This is a 48 card deck containing words of advice and wisdom that reproduce the principles mentioned in Ruiz's eponymous book. There is no interpretation book as the message of each card is written at the back, while the front is a painting with a summary of the message.
The cards are divided in four coloured groups, each one corresponding to Ruiz's four principles or agreements, and the advice on each card is related to that specific agreement within that group.
This is not an oracle or tarot deck. In that regards, it won't speak to you if you're looking for a deck to harness your intuition or get messages from the divine. On the contrary, this is the sort of deck you use in the mornings, when you get up, to get a pearl of wisdom for day to apply and remember during the day.
If you don't want to read Ruiz's book, and still want to learn what is all about, this is a hassle- free tool which summarizes the book perfectly. If you have read the book, and want a reminder or refresher, this is also a perfect tool.
The artwork is colourful and cute, very naif in general. Somewhat reminds me of some Mexican mural art or tattoo imagery.There is a lack of artistic cohesiveness, and that is so because the deck was illustrated by 5 different illustrators, This is is one of the reasons that the deck doesn't speak to me visually and why I don't use it more often, even though the messages are wonderful.
The format of the cards is a bit odd as they are small and square and not rectangular and medium/large size. They shuffle well, though, and the cardboard is very good quality, a little satin, and it will last you for years.
I use this app mostly to ask about how other people perceive me, see me and feel me, therefore to help me in relational queries. That is, I don't use the deck to ask the fairies about predictions or advice for myself or queries about other people. I use it to be aware of which of the fairies' archetypes is working in me. Readings are usually very accurate and they match the energy that I felt I had on the day of the query. This is, needless to say, a very feminine deck and, that being the case, it might not resonate with some male users.
I LOVE
> The imagery is wonderful re concept, digital quality, coloring and overall artistic congruence.
> One can use the app freely, intuitively, or use the guidebook to get the advice that each fairy wants to convey to the reader.
> Several layouts to choose from.
> You can shuffle with/without shuffle sound.
> Readings can be saved and shared.
DECK APP DOWNSIDES
In this specific deck, the contrast between the text meaning and the background is really poor, as you can see in the screenshot below.
OCEANHOUSE APPS DOWNSIDES
> The return from the card back to the front is not intuitive. It would be just natural using the back arrow on the smartphone bottom menu to go back, but, if you do that, you'll be out of the application. Instead, you have to use the curly back arrow button in the cards, and the triangular back arrow in the information area. I have been using Oceanhouse apps for years and I still have trouble remembering the curly back arrow, just because is contra smart-phone use natura.
> Impossible to zoom in the image to focus on the small details.
> Just one way of shuffling the cards, not several. In that regards, Oceanhouse has plenty to learn from the other major tarot app house, The Fool's Dog.
> No tablecloths available. There is one background.
> Users cannot add their own meaning to the cards to customize the deck.
> Oceanhouse, now and then, inserts promotional info when they are launching a new app. That's annoying because all of their decks must be paid in full to be used, aren't cheap, and there is no need to bother customers with something that they might naturally be interested on and look up themselves. At least that is my case. It is also true that sometimes they advertise discounts and special pricing, but I would rather not have adds on my fully-paid app.
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