Spicing up the shelf: an interview with D on launching The Spicy Librarian bookshop in Leamington Spa

The Spicy Librarian’s physical book shop opened with a bang on Valentine’s Day, which the owner D called “the perfect date for opening the doors to a romance-led space”.

What started as an online community and brand, with a podcast, book club, and other events, is now Europe’s biggest independent romance book shop.

It’s a beautiful bookshop, café, and bar, which welcomes every romance reader into its luxurious, atmospheric, cosy setting. The team invites you to stay a while, open up a book, nurse a drink, and enjoy.

I had the absolute pleasure of speaking to D on everything indie, spice and romance.

I wanted to create somewhere readers could walk into and immediately feel seen, excited, and completely at home

D

“The Spicy Librarian started because I couldn’t believe something so loved had so little space. Romance is one of the most-read genres in the world, but readers are often expected to enjoy it quietly or apologetically.”

“After visiting romance-only bookshops in the US and seeing how alive and joyful they were, it clicked — why doesn’t this exist here? I didn’t want to wait for someone else to build it, so I decided to try myself.”

For her, this is all for and all inspired by romance readers. “The inspiration came from seeing how passionate, creative, and supportive this community is online — and realising they deserved a physical space that matched that energy. I wanted to create somewhere readers could walk into and immediately feel seen, excited, and completely at home.”

Her online community started through shared passion. It’s not been easy, but it has been magical: “It’s been messy, exciting, nerve-wracking, and honestly very human. I started small with a WhatsApp group of incredible romance readers, listening to them, testing ideas, and building trust. Everything we do — from the podcast to the book club — has grown because people showed up and asked for more. It’s been very community-led, which means growth has felt collaborative rather than corporate.”

I don’t want to say we sold out of books in our first weekend but let’s just say I was furiously ordering stock on Saturday evening … it was an incredible opening for us

D

So, how is D finding the opening? “Equal parts thrilling and terrifying — but mostly exciting. Opening an independent bookshop in today’s climate isn’t easy, but the response from readers has been overwhelming and affirming. Every message, share and sign-up reminds me why this matters.”

Community continues to be the driving force behind The Spicy Librarian. I asked D how the reception has been so far: “Honestly? Better than I ever imagined. I don’t want to say we sold out of books in our first weekend but let’s just say I was furiously ordering stock on Saturday evening … it was an incredible opening for us.”

“So many readers have said, ‘I didn’t realise how much I needed this’. There’s been a lot of excitement, support, and emotional messages from people who’ve felt overlooked as romance readers for a long time. We’ve even got some needing a dedicated seat for how often they’ll plan to visit. As I said previously, romance shouldn’t be something to be ashamed of. Some of the greatest stories in the world are romance — now we have a space to come and enjoy them openly.”

What can you expect from the bookshop? “A romance-first, 18+ space that blends books, community and experience.”

“There are shelves packed with romance of all genres, a coffee bar by day and a wine and cocktail bar by night, monthly book clubs meeting in-store, author signings, preview events and themed nights. It’s not a place you rush through — it’s somewhere you stay. And you’re very welcome to do so.”

It’s no secret that launching something independent is no easy feat, but I hope I speak for everyone when I say independent book shops are what we readers need, and D agrees: “They’re vital — not just culturally, but socially. Independent bookshops are where risk-taking, discovery, and community happen. They champion new voices, indie authors, and genres that big retailers often sideline. They’re about connection, not just convenience.”

However, it’s not just financial worries that plague indies; it’s big retailers and names who continue to perpetuate trends of trivialisation and belittling, and The Spicy Librarian has had its own share of undeserved negativity. “Some of the comments we’ve seen reflect an outdated attitude that romance isn’t ‘serious’ enough, and we won’t name names, but a worker at one big retailer actually commented that romance is for people with limited intelligence — which is ironic, given how much of the industry relies on romance sales.”

Choosing TSL means supporting a shop that actively celebrates what you love instead of quietly shelving it

D

Here’s why you should choose The Spicy Librarian instead of these big retailers: “Big retailers are great for scale. We’re here for depth.”

