George R.R. Martin opens a bookstore!

Around these parts — and indeed around most parts — George R.R. Martin is best known as the author of the Song of Ice and Fire books, which were adapted by into the monumentally successful Game of Thrones. But in his hometown of Santa Fe, New Mexico, Martin is a bit of a local investor. He owns the Jean Cocteau Cinema, financed the Meow Wolf immersive art installation on Rufina Circle, and now, he’s opened a bookstore: Beastly Books!

“We’ve been doing amazing author events at the Jean Cocteau Cinema ever since we reopened the theatre in August, 2013,” Martin explained on his Not a Blog. “Dozens of terrific, award-winning, bestselling writers have appeared at the JCC to speak, read, and sign their books… SF writers, mystery writers, historical novelists, romance writers, thriller writers, mainstream literary writers, YA authors, non-fiction writer and journalists… the list goes on and on.”

"And all of them have signed stock for us. The only problem was the Jean Cocteau lobby was far too small for us to display all of these wonderful autographed books. With that in mind…we opened our own bookshop right next to the theatre."

To be exact, Beastly Books is on 418 Montezuma Ave. And as Martin said, its main stock in trade is autographed books, by Martin himself and many other authors. “We have a huge stock of the wonderful 20th anniversary edition of A CLASH OF KINGS, magnificently illustrated and all signed,”he wrote, “plus titles by James S.A. Corey, Leonard Maltin, Janis Ian, Diana Gabaldon, Walter Jon Williams (his QUILLIFER books are terrific), Melinda Snodgrass, Lee Child, Anne Perry, Carrie Vaughn, David Levine, John Scalzi, Joe Lansdale, Mary Robinette Kowal, Connie Willis, Marlon James, Marko  Kloos, Erica Jong, Jo Walton, S.M. Stirling, Michael Cassutt, Dennis Lehane, the late great Victor Milan, Ellen Datlow, Alan Brennert, Stephen Graham Jones, and many many many more.”

If you’re wondering, the name Beastly Books is a nod to the 1946 movie Beauty and the Beast, directed by Jean Cocteau; that’s also how Martin arrived at the name of his theater. Also, marked worked on the Beauty and the Beast TV show starring Ron Perlman and Linda Hamilton in the ’80s, so it works on a lot of levels.

“The feeling we’re going for is kind of sci-fi and fantasy,” general manager Rory MacPherson told the Santa Fe New Mexican. “It kind of ties in with the kind of films we show and ties in with the comic book store [nearby].” All that and they serve coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and soft drinks, with pastries on the way. AND there’s a statue of the Iron Giant in the middle of the store for some reason. It’s like they know me.

If you’re in the area, this could be a great place to visit. And if you’re not, you can peruse Beastly Books’ catalog of autographed wares here.

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