E-ARC Review: Traitor's Blade- Sebastien de Castell

Title: Traitor's Blade
Author: Sebastien de Castell
Publisher: Penguin Canada
Format: e-ARC
Pages: 384
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Summary: Falcio is the first Cantor of the Greatcoats. Trained in the fighting arts and the laws of Tristia, the Greatcoats are travelling Magisters upholding King’s Law. They are heroes. Or at least they were, until they stood aside while the Dukes took the kingdom, and impaled their King’s head on a spike.

Now Tristia is on the verge of collapse and the barbarians are sniffing at the borders. The Dukes bring chaos to the land, while the Greatcoats are scattered far and wide, reviled as traitors, their legendary coats in tatters.

All they have left are the promises they made to King Paelis, to carry out one final mission. But if they have any hope of fulfilling the King’s dream, the divided Greatcoats must reunite, or they will also have to stand aside as they watch their world burn…
Review: I was asked to read and review this book for Penguin Canada. I received the book free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
At first I was a little hesitant to agree to read this book because it is out if my normal genre, but I wanted to try something new. I actually really liked this novel. I liked that we follow various characters around while they fight for their lives and others. I really enjoyed the flashbacks, I learned so much about the characters this way. Also I found this story to be told in a humorous way, despite the hardships that the characters faced constantly. This book meshes so many fantasy elements perfectly it was hard not to fall in love with everything.
Each of the characters were so well written that I even liked the villains, although one in particular I did want to kill myself for some of the horrors they had put others through. It was amazing how Sebastien de Castell could make even the most ruthless of characters so vulnerable at times and actually make the reader feel bad for them, almost enough to forgive their horrible acts. I am literally 
in love with all of the "good guy" characters, I can't help myself. Each character is wittier than the 
next, and they are also smart. I liked hearing what they were thinking as they were in the midst of fighting and other instances. Each character was given a voice and they used it.
Although I did tread lightly at first, I quickly became submerged in this epic fantasy tale and I still find myself wanting more. I want to learn more about these characters and where they are now and what will happen next. Sebastien de Castell's debut novel has me hooked and I want more from this promising author. I would recommend this book to fantasy lovers of all ages, but with a warning of adult scenes, violence and some explicit language.

About this author

Sebastien de Castell had just finished a degree in Archaeology when he started work on his first dig. Four hours later he realized how much he actually hated archaeology and left to pursue a very focused career as a musician, ombudsman, interaction designer, fight choreographer, teacher, project manager, actor, and product strategist. His only defence against the charge of unbridled dilettantism is that he genuinely likes doing these things and that, in one way or another, each of these fields plays a role in his writing. He sternly resists the accusation of being a Renaissance Man in the hopes that more people will label him that way.

Sebastien lives in Vancouver, Canada with his lovely wife and two belligerent cats.