Play of Shadows – de Castell Sebastien (2024)

Swordplay, magic, intrigue and friendships stronger than iron come together in the first volume of a swashbuckling fantasy series set in the universe of The Greatcoats. Damelas Chademantaigne chooses a poor night to flee a judicial duel. He has little hope of escaping the wrath of the Vixen, the most feared duellist in the entire city, until he stumbles through the stage doors of the magnificent Operato Belleza and tricks his way into the company of actors. An archaic law gives him a temporary respite from his troubles, until a ghostly voice in his head causes Damelas to fumble his lines and inadvertently blurt out a dreadful truth: the city’s most legendary hero may actually be a traitor and a brutal murderer. With help from only his boisterous and lusty friend Bereto, a beautiful assassin whose target may be Damelas himself, and a company of misfit actors who would just as soon see him dead, this failed grandson of two Greatcoats must find the courage to uncover long-buried truths before a ruthless band of bravos known as the Iron Orchids comes for his head. There is also the matter of the Vixen waiting to duel him.