“We curate carefully with an expert passionate team, we know our readers, we host events, and we create a space where romance isn’t hidden or minimised. Choosing TSL means supporting a shop that actively celebrates what you love instead of quietly shelving it.”

If this resonates with you, which frankly it should, here’s how you can directly support them and get involved: “Follow us, share our content, listen to the podcast, sign up to our book club or the monthly subscription box, attend events, come visit us at our new shop — and most importantly, keep reading romance unapologetically.”

“Join the book club, come to events, recommend books, and be part of the conversation. This shop exists because of its community.”

The trivialisation of romance is a topical conversation; a recent survey I launched showed that almost half of the respondents had felt embarrassed and ashamed of reading the genre for fear of judgement from others, and 1/4 of respondents had lied about reading romance.

There’s no single way to love, and romance reflects that through diverse characters and stories that empower readers to see themselves on the page

D

I asked D about this heartbreaking phenomenon: “It’s rooted in sexism, honestly. Anything loved primarily by women tends to be dismissed. Romance explores emotional intelligence, power, desire, identity and agency — but because it centres feelings, it’s often belittled. Of the dark romance that we have on our shelves, they deal with hugely sensitive subjects, and that has typically been taboo and unheard of. All the romance sub genres deserve space in the shop, and we’re excited to see people try something new.”

“Romance champions choice, pleasure and feeling. It’s an incredibly broad genre that allows readers to explore love on their own terms — without judgment and without rules. There’s no single way to love, and romance reflects that through diverse characters and stories that empower readers to see themselves on the page. If a book makes you feel something deeply and provides some healing, then it’s doing exactly what romance is meant to do.”

“You’re not wrong for loving what you love. If a book makes you feel something — comfort, excitement, confidence — that’s enough. Reading doesn’t need to be impressive. It needs to be meaningful to you. I read all kinds of romance, and as long as it makes me feel something, I’ll never put it down.”

Reading has always been crucial to D: “I travel a lot, so reading is how I reset. It’s escape, curiosity, comfort, and connection all at once. It’s also how I understand myself better.”

“I’ve always been a romance reader — even before I had the language for it. I’ve always been drawn to stories about relationships, emotion and growth. Romance just happened to be where all of that lived.”

Readers constantly asked for recommendations and honest conversations about books. The podcast felt like the most natural way to build that dialogue and make it accessible

D

So, what is she reading right now? “I rotate constantly, but right now I’m doing a reread of Bloody Black by Rhiannon Hargadon — strong female rage and revenge story and a lot of dog-eared pages.”

If you want to get into romance/romantasy but you’re not sure where to start, this is D’s pick, and I have to say I agree: “For those coming into romance, you’ll hear the acronym ACOTAR a lot. This is a series by Sarah J. Maas called A Court of Thorns and Roses, which we described in our last podcast as the gateway drug to romance, especially for people who think romance or romantasy “isn’t for them”. Look around, and you’ll see these bright coloured books everywhere, especially amongst male readers. We see you!”

Along with the launch of the bookshop, The Spicy Librarian also launched their brand-new podcast. I asked D what inspired her: “Readers constantly asked for recommendations and honest conversations about books. The podcast felt like the most natural way to build that dialogue and make it accessible.”

“Romance readers love talking about books as much as reading them. The podcast lets us recommend, discuss, debate, and celebrate without gatekeeping. I’ve found some of my favourite books through recommendations of other fans.”

You can find the podcast on all major podcast platforms, and it centres on book recommendations, genre deep-dives, reader conversations, and spotlighting indie-authors.

Their next event is on Tuesday (February 24), and it just so happens to be their book club. The book of the month is Melting Point by Cici Williams, a very topical winter Olympics romance. I must say, I’ll be there, and I hope to see you there too.

I hope I speak on behalf of all readers when I say I wish D and the team all the best as the bookshop continues to flourish, and I can’t wait to follow their journey.

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The Boar, on behalf of Bethany Sirianni, would like to extend its gratitude to D for speaking to us about the opening of her bookshop.