The Little Apple of Death is a reminder to check your assumptions and be sure what you are really getting yourself into before you commit to it. Is that fruit you're about to bite into actually a sweet, harmless apple? Or is it something that looks kinda like an apple, but come to think of it, you are in a new country and you haven't seen any other people picking them and eating them...

This card drops for us all this month, during Mercury retrograde, to ask you to look at where you are assuming something to be true, to consider where you may be missing information, or to think about the possible outcomes before you jump head first into something.

Cancer - The Bat

Reading: The Bat asks you to look at something from a different perspective - a view point outside of your everyday experience. What to do see if you look at your situation from another person's perspective? What if you turn things on their head? Does the picture suddenly become clearer? Paired with The Little Apple of Death, these cards suggest there is something you are missing, a piece of the puzzle that you need to find before you can make a call or a judgement. Take a step back and re-examine the information you have before making a decision.

Leo - The All-Seeing Eye

Reading: The All-Seeing Eye encourages you to feel your way this month, Leo, and use your spidey senses as well as your eyes. Paired with The Little Apple of Death, you'll need to go deeper than just what's on the surface and really dig into all possibilities and outcomes before you press ahead. Pay attention to the smaller details, listen to your intuition and then check all info you're presented with.

Virgo - The Lightning Bolt

Reading: The Lightning Bolt brings a jolt of electricity, inspiration or creative spark to you this month Virgo, but with a caveat... Even if a monument of profound clarity lands, you don't need to act on it yet. Take your time, think through your decision and play out the possible outcomes of each option before you act on them. You may receive the divine spark now, but you don't have to light the fire just yet. Make sure you're ready and prepared for the flames when the time is right.

Libra - The Witch

Reading: Libra, something in the universe thinks you need to be reminded of your power. Have you forgotten the magic that courses through your veins, the stardust that built your bones? You are a creature of the earth, the sky and the stars and you are capable of wondrous things. Do not forget this. Paired with The Little Apple of Death, these cards together are perhaps giving you a little nudge in the ribs to check yourself. Have you been under a someone else's spell and had started to take 'reality'  for granted? You are a witch! You have power and agency and you can create a new world at any time.

Scorpio - The Black Cat

Reading: The Black Cat does not care what anyone thinks of them. They are indifferent to who or what is happening around them. They don't care what other people are doing, how they are doing it or what they posted on iIstagram, they just let them get on with it and live their life, perfectly aloof. Paired with The Little Apple of Death, these cards serve as a reminder that what you assume other people are doing based on what little they show or tell you, is not all that is going on. Do not let your idea of others have any sway on your idea of yourself. Stay in your lane and you do you, Scorpio.

Sagittarius - The Gargoyle

Reading: The Gargoyle reminds you that you are the words you speak, dear Sagittarius. You may think that complaining, arguing and putting others (and yourself) down is just part of defending and protecting your open heart, but actually your negative words do more harm to your own mental state than to anyone else's. Along with The Gargoyle, The Little Apple of Death asks you to re-examine the stories you've been telling yourself about how you are failing / unsuccessful / hard-done-by / {insert problem} and really consider if repeating these stories to yourself is helping you, or harming you.

Capricorn - The Double-Edged Sword

Reading: The Double-Edged Sword and The Little Apple of Death are both cards that ask you to dig into the detail so pay extra attention to any areas of your life that you may need to be extra vigilant to the small print this month, Capricorn. Before you sign that contract or say yes to an offer, just examine it again, closely, meticulously and with that sharp, analytic mind of yours. Once you are really sure you know exactly what you are leaping in to, and all other options have been weighed up, only then you can make your choice.

Aquarius - The Moth

Reading: If you are going through a hard time, dear Aquarius, I'm sorry. But know that this is exactly where you need to be right now. The Moth has to struggle to endure before she can open her wings, but that struggle is necessary because it is exactly what gives her the strength to fly. Paired with The Little Apple of Death, these cards suggest that you may need to challenge an assumption you have made. Perhaps you have talked yourself into believing you are doing a bad job, when in fact, compared to others you are doing well. Or maybe you think you are missing out, when really, others wish they had what you did. 

Pisces - The Bad Penny

Reading: Just like The Bad Penny, a problem keeps cropping up for you, Pisces, and you need to solve it once and for all. Paired with The Little Apple of Death, these cards together suggest that the issue at hand is perhaps something that you are mistaking for something it is not. Are you consuming something you believe to be healthy, when actually it is bad for you? Are you pouring your time into something, or someone, that is not worth the effort? Or, are you replaying old thoughts / feelings / or behaviours that you believe to be helpful when really they are harmful? Get to the bottom of what the problem is and fix it.

Aries - The Pendulum

Reading: This card is a reminder that your fate is not set in stone. It is not predetermined. Every decision you make changes the path ahead of you. At times, it may feel like your whole future is laid out in front of you, your fate is already decided, the odds already stacked, but that is not the case. Small changes make big impacts, dear Aries. Paired with The Little Apple of Death, these cards ask you to examine what assumptions you've made about your future, and where you might like to make a change.

Taurus - The Arrow

Reading: The Arrow teaches us that where your focus goes, your energy flows, Taurus. Examine where you are putting your thought, focus and attention closely and if it doesn't align with what you want to be putting all your energy into, then it's time to make a change. The Little Apple of Death asks you to consider if you truly know where that energy is going, and if it's worth the ask.

Gemini - The Deathwatch Beetle

Reading: The Deathwatch Beetle brings a warning that a house of cards may be about to fall. A system, a belief or a relationship that has been showing cracks for a while is starting to crumble - and it's a good thing. The Little Apple of Death asks you to closely examine something that is not what it seems, and if you're honest with yourself, you probably know what it is already. Dismantle that belief, pull it apart, re-examine the foundations that your belief is built upon, and only then can you build something stronger. 

The first edition of The Storm Cloud Oracle deck is now sold out, but will be back in September with a revised edition available in major bookshops and back at Bonearrow.com in August.