Sebastien de Castell Books In Order

Publication Order of Court of Shadows Books

Publication Order of Greatcoats Books

Publication Order of Spellslinger Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Anthologies

Sebastien de Castell is a thriller mystery and fantasy author from Canada best known for “The Greatcoats” series of novels. While he was born in Canada, he also acquired British citizenship a few months before the Brexit vote. As a young adult, he went to college and graduated with a degree in Archeology though it took him only four hours at a dig to realize that there was nothing he hated more. Castell then went on to work several jobs that included product strategist musician, actor, ombudsman, project manager, interaction designer, teacher, and fight choreographer. He has