LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A brand new bookstore is opening its doors in the Highlands neighborhood, with a specific style stocking the shelves.
Louisville-based horror author Jenny Kiefer has always been a fan of the horror genre, spurred by childhood stories.
"I remember going to the library and getting 'Goosebumps' and 'Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark,'" she said.
The love of horror novels spilled over into her own career. Kiefer plans to publish a new horror novel "This Wretched Valley" in 2024.
She's also spent the last year working on a different project - Butcher Cabin Books, a horror-specific store in the Highlands.
Kiefer said the building, on Barret Avenue near Big Bad Breakfast, was inspired by the building's original use as a butcher shop and the cabin-like wood paneling on the inside.
As they prepared to open, Kiefer and her mom scoured rummage sales and used book stores for a range of titles to stock their shelves.
"We have actually collected a huge amount of the original [books], so we've been able to find those and the more fun part has been finding those old paper backs and hopefully giving them new life on someone's shelf," she said.
In addition to used titles, Kiefer said they'll also have new books, which she hopes will widen the distribution for independent titles.
"They're smaller, they don't have as wide [of a] distribution and it can be hard to find those in book stores," she said.
Kiefer said Louisville already has an expanding horror scene (see the Fright Bites Food Truck) and thinks there's a wide market for her shop.
In the future, she hopes the shop can host book readings and signings and be a place for book clubs to gather.
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