Description
Keeping time-honored symbolism and imagery, but losing the medieval context, the This Might Hurt Tarot Deck is designed to be both easy to read and highly relatable. Clothing and scenery are modernized, diversity is embraced, and queerness is lovingly acknowledged.
– from thismighthurttarot.com
This Might Hurt Tarot is a sharp, compassionate, and thoroughly modern deck from illustrator Isabella Rotman. Grounded in the Rider-Waite-Smith tradition but reimagined through a contemporary lens, the deck features diverse bodies, queer identities, visible tattoos, smartphones, and motorcycles—bringing timeless archetypes into the world we actually live in.
Originally launched via Kickstarter in 2019, This Might Hurt quickly became a cult favorite. The “first edition” available here comes from the final self-published print run before Rotman transitioned the deck to mass-market distribution. These decks feature either pearl or black holographic edges and are housed in a book-style magnetic box with foil details and soft-touch matte coating. The accompanying guidebook includes card meanings alongside full-page grayscale images, and was designed by Andrew Misisco with editorial contributions from Ramona Riecke, Dan Finnen, and Shawn Morgenlander. (Read more about the history and versions of This Might Hurt Tarot here.)
This Might Hurt is deeply readable and emotionally accessible, especially for those who have felt unseen or underrepresented in traditional tarot. Its voice is honest, direct, and gently irreverent—a reminder that healing doesn’t always have to be solemn.
