The Bookshop on Rosemary Lane: The feel-good read perfect for those long winter nights. Ellen Berry

business model, is it?’ He chuckled infuriatingly. ‘It’s pretty flawed, darling. It’s just not viable. Browsing doesn’t put any money in the till.’

      ‘No, no, listen. What I mean is, it’d draw people in. It would be like a cosy living room full of, oh, I don’t know … ideas and memories and inspiration.’ Aware of him staring at her, as if anticipating a punchline, Della pulled out the Recipe Sharing Society memo from her pyjama pocket.

      ‘Right, so cooking with lard and dripping and refined sugar, that’s really what people want these days, is it? Inspiration for heart disease and type-2 diabetes.’