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The Spellbinders and the Gunslingers #0.5
Pale Night, Red Fields
The threads of fate are not so easily unwoven.
There is a growing fascination among the Dusk Tribe with the land of the dead. The Tribe's shamans work tirelessly day and night to find a path to communion with their people's lost souls, but answers are slow to uncover.
As both the son of a shaman and the Tribe's only Futureseer, Zarrow is ordered to view the days and weeks ahead to reveal the source of the Tribe's successful discovery, but when he does so, he finds not celebration, but destruction. Devastation. Sacrifice. And those closest to him bloodied by it all. Zarrow must find a way to prevent his visions from coming to pass, and he must do so quickly.
For the pale night approaches, and it promises a curse that may leave the Dusk Tribe forever haunted.
There is a growing fascination among the Dusk Tribe with the land of the dead. The Tribe's shamans work tirelessly day and night to find a path to communion with their people's lost souls, but answers are slow to uncover.
As both the son of a shaman and the Tribe's only Futureseer, Zarrow is ordered to view the days and weeks ahead to reveal the source of the Tribe's successful discovery, but when he does so, he finds not celebration, but destruction. Devastation. Sacrifice. And those closest to him bloodied by it all. Zarrow must find a way to prevent his visions from coming to pass, and he must do so quickly.
For the pale night approaches, and it promises a curse that may leave the Dusk Tribe forever haunted.
- GenresFantasy
ebook
Published March 1, 2023
2 people are currently reading
62 people want to read
About the author
Joseph John Lee
7 books87 followersReceive the novella PALE NIGHT, RED FIELDS for free by subscribing to Joe's newsletter: https://joseph-john-lee.com/
Joseph John Lee is the fantasy author responsible for unleashing The Spellbinders and the Gunslingers trilogy and The Dragons of Nóra duology, and has been a semifinalist in Mark Lawrence's annual Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off. A true product of New England, he prefers Dunkin' over Starbucks, sometimes speaks with a Boston accent, and does not say the word "wicked" in casual conversation as much as one may think. He currently lives in Boston with his wife, Annie, and their robot vacuum named Crumb.
Joseph John Lee is the fantasy author responsible for unleashing The Spellbinders and the Gunslingers trilogy and The Dragons of Nóra duology, and has been a semifinalist in Mark Lawrence's annual Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off. A true product of New England, he prefers Dunkin' over Starbucks, sometimes speaks with a Boston accent, and does not say the word "wicked" in casual conversation as much as one may think. He currently lives in Boston with his wife, Annie, and their robot vacuum named Crumb.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
March 22, 2025
This was a really GOOD novella
Great story plot and introduction to the world. Fantastic storytelling, I must say! I own the next book and I've moved it up on my TBR. And if I don't read it by the end of 2023, someone feel free to beat me with a wet noodle.
****It's now 2025 and no one has beaten with a wet noodle. SMH. ****
Great story plot and introduction to the world. Fantastic storytelling, I must say! I own the next book and I've moved it up on my TBR. And if I don't read it by the end of 2023, someone feel free to beat me with a wet noodle.
****It's now 2025 and no one has beaten with a wet noodle. SMH. ****
March 1, 2023
I received an advanced reader copy in return of the voluntary and honest review.
I enjoyed this book a lot!
I really like the characters. It had a great friendship which I always enjoy in a book.
The plot of the book was intresting.
I like the idea of the book and I think author did good job with it.
It was quick read but still had so many things happening in the story.
I enjoyed this book a lot!
I really like the characters. It had a great friendship which I always enjoy in a book.
The plot of the book was intresting.
I like the idea of the book and I think author did good job with it.
It was quick read but still had so many things happening in the story.
May 2, 2024
Pale Night, Red Field by Joseph John Lee - prequel novella to The Spellbinders and the Gunslingers series
Challenging, dark, emotional, mysterious,
reflective, sad, and tense.
Fast-paced
Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0 Stars
This is a prequel novella. I knew NOTHING going into this story. I've never read ANYTHING written by this author, but something about this title drew me in.
The characters are the main focus in this novella. Yodir and Verina are the old guard, and Yodir's recent focus on the dead...seem to frustrate and perplex his son, Zarrow.
I think, we are supposed to "root" for Zarrow, and his calming and rational mindset.
What happens, rocks the tribe and the reader, too (at least it did for me).
Now, how this will effect the series from here...is up for contemplation.
I do know, that I want to pick up the first book, to see what happens. So, that is ALWAYS a good sign, IMO.
