--- product_id: 62621140 title: "Traitor's Blade (The Greatcoats): The Greatcoats Book 1" price: "€ 28.72" currency: EUR in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.gr/products/62621140-traitors-blade-the-greatcoats-the-greatcoats-book-1 store_origin: GR region: Greece --- # Shortlisted for top fantasy awards 370 pages of gripping fantasy Epic duels & swashbuckling action Traitor's Blade (The Greatcoats): The Greatcoats Book 1 **Price:** € 28.72 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Summary > ⚔️ Justice never looked this stylish — join the Greatcoats’ rebellion! ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Traitor's Blade (The Greatcoats): The Greatcoats Book 1 - **How much does it cost?** € 28.72 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.gr](https://www.desertcart.gr/products/62621140-traitors-blade-the-greatcoats-the-greatcoats-book-1) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Key Features - • **Limited magic, maximum grit:** Grounded fantasy with thrilling swordplay - • **Award-nominated storytelling:** David Gemmell & Goodreads Choice recognized - • **Dive into a 370-page adventure:** Perfect length to binge-read without burnout - • **Masterful first-person narration:** Falcio’s perspective keeps you hooked - • **Swashbuckling justice in a corrupt world:** Greatcoats bring honor to chaos ## Overview Traitor's Blade is the first book in The Greatcoats series, delivering 370 pages of fast-paced, character-driven fantasy set in a corrupt kingdom. With award nominations and rave reviews, it features Falcio, a former magistrate turned mercenary, navigating political intrigue, duels, and a fading code of honor. Limited magic and intense sword fights create a gritty, immersive experience that’s perfect for fans craving a fresh, swashbuckling fantasy saga. ## Description When every noble is a tyrant and every knight is a thug, the only thing you can really trust is a traitor's blade. Shortlisted for the David Gemmell Award and the Goodreads Choice Award! 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. 'I have no words for how highly I recommend this book' Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 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. '' I think I may have found a new fantasy favorite ' Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 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. 'A bold, dashing adventure and pure, swashbuckling entertainment' Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review: Men in coats - First book in a new fantasy series. This isn't quite as big a novel as most of that kind, coming in at three hundred and seventy pages. It has a map of the setting at the front. It's divided into thirty chapters. Being the start of a series means that it ends with a lot still to be resolved. It does have some violence, a few bits of strong language. And some scenes of an adult nature. The setting is a land called Tristia. Home to Falcio. Who narrates the entire story in first person present tense. He was once a member of the Greatcoats. People who are basically travelling magistrates, who travelled the land to deliver the King's justice when required. All Greatcoats are superb warriors and people of honour. But that was before the Duke's had the King brought down. And the Greatcoats were forced to do something that has left them utterly hated by people across the Land. Years later, Falcio and two of his comrades are still together. Pursuing what appears to be a hopeless quest. But there's still far more going in Tristia than initially meets the eye, and the Greatcoats might still have a role to play... This is one of those books that drops you right into the middle of things, and gradually fills in the details as it goes along. There are occasional flashbacks to key past moments in Falcio's life which do that. And yet, perhaps because we only ever see things via his narration, you're never for a single moment lost or confused. The writing grabs from the off with some good solid readable prose and never lets up. Falcio is an easy character to like. A man trying very hard to keep his honour and to keep doing the right thing. His comrades are well drawn and likeable also. The setting becomes interesting as the details are filled in. Although most use swords and arrows there are rudimentary firearms, and some rather oblique magic. It throws in, via the actions of it's lead, some good moral lessons, and some moments that might make you want to punch the air in delight. This is the kind of book that makes you want to read 'just one more chapter.' There is a much bigger picture going on which slowly becomes apparent. At times it does feel, because of this, that Falcio isn't driving the narrative as much as he should. But this isn't a real problem because he's always trying to be proactive. And come the last seventy pages, when a great few surprises