Months later I realised I should have read my own cards first, or at least registered the many portents of change that Saturday morning: the kookaburra beginning its morning burst of hilarity half an hour before dawn; finding my tarot cards in the second drawer of my dresser when I always left them in the first; the black chicken running across the road in front of my car, causing me to swerve and almost hit a tree (okay, so it wasn’t a cat); dark clouds lying low in the west.
My only thought when I stepped out of my market tent that morning was that it was a slow tarot day due to the sparkling late autumn weather. Sunshine cures melancholy, so I hoped the clouds came over fast. I didn’t wish anybody ill, but happiness was bad for business.
My daughter, Zoe, appeared from nowhere, closely followed by her new friend. Charlotte was a recent arrival in Lillipilly and I hadn’t yet worked out if she was here to stay. ‘Can we please have some money, Mum?’ Zoe asked. ‘I’m broke, and Poppy Moon still owes me for babysitting. I’ll pay you back when she pays me.’
This didn’t sound promising. Our neighbour Poppy Moon owed money to half the town.
‘We’ve been hanging out with the crystal lady and she has these amazing amethyst earrings on sale. And guess what? She says amethyst is my birthstone.’
‘I don’t think they’re real amethysts, Zo.’ Black-clad Charlotte scuffed at a hole in her Docs. ‘And she’s asking a lot for fakes. Maybe we should shop around more.’ Charlotte’s own dangling earrings depicted bleeding uteruses.
‘Charlotte’s right, darling.’ I wanted to kiss Charlotte, but I couldn’t without embarrassing all of us. Instead, I searched in my pocket for my last twenty dollars to make sure I could cover the girls’ lunch. I found a letter I’d long been planning to read, but no money. Then I remembered I’d spent it on petrol. Damn! I needed a customer badly.
‘Anyway, I might have to use all of this week’s earnings to pay the rent, so we don’t have to take up residence in the tarot tent.’
‘It could be fun camping in the showground.’ Zoe had a knack for turning deprivation into adventure.
‘No. You’d hate it,’ said Charlotte. ‘Camping in the rain is gross.’
Zoe slumped a little. ‘I guess.’
‘We really need to draw up a budget for ourselves, sweetheart.’ I readjusted a safety pin on my dress. Time to replenish my wardrobe in the charity shops. ‘Then we can save for luxuries like earrings. And clothes.’
Zoe brightened up. ‘Guess what? Charlotte’s dad is coming to pick her up soon—he’s just flown in from Sydney. He’ll want a tarot reading for sure.’
I just finished reading this excerpt from Mystic Ridge, and honestly? I’m hooked. Lucy Lever has such a gift for capturing the grounded, slightly chaotic reality of small-town life—I think we all know a “Poppy Moon” who owes money to half the town! There’s something so relatable about a tarot reader who’s more worried about paying the rent than predicting the future. It’s that perfect mix of “sparkling” rural charm and the messy, everyday struggle of making ends meet.
It actually put me in the mood to pull a few cards myself. Whenever I’m feeling a bit stuck (or just need a little guidance without the pressure of a professional sitting), I usually head over to Random Tarot. It’s become my go-to “sanctuary” lately. It uses the classic Rider-Waite deck, and honestly, the experience is so much more aesthetic and smoother than those clunky apps you usually find. It’s great for a quick, quiet moment of self-reflection when life feels a bit like it’s teetering between an adventure and a disaster—much like our narrator’s morning in Lillipilly.
If you’re a fan of these cozy, mystical vibes, you should definitely check it out. Does anyone else get the urge to dive into the cards after reading scenes like this? Let me know what you think of the snippet!