Challenging, dark, emotional, mysterious,
reflective, sad, and tense.
Fast-paced
Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0 Stars
This is a prequel novella. I knew NOTHING going into this story. I've never read ANYTHING written by this author, but something about this title drew me in.
The characters are the main focus in this novella. Yodir and Verina are the old guard, and Yodir's recent focus on the dead...seem to frustrate and perplex his son, Zarrow.
I think, we are supposed to "root" for Zarrow, and his calming and rational mindset.
What happens, rocks the tribe and the reader, too (at least it did for me).
Now, how this will effect the series from here...is up for contemplation.
I do know, that I want to pick up the first book, to see what happens. So, that is ALWAYS a good sign, IMO.
October 18, 2024
Pale Night, Red Fields by Joseph John Lee is a prequel novella to book one of The Spellbinders and the Gunslingers series (The Bleeding Stone). To be honest, I read book one over a year ago and even though I really enjoyed it, the series kind of dropped off my radar after I picked up book two. Now that I have my handy spreadsheet tab tracking my reading progress with series, it's back in my sights. Now due to reading two larger epic novels recently, I felt the need to take a bit of a break to finish off September here. That's why I opted to pick up Pale Night, Red Fields. It would allow me to get a bit of a reset as well as still ship away at a good series.
The pacing of this read was smooth yet still fulfilling. What I mean by this is I can struggle with some novellas because of their shorter length. I've had this type of experience where it seemed the author may have rushed the story a bit. That was not the case here. This is even more surprising coming into this read just under 100 pages from a read close to 900 pages. I did fear this drastic shift of gears. Fortunately, I picked a good novella to transition with. The author does a great job still making the characters and world seem very substantial. I had no issues with names of locations or character to trip me up either.
As I just mentioned the world building really worked for me in this one. The most obvious point to make is that I really enjoy novellas and short stories that add depth to a story and series and this certain achieved that goal. The continued religion or magic in this world keeps things interesting in this one. We learn a bit more backstory about our eclipseborn characters from the first book which was nice.
The character development was also really good here. We have some really good relationships and difficulties for characters to overcome, or attempt to at the very least. This novella has a dark and ominous vibe throughout. The protagonist appears to be trying to find out who he is all the while finding out not only who he is but what the future potentially holds for him, his friend and their tribe.
All in all this was a very good companion read to the Spellbinders and the Gunslingers series. I really need to get to the second book and then wrap it up with the third. Maybe I can squeeze in book two still by the end of 2024 and wrap up the series early in 2025. We shall see.
If you haven't read The Bleeding Stone (book one) yet, and like a dark, rich fantasy world and story, you owe it to yourself to give it a go! If like me, you found yourself stuck in the mud of our TBR after reading the first book and just want to get a bit more of the series, Pale Night, Red Fields will certainly do the trick!
The pacing of this read was smooth yet still fulfilling. What I mean by this is I can struggle with some novellas because of their shorter length. I've had this type of experience where it seemed the author may have rushed the story a bit. That was not the case here. This is even more surprising coming into this read just under 100 pages from a read close to 900 pages. I did fear this drastic shift of gears. Fortunately, I picked a good novella to transition with. The author does a great job still making the characters and world seem very substantial. I had no issues with names of locations or character to trip me up either.
As I just mentioned the world building really worked for me in this one. The most obvious point to make is that I really enjoy novellas and short stories that add depth to a story and series and this certain achieved that goal. The continued religion or magic in this world keeps things interesting in this one. We learn a bit more backstory about our eclipseborn characters from the first book which was nice.
The character development was also really good here. We have some really good relationships and difficulties for characters to overcome, or attempt to at the very least. This novella has a dark and ominous vibe throughout. The protagonist appears to be trying to find out who he is all the while finding out not only who he is but what the future potentially holds for him, his friend and their tribe.
All in all this was a very good companion read to the Spellbinders and the Gunslingers series. I really need to get to the second book and then wrap it up with the third. Maybe I can squeeze in book two still by the end of 2024 and wrap up the series early in 2025. We shall see.
If you haven't read The Bleeding Stone (book one) yet, and like a dark, rich fantasy world and story, you owe it to yourself to give it a go! If like me, you found yourself stuck in the mud of our TBR after reading the first book and just want to get a bit more of the series, Pale Night, Red Fields will certainly do the trick!
