charm & classic beauty behind them as I did. Even though I've only had them for one afternoon, just looking at each one, I already feel immensely connected to this particular deck. This is now the 6th deck in my collection but I can see it will prob be one of my trusted favourites.
Overalll, I think the browns & sepias work well, they are easy on the eye, I don't feel that they are dull or muted but then again, art is a highly personal thing. The cards are easy for beginners to connect to - you can look at a card & immediately start to intuit what the meanings are & most books on the Tarot work with, or are immediately applicable to the Rider Waites.
The book that comes with it is an interesting read but not an essential & the cards reallly do seem to speak for themselves. Definitely one of my ultimate decks.
IF you prefer vibrant colours but want to stick with Rider Waite images, try the Radiant Rider-Waite (soon to be joining my collection) or if you want a midway between teh Originals & the Radiant, try the Universals which are excellent for meditation as well.
Dull, and offering no true insight. - By: matthew_panton, 19 Nov 2006 
I shalll have to go against popular opinion & say that to me, the RWS cards (this edition or others) simply do not speak to me. It is not just a matter of the dull colours - though this particular edition could stand improvement on that front.
The images are, let's be honest, not very good, & the symbolism is ham-fisted at best. I own many decks, & find that for a given reading I will be drawn to one particular deck over the others. I find my RWS callls to me only for the most banal & childish of questions (or querrants).
That is the best word for these cards, 'childish'. One might make the arguement that they are good for the beginner, but I would rather give the beginner more credit than that.
Long story short, this deck has been knocking around for nearly a century, perhaps it's time to put the old girl out of her misery.
