Occult Bookstore Near Me in Sherman Oaks: Psychic Eye Book Shops Since 1985

Search occult bookstore near me from anywhere in the San Fernando Valley and one long-running answer is Psychic Eye Book Shops at 13435 Ventura Blvd in Sherman Oaks. It opened on March 12, 1985, and four decades later it still combines a deep book room on magick, divination and astrology with walk-in psychic readings priced on a board rather than negotiated behind a curtain.

What sets Psychic Eye apart is scale and range. The founders, Robert Leysen and Mary Kara, describe it as the largest and most comprehensive New and Old Age bookseller and metaphysical gift supplier in the United States. Whether or not you accept the superlative, the phrase New and Old Age is accurate: the shelves cover crystal healing and dream books on one side and the Western occult tradition, with dedicated author sections, on the other.

The author shelves tell you who the store is for. Dion Fortune, the British occultist who founded the Society of the Inner Light, has her own category: The Mystical Qabalah is $24.95, Psychic Self Defense is $18.95 and her novel The Demon Lover is $16.95. Aleister Crowley and Anton LaVey also have author sections, which is rare for a general metaphysical shop and signals a store comfortable with the darker end of the catalog.

Beyond the authors, the book department is organized by practice: divination, crystals and gemstones, astrology, dreams, herbology, magick and spellcraft, and psychic development. That layout makes the store easy for a beginner who knows only what they want to do, read tarot or work with herbs, rather than which writer to start with. Tarot decks, amulets, candles, crystals, herbs and incense fill the rest of the shop.

Readings are the other half of the business, and the prices are posted. At the Sherman Oaks store an in-person reading costs $25 for 15 minutes, $35 for 30 minutes, $45 for 45 minutes and $55 for an hour. Telephone readings run $30, $40, $50 and $60 for the same lengths. The shop says it has offered set, up-front prices with no hidden fees since opening day, and readers are available every day.

To book, call the store directly at (818) 906-8263; the shop asks clients to phone the location to schedule a reading rather than book online. Advanced sessions such as hypnotherapy, Reiki, past-life regression or one-on-one instruction must be booked at least 24 hours ahead, and their prices depend on the reader and the service. Walk in early in the day if you want a same-day reading with a particular psychic.

There is one rule printed plainly on the readings page: by law, psychic readings are an entertainment service only. The shop puts that disclaimer up front rather than in fine print. Treat the reading as a conversation with an experienced reader rather than a prophecy, and you will get more out of the time, especially in a fifteen-minute slot where focused questions matter.

The building has had a hard couple of years. In November 2024 the main store closed temporarily for repairs after a fire incident, and The Annex next door stayed open for readings and some retail while the work went on. A later news post announced that the newly renovated Sherman Oaks location is fully open and operational, so the store you walk into now has had a fresh refit.

The Annex has its own history. The shop says it ran out of room at the Sherman Oaks store in 1990 and took over the space next door, and in 2025 its Annex page described an extensive used book section where staff buy and sell gently used occult and New Age titles, classics and out-of-print rarities, alongside oddities and taxidermy. For collectors that secondhand shelf is the reason to visit both doors.

The company has grown and shrunk over the years. Its Las Vegas Charleston location closed after nearly thirty years, while a Vegas store on Eastern Avenue and Silverado Ranch remains. Sherman Oaks has always been the flagship, and its long run on Ventura Boulevard makes it one of the few metaphysical bookstores in Los Angeles that has outlasted several waves of New Age fashion.

For dinner afterward, Casa Vega at 13301 Ventura Blvd is a short drive or a longer walk east along the boulevard. The Mexican restaurant opens at 11:30am on weekdays and 11am on weekends and stays open until midnight every day, which makes it a natural place to go over your reading or flip through a new copy of The Mystical Qabalah over chips and salsa.

If you have the afternoon free, Westfield Fashion Square at 14006 Riverside Drive, a short drive west and north, is the closest big shopping center, and the residential streets south of Ventura Boulevard climb toward the Santa Monica Mountains. The contrast between a mall and a store with Crowley on the shelf is very Los Angeles, and both are within a few minutes of each other.

Practical notes: Psychic Eye Book Shops is at 13435 Ventura Blvd, Sherman Oaks, CA 91423, phone (818) 906-8263; The Annex is at 13443 Ventura Blvd, phone (818) 784-3797. Bring a short list of authors if you are hunting a specific title, and decide on a reading length before you sit down. Street and lot parking along Ventura Boulevard is the norm, so allow a few minutes to find a space.

Psychic Eye suits readers who want serious Western occult authors on the shelf, Fortune, Crowley and LaVey, together with an affordable reading on the same visit. It also suits beginners, thanks to a book room organized by practice. It is less suited to someone after a quiet, appointment-only atmosphere. Come on a weekday afternoon, browse Dion Fortune, then book fifteen minutes with a reader before dinner at Casa Vega.