Read
November 14, 2023I read this as part of Speculative Fiction Indie Novella Championship (SFINCS, pronounced “sphinx”), which is a yearly competition to recognise, and celebrate the talent and creativity present in the Indie Community. The competition is the sister of the SPFBO and SPSFC and is primarily focussed on novellas. This is the first year of the competition.
All in all I was not particularly enamoured with this novella, and whilst it is supposed to be a standalone novella, I don't think it served as a good introduction to the world, and for me this cast a shadow as I think I may have enjoyed it more if I had read the first two novels of the series and had an overall idea about the world that J.j. Lee has created and how this actually fit into the overarching story of the series.
I found initially that the story moved quite slowly, establishing the main characters and creating the setup for the final act of the book, and subsequently I did not feel particularly invested.
Maybe this is one of those stories that I will have to come back to at a later date.
All in all I was not particularly enamoured with this novella, and whilst it is supposed to be a standalone novella, I don't think it served as a good introduction to the world, and for me this cast a shadow as I think I may have enjoyed it more if I had read the first two novels of the series and had an overall idea about the world that J.j. Lee has created and how this actually fit into the overarching story of the series.
I found initially that the story moved quite slowly, establishing the main characters and creating the setup for the final act of the book, and subsequently I did not feel particularly invested.
Maybe this is one of those stories that I will have to come back to at a later date.
March 1, 2023
PALE NIGHT, RED FIELDS is out today!
Keep an eye out for today's newsletter to receive your free download link! All future subscribers will receive a download link upon subscribing.
I hope you all enjoy it!
__________
Here it is: the cover for PALE NIGHT, RED FIELDS
This novella will be free for newsletter subscribers upon its release on March 1.
ARC sign-ups are available until February 10: Sign up here
You can sign up for my newsletter on my website.
Keep an eye out for today's newsletter to receive your free download link! All future subscribers will receive a download link upon subscribing.
I hope you all enjoy it!
__________
Here it is: the cover for PALE NIGHT, RED FIELDS
This novella will be free for newsletter subscribers upon its release on March 1.
ARC sign-ups are available until February 10: Sign up here
You can sign up for my newsletter on my website.
December 26, 2023
Review on the way!
July 30, 2023
I received an advanced reader copy in return for a voluntary and honest review.
Pale Night, Red Fields is a prequel novella in the setting of The Spellbinders and the Gunslingers world by Joseph John Lee.
I’ve bought the first title in that series but haven’t read it yet so this prequel was a nice bite-sized introduction to the world which only took me a few hours to read and whetted my appetite for the main course.
The story is told through the third person perspective of the main character Zarrow, who is the son of a shaman in the Dusk Tribe.
We don’t find out too much about the tribe, except they live near the coast in a hot climate, have a strong sense of community (eating together in the village’s great hall) and seem to have a fairly rudimentary society (although they do have a written language and the means to record it).
The tale starts as Zarrow’s father Yodir and other tribal shamans are trying to work out how to commune with the souls of their deceased brethren and therefore learn much wisdom from “those who came before” and discover the best path to a successful future.
Yodir sees himself as a visionary. Zarrow worries that he is mad.
There are two further factors at play.
Zarrow is the tribe’s only Futureseer. His father wants him to use this gift to aid his own work but, when Zarrow reluctantly does so, what he sees causes him huge angst.
Zarrow’s final concern is for his best friend Kaurazi, one of 14 Eclipseborn in the Dusk Tribe. While most of the tribe are born under the sign of one of their three animal deities, occasionally some are born during an eclipse - and treated as lesser people, feared and blamed for any misfortune.
The main driver of the story is Zarrow’s conflict. What he should do about his vision and how - or if - he can prevent it becoming reality.
Although only 80 pages, the novella presents interesting characters and includes enough action to satisfy readers who like physical as well as emotional conflict.
It also deals with some weighty themes. Fate. Loyalty to family, tribe and friendship. Prejudice and superstition.
The author has done a great job in not only telling a complete, engrossing story within the novella format but one which packs real emotion and leaves you wanting to find out more about the tribes and the world in which they live.
Pale Night, Red Fields is a prequel novella in the setting of The Spellbinders and the Gunslingers world by Joseph John Lee.
I’ve bought the first title in that series but haven’t read it yet so this prequel was a nice bite-sized introduction to the world which only took me a few hours to read and whetted my appetite for the main course.
The story is told through the third person perspective of the main character Zarrow, who is the son of a shaman in the Dusk Tribe.
We don’t find out too much about the tribe, except they live near the coast in a hot climate, have a strong sense of community (eating together in the village’s great hall) and seem to have a fairly rudimentary society (although they do have a written language and the means to record it).
