With swashbuckling action that recalls Dumas’s Three Musketeers, Sebastien de Castell has created a dynamic new fantasy series. In Traitor’s Blade, a disgraced swordsman struggles to redeem himself by protecting a young girl caught in the web of a royal conspiracy. The King is dead, the Greatcoats have been disbanded, and Falcio Val Mond and his fellow magistrates Kest and Brasti have been … and Brasti have been reduced to working as bodyguards for a nobleman who refuses to pay them. Things could be worse, of course. Their employer could be lying dead on the floor while they are forced to watch the killer plant evidence framing them for the murder. Oh wait, that’s exactly what’s happening.
Now a royal conspiracy is about to unfold in the most corrupt city in the world. A carefully orchestrated series of murders that began with the overthrow of an idealistic young king will end with the death of an orphaned girl and the ruin of everything that Falcio, Kest, and Brasti have fought for. But if the trio want to foil the conspiracy, save the girl, and reunite the Greatcoats, they’ll have to do it with nothing but the tattered coats on their backs and the swords in their hands, because these days every noble is a tyrant, every knight is a thug, and the only thing you can really trust is a traitor’s blade.
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One of the best fantasy novels I’ve ever read! Both comedic and gritty, this amazing novel is like a shorter version of Game of Thrones, but replace dragons with snarky sword fighting. Or maybe it’s better described as Three Musketeers but drunk? I’m not sure…either way, read it!
Imagine the Three Musketeers but without those pesky morals or antiquated ideas about honor. These Greatcoats do the right thing, regardless of whether everyone else thinks so. However, it does have all the swashbuckling roguery you could wish for, and a great pace with some delightfully witty writing. Not grimdark fantasy, but it’s definitely not high fantasy – some good comparisons could be The Lies of Locke Lamora , or less well-known Among Thieves. If I remember correctly, I read it in under a week, if you want any indication of how hard it is to put down.
I just snagged the second book, Knight’s Shadow , and I cannot wait to dig into it.
“Traitor’s Blade” is a swashbuckling adventure, filled with clever mysteries and thrilling swordfights, in the spirit of Alexander Dumas’ “The Three Musketeers.” Falcio val Mond, First Cantor of the Greatcoats, plays the role of Athos, the leader of these fictional musketeers, while the tale’s versions of Aramis and Porthos are portrayed by Falcio’s two friends, Brasti and Kest. The Greatcoats are traitors in the eyes of the rival dukes who killed the king, and the central storyline revolves around a conspiracy to put a new king—or queen—on the empty throne. Throw in a bit of magic and few well-executed plot twists, and the result is one the most compelling and enjoyable fantasy novels I’ve read in a long time.
A fantasy world with mid-15th century technologies run by a cabal of dukes that killed their idealistic young king to preserve their absolute power over their own territories.
The Greatcoats, the king’s magistrates that provided justice throughout the realm, were disgraced, disbanded and set adrift after the king’s murder. Falcio Val Mond, Kest and Brasti, former Greatcoats, are working as bodyguards for a nobleman and important trader who is murdered while in their care. The trio of Greatcoats is framed for their employer’s murder, and flee town as security guards for a caravan.
Falcio, the leader of the hapless trio of swordsmen, has a tortured past that continues to haunt him. Nevertheless, can’t help trying to correct wrongs and defend the helpless. He and friends are also looking the King’s charoites even though they don’t know what a chariot is. Falcio is brave and skillful with his sword, but his sense of justice and his ghosts lead him to make some unwise decisions.
The plot contains frequent swordfights, action, and unexpected turns of events as Falcio’s trio battles impossible odds and machinations of the evil dukes. The story includes humor, adventure, and strong personal relationships among the Greatcoats trio reminiscent of the Three Musketeers.
I chose this book because I heard it described as The Three Musketeers with magic, and who doesn’t love a swash-buckling adventure? The writing is fabulous — the author is quite talented — and the plot is very well conceived. Be aware that there is some minor sexual content.