It's an interesting journey with this deck for me. I can honestly say that I adore it now!
I've been working with one card per day and I've been getting a lot out of it. I now enjoy the guidebook very much but definitely as more of a jumping off point. I find this is especially necessary with certain cards such as "The Return of Aphrodite," "Coral's Wisdom," "Experiments," "Honour the Masculine" - in such cases, the actual writing on the cards themselves (apart from the guidebook) seem to be very well crafted in such a way that they provide so much open space to dive into and explore on your own. For example, with "Conchomancy," one thing it says on the card after "Seashell divination" is
"wisdom of shells" so it really guides you toward contemplating (or even researching) that whole part of the animal kingdom and how you can apply the wisdom shown in Nature to your own situation and way of being. I personally love how open ended that is. At first glance, that one card seems so 'simple' and yet its probably one of the deepest, most profound cards in the deck that I've explored so far!!
But this is one thing that I just love about Lucy Cavendish decks in particular - the specific words she chooses for her card titles are so... I want to say clever? Magical is the word. They are indeed very poetic and versatile; showing many different sides or avenues from which to go down in your approach to discovering what is being reflected back to you. They are alive with meaning and they seem to grow and expand alongside of you as you yourself are ever changing and growing.
I am finding that like the Wild Wisdom of the Faery, the Oracle of the Mermaids is a really personal deck for me; one that requires some deep reflection and discovery of the interpretations as they relate to my experience. In meditating upon the cards in this way, the artwork has been incredibly evocative for me. With Lucy Cavendish decks, I'm feeling as though I connect more to Selina Fenech's artwork than I do with Jasmine Becket Griffith's artwork - I love them both, but there's just something about Selina Fenech's artwork that really sparks my imagination and that I find inspiring and comforting to connect with at
any time (versus only using the Jasmine Becket Griffith decks when I'm in a certain mood). So I work with the Oracle of the Mermaids and the Wild Wisdom of the Faery everyday and I find they blend well together. They take the subject that is being read about and each add onto it in very complementary ways for me, unfolding certain layers in an even deeper way. On Lucy Cavendish's youtube channel, she once posted a reading that used both of these decks in combination, and I can vouch from my own experience that they do go together so beautifully. I don't shuffle them together as she did, but I have been using them one right after the other and I contemplate both readings throughout the day as they relate... And I use them by themselves too, so I do love the Oracle of the Mermaids as a 'stand-alone' deck just as much.
So indeed, the Oracle of the Mermaids has grown on me so much and it's having such an impact on me that I am truly so grateful to Lucy Cavendish and Selina Fenech (and Blue Angel) for bringing it into existence. Now that I've opened up to wholeheartedly, it has truly wowed me. I find it to be a very powerful deck and really refreshingly centered upon the divine feminine in way that I personally resonate with. Another thing I appreciate about this deck is that it offers a lot of clarity during the times when you are unsure of whether you should act ("Wave of Power," "Endurance") or be still ("Reflections," "Time Out," "The Unseen," "Adrift"). I see a wonderful balance of light and dark in this deck, making it quite reliable to turn to. And it really does provide such a deep and delightful 'portal' into connecting with the Ocean and with mermaids (and with yourself really).
Next time I feel hesitant toward a deck as I had in this case, I'll take it as a very likely sign that I should brace myself as it may end up really stirring the inner waters.