The tale starts as Zarrow’s father Yodir and other tribal shamans are trying to work out how to commune with the souls of their deceased brethren and therefore learn much wisdom from “those who came before” and discover the best path to a successful future.
Yodir sees himself as a visionary. Zarrow worries that he is mad.
There are two further factors at play.
Zarrow is the tribe’s only Futureseer. His father wants him to use this gift to aid his own work but, when Zarrow reluctantly does so, what he sees causes him huge angst.
Zarrow’s final concern is for his best friend Kaurazi, one of 14 Eclipseborn in the Dusk Tribe. While most of the tribe are born under the sign of one of their three animal deities, occasionally some are born during an eclipse - and treated as lesser people, feared and blamed for any misfortune.
The main driver of the story is Zarrow’s conflict. What he should do about his vision and how - or if - he can prevent it becoming reality.
Although only 80 pages, the novella presents interesting characters and includes enough action to satisfy readers who like physical as well as emotional conflict.
It also deals with some weighty themes. Fate. Loyalty to family, tribe and friendship. Prejudice and superstition.
The author has done a great job in not only telling a complete, engrossing story within the novella format but one which packs real emotion and leaves you wanting to find out more about the tribes and the world in which they live.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 29, 2024
6.5/10
I received this book as part of my judging allocation for team Behind he Musings in the SFINCS contest. My opinions are honest. Rating will be added after Round 1 is complete.
Pale Night, Red Fields is a prequel novella and I have not yet read the two books which follow on from it. I think this put me at a disadvantage as I had no context for the events or characters portrayed in this dark tale of prejudice, mob mentality and destruction.
The pace was fairly slow for the first 70% of the book with not a lot really happening, as we were introduced to the characters and their world: a tribe of simplistic people living in rudimentary dwellings. They are prejudiced against the Eclipseborn, members of the tribe born during an eclipse. In this way they appear to have a fear of the “other”.
The main character, Zarrow, has been having terrible visions of the future. He appears to be one of a very small number of tribesmen who are accepting of the Eclipseborn and is best friends with one of them. I warmed to his character right away and enjoyed his close friendship with Kaurazi. Zarrow is the son of a shaman and his father is trying in vain to communicate with the dead. This is something of an obsession, a kind of religious fervour which results in a horrifying conclusion in the last quarter of the book.
There is not a whole lot of fantasy in this story – no magic, or other types of powers, only the precognitive visions had by Zarrow. However I have been assured that the wider series is more fantastical and that I would have enjoyed this book more if I had already read those books and had context. So, I recommend reading this after the other books in the series to fully enjoy this prequel.
There is a high level of gore at the end and I would not recommend this novella for the faint-hearted. However if darker themes and plenty of blood and guts is your thing, you will love this book.
I received this book as part of my judging allocation for team Behind he Musings in the SFINCS contest. My opinions are honest. Rating will be added after Round 1 is complete.
Pale Night, Red Fields is a prequel novella and I have not yet read the two books which follow on from it. I think this put me at a disadvantage as I had no context for the events or characters portrayed in this dark tale of prejudice, mob mentality and destruction.
The pace was fairly slow for the first 70% of the book with not a lot really happening, as we were introduced to the characters and their world: a tribe of simplistic people living in rudimentary dwellings. They are prejudiced against the Eclipseborn, members of the tribe born during an eclipse. In this way they appear to have a fear of the “other”.
The main character, Zarrow, has been having terrible visions of the future. He appears to be one of a very small number of tribesmen who are accepting of the Eclipseborn and is best friends with one of them. I warmed to his character right away and enjoyed his close friendship with Kaurazi. Zarrow is the son of a shaman and his father is trying in vain to communicate with the dead. This is something of an obsession, a kind of religious fervour which results in a horrifying conclusion in the last quarter of the book.
There is not a whole lot of fantasy in this story – no magic, or other types of powers, only the precognitive visions had by Zarrow. However I have been assured that the wider series is more fantastical and that I would have enjoyed this book more if I had already read those books and had context. So, I recommend reading this after the other books in the series to fully enjoy this prequel.
There is a high level of gore at the end and I would not recommend this novella for the faint-hearted. However if darker themes and plenty of blood and guts is your thing, you will love this book.
October 15, 2023
And this, my friends, is how you write a killer of a novella. Pale Night, Red Fields serves as a wonderful introduction to the world of The Spellbinders and Gunslingers series and will undoubtedly leave you hungering for more (in the best way possible)!
