In 2008, author and activist Winnie M. Li was working as a film producer in London when she was violently attacked and raped by a teenage boy while traveling in Northern Ireland. Today, Winnie dedicates her life and career to addressing the issue of sexual assault through the media, the arts, and academia.

Romance novels and feminism? The two may seem like strange bedfellows, but for Bea and Leah Koch, the book lovers behind America’s sole romance-only bookstore The Ripped Bodice, the connection is real.