From alien love affairs to paranormal passions — there will be a love story for everybody at a new Dunedin bookstore entirely dedicated to romance.
Colette Palmer said her independent bookstore, The Ink Pot, opening next month in St Andrew St, would stock novels from "all across the romance spectrum".
"Fantasy, contemporary, monsters, aliens — you name it, we’ve got it all.
"They have to have that happily ever after."
Ms Palmer, a paranormal romance author of six years under the pen name Colette Rhodes, said romance-exclusive bookstores were not a new idea.
There were a lot of them around the world, including Enamoured Books in Auckland and the romance genre sold the most in publishing.
She loved the atmosphere of romance and wanted to bring it to Dunedin.
"People love the community that comes with a romance bookstore as well.
"It can be a place for book clubs and workshops, author meet-and-greets.
"The romance reading community also tends to be very active online."
There would even be a small "writer’s corner".
It would sell titles such as Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros, works by New Zealand author Sarah A. Parker and other contemporary romance authors such as Ali Hazelwood, Tessa Bailey and Lucy Score.
Special editions of classics such as Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice would also be available.
There would be an offering of "indie" books too, which Ms Palmer said were really hard to get in New Zealand.
Because of increased awareness of the amount of time people were spending on social media, the popularity of bookstores was on the rise along with a growing desire to own physical media again, she said.
The sense of comfort romance novels could bring was also a big drawcard.
"It’s not a romance book if it doesn’t end happily.
"No matter what torture or journey the characters are going on, there’s going to be a happy ending.
"That is a very comforting idea for people, especially when the world is challenging and times are tough, we tend to see big spikes in the popularity of romance ..."
The store will start selling both online and in-person from February 21.