I am not going to give away anything about this plot (if you really want to know, just read the synopsis), because I went in completely blind and absolutely loved seeing this thrilling story unfold before my eyes. All you really need to know is that this is a dark yet heartfelt story focusing on themes of fate, friendship, zealotry, discrimination, sacrifice and death.
I have to say that I am incredibly impressed by how well Lee was able to establish this world and the Dusk Tribe’s culture in such a short amount of time. This world feels lived-in and I am very eager to explore it further in the main books in this series.
But what I loved even more than the immersive world building was the excellent character work. Each of these characters had a strong presence on the page, which made this a super vivid and compelling reading experience. Also, the inner conflict of the protagonist Zarrow was very believable and compelling, so I loved reading from his perspective.
And what’s more, the complex interpersonal relationships were incredibly well-written and I immediately believed in all the friendships/rivalries that we got to see here. It usually takes me a while to latch onto characters, but because this story had so much emotional depth, I was instantly invested.
I am incredibly impressed by this prequel novella and I highly recommend you try it out yourself. It definitely bumped The Bleeding Stone, book 1 in the main series, up my TBR, because this was just so incredibly good!
Also, it’s free on the author’s mailing list, so what are you waiting for? Go grab it!
I am not going to give away anything about this plot (if you really want to know, just read the synopsis), because I went in completely blind and absolutely loved seeing this thrilling story unfold before my eyes. All you really need to know is that this is a dark yet heartfelt story focusing on themes of fate, friendship, zealotry, discrimination, sacrifice and death.
I have to say that I am incredibly impressed by how well Lee was able to establish this world and the Dusk Tribe’s culture in such a short amount of time. This world feels lived-in and I am very eager to explore it further in the main books in this series.
But what I loved even more than the immersive world building was the excellent character work. Each of these characters had a strong presence on the page, which made this a super vivid and compelling reading experience. Also, the inner conflict of the protagonist Zarrow was very believable and compelling, so I loved reading from his perspective.
And what’s more, the complex interpersonal relationships were incredibly well-written and I immediately believed in all the friendships/rivalries that we got to see here. It usually takes me a while to latch onto characters, but because this story had so much emotional depth, I was instantly invested.
I am incredibly impressed by this prequel novella and I highly recommend you try it out yourself. It definitely bumped The Bleeding Stone, book 1 in the main series, up my TBR, because this was just so incredibly good!
Also, it’s free on the author’s mailing list, so what are you waiting for? Go grab it!
March 13, 2023
I received an eARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
I've seen Joseph around online (Discord, Twitter, etc.) and have been meaning to read The Bleeding Stone, book 1 of The Spellbinders and the Gunslingers. However, as Nick Procter's review notes, this prequel is a nice appetizer prior to reading book 1.
The prequel revolves around our main character, Zarrow, and the conflicts he is dealing with: (i) his father, a shaman, is focused on communicating with the dead; (ii) Zarrow's best friend, Kaurazi, is an outcast in their community; and (iii) Zarrow has an ability to see aspects of the future, and Zarrow isn't sure how he feels about that.
While I grant you that my plot summary is somewhat vague, let me tell you...you need to read this story ASAP. First, it's free, so what do you have to lose? But all kidding aside, you'll breeze through this prequel in no time...it's fun, it makes you think, and it's an easy read (that doesn't mean simple, to be clear, but smooth writing).
I look forward to reading book 1 soon!
I've seen Joseph around online (Discord, Twitter, etc.) and have been meaning to read The Bleeding Stone, book 1 of The Spellbinders and the Gunslingers. However, as Nick Procter's review notes, this prequel is a nice appetizer prior to reading book 1.
The prequel revolves around our main character, Zarrow, and the conflicts he is dealing with: (i) his father, a shaman, is focused on communicating with the dead; (ii) Zarrow's best friend, Kaurazi, is an outcast in their community; and (iii) Zarrow has an ability to see aspects of the future, and Zarrow isn't sure how he feels about that.
While I grant you that my plot summary is somewhat vague, let me tell you...you need to read this story ASAP. First, it's free, so what do you have to lose? But all kidding aside, you'll breeze through this prequel in no time...it's fun, it makes you think, and it's an easy read (that doesn't mean simple, to be clear, but smooth writing).
I look forward to reading book 1 soon!
August 14, 2023
For a 70 page novella this book was very slow on the first half and was very interesting on the second half. The character building was very good and good introduction to the world and the magic system. Best to read before starting the series.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews