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joelee__

@joelee__

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⚔️THE ASHEN VIPER 11/17/2026⚔️
🤓SFF's Resident Grimdork🤓
🐲Epic Fantasy, Cozy Fantasy, and everything in between🥧

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Missing trick or treating? Looking for some bookish goodies for spooky season?

Here’s part one of places you can pick up some free treats for Halloween from some great authors;

@zoofries
@joelee__
@k.e.andrews
@mattwritesucef

#halloweentreats #bookstagram #freebooks #freestories #halloweengoodies

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𝘼𝙍𝘾 𝘽𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙍𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬

"𝘿𝙤 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙘𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙞𝙙 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙠𝙣𝙞𝙛𝙚." @joelee__

This is a big YES from me. I thoroughly enjoyed the writing style and the pacing of this novella. The characters were written really well, with a showcase of both the good and bad side of humanity, family, duty and honour, and this made it easy to invest my time into their storylines. Also, elk-riders, how freakin' cool.

Set hundreds of years before the events of The Ashen Viper i am so glad i picked this up first to get a feel for @joelee__ writing and this world.

The Ashen Viper will be no small feat, at 1100+ pages, and this novella really sets the tone for what is coming. It's hinting at epic and expansive.

"'𝙏𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙬𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙝𝙮 𝙣𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙖𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙝𝙞𝙢 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙨𝙩 𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙪𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙡𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙨."

I highly recommend checking out Shrouded Steel for Bastard Land and consider delving into the world of the Forahm Papers.

Thankyou Joseph John Lee for the opportunity to read an early copy. This is my honest review and all opinions are my own.

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The world can get heavy, so here are some books that will leave you a little lighter.

#bookstagram #indieauthors #authorsofinstagram📚 #fantasybooks #bookrec

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Some of the books high on my indie tbr!
What's going to be your next indie read?

Also yea i accidentally left off a ton of names on this list, sue me

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Some of the darkest, bloodiest, and most unforgiving fantasy being written today isn't coming from the biggest publishers.

It's coming from independent authors building worlds where gods fall, empires rot, heroes fail, and mercy is a luxury nobody can afford.

These are the grimdark stories that deserve more eyes, more readers, and a place on your TBR.

Which overlooked grimdark / darkfantasy author deserves more recognition? Comment below.

#Grimdark #IndieFantasy #DarkFantasy #SelfPublishedFantasy #darkfantasyBooks

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Round 12 of "Like this Trad, Try this Indie"

Folks... I have about 4-5 more of these to go. This is so fun!

If you liked these trad book, then try these indie books!

Enjoy the recs!
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#FantasyBooks #FantasyReaders #BookRecommendations #Bookstagram #Bookstagrammer #ReadersOfInstagram #BookCommunity #FantasyCommunity #IndieBooks #booksofinstagram #book_cover #bookcoverlove #read #books
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@joelee__ @author.justine @emmaladams12

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Today is Day 5 of my Canadian Thanksgiving shout-outs!!

Today I'm highlighting some indie authors whose stories have caught my interest! Whether it's books I've already bought, covers that pulled me in and I just can't get out of my head, or books that are still on my wishlist, these are some of the authors I'm excited to read!

Being a reader means there's always another story to discover, and I love seeing all the different stories indie authors are bringing into the world. I know there's so much that goes into writing and publishing a book, and I really appreciate the authors who put their work out there for readers to find. So thank you for sharing your creativity, your ideas, and your stories with us!

Make sure to check out these authors and their books! You might just find your next read too!

@rociocarranzawrites
- The Eternal Cirse trilogy
- Beneath the Sacred Well
- My Dreams Come True and Other Dreadful Tales

@joelee__
- Upscaled
- The Spellbinders and the Gunslingers series
- The Ashen Viper

@author.justine
- No Man's Daughter

@adamcbassett
- Digital Extremities
- Animus Paradox
- Copper Skin, Oaken Lungs
- Rusty Throat, Burning Heart

@chantelle_fourie_writes
- The Burning Grasses
- The Curse of the Green Fire
- The Marking

@joshua.dharmawan
- A Crown for the Promised

@effie.joe.stock.author
- Human Scars on Planet Skin
- Ash Black and the Seven Wolves

@michael_vadney
- Crownfall

#thanksgiving🦃 #indiebooks #indieauthor #indie #shoutouts

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Joseph Lee has clearly poured a great deal of thought into the world he’s created. There’s history beneath the story, a sense of places and events extending far beyond what we’re immediately shown, and enough unanswered questions to make the world feel like something worth exploring rather than simply a backdrop for the plot.

In terms of ambition, there were moments when it reminded me of The Stormlight Archive. Not because the two books are necessarily alike in style, but because they share that willingness to ask the reader to invest in a world with its own history, conflicts and mythology. I enjoy fantasy that trusts its readers to become immersed rather than explaining everything at once, and The Ashen Viper often gave me that feeling.

I’ll admit, though, that there were times when I wished it would give me a little less. There are sections that could have been trimmed, and moments where the pacing loses some momentum beneath the weight of the detail. A tighter edit might have made the story more immediate and allowed some of its strongest moments to land with even greater force.

But I found it difficult to be too frustrated by that. The same excess is also part of what makes the book compelling. Lee clearly has a tremendous amount he wants to explore, and I’d rather read a fantasy novel that occasionally overwhelms me with its imagination than one that leaves me wishing there were more to discover.

That, ultimately, is what I enjoyed most: getting lost in it.

There are moments in epic fantasy when you stop thinking about the pages in front of you and simply disappear into the world. The Ashen Viper gave me that feeling more than once, particularly when I found myself wondering about the places beyond the story and the histories still waiting to be uncovered. Those moments reminded me why I read fantasy in the first place.

Its pacing could be sharper, and there are certainly places where less might have been more. But those are small reservations beside what I ultimately took from the book: a genuine sense of discovery, an imaginative world, and the feeling of @joelee__ willing to take risks with the story he wants to tell.

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And I thought maybe I’d sneak one more in but I guess not. September was another fantastic one. It is a little more future looking than other months but that was very nice. The Ironbound series took me by storm and is bound to be one of my favorites of the year. Jester was a surprise hit! Go read it. If you miss Stranger Things, and you’re looking for something a little bit different get ready for To Dream a Darker Realm. My current reads are awesome so far too. Before They Are Hanged is even better than book1. Same thing can be said for Making Friends! The Splintered Sun is thoroughly engrossing and is making me want to dive into more Tad Williams. #recap #september #bookstagram #reading #fantasybooks

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Whimsy! We need more of it! Here are 5 reasons we need more whimsy in books (and some of my recs for when you’re looking for a whimsical read).

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Snippet Saturday!

From the latest chapter written on Glyph Mage: Lightdancer, my upcoming sword and sandal dark romance with dual 1st POVs.

Tagging author friends, share your latest snippets! What you gonna bring???

#amwriting #fantasyromancebooks #books #fantasybooks #bookstagram

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Is the reading slump over?!

#bookstagram #fantasybooks

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