Sometimes, ordering a book from Amazon just isn’t what you need. Luckily, the area near your Royal Athena apartment offers a selection of niche bookstores for you to find unique settings, plots and characters. These stores are sure to give you what you need for the upcoming chilly nights ahead.

The Spiral Bookcase — Join the purveyors of the printed page at The Spiral Bookcase. In just a 10-minute drive, you can experience hundreds of captivating tales on its bookshelves. Additionally, the bookstore offers an excellent trade policy, where you can get reimbursed for your used books in the form of store credit. Right now, The Spiral Bookcase is looking for newer releases, sci-fi, graphic novels, cookbooks, poetry, vintage books, local history and children’s books. Employees are also looking for books on niche topics such as the occult, hauntings and medical curiosities. Subscribe to various email lists on the store’s website to begin your journey of enchantment.

Johnny Destructo’s Hero Complex — It’s not a comic-book shop. It’s a comic-book boutique. Johnny Destructo’s Hero Complex offers a subscription service to ensure you get the comics you want as they’re released. The store also offers local home delivery in special cases. In between comic issues, be sure to check out Johnny Destructo’s monthly gaming night and graphic-novel-of-the-month club

Big Blue Marble Bookstore — If you’re looking for diversity, Big Blue Marble Bookstore is the place to go. According to the store’s website, the staff “stock books we love, and trust that our customers will recommend any great books we have missed. We’ve always had writers on staff, who also keep us on our toes and connected to lesser known and up-and-coming authors.”

The Spiral Bookcase

112 Cotton St., Philadelphia, PA 19127

(215) 482-0704

Johnny Destructo’s Hero Complex

4327 Main St., Philadelphia, PA 19127

(215) 482-7700

Big Blue Marble Bookstore

551 Carpenter Ln, Philadelphia, PA 19119

(215) 844-1870