My copy came today and it is so beautiful! Everything is packed inside this very sturdy green slipcase. The slipcase is so pretty I want to leave it out and not shelve it!
Oh how I love the smell of freshly printed matter! Mmmmmmmm...
The Artwork & Times book is a little flimsier than I thought it would be. It's kind of a hard paperback with thick pages and the binding is the kind that would easily snap if you aren't careful. I definitely won't be dropping this book or have it in a cold room or else that's what is going to happen. But the artwork is of course gorgeous, and Pam's artwork is on every page. It's really cool to flip through the book and see images in her artwork that she later integrated into her Tarot deck.
The spreadsheet guide is laminated which is a nice touch. The spreads are easy enough to memorize as they aren't complicated (which I like!).
This particular Pictorial Key to the Tarot doesn't have illustrations of the cards in it. I'm happy to have this copy as I don't have one of my own (I know, I know!). I think the lack of pictures is a good thing though because you are forced to use the deck in conjunction with the book instead of just looking at the picture in the book. Again, this book feels flimsy to me...
I love the deck! The cardstock is nice and thick. The deck itself feels thick to me, it may be the thickest deck I have. I thought that the only deck that might beat it (that I have) would be the Golden and sure enough when I put them side by side the Golden was just a few cards thicker. So the deck is thick to give you some idea! The lamination isn't super slippery or glossy. I like the fact that the colors are different and it already has an aged feel. I too love jewel tones and bright colors in decks so this is different for me. But I think that it will be a nice change, the sort of deck you read by the fire on a winter day, or when you are feeling a little melancholy.
The deck also came with a little sky blue organza bag. I don't think I'll put it in the bag though.
Overall I'm really glad I bought this set and I think it was worth the price I paid on Amazon for it. My one, minor complaint would be the binding and covers of the two books, I would have paid a little more for them to be hardbound and the binding sturdier. But that's all, and the focus is the deck anyway, right?