Deck review: The Sugar Skull Tarot deck by David A Ross and Carolina Martinez

This light-hearted, beautifully illustrated deck and guidebook brings the spiritual mysticism of sugar skulls to a fresh interpretation of each of the major and minor arcana to help you hone your intuition.

Sugar skulls, or calaveras, are traditionally made by hand to celebrate the Mexican celebration of Day of the Dead, or Dia de Muertos. Colorful and lovingly crafted, they are offerings for loved ones who have passed into the spirit realm.

The sugar skulls depicted throughout this deck are there to remind us of our spiritual journey and help us reach our full potential. Just as the Fool progresses throughout the entirety of the Major Arcana, we all have our own personal journeys that are represented through the tarot.

Whether it’s the Magician shooting the sugar skull bullseye, the High Priestess seeing her reflection in the water (thus revealing her inner truth in the form of a sugar skull), or the Fool feeling confident that he will create and manifest the perfect sugar skull by the time he finishes his journey, we all have an unrealized version of our true potential. The Sugar Skull Tarot Deck and Guidebook offers a refreshing new take on a timeless tradition and is the perfect tool to recognize the inner potential inside each of us. Let the brightly colored illustrations offer you all the inspiration you need to be the best person you can truly be so you can present a more accurate representation of yourself—confident, magical, and ready to give and receive love—to the world.

You can see the unboxing on Tiktok or Youtube and the silent flickthrough on Tiktok or Youtube. I posted two spreads, the interview spread and the Sugar Skull spread.

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This is a deck that I first used a few years ago, quite early in my tarot journey, and while I've occasionally picked it up since I haven't spent a lot of time with it. I thought it would be interesting to go back to it and see if my thoughts have changed. Here is the original review.

I. First Impressions

Unboxing Experience: The deck comes in a standard two-piece box, with artwork from the deck reproduced on it. It opens easily and feels sturdy - it would be fine to throw into a bag to carry around with you. It's a little larger than average, though, and - uniquely in my experience - the cards have sharp corners, not the rounded ones that are more common. The mixture meant that I occasionally poked myself with the corners as I shuffled, and I mostly had to shuffle on the width instead of on the length. Not impossible to overcome, just something to note.
Artwork Style: Sugar Skulls are a Mexican tradition, used to celebrate the Day of the Dead. In keeping with that theme, the cards are based around the Wild West and feature images and characters we recognise from movies and TV shows set in that era. They have a relatively limited palette and, while obviously being hand drawn, stay on the realistic side of things. My interview spread showed that this deck works very well for practical questions, and that's the sense I get when I look at the images here. The deck is based on the RWS system, but alters some of the imagery to better suit the theme of the deck.

II. The Cards

The back of the cards feature this, non-reversible design:

Major Arcana: The Major Arcana has Strength at #8. The cards have a narrow frame around the image with the title at the bottom and the number, in Roman numerals, at the top. The cards follow the RWS with mild adaptations for the deck theme. For instance, the Empress, usually a placid, motherly figure, is here a confident, sexy woman who knows her own power.

Minor Arcana: The Minor Arcana are fully illustrated, and the suits carry the traditional names. Each has their own colour scheme; Pentacles are a deep orangey red; Swords are a cold deep blue; Wands are more pinky red and Cups are a light, gentle blue. It adds a quick way of telling them apart, though they all have their names across the bottom as well, and - unusually - their numbers in Roman at the top.

Card Stock and Size: As I mentioned, the cards are a little larger than average, but they move nicely without catching or clinging. They're nice to shuffle, once you can manage the size and avoid the corners.

III. The Guidebook

Unfortunately, I have to mention one drawback, which other reviews have noted as well: the LWB started shedding pages almost right away and has continued to do so with regular use. I experienced this with another Simon & Schuster deck, so it might be a flaw in their printing process—or just an unlucky coincidence! While this doesn’t impact the deck itself, I do find I need to handle the book a bit more carefully.

Writing Style and Readability: The book is clear and easy to understand. David notes in his introduction that sugar skulls are not part of his culture, but he still appreciates their beauty and symbolism, which seems like a wonderful balance to strike. The language is simple, without the mystic edge that makes some LWB difficult to follow.

Card Meanings: The cards each have two pages, one a full length image of the card and the other with a brief explanation of how the image matches the meaning, then an upright and reversed meaning. These are well phrased and match the cards very well.
Spreads and Techniques: The book includes some ideas for getting ready for your readings, and there are three spreads; a Past Present Future, the Celtic Cross, and the Sugar Skull spread linked above. I really enjoyed the Sugar Skull spread!

IV. In Use

Intuition and Connection: As these are RWS based, I found them easy to follow and read, and the explanations in the LWB added to the ease, making some great connections between the images and meanings. My usual Querant was able to link the readings with some things happening in their life at the moment, and liked that the meanings were generally happy and cheerful. 

Clarity of Readings: In readings I found the cards flowed very well; I was able to read them without having to work at it, and they enhanced each other in a way that I don't find with a lot of decks. The readings always tend to the practical side; this isn't necessarily the deck I'd reach for if I had questions on emotion or love, but for work or other practical matters this is an amazing deck.
Suitability for Different Skill Levels: As the images are RWS based, and the book does a great job of connecting the images to the meanings, I happily recommend this deck for any level of reader, from complete beginners to more experienced readers looking for a new angle on cards. For instance, the 9 of Cups here gave me an insight I don't always get from that card!

V. Overall Impression

Strengths:

RWS based

Beautiful colour palette

Images line up with the meanings very well

Weaknesses:

The LWB's binding is a little weaker than we might like

  

Final Thoughts

This is a fabulous deck, really good fun to use and read. Its focus on practical readings makes it especially useful for work and life guidance, offering clarity and insight without the need for deep emotional introspection. I recommend it for anyone looking for a new angle on cards or a beginner looking for something a bit more fun than the usual RWS!