Talking with the Tarot: Conversations with Your 78 New Best Friends

by Samantha Rose Hicks

Dish with Your Deck

Reading tarot will be as easy as talking to your best friend with this beginner-friendly guide to understanding every card. Samantha Rose Hicks presents the conversational approach to tarot, which helps you form real, heartfelt connections to the 78 individuals in your deck.

Hicks introduces you to every card in the deck and shares the four important questions to ask yourself with each draw. She also shares exercises to deepen your connections, such as imagining yourself within the card's scenario, and questions to ask when a card is reversed.

A conversation once changed Hicks's life―now she passes that experience on to you. With her unique approach, you’ll no longer have to rely on standard, impersonal meanings. You'll know each card like an old friend who makes you feel safe, seen, and understood.

Genres: Tarot, Nonfiction

240 pages, Paperback

Published May 8, 2025

Reviews

[Bobbi Jacobs · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the better more modern tarot books I’ve read

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a sweet, friendly book for a person who wants tarot to feel less like studying for an exam and more like getting to know a group of very opinionated new companions. Hicks encourages readers to speak with the cards, listen for their particular voices, reflect on the images, and let a reading become an actual conversation instead of a frantic search through a keyword list. The card entries include meanings, symbols, reflective questions, affirmations, and a sense of what each card might be trying to say when it shows up, which makes the book easy to dip into. I also appreciated the effort to bring Persian divinatory practice and Sufi ideas into the discussion, because it gives the book a different flavor from the endless Rider-Waite-Smith clone guides. My hesitation is that the “best friends” framing can become a little cutesy, and it does not always offer enough substance for readers who want to understand why a card has the meanings it does or how cards change one another in a spread. I also wanted more depth and sourcing around the traditions being invoked, rather than brief references that may leave readers with a nice feeling but little real context. The conversational approach is a useful doorway, especially for anxious beginners, but it should not become a substitute for learning tarot’s visual language, history, and craft. Still, the warmth here is real, and some readers will find exactly the permission they need to start talking back to their deck.

[Angel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick impressions: Overall, I enjoyed reading the book, and I am glad I did. It is a nice alternative to more popular but very formal Tarot books out there.

A full detailed review with additional reading notes available on my blog soon. Want to learn more, go check it out.

[Molly Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great companion for reading your own tarot spreads! Samantha has a way of making tarot personal, approachable and memorable. I’m sure it’s a great read cover to cover, but I use it more as an active guidebook.

[Amber Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoughtful, clear, and the absolute best and joyful guide. Starting to read the Tarot can be so intimidating. This book cuts straight through that and helps you connect through personal experiences. All my friends ask me for readings now! And I LOVE doing it!

[Allison Floyd]

Doesn't say much of anything new, but if you're new to tarot, it might be a fine how-do-you-do. And, love the cover!

[Gia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent Tarot resource.

[sequoia gibson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible for beginners and experts!