Discovering Reading Through Romance and BookTok
Amelia Lord found her confidence in reading through the influence of BookTok, the literary subcommunity on TikTok, which encouraged her to explore books despite her lifelong avoidance of reading.
Romance novels became the gateway for Amelia after she moved from Newport to Gloucester and sought a new hobby. At 28, working as a social media and events coordinator, Amelia had not read before the age of 21. Her dyslexia diagnosis had initially made her doubt her ability to read.
"I kept seeing BookToks on my TikTok," she said. "I was seeing loads about it and it piqued my interest."
For the first time, she made a New Year's resolution to read a single book, choosing Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us, which was adapted into a film starring Blake Lively in 2024.
"I didn't want to set the boundary too high," she laughs.
"I'm a dyslexic girl and I've always thought, can I do it? Then I read it and I was hooked straight away.
"I went into town two days later and started buying loads of romance books."
Now living in Cardiff with her partner and young daughter, Amelia has used books to foster a local community.
"When I came back [to Wales] I didn't really have many friends around me anymore.
"And then I became a mum and hobbies which I had before I wasn't interested in or didn't have the time for anymore. So I feel like books were the only thing that was still a part of before I had my little girl."
She founded the Booked Up Book Club after her employer offered her space at the play café where she works in Whitchurch, a suburb of Cardiff.
Amelia's book group space is designed to feel welcoming and cosy
The club holds monthly meetings to discuss selected books and additional "scrap and yap" sessions focusing on book journaling and crafts. Amelia incorporates quizzes, games, and events like book bedazzling to engage members.
"I was so nervous when I launched the tickets," she admits.
"I thought 'what if nobody comes to this'? But it's going well."
The club primarily explores different facets of the romance genre; the current month's selection is a cowboy romance. However, Amelia remains open to other genres such as thrillers.
"One of my friends had only ever read one book before book club. She started coming and now she reads all the time."
Romance's Rising Popularity and Cardiff's First Dedicated Romance Bookshop
Romance has consistently performed well in publishing and has surged in popularity recently. In 2024, sales in the Romance and Saga category reached record levels, according to industry analysts NIQ.
This growing interest inspired another Cardiff resident, Aimee Cummings, to open the city's first bookshop dedicated exclusively to romance.
Unlike Amelia, Aimee has always loved books, with romance stories central to her reading enjoyment.
"I've been reading romance since I was old enough to borrow my mum's books when I probably shouldn't have been," she said wryly.
Her shop, Love Stories, is located in Cardiff's Castle Arcade, an area known for its independent businesses.
The shop nestles inside one of Cardiff's skylit Victorian arcades, which are full of quirky and independent shops
Aimee, 31, was pursuing a career in academia with a degree, two master's degrees, and a PhD in psychology and social sciences when she experienced a change of heart.
"I don't really want to do this for the rest of my life," she realized.
An offhand remark to her husband about opening a bookshop led to the decision to pursue it.
During a trip to the United States, she visited The Ripped Bodice bookshop in New York, originally established in Los Angeles as the first physical romance bookstore in the US, which inspired her to consider the feasibility of such a shop in Cardiff.
"This is borne of passion rather than practicality I guess," she said.
Despite her enthusiasm, Aimee questioned whether focusing on a single genre was viable.
"It's all well and good saying 'this is something I love', but it's finding the market for it as well.
"But I am, first and foremost, a researcher, so I did the research into it. And romance has the highest portion of sales in the publishing industry, it's growing exponentially since Covid and it's taking over publishing."
UK's First Romance Bookshop and Community Building
Aimee is not the only one to envision such a venture. In Edinburgh, Caden Armstrong, 26, originally from Los Angeles, was inspired to open the UK's first romance bookshop after struggling to find romance titles when she moved to the UK.
Caden, who studied publishing and worked in a bookstore, discovered no physical romance bookstores existed in the UK and decided to change that.
"One day I just researched it and found out there wasn't a single bricks and mortar one in the entire UK and thought, 'that's crazy. That needs to change'."
With partial crowdfunding support, she opened Book Lovers Bookstore, which will mark its second anniversary next month.
Caden Armstrong was inspired to open the UK's first romance bookshop after struggling to find the genre when she moved to the UK
Aimee visited Book Lovers while planning her own shop to seek advice, which Caden welcomed enthusiastically.
At that time, Book Lovers was the only physical romance bookstore in the UK. Since then, others have opened.
Both Caden and Aimee aim to create welcoming spaces for people, especially younger women, seeking community and support.
They credit online platforms like BookTok with significantly changing how women express their interest in romance novels.
Caden said: "A lot of people around my age or going on to their 30s as well who are going onto BookTok and saying 'you know what, I love reading this, and I don't want to feel shamed just because a) the books have a happy ending and b) there's some adult sexual content written by women in it'.
"I think romance has been shamed for a very long time and I think it's primarily because it's a genre that's been dominated by women writers talking about women's pleasure. That in and of itself is a very radical act, and a very powerful act."
Although romance is a defined genre, Aimee emphasizes its diversity.
"You think bodice rippers, contemporary things, fantasy. It covers a broad spectrum. So it's not maybe as niche as you think initially."
When asked how she defines a romance novel, she said:
"If you were to take the love story out of the book, would it change it significantly? If it would, I'd say it is considered a romance."
Readers sharing their love of the genre and building a community is important to both shop owners
The rise of romantasy—a blend of fantasy or science fiction with romance—has been well documented. Bestselling authors such as Sarah J Maas and Rebecca Yarrow are prominently featured in Love Stories.
Aimee also highlights emerging subgenres like sports romance, citing Rachel Reid's Heated Rivalry, now a successful TV show, and Elle Kennedy's Off Campus series.
"But for me, I really want part of the ethos of the business to champion inclusivity and community. Queer authors, black authors, smaller authors who you wouldn't see in Waterstones."
Caden shares this vision, describing Book Lovers Bookstore as a queer and disabled-owned business.
"Our entire ethos is creating a fun, creative and safe space for romance fiction but also for uplifting, diverse voices within romance fiction."
Caden believes the genre's nature fosters connection, especially among women.
"I think a lot of the times we're told when we're adults that we can't enjoy things with this sense of childlike joy any more," she said.
"That kind of joy of enjoying life and connecting with people is a huge aspect of romance.
"That might be because for the longest time it has been a community really built by women, for women."
Book Lovers Bookshop Celebrates Second Anniversary
Book Lovers Bookshop in Edinburgh celebrates its second anniversary in August
