“Not all who wander are lost.”
— J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
‘Tis a true statement—not all those who wander are lost—however, sometimes you take a few too many left turns and end up precisely where you started. I suppose that just means we found our beginning again before reaching our destination. Truth be told, we wanderers were never actually lost; we merely got turned around a time or two. Or three.
Too many left turns was a recurring theme during my recent weekend in Grand Rapids, but one that added to the laughs. My fellow Storykeepers and I (the minds behind the upcoming Storykeepers Ball) traveled south for a weekend of fun and frivolity in America’s Beer City, home to Griffins, demon-banishing spells, treasures untold, by which I mean books, and side quests.
Months ago, our group of five bought tickets to Rain & Revelry’s Celestial Summit, and we decided to turn a one-night event into a weekend excursion—a Storykeepers Sojourn.
Now, some of you may recall my debriefing of The Dragon Gauntlet—another Rain & Revelry event—in which I described how my team and I prepared for, survived, and celebrated our dragon-laden adventure. This month’s event was far less arduous, predominantly consisting of an impressive vendor market, a delicious dinner, and a night of dancing. There was the Queen’s Quest—a scavenger hunt around downtown Grand Rapids—but we elected to eat and shop our way through the city instead.
Here follows our weekend play-by-play to give you some insight into how Storykeepers have fun and what we recommend you try on your own Grand Rapids trip.
Day One
On Friday, our five-some rendezvoused at Oppa Sushi & Korean, since sushi is sometimes hard to come by in Northern Michigan, and we needed our fix. We experienced excellent service, and the entire restaurant, including the bathroom, had some great art. Then, we stopped at Pages & Peonies Romance Bookstore to shop and promote Storykeepers Ball, followed by a visit to Books & Mortar for more book browsing and buying.
Our evening progressed with a fabulous tapas dining experience at San Chez (a favorite of mine since my GVSU days), where we all shared a tableside cocktail called Queimada. This flashy beverage featured Cardenal Mendoza brandy, coffee beans, sugar, and cinnamon, along with fire and a recited spell designed to vanquish demons. That really kicked the weekend off right.
After stuffing ourselves, we made it to Van Andel Arena for a Griffins game, where the team defeated the Texas Stars. To toast the victorious, we snagged snacks and beers at HopCat, followed by a final drink at The Meanwhile, a short walk from our Airbnb on Sigsbee, which, thankfully, housed good books on its shelves.
Day Two
Saturday started off with caffeinated bevvies at MadCap Coffee and shopping at the Celestial Summit vendor market in the Amway Grand Plaza’s Center Concourse. Each of us found some treasures, we stopped by the booths of committed Storykeepers Ball vendors, Kingdom & Alchemy Designs and GioWerkz, and even got some special deliveries from messenger otters (people dressed up as otters, circa, Crescent City by Sarah J. Maas).
Next up, we visited Schuler Books on 28th Street and the two-floor Barnes & Noble at the Woodland Mall before partaking in a Thai lunch and jetting “home” to transform into attendees worthy of a star-studded summit.
At the Amway Grand Plaza, we experienced refined luxury with modern splashes as we dined in the beautiful Pantlind Ballroom, took photos alongside the space’s stunning architecture, and danced for hours to some of the best DJ-ed tunes we’ve experienced in some time. We even ran into a fellow Lit with Literature member!
When the music stopped at 11PM, we found ourselves at Yesterdog for a late-night snack. We did attempt a final call drink at Mulligan’s Pub, but upon reflection, decided sweatpants and drinks back “home” were the ticket.
Day Three
On our final day, we walked around downtown Grand Rapids to soak up the 45-degree weather and sunshine while popping into Lantern Coffee Bar & Lounge for coffee before having some of the best waffles ever at Social Misfits—10/10 recommend Country Grammar and Little Lad. And then we made our last stop at Books in the City for a final book-buying opportunity before heading back north to resume normal life.
As for the weekend’s side quests, we tried to buy as many books as was fiscally responsible (probably around 20 between the five of us), consumed as much unique cuisine as we could, took photos of our Dungeon Crawler Carl Princess Donut at all establishments, and ran as many red lights as was feasible. Okay, that wasn’t really a side quest, just an unfortunate happenstance of too many friends talking in a car at one time.
Also, send thoughts & prayers to all our Uber drivers—they heard stories and things they will never be able to unhear. Mea culpa for us all from me. But that’s what happens when five book nerds leave the rural north for a sojourn in the big city. We end up taking a few too many left turns, literally and figuratively.
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Now, Celestial Summit was a big-ticket-type fantasy event that many saved up for. If you’re looking for a bookish ball to wet your toes before diving into the fantasy depths, consider checking out Storykeepers Ball on May 2, 2026.
This event is all about getting readers and book lovers together for an evening of literary-themed fun with food, drinks, dancing, shopping, and more! It’s an introductory ball that will show you what bookish balls are all about. Visit storykeepersball.com to learn more.
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Monday, March 30