Move over Vogue… welcome to our version of a glossy interview in ten nosy questions with a bookseller (with more cardigans and fewer designer shoes). This time, we are jumping into the mind of Hannah Jensen…

What’s the book you’re picking most for your subscribers this month?

I’ve been sending loads of people Paladin’s Grace by T Kingfisher this month. I’ve been a big fan of T Kingfisher’s witty fantasy writing for years, but most of her stuff is a bit darker. This is a properly cosy romantic fantasy with a perfumer and a knight who knits socks for his friends. But ya know, there is someone chopping off people’s heads. She can’t get away with total cosiness.

Recommend a niche book that you wish more customers had heard of… 

I found my favorite niche kids book last year when I was just browsing through upcoming title lists. Temple Alley Summer by Sachiko Kashiwaba is a Japanese translated children’s novel written by the most prolific children’s author in her country. Her stories inspired many Studio Ghibli films. This is a story within a story, part graphic novel and part prose novel – so perfect for kids who love graphic novels but whose parents want to get them into longer form books. It’s so unique and a gorgeous story as well!

Give us the three buzz words that will make you pick up a book from the blurb 

The three buzz words that will always suck me into a book are atmosphere, vampires, morally grey – it’s been that way since I was a teenager!

Which book are you most looking forward to coming out this year?

My most anticipated releases are a tie between Emma Carroll’s Dracula & Daughters and Hana Tooke’s Skulkmoor. I’ve known about Emma’s book since its conception and been waiting and waiting! And I always anticipate Hana’s books! They’re both gothic, both mysteries, and both absolutely fantastic!!

Current book of the year?

My current book of the year is Our Infinite Fates by Laura Steven. I read this the end of January, and knew within one chapter that this was going to be a new favorite for me. It’s romantic; the writing is gorgeous, and the story has something for everyone. But it especially perfect for those looking to fill the Addie Larue shaped hole in their lives.

What was the last book that made you cry? 

My Dog by Olivia Wakefield. I should know any book featuring a dog is going to make me cry, and this one was no different. A beautiful sensitive story about parent loss and dealing with bit change in the wake of that – but especially about the power of a dog’s love.

Your favourite childhood book?

My favourite childhood book is again a tie between Inkheart by Cornelia Funke and The Tale of Desperaux by Kate DiCamillo. Inkheart is one of the first books I remember obsessing about with my friends, and I always remember the feeling I had while reading them. Funke is a true master of magic! And The Tale of Desperaux was a book I shared with my Mawmaw, who was a locally famous children’s librarian with an affinity for imaginary mice characters (she even had one of her own), so that story will always have a special place in my heart.

Which author have you just recently discovered?

An author I’ve discovered this year is Laura Steven (also LK Steven) who wrote Our Infinite Fates, but also had an adult fantasy come out this year – Silvercloak – and I am just so impressed with her writing and style!

Name a book that you unexpectedly enjoyed (due to genre, content, style…)

A book that I was surprised I liked was Piglettes by Clementine Beauvais, just because I very rarely love books set in this world. But this is sharp, and witty, and a great story that spins lemons into lemonade.

If you weren’t a bookseller, what would you be doing?

If I weren’t a bookseller… – I’d be running a bakery on a farm of rescue dogs either in the english countryside or the Tennessee mountains or maybe the beach… I’d make a lot of carrot cake and have at least 20 dogs, the majority of them the size of small horses…and the bakery would probably also be a library hahah.