Customer Reviews

Aspects in Astrology: A Guide to Understanding Planetary Relationships in the Horoscope

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I own close to a hundred astrology books which are sitting in my apartment in New Orleans. Hopefully the second story didn't flood. I've not been able to get in to see yet. I went to a local bookstore hoping to replace what may be lost. I started to purchase PARKER's ASTROLOGY again but then I saw this and decided to buy it. After looking up my aspects I have to say I have NEVER seen such a good description of what these aspects have meant in my life, both past and present. At 54 I have lived some but they adequately describe not only current issues but my childhood ones as well. This is an incredibly insightful book that goes well beyond the normal cookbook interps that err on the side of generalities. If you get one book on aspects get this one. My only criticism is that she has chosen not to include CHIRON which experience has taught me is a must. I'm a professional astrologer by the way. Very good effort. I hope to see more from this author.

I'm well over the 100 book mark for astrological studies. I'm not entirely easy to please in this day of cookie cutter interpretations. This book won me over and never lost favor. The respect for the craft and the many different forms of expression that two aspected planets can deliver are aptly honored in this book. It is a great reference for those of us who practise astrology and a terrific guide to understanding the layered complication of each chart's aspects. If you are a student, this book is a must have. If you have just begun the study of astrology, it might be a little intimidating, but even then I would encourage you to own it.

The book is used as the main text book at the Faculty of Astrological Studies here in London and for good reason! Although presented in cookbook style it is anything but! It is deep, comprehensive, well researched and more. And for who has had the pleasure to be a student of this amazing woman, it is no surprise. She is definitely one of the great astrologers of this day. A true classic.

This is the best aspect book I have come across. Although it is written in a "cookbook" style, the descriptions are uniquely insightful. The book starts off laying down the basics of what each planet signifies (some of the best descriptions I have seen), then the meaning of each of the aspect types (clear-cut and insightful with interesting info. on the quintile series and the semi-squares and sesquiquadrates), then the weighting of the aspects, their obs, applying and separating aspects. Qualities, elements and signs in the aspects are then covered. All of this Part I information is so well-presented that the interpretations in the "cookbook" section are a pleasant added bonus. The author presents the information in part I well enough to give the reader a good start on interpreting the placements on their own. The way in which Part I is presented, leading into Part II's "cookbook" section, gives the reader a better grasp as to how it's done--how to begin synthesizing the information beyond the Part II descriptions. And if that isn't enough, there's a Part III on the MC-IC and AC-DC axes as well as each of the planets at the angles.

Most astrology books are either of the "cookbook" variety without information on synthesis or of the type that goes in-depth, but without instruction on application and synthesis. This book takes a unique approach in effectively combining the two. This book is not only great for beginning and intermediate students, but can also be useful for the professional.

It's too bad this author doesn't have any other titles to her name. I would buy everything else she wrote. She is a gifted writer, and through this book, a gifted teacher. At the very least, I hope she puts out a second edition of this book that includes Chiron.

The most important part of the horoscope is probably the aspects between the planets and/or the ascendant. The more the aspects and the greater their strength, the more the horoscope seems to be saying. But to understand just what it is saying, many of us rely on other astrologers who are better than we are, and that is why owning a few good books about the planetary aspects is so important for most students of astrology.
A little technique I use when checking out a book in the store is to skip to the section about an aspect I have in my own natal chart and am more familiar with-- Venus-Saturn, for example --and test the author in that manner. You can't necessarily expect he or she to know every little thing you know about how this aspect seems to play out in your life, but their interpretation should at least tell you something you don't already know.
But even if it doesn't, as long as it sounds accurate, I'll give the book a second chance and look at its treatment of some of the other aspects. You usually can tell when what the author says seems to have the kind of authenticity and convincing detail that is grounded in personal experience, rather than being derived from guess-work or deductive reasoning about what a combination of Venus-Saturn or Jupiter-Pluto *should* mean. Horoscope interpretation is hard enough as it is, because I think that everyone who studies astrology quickly learns that the textbooks are just a guide, and even though they are usually referred to as "cookbooks", relying on the separate ingredients to reach an overall understanding of a real person's complex personality is not even as useful as a recipe. Not that I'm much of a cook myself, and not that I don't admire astrologers who can write these books, because it must be quite difficult.
Given these facts, Sue Tompkins's book passes all the tests and I've returned many times for guidance to the worn, underlined passages in my 1990 copy of her book. And the fact that it keeps getting reissued by different publishers and still can be found in the ridiculously small astrology section of Borders or Barnes & Noble--while so many others are excluded or have gone out of print-- speaks for itself. I whole-heartedly recommend it.

I'm very surprised that this book has been out for so long and has never received less than 4-stars. I was extremely displeased with the book and here are the reasons why:

1) Almost all of the book, more than 2/3 I would say, is a cookbook. Normally, I don't have a big problem with cookbooks. In this case, however, I take major issue. The cookbook gives about 3-pages worth on the connections between each of the planets. For example, 3-pages will be dedicated to sun/Saturn connections, 3-pages for sun/Jupiter connections, etc, until all combinations of all planets have been accounted for. The problem is that it doesn't differentiate between the ASPECTS that these planets have. There is only ONE description of sun/Saturn connections even though there are about 7-different aspects, or types of "relationship" that the sun and Saturn could have. In other words, it would have students interpret a sun/Saturn trine the same way as a sun/Saturn opposition or square. One description fits all in this book, but not so in real life.

