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Traitor's Blade

The Greatcoats Book 1: Your New Favourite Fantasy Series!

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Traitor's Blade

By: Sebastien de Castell
Narrated by: Joe Jameson
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About this listen

 'One hell of a good book' - Conn Iggulden

The Greatcoats - legendary heroes, arbiters of justice . . . or notorious traitors?

The Greatcoats are travelling magistrates bringing justice to all . . . or at least they were, before they watched the Dukes impale their King's head on a spike. Now the land's heroes are reviled as traitors, their Greatcoats in tatters.

Facio, Kest and Brasti have been reduced to working as mercenaries, but when they find their employer dead - and are forced to watch as the killer plants evidence framing them for the murder - they realise things are about to get even worse.

For the royal conspiracy that began with overthrowing an idealistic young king is spreading to Rijou, the most corrupt city in the land, and the life of a young girl hangs in the balance.

When every noble is a tyrant and every knight is a thug, the only thing you can really trust is a traitor's blade.

(P)2017 Quercus Editions Limited©2014 Sebastien de Castell Action & Adventure Classics Epic Epic Fantasy Fantasy Fiction Historical Royalty Murder

Critic reviews

One hell of a good book
Fantastic from the first sentence to the last. Combining old-school swashbuckling action with contemporary characters and a good dose of grit, these books are the rarest of things, great rollicking fun combined with an emotional punch . . . Sebastien, write faster!
An energetic, fun adventure that puts the "musk" back in "musketeer." Guaranteed to increase household swashbuckling by 100%.
Each bloody encounter [is] described with meticulous detail . . . Traitor's Blade is the entertaining story of how the greatcoats rose and fell, and how they could rise again
With a tip of his hat at Alexandre Dumas, Sebastien de Castell make a fine first impression in this entertaining debut . . . Traitor's Blade is a bunch of fun from one cover to the other
It made me laugh out loud and it made me shed an occasional tear. It dragged me right in to the world of Tristia. Traitor's Blade is a great book and I'm already looking forward to reading the next in the series
High energy, highly unique, swashbuckling-cop-epic-noir story. Buy it. BUY IT NOW.
Don't hesitate to buy this if you love a great hero and story . . . What a voice! What story-telling brio! If you love Dumas, or Game of Thrones or The False Prince this is the swashbuckling fantasy for you.
[An] engaging swashbuckling romp driven by elaborate swordplay and Aaron Sorkin-esque speechifying
Traitor's Blade provides swashbuckling fan service, and has fun along the way, but it also packs a sneaky emotional punch as well. Dumas would be proud.
If you love adventure, fantasy history, sword fights, nobility, and cutting and dark humor, Traitor's Blade should be right up your alley
A page turner in the true sense of the phrase . . . Witty, romantic and atmospheric in the way of great adventure stories, the Greatcoats series looks set to be a thoroughly enjoyable one
Sebastien De Castell has firmly planted his name on my radar as one of the best debut Fantasy authors this year ... I enjoyed Traitor's Blade immensely and can't wait for the next book and whatever the author comes up with in the future. Certainly a book that I highly recommend, to anyone!
Traitor's Blade may well end up going down as one of the strongest first fantasy novels of recent times - it's an absolute stunner that you can't afford to miss.
Every so often, a debut novel comes along that knocks your expectations out of the park. Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lamora is one of those novels. Peter V. Brett's The Painted Man is another. Sebastien de Castell's Traitor's Blade needs to be added to that list. I loved this
All stars
Most relevant
Excellent really enjoyed the story. Well read and portrayed. Bit different from the usual run of the mill stories. Look forward to listening to the next book.

Traitor’s Blade

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Wonderfully written story, full of pace
Action, humour, pathos, and the best
And worst in men. The narrator made
This a good listen it was beautifully
Read

A really good listen

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I read / listen to a lot of fantasy. Occasionally, it (like most good things) can become a little samey. I’d had ‘Traitor’s Blade’ in my wish list for some time and decided to give it a whirl. Almost unenthusiastically, if I’m honest. As I said, I’ve pounded this genre mercilessly.

All I can say is, I’m so pleased I did. It has the usual array of magic, political intrigue, evil & good. However, it also possesses characters you believe in and want to hear more about. It makes you laugh, feel squeamish, sad and angry in equal measure.

However, most importantly for me, it held my interest throughout and left me wanting more.

Excellent stuff, Monsieur de Castell.

I shan’t go on forever, but I also must give plaudits to the narrator, Joe Jameson. He made a great book even better.

If this type of thing is your bag, definitely give it a listen.....

Brilliant!

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This was a brilliant book. A knights tale with an edge of magic. please read

blown away

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Not the best book I have listened to, but very enjoyable like a Bernard Cornwell set in a fantasy World. Looking forward to the next one.

A great yarn

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