Dear Bookseller,

Hope this finds you well. In this issue, along with news you can use and a link to apply for our $500 We Love Bookstores Grant, multi-award winning suspense writer Tara Laskowski shares a charming appreciation of her favorite bookstore, Reads & Company. 

My Favorite Bookstore:

Reads & Company, Phoenixville, PA 

by Tara Laskowski

When I was asked by Reads & Company owners Robb Cadigan and Jason Hafer in 2019 if I’d consider coming to their store for an event for my debut novel One Night Gone, I didn’t even hesitate. I said yes immediately. I’d heard great things about the store, which had just opened at the time, and, having known Robb for years from seeing him at various writers’ conferences, I knew he would take good care of his authors. Phoenixville, PA, is several hours from our home in Washington, D.C., but my husband and son and I decided we’d make a weekend of it.

It was then that we got the most delightful surprise. Turns out that there’s an apartment above the bookstore that Robb and Jason allow out-of-town authors to stay in—for free—if they are doing an event at the store. A cozy little apartment? Above a bookstore? Packed with books and games? Um, yes please!

A great perk, for sure, but the true delight of Reads & Company is the people who run it and their love for books and authors. Robb and Jason and their booksellers treat their customers and the authors who visit like family. From the second you walk into the store—which is one long brightly lit room stretching long—you want to stay and browse and read and chat. They also make sure their shelves are packed with diverse titles, local authors and interests, and the latest and greatest titles. Oh, and did I mention they really love crime fiction?

Reads & Company just celebrated their second anniversary in June 2021, but they’ve already got a loyal local fanbase. And I can see why—the store is managed and run by people who truly love authors and books. So, the next time you’re in the Philadelphia area, stop by and see them. And please tell them Tara sent you.

Tara Laskowski is the author of the suspense novel One Night Gone, which won the Anthony, Agatha, and Macavity Awards for best debut novel. Her second novel, The Mother Next Door, will be published in October 2021.

It’s easy to apply for the $500 Sisters in Crime We Love Bookstores Grant  

https://www.sistersincrime.org/page/WeLoveBookstores

To find out more about all SINC offers, including live webinars, please visit our website at https://www.sistersincrime.org  

Thank you for all you do for your community. Remember, Sisters in Crime loves bookstores.

Best wishes,

Robin Agnew

WLB@SistersinCrime.org

We Love Bookstores Coordinator

Sisters in Crime is the premier crime writing association focused on equity and inclusion in our community and in publishing. Our 4,500+ members enjoy access to tools to help them learn, grow, improve, thrive, and reinvent if necessary. They also gain a community of supportive fellow writers and readers, both peers to share the peaks and valleys of writing, and mentors to model the way forward.

Sisters in Crime hosts LIVE webinars each month. Webinars last 60-90 minutes depending on the topic and the audience questions! These webinars are open to all.

We've put our member books in a spreadsheet that we'll update every month, and send as part of this newsletter. This month's releases are on a separate worksheet. Feel free to sort by author name, book title, or author location.