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"Entering a London bookshop in November 2018, I learned that Katie Barringer and Jordan Smelt were at a crossroads—Barringer had just closed her Marietta Street shop Cover Books, and Smelt had begun working for Rive Gauche Wine Co. after leaving Bread and Butterfly and Cakes and Ale. Seated at Maison Assouline’s Swans Bar and surrounded by art and lifestyle books, the shop and its pocket bar provided the immediate “a‑ha” moment that changed the course of their lives and ultimately inspired their Buckhead concept, Lucian Books and Wine." - Beth McKibben