await, and all becomes clear, any such concerns are allayed. This is a superb debut. Very well written, and very readable. With great characters. And a really good plot. There's an incredible amount to like about it, and I enjoyed reading it very much. Roll on book two. Review: Armed justice against mayhem and arbitrary rule - This is a swashbuckling piece of heroic fantasy, set in the fictional kingdom of Tristia, which is made up of eight Duchies and Aramor, the “home of Kings”. The King has been executed by the Dukes and their Knights five years before this story begins. He has not been replaced and the Greatcoats, the fighting judges that he had recreated to curb the arbitrary rule of the Dukes, have been disbanded and more or less outlawed. Even since, the Kingdom has descended into mayhem as its laws are no longer enforced and the arbitrary rule and the ambitions of each Duke increasingly prevail. The story is told in what is a gripping and very entertaining way, with chapters alternating between now and the past, when King Paenis was still alive. In addition to keeping up suspense, something at which Sebastien de Castell is rather good at, this allows the reader to understand little by little how Tristia got into such an awful situation, and how, because of the conspiracy of some of the Dukes, it got get even worse. Another feature that worked rather well for me was to have the story told in the first person. This does not always work and some readers tend to dislike first-person story telling. It does here, however, with the story told by Falcio Val Mond, the former First Cantor (and therefore Chief) of the Greatcoats, who was also the friend, the confidant and the right-hand man of the King, and shared his dream and his ideals of justice. A third set of features relate to characterisation. The character of Falcio is quite remarkably drawn, with his ideals, but also his hidden wounds that take him to extremes, and he is presented in such a way that it is hard not to empathise with him. He is, of course, and just like his two companions Kest and Brasti, a master at arms, and, in his case, a duellist that few if any can outmatch with a rapier, apart, possibly, from his childhood friend Kest. The other characters are also mostly good, including that of the cynical, cruel and very “nasty” Duke of Rijou (not that the other Duke and the Duchess which appear in the book are any better!). This is perhaps where I might have a first – slight – reservation with this book. The “nasties” are perhaps a bit too awful to be entirely credible, especially the Duchess of Hervor. Yet another element which worked well for me was that this story, which seems to be set in a fictional equivalent of the late 15th or early 16th century in Europe (Knights in plate armour, but also Greatcoats with rapiers, crossbows and bows, but also the odd pistol), was that the author makes sparing use of magic. There is a bit of it, mostly used as tracking devices. There is also a rather extraordinary animal, of which I will say no more to avoid spoilers. There are even a couple of characters with supernatural powers, such as a Saint of the Sword, but, by and large, the use of magic is limited and does not dominate the whole story, as it sometimes does elsewhere. What do dominate the whole story are the multiple fights and duels that the Greatcoats get themselves into: a cross between the three musketeers of Alexandre Dumas and of “Once upon a time in the West” from Sergio Leone. It is quite easy to imagine them with their great leather coats reinforced with armour and containing multiple pockets filled with all sorts of weapons, fighting rapiers (or bow) in hand against late medieval knights and foot-soldiers. This action-packed book almost masked the fact that the author’s world-building is perhaps a bit weak and seems to take a bit of a “back-seat”. Apart perhaps from the murderous city of Rijou and “the Spear”, the almost interminable and mostly straight caravan road that crosses the whole continent from South to North through endless forests, the rest of the world is only subject to minimal (and often only generic) description. So this is certainly a very entertaining read and a superb first book for this author and it will certainly lead me to read the next instalment. However, it does not quite rate five stars for me. ## Features - New Store Stock ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | 70,813 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) 379 in Historical Fantasy (Books) 381 in Gaslamp Fantasy 889 in Epic Fantasy (Books) | | Customer Reviews | 4.4 out of 5 stars 6,228 Reviews | ## Images ![Traitor's Blade (The Greatcoats): The Greatcoats Book 1 - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71MiX8zGIWL.jpg) ## Available Options This product comes in different **Media Language, Media Format** options. ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Men in coats *by P***R on 19 December 2014* First book in a new fantasy series. This isn't quite as big a novel as most of that kind, coming in at three hundred and seventy pages. It has a map of the setting at the front. It's divided into thirty chapters. Being the start of a series means that it ends with a lot still to be resolved. It does have some violence, a few bits of strong language. And some scenes of an adult nature. The setting is a land called Tristia. Home to Falcio. Who narrates the entire story in first person present tense. He was once a member of the Greatcoats. People who are basically travelling magistrates, who travelled the land to deliver the King's justice when required. All Greatcoats are superb warriors and people of honour. But that was before the Duke's had the King brought down. And the Greatcoats were forced to do something that has left them utterly hated by people across the Land. Years later, Falcio and two of his comrades are still together. Pursuing what appears to be a hopeless quest. But there's still far more going in Tristia than initially meets the eye, and the Greatcoats might still have a role to play... This is one of those books that drops you right into the middle of things, and gradually fills in the details as it goes along. There are occasional flashbacks to key past moments in Falcio's life which do that. And yet, perhaps because we only ever see things via his narration, you're never for a single moment lost or confused. The writing grabs from the off with some good solid readable prose and never lets up. Falcio is an easy character to like. A man trying very hard to keep his honour and to keep doing the right thing. His comrades are well drawn and likeable also. The setting becomes interesting as the details are filled in. Although most use swords and arrows there are rudimentary firearms, and some rather oblique magic. It throws in, via the actions of it's lead, some good moral lessons, and some moments that might make you want to punch the air in delight. This is the kind of book that makes you want to read 'just one more chapter.' There is a much bigger picture going on which slowly becomes apparent. At times it does feel, because of this, that Falcio isn't driving the narrative as much as he should. But this isn't a real problem because he's always trying to be proactive. And come the last seventy pages, when a great few surprises await, and all becomes clear, any such concerns are allayed. This is a superb debut. Very well written, and very readable. With great characters. And a really good plot. There's an incredible amount to like about it, and I enjoyed reading it very much. Roll on book two. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Armed justice against mayhem and arbitrary rule *by J***S on 6 April 2014* This is a swashbuckling piece of heroic fantasy, set in the fictional kingdom of Tristia, which is made up of eight Duchies and Aramor, the “home of Kings”. The King has been executed by the Dukes and their Knights five years before this story begins. He has not been replaced and the Greatcoats, the fighting judges that he had recreated to curb the arbitrary rule of the Dukes, have been disbanded and more or less outlawed. Even since, the Kingdom has descended into mayhem as its laws are no longer enforced and the arbitrary rule and the ambitions of each Duke increasingly prevail. The story is told in what is a gripping and very entertaining way, with chapters alternating between now and the past, when King Paenis was still alive. In addition to keeping up suspense, something at which Sebastien de Castell is rather good at, this allows the reader to understand little by little how Tristia got into such an awful situation, and how, because of the conspiracy of some of the Dukes, it got get even worse. Another feature that worked rather well for me was to have the story told in the first person. This does not always work and some readers tend to dislike first-person story telling. It does here, however, with the story told by Falcio Val Mond, the former First Cantor (and therefore Chief) of the Greatcoats, who was also the friend, the confidant and the right-hand man of the King, and shared his dream and his ideals of justice. A third set of features relate to characterisation. The character of Falcio is quite remarkably drawn, with his ideals, but also his hidden wounds that take him to extremes, and he is presented in such a way that it is hard not to empathise with him. He is, of course, and just like his two companions Kest and Brasti, a master at arms, and, in his case, a duellist that few if any can outmatch with a rapier, apart, possibly, from his childhood friend Kest. The other characters are also mostly good, including that of the cynical, cruel and very “nasty” Duke of Rijou (not that the other Duke and the Duchess which appear in the book are any better!). This is perhaps where I might have a first – slight – reservation with this book. The “nasties” are perhaps a bit too awful to be entirely credible, especially the Duchess of Hervor. Yet another element which worked well for me was that this story, which seems to be set in a fictional equivalent of the late 15th or early 16th century in Europe (Knights in plate armour, but also Greatcoats with rapiers, crossbows and bows, but also the odd pistol), was that the author makes sparing use of magic. There is a bit of it, mostly used as tracking devices. There is also a rather extraordinary animal, of which I will say no more to avoid spoilers. There are even a couple of characters with supernatural powers, such as a Saint of the Sword, but, by and large, the use of magic is limited and does not dominate the whole story, as it sometimes does elsewhere. What do dominate the whole story are the multiple fights and duels that the Greatcoats get themselves into: a cross between the three musketeers of Alexandre Dumas and of “Once upon a time in the West” from Sergio Leone. It is quite easy to imagine them with their great leather coats reinforced with armour and containing multiple pockets filled with all sorts of weapons, fighting rapiers (or bow) in hand against late medieval knights and foot-soldiers. This action-packed book almost masked the fact that the author’s world-building is perhaps a bit weak and seems to take a bit of a “back-seat”. Apart perhaps from the murderous city of Rijou and “the Spear”, the almost interminable and mostly straight caravan road that crosses the whole continent from South to North through endless forests, the rest of the world is only subject to minimal (and often only generic) description. So this is certainly a very entertaining read and a superb first book for this author and it will certainly lead me to read the next instalment. However, it does not quite rate five stars for me. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Outstanding Three Musketeer-style fantasy! *by S***S on 8 May 2017* I am not normally a stupidly fast reader, but I had this book finished in a couple of days. From the first page to the last I found myself hooked. The world was built well, despite not showing a great deal of it. The characters were fleshed out nicely and there was a wide array of them to flesh out. I had characters I loved, characters I felt genuinely sorry for and, more importantly, villains that I wanted to stick with the pointy end of a sword myself (that’s the first law of the sword, don’t you know). The Greatcoats (well, the three the book focuses on, there are a great deal more of them), the king’s travelling magisters, are essentially the Three Musketeers if the Musketeers lived in a time where gods, saints, and magic were real things that could physically harm or help you. The story is told from the perspective of Falcio Val Mond First Cantor of the Greatcoats but, unlike most stories written in first person, it isn’t actually penned by Falcio. It’s penned by a priest who has the magical ability to know everything about a person (that isn’t really a spoiler as it tells you in the first couple of pages). This means that you never truly know if Falcio will live or die as, in theory, that priest will be needing to tell of his death at some point. Sebastien de Castell’s writing style is what hooks you first. There’s a lot of humour in his writing, perhaps more so than action. It keeps you burning through the pages as it’s ridiculously easy reading. He also has a habit of keeping the reader on the edge of their seat. In me, because of his writing style and storytelling skills, de Castell has found a fan for life. I look forward to exploring more of the Greatcoats’ world and the wide cast of characters that is sure to inhabit it. If I was to say a slight negative, it is that sometimes the continuity could be a tad better. One instance being where a character is knocked out. Much is said about him being unconscious. Yet he’s up a second later without any mention of him coming to. It’s only a small niggle and, considering the story is being told from Falcio’s viewpoint, I just assume that he didn’t see the character get back up and into the swing of things. Other than that, the only negative for me was that I did not discover this series sooner. And that I have a bit more on my TBR list to get through before I can dive into the second book My verdict is that you should buy this book. Buy it now! It’s a fantastic read and one that any fantasy fan would kick themselves for not reading sooner than they eventually do. --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.gr/products/62621140-traitors-blade-the-greatcoats-the-greatcoats-book-1](https://www.desertcart.gr/products/62621140-traitors-blade-the-greatcoats-the-greatcoats-book-1) --- *Product available on Desertcart Greece* *Store origin: GR* *Last updated: 2026-10-10*