Tucked away in the tiny town of Genoa, Moss & Midnight isn’t your run-of-the-mill bookshop, and it’s not meant to be; its literary selections and moody atmosphere are intentionally curated to create an immersive experience for readers who love the darker things in life.
Unlike big-box retailers, Moss & Midnight does not aim to carry every title. Instead, the inventory is heavily curated, focusing on ‘darker’ genres that fit within the shop’s aesthetic such as fantasy, romantasy, mysteries, horror, and thrillers — though there is a curated section for children as well.
The shop’s interior reflects a “dark academia” aesthetic—a subculture that romanticizes reading, writing, and the arts, often with a moody, gothic tone.
The indie bookstore is the brainchild of former health care professionals Khaslynne Andrews and Lela Ornbaum who dove headfirst into their dream of opening a community hub for book lovers like themselves.
“We wanted to create an experience,” Andrews said. “When you come here, you’re not just coming in and buying a book. We wanted you to feel like you were inside the books themselves.”
The layout includes distinct areas, such as a “dark romance room” for 18+ readers, ensuring a separation between family-friendly browsing and content with more mature themes.
Every title is hand-picked and intentionally styled, and special editions with sprayed edges or unique cover art that appeals to collectors are often prioritized.
“The way we style the shop is intentional,” Ornbaum said. “We’ve thought a lot about where every single thing goes. I was literally on the floor making sure that for the kids who come in, the books curated for them are at their eye level, while interesting titles their parents may not have seen before are going to be up higher to see first.”
From health care to hardcovers
The pair, both local women in their 20s, met while working at a surgery center in Carson City, and both assumed they’d spend the rest of their lives in health care. However, like many health care workers, they began to feel burned out, especially after working through COVID.
“We both kind of emptied all of ourselves into the path we were on,” Ornbaum said. “This feels like we’re fully gaining it back. We went into health care and wellness to help people, and we still are, but now it’s helping people in a different way — through reading and creating community.”
After leaving the health care industry, the two went to work at the Flutter and Buzz Cafe in Genoa. While the building’s owner was deliberating what to do with the space next door, the pair said their greatest dream would be to run a bookshop.
“She was so supportive — she told us to write up a business proposal, and we had paint on the walls before it was even done,” Andrews said. “She told us, ‘I see your guys’ vision, I see your passion, and I know that this can be possible.'”
Two months later, Moss & Midnight was born after the pair spent weeks working out the ideas not for titles alone, but on the atmosphere and the aesthetic of the space.
‘Real books’ aren’t dead: A resurgence of physical media continues to trend
The shop’s opening comes amid a resurgence of interest in physical media, especially books, driven largely by younger generations and online communities like “BookTok” on social media. The owners noted that, despite the prevalence of digital entertainment, readers are increasingly seeking the tactile experience of holding a book.
“I’m one of those people that has a Kindle and a Kindle app on my phone, and I can read a million books in a month and be fine,” Ornbaum said. “But I’m also one of those people who wants a trophy that can sit on my shelf that I can look at and say, ‘Yes, I read every single one of those books.'”
“We’ve had a lot of people tell us ‘Books aren’t really in right now,'” Andrews said, but she said it’s just not the case, as not just reading but the purchasing of physical books has been increasing year over year thanks in part to online social media platforms like TikTok, YouTube and Instagram.
“With everything being so accessible on your phones nowadays, it takes away from actually physically holding something and having joy from seeing how much you’ve read,” Ornbaum said. “I think it’s a driving factor [for the resurgence of several physical mediums], because records are coming back, people are reading newspapers again.”
Curating a cozy escape
Andrews said that part of their vision wasn’t just to tap into society’s desire to own and read physical books again, but to have a small escape from the world at large.
“When you go to a massive corporate bookstore like Barnes & Noble for example, the likelihood of you finding exactly what you want is low — it’s in there, but you might have to spend three hours trying to find it,” Ornbaum said.
“We know there’s a big dynamic for people wanting to escape their reality, right? ” Andrews said. “That’s the point, the enjoyment of romanticizing reading it to get yourself out of your current circumstances. Just for a moment, when you just need to take a breath, you can say ‘I need to go escape into this fantasy world that’s completely farfetched but babe, I want to be a part of it.'”
While some have cautioned the pair on the potential struggles of opening in a small community like Genoa, Andrews said the location doesn’t harm their business model — instead, it directly supports it.
While the town is a tourist destination, they also see it as a “middle ground” for residents of Carson City, Gardnerville, and Tahoe.
“It creates that home feel,” Andrews said. “Genoa is always going to be that little nook that people want to come and visit and slow down — and now, you can come here and read and pick up a book before you go walk the trails, or take it to the park for the afternoon.”
Building community
Beyond books, Moss & Midnight is positioning itself as a community hub. The shop has already started hosting creative workshops, like Friday’s vision board building, and is planning a Galentine’s bouquet-building social event. Beginning in February, they also plan to begin offering book club packages, where established book clubs can host their meetings while the shop provides curated food, drinks, activities and more.
While the titles are hand-picked by the pair, Ornbaum said they see themselves as a community collaboration. If someone comes in asking about a specific mystery series or an author they don’t carry, they’ll order it — and do their best to find it in a special edition while they’re at it.
Andrews said they are also integrating with the neighboring café to offer fresh sourdough bread and other goods to create a seamless transition from the cafe to the bookstore. They’ve also been collaborating with local artists who will be able to sell their dark academia or fantasy-themed wares to the shop’s customers.
The response from the public has been positive, Andrews said, with customers ranging from teenagers looking to reconnect with the world to seniors discovering new genres. For the pair, their goal remains simple: to provide a space where people feel welcome to slow down.
“We want everyone who walks in to not only feel comfortable but wanted,” Ornbaum said. “We want them to know whether they have experience with this genre or not, whether they are coming to buy or just look around, they’re welcome here. We want people to find their love for reading again.”
The pair say that, since they were children, reading creates a specific community that bridges people together and connects them no matter who they are or what they’re facing each day, which is what has driven the resurgence of book sales as loneliness and mental health issues have continued to climb.
“When we live in a world where life is heavy and things are hard, you’re constantly being told what you have to do, or thinking about what the next step is, but in books, you don’t have to,” Ornbaum said. “You get to see and imagine a world like you did when you were a child. And when you put you and your body into these people, and you’re able to live your life in a different way for a moment — I think that’s what brought people back to reading, because they want to be a part of that life, and that community.”
Moss & Midnight is located at 2285 Main St. in Genoa alongside the Flutter and Buzz Cafe. You can follow them on Instagram and Facebook, or check out their website for more information.
For now, they are open Sunday & Monday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and on Friday & Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