2) Only 21 pages of the book actually go into detail describing the meanings of each aspect. And two of those descriptions are questionable. Here are the two that I take issue with and the reasons why:

THE QUINCUNX
At the beginning of this description, the author says, "Signs in quincunx [...] are coming from such completely different places and heading in such different directions that they don't even see each other, rather like two planes on unrelated flight-paths." This is in agreement with all respectable accounts of this aspect that I've run across. Other sources have demonstrated that this is not an aspect between planets that are working with or against each other. Its just that when one planet is working, the other is taking a break. They are never working the same shift. Yet this author goes on to describe the aspect as one of FRICTION between the two planets. How can you have friction between things that never meet?

She also says that the quincunx is a major aspect found in synastry charts, though she adds that it is mostly by whole sign, rather than actual 150 degree aspect. Her logic was that they have so little in common that they benefit each other. This made no sense. We all know that relationships don't work well between people that have nothing in common. Studies have proven this. So I did a study of my own. I collected a list of strong couples and studied their synastry aspects. The opposition and quincunx aspects are almost always the least found aspects in all synastry grids - bottom two. Trines and conjunctions are almost always the top two.

Although I didn't look for the quincunx aspect from a whole sign perspective, it should be remembered that the perfect world of "whole sign aspects" doesn't really exist. Bi-quintile and sesquiquadrate aspects can also fall in the same whole sign combinations as the otherwise perfect, whole-sign quincunx defines.

THE SEMI-SQUARE AND SESQUIQUADRATE
She acknowledges that she doesn't know the difference between these two aspects. (If you want a description from someone that does, check out "Predictive Astrolgy: The Eagle and the Lark"). She "suggests" that these aspects are the same as squares and are common in accidents (even though she also says she doesn't commonly find squares in accidents). For those reluctant to accept her theory, she gives an example intended to "banish any such doubts forever." Unfortunately, her example falls seriously short. She uses the example of a passenger ship that sank in 1987, but she only describes the transits that were happening in the sky at that moment. She doesn't compare it with the chart of the ship, which makes it too generalized to apply to anything or anyone specific. She does acknowldge that that same transiting chart will apply the world over at different times of the day. So she mentions the chart of the ships COMPANY at the top of page 59 but she neglects to meaningfully tie that chart in with the events of the day and her reasoning becomes muddled. The contacts between the important transiting planets and the angles of the company chart are not semi-square's or sesquiquadrates and the orbs she's using are very large. We're talking about an 8-degree orb for transiting Pluto. She definitely did not banish my doubts of her theories.

These are the things I would have wanted to know before buying this book - and I probably would've passed it up.

One gets the sense from reading this book that Ms. Tompkins has extensive experience in chart analysis ... because the text is free of clichés, conjectures, and contrived descriptions. The core energies of planetary connections are expressed with razor-sharp precision and truth. Her writing style is elegant and eminently readable. This book ranks among other astrological literature by Dane Rudhyar, Stephen Arroyo, Liz Green, Greg Bogart, Donna Cunningham, and Rob Hand.

This is one of the best English books about aspects in astrology. Every aspect is handled indepth with very good descriptions. Sue Tompkins knows what she is writing about ! The other book about aspects that I recommend is the one by Charles EO Carter. None of these books can be missed by any serious astrologer.

I have had my copy of this book since the 1st printing in 1990. I'm here to purchase one for a friend and colleague in the craft who has not had the good fortune to read it yet. I've moved several times (across the country), and bought and sold what must amount to several astrological libraries, yet this one seems to stick with me. It is one of the best you can buy, period. I'd place it among my favorite 5 astrology books ever written.

I have taught and written on many different astrological methods, and am a professional practitioner, so take my word for it - this is one of the clearest, universally applicable and insightful books on the subject I have ever seen. Ms. Tompkins has keen understanding of human nature and how to explain it through astrological symbolism. Although I personally do not ascribe to the modernist approach to the craft, you can jump into any other school of astrology and take the insights from 'Aspects' with you. These ideas are easily adaptable and they stick in the memory quite easily - because of how "spot on" they are about things we all experience in ourselves and others, and the precise way that she describes the planetary "face" of these experiences.

If you are a beginning student, please do no read another book before you read this one. If you have been through several of the modernist tomes, please read this marvel, and when you are done, start throwing out everything that you find you don't need to understand charts. You may end up ditching half your library.

I must say that the other reviewers of this book has done
an excellent job as to why this book is a must for any one who
is serious about humanistic or "Jungian" astrology.

There is not much that I can add.

Do you want to get a clearer view of some of your life long
"homework assignments" in this life? Take the time to study some of descriptions in this book of the "hard" aspects in your natal horoscope. Especially the ones with a two degree orb or
less. You will thank me.