When Fiction Shops Local (Even If the Store Doesn’t Stock the Book)

When Fiction Shops Local (Even If the Store Doesn’t Stock the Book)

There’s a moment at the start of the Jim–Maddie arc where Maddie walks into the Moonglow Club carrying a Book Culture bag stuffed with Jim’s books. Jim, of course, has no idea. He only sees a refined stranger with caramel hair, a sky‑blue dress, and a tote full of heavy-looking books. It’s one of those quietly delightful Garratyverse moments where a character’s gesture says more than a monologue ever could.

Cut to real life.

I recently visited Book Culture’s website — the same Book Culture whose bag Maddie is carrying in that scene — and discovered that my books are available through their online ordering system.

Not stocked on the shelves. Not face‑out in Staff Picks. But orderable. Present. Real.

Which means the following literary loop now exists:

• In the fiction, Maddie buys Jim’s books at Book Culture (off‑screen, but the bag doesn’t lie).
• In reality, Book Culture’s website now offers the novel in which Maddie buys Jim’s books at Book Culture.
• In both worlds, Jim remains blissfully unaware.

It’s not quite a paradox. It’s more like a polite handshake between universes.

This isn’t metafiction so much as meta‑logistics. The Garratyverse mentions a real bookstore, and thanks to KDP’s Expanded Distribution, that bookstore’s website now carries the book where the mention appears. It’s the literary equivalent of a cameo that accidentally becomes canon.

And honestly? It delights me.

There’s something quietly satisfying about seeing a fictional moment ripple outward into the real world — not loudly, not dramatically, but with the same understated charm as Maddie herself. A character carries a Book Culture bag in a Brooklyn nightclub, and somewhere in the real world, Book Culture’s website nods back.

Fiction shops local. Reality returns the favor.

What Readers Say About Reunion: Coda

A good story with a natural feel

Scott Dickert (Verified Purchase)

A good read! The author does a very good job of telling a story in which the characters feel natural, and the themes are relatable. I was struck by how genuine the thoughts and emotions in the story are; it reads and comes off like the characters are real people, with unique personalities and human thoughts, and aren’t just used as plot devices. A good story and easy read to get lost in.