Blurb:

Swordplay, magic, intrigue and friendships stronger than iron: the first volume in the new swashbuckling fantasy series set in the universe of THE GREATCOATS.

Damelas Chademantaigne picked a poor night to flee a judicial duel.

He has precious 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 provides a temporary respite from his troubles - until one night a ghostly voice in his head causes Damelas to fumble his lines, inadvertently blurting out a dreadful truth: the city's most legendary hero may actually be a traitor and a brutal murderer.

With only the help of his boisterous and lusty friend Bereto, a beautiful assassin whose target may well be Damelas himself, and a company of misfit actors who'd just as soon see him dead, this failed grandson of two Greatcoats must somehow find within himself the courage to dig up long-buried truths before a ruthless band of bravos known as the Iron Orchids come for his head.

Oh, and there's still that matter of the Vixen waiting to duel him . . .

Review:

Sebastien De Castell’s Greatcoat series, a quartet centered around Falcio and his brothers-in-arms stripped from grace, is well lauded for its combat, banter, and pacing. The chapters (and the dialog & swordplay) are lightning quick and make for utterly enjoyable reads. Play of Shadows is the return to the world, and everything about it is dialed up. De Castell has bet on himself fully and brought his writing to dizzying heights. 

The protagonist, Damelas, is a coward on the run from a duel. Through a turn of events, his dash ends with him joining an actors’ troupe, and from there he enters more and more danger. At the behest of the city’s leader, he has to navigate a controversial play while dealing with a group that’s falling apart, angry citizens, assassins, foreign powers, and a ghost. 

De Castell navigates his plot with wit, charm, and just the right amount of cheesiness. No series makes me smile despite myself quite like the Greatcoat series, and there are more than a few forced smiles throughout the novel. I was driving to a funeral when reading and found myself cracking up despite the situation.

His quick chapters (typically six pages or less), and his cliffhangers keep you reading. De Castell does something very smart in actually reducing the stakes for most of the novel, which makes things more intense. When dealing with a play that has little effect on the city but a huge effect on Damelas, it keeps you on edge, because anything can happen. 

However, everything about this book is “more” De Castell, which is not always a good thing. His strengths are magnified, but so are his weaknesses. My biggest issue with the novel is something I call “The John Wick Problem”, a situation where the world-building is actually more interesting the less we know about it. In Play of Shadows, we see even more of the factions that make up the world, and it makes you wonder how the country hasn’t fallen apart. 

I still massively enjoyed the book, but I’d be reluctant to recommend this to anyone who had a lukewarm reception to The Greatcoat series. If you haven’t read it, you should if you like quick-paced, fun-packed, raucous, swash-buckling books full of heart, and if you have and greatly enjoyed it, you should pick up Play of Shadows.