Fortune Telling with Playing Cards Kindle Edition

In this book (published in 2004), the author relies heavily for his card interpretations on Richard Webster's "Playing Card Divination for Beginners" (published in 2002), but he doesn't do Webster the courtesy of acknowledging him. It seems especially rude given that some of Dee's sentences are almost identical to Webster's.For example, for the Ace of Clubs:WEBSTER: "If this card is one of the first three cards dealt in the spread, it is a sign that the client has been blessed with talents that are out of the ordinary. These talents can take him or her a long way."DEE: "If the Ace of Clubs is found among the first three cards in a spread, it is a sign of extraordinary talent. The questioner is in possession of unique gifts that can take him a long way if he channels them in a productive fashion."The book is padded out with the Order of the Golden Dawn's astrological correlations for the Tarot's Minor Arcana, transferred here to playing cards. Dee makes a valiant attempt to reconcile the GD's system with Webster's interpretations, but it's a wasted effort in my opinion, since the two systems have nothing to do with each other.The text for each card includes a rhyming couplet from the 19th century which suggests a meaning for the card. The couplets were created to be used as a parlour game (for example: Ace of Clubs: "He that doth draw the Ace of Clubs/From his wife gets a thousand snubs/But if maids do it obtain/It means that they shall rule and reign"). These couplets are mildly amusing, and I suppose have historical value, but are of no value to someone wanting to learn how to read the cards.The only reason I can see for anyone wanting this book would be if they were interested in Lenormand decks and Lenormand's 36-card "Master Method" layout, which is gone into extensively.Frankly, I get the feeling that the impetus for this book was to throw together a playing card book and get it on the market as quickly as possible. If you'd like to read a book written by an author who has spent a great deal of the time with the cards and genuinely has something to say about them, then I recommend "Personal Prophecy" by Deborah Leigh and Elizabeth Rose, or "The Playing Card Oracles" by Ana Cortez. Other good books include the Webster book mentioned above, and Jane Lyle's "The Fortune Teller's Deck."

I use this almost everyday. I have read my daughter who is in NC, I'm in Florida. With the cards it has been correct in the readings. I'm a new reader of cards and I love this book.

good referance book

This book is the most informative one I've seen or read that tells you how to do readings with regular playing cards. There is much to learn in this book so it will take me time to learn, but it will be well worth it. Great Book.

Simply put, this is the best book to buy if you are just beginning to learn about divination with playing cards. The book is very well written and the layout is perfect for both reading cover to cover or for referencing various sections. The main body of the text on the meanings of each card is organized by number. For example, the 4's are all together, then the 5's, and so on. Several methods are discussed by the author for divination including the Romany method of using only 32 cards, the Lenormand method, the full 52 card method, and so much more.If this subject interests you, don't pass up this book. It is not only extremely useful but also very affordable at under ten bucks. Enjoy!

I must say i am not overly impressed by this book, although others here seem to like it (hence why i bought it!). I don't agree with a LOT of the card interpretations here, and the author has corresponded a lot of the meanings to the tarot minor arcana which, while similar in some ways, are NOT the same. More puzzingly to me he has accorded the cards astrological correspondences which again derive from the tarot minor arcana, and often do not fit the meaning of the playing cards (and suggests to me that the author does not have much knowledge of astrology in which case he would have done better to leave it out altogether!). The sections on lenormand style readings seem largely derived from an older book called 'Fortune Telling by Cards' by R.S. Foli which is in the public domain and available free through the sacred-texts website, and so having already read the older book I didn;t find much that was useful in Jonathan Dee's book. I do agree with the author's assertion that every good cartomancer will have developed his or her own method. Obviously others here have found this book very useful, but for me it is just 'ok'.

Just what I was looking for. Has extensive playing card meanings and spreads. Also has an excellent chapter on using the Lenormand cards. Highly recommended book.

A favorite book

on a foggy Sunday afternoon - just the job!

This item was returned as it is an earlier edition of a copy I already own.