TAVERN by Deston Munden: This book follows Xel, a tavern owner and leader of a notorious mercenary group. He is an ORC, but unlike the Orcs that are typically portrayed in fantasy, he is not a violent, savage brute. Munden works to unravel decades of anti-Black stereotypes that are attached to this fantasy race by giving us an Orc who is soft, loveable, and kind while still being every bit as powerful as every other member of his race we've met. In this story, Xel heals a group of people who are suffering, which puts him on the radar of a group of assassins who are working to destabalize Xel's city. In order to survive, he must get to the bottom of their evil plan and unite his community in standing against them. This book is classic high fantasy with a strong pro-Black undertone. I knew I wanted to be a part of this project the moment I read it, and so, together with the author, I helped to get the book a new cover and to relaunch it with a strong media campaign. I am very proud of this project and would love to see it grow even bigger with the next two books in the already finished series!

_**Devil of the Deep by Falencia Jean-Francois: **_This book is a high-fantasy queer pirate mermaid story that follows a young mermaid who is forced to flee from an underwater cult that has taken firm control of her community. She flees to the above sea world with an artifact her uncle entrusts to her and ends up partnering with a notorious pirate and a navy-captian who is struggling to deconstruct the colonial religion that has a grip on his organization in order to protect the artifact and hopefully save the world from utter destruction. I did not have a part in publishing this book but I have spent the last few months strongly championing this book and fighting to get Falencia's name into every corner of BookTok. And I think I have been pretty successful in helping to make sure everyone heard about this book. It is one of the best books I have ever read, and if you haven't read it...fix that, friend.

MAY A DIVINE AWAKEN by Michael Tinsley: This book is another fantasy. It is about a young boy who is struggling to find his place in the world. Due to a skin condition (vitiligo), he has been partially ostracized from his community. And on top of that, he lives in a world that is devastatingly divided by things like gender, class, and power, which further isolates him. In his world, an order of people with supernatural power work together to protect eight sacred keys. If those keys are combined they can be used to unleash an unbelievable power. And of course, our main character finds himself caught right in the middle as the world's major players decide its time to make their bid for that power. After a team of mercenaries destroy his town, he ends up on the run, fighting to find answers and to unleash a power he has always dreamed of so that he can save his people from unfit rulers and powerful tyrants. I did not help publish this, but I have been taking a very special interest in promoting it as far and wide as I possibly can and have played a huge role in getting this book into hundreds of hands. And I fully intent to continue championing it until Tinsley is a household name.

Why am I telling you this?

Two reasons... first, because I want you to be aware of these books adn to buy them if they speak to you. And two, because I want you to see that our goals are acheivable! Fighting for indies is not hopeless. Here are three examples of authors I have been able to partner with to bring ACTUAL change to people's careers. And TOGETHER as a community, we can do that same thing for soooo many more authors.

This community is giving me so much hope. This work has been so lonely! And I am so thrilled by the chance to do all of this at a much larger level, and it is all thanks to you!

Thank you for being here!!

(Also, if you want to be a part of choosing and championing whatever book we will publish together as Left Unread Books, make sure you are subscribed at the $5 tier or higher so you have access to the publishing content!)

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