This is a great product. I’ve actually written a script for it and have been doing it in my professional card work. I’ve also heard of some other professionals elsewhere in the country that have been using this effect to great results. I honestly won’t be surprised if this becomes as popular as Max Maven’s B’Wave. I predict many knock offs & ‘updated versions’ in this trick’s future as well.

The effect is exactly as it says in the add, so I won’t go into it here. The cards are high quality in printing, card stock, & finish. It doesn’t feel or look like a packet trick. To the audience, these are just mini reproductions of famous pantings. You also get extra cards so you can repeat the effect with a different selection, and with a red or blue backed Bicycle deck. These are huge additions that make this a near perfect magic product.

I’m going to make a bold statement & say this is a packet trick for professionals only. I don’t think hobbyists will get a lot out of it because there aren’t too many moves or new gimmicks. The price is also a little high for something you are just gonna play around with and maybe perform only once or twice for your magic buddies.

For professionally made props that will last, and that you will use, the price is totally justified. It’s also an effect designed for entertaining & amazing laypeople. I’ve been doing it regularly at gigs, and the reactions are always more than satisfying. While a card is originally selected, it doesn’t feel like a card trick. It looks like magic to laypeople, and it has automatic emotional investment because we all care about the Mona Lisa. I don’t feel it’s a closing effect, but I think it’s a perfect effect to do right before your big finish. It’s a small trick, you can really only do it for two or three people but that’s ok. It gives the effect a quiet, more intimate feel.

The instructions are very clear, and the author assumes you already know how to perform moves like getting a break. It also gives genuine background information on each painting so you can come up with your own presentations. What a concept! Encouraging people to come up with their own scripts, and not just use whatever the instructions say.

My one criticism, which may sound like I’m being really picky, is that the paper the instructions are printed on is very thin. The instructions are in booklet form, and the cheap paper makes it feel, well, cheap. For the price, they could have sprung for some stiffer paper to make a better looking booklet. That said, the instructions are clear, in depth, and you should have no problem learning from them.

All in all, this is the only effect I’ve received for review that has gone into my professional work. This is a very special piece of card magic. If you are a professional close up magician, and want to add something different to your show, I strongly recommend this effect.

I hate packet tricks! You pull out a packet of gimmicked cards and do you something with them, then you put them away, and people say, can I look at those and you say, "don't be retarded... of course not!" Yet, I, Jeff Stone, open just about every close up strolling set with Max Maven's B'Wave... I'm so conflicted!

So I get "Mona Lisa's Secret" in the mail and open the package and think that it's going to be some cheesy printed pictures of art work and some silly routine with a bunch of stupid counting and displays and illogical non-sense... boy is my face red!

This trick Rocks. The effect is simple and straight-forward (more on that in a moment), and has huge presentational potential. On top of that, the cards are beautifully made. They look like canvas paintings, yet they are the same size and texture as Bicycle playing cards... it's a thing of beauty. It's $26.00 smackers which you might think is a little high for a packet trick, but when you see the cards, you'll realize that you got a screamin' deal.

I'm tempted to buy another set and put the cards into teeny frames and hang them up in my office right next to my shirtless photos of Siegfried and Roy. I hope I didn't say that out loud!

So here's the effect in a nut shell: A card is "picked" (if you know what I mean). Four pictures of famous pieces of art are shown (little card-sized pieces of art). One of them is the Mona Lisa. A moment later the Mona Lisa is shown to be holding a playing card which turns out to be the selection.

At first glance, I thought this was just an average trick. However, a few moments before writing this review, I had a cool presentational idea that I will be using in my close up work. Sorry, I won't be sharing that idea... But those who know me, know this... I don't do packet tricks, so if I'm going to be adding a packet trick to my repertoire, it has to be kick-butt, and this is.

As for the package you get: A zip lock baggie with the cards you need, plus a few extras so you can change out the "selection" for each performance if you'd like... and you can change the color of the back of the card in the picture... either red or blue. The cards come with a small envelope-style vinyl wallet and full color four page instruction booklet. The instructions are simple an clear.

At the end of the instructions you'll find some basic info and background on each painting to spark presentational ideas. I see no downside to this one gang. If you like packet tricks (or even if you hate them more than you hate watching Barney do the Hokey Pokey) this is one you'll want to give some serious consideration to.