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November-December 2025
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Those of you who are my most avid newsletter enjoyers may have noticed an absence of a November edition, and I hope that what you are about to read makes up for it. We've been harder at work than ever, and have our truly most exciting news yet to share. I know I say that all the time, but this time I truly mean it. Without further ado, here's what we've been up to over the festive season.
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What's been happening?
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At the end of October, in my last newsletter, we were in the process of starting up in a physical location, and I am so, so happy to say that we officially opened our doors in the beautiful Leek Butter Market on December 3rd. After that, it has been a mad month and I've loved every second. Getting to talk to my lovely customers (in person!) about all things bookish has been amazing, and I haven't managed to get into any heated arguments about the best romantasy reads yet! Being able to stock everything in my own shop that I hand-pick myself (with the help of my equally book-loving mum) is wonderful, and I really do love all of the delightfully bookish gifts and stationery I have been able to source. So far, I work with an incredible seven(!!) different suppliers, and as we grow and expand I can't wait to add more to the collection.
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Alongside this, we have also set up our Libro.fm partnership. Libro.fm is a wonderful platform for audiobooks where you choose an independent bookshop to support, and when you make purchases or sign up for a subscription, a split of the profit is shared with them. An all-round lovely system for all!
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As a replacement for my usual side missions of the month, as the shop opening and running has taken up all of my side mission brain space, I thought it would be fun to share with you what have been my bestsellers of the month! Without further ado, here is a comprehensive list off what titles are flying off the shelves at Inkwell:
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The House of Wolf
by Tony Robinson. A delightful historial fiction by the legendary Baldrick himself, set in a witty and wonderful imagining of Anglo-Saxon Britain, with equal parts grit and humour from a true expert of the period
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The Murder at World's End
by Ross Montgomery. Also the Penguin Indie Pick of the Month for December, this beautiful book is a classic locked-door murder mystery that feels like Knives Out meets Downton Abbey. One of my current reads, too!
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A Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens. Wonderfully seasonal, wonderfully classic, and wonderfully afforable thanks to the gorgeous Wordsworth Children's Classics line. A story for the ages, and I'm so glad it's still being picked up off the shelves
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The Impossible Fortune
by Richard Osman. The latest instalment in the aforementioned brilliant Thursday Murder Club collective, and their most explosive investigation yet. A thrilling race against the clock featuring the gang we know and love
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The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
by V.E. Schwab. Not that I'm biased towards what might be my favourite book ever, but Addie LaRue is a beautiful tale of immortality, that I'm glad I get to share with a whole new group of people
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If you'd like to get your hands on a copy of any of the above or any of our other amazing titles, you now know where to find us!
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Our Butter Market opening hours are Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays 8.30am-4.00pm, with occasional extra opening days in line with Staffordshire Moorlands District Council market days. For the most up-to-date information, follow our social medias linked below.
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What's to come?
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- My next big job is to update the website to be fully functional in line with our new book stock. So far, all of the gifts and stationery are available to order (including both home delivery and a newly developed click & collect service), and soon our lovely books will be included too.
- I'm always on the hunt for new and exciting literary bits and bobs, and more of those will slowly start to appear over the coming months. As a sneak peek for our newsletter readers, expect to see some coasters and tea towels pop up soon!
- I plan to develop a gift card system sooner rather than later, to share the love of books with everyone in our lives.
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Until next time
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Our festive season has been an utterly baffling experience, and I can't thank our customers, newsletter subscribers, website viewers (lurkers), fellow market traders, family, and friends enough for showing an incredible amount of support. For now, keep up the good reading work, and remember I'm always up for a good chinwag about whatever book you may be reading at any given moment.
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Have a wonderful New Year, and here's to a fantastic 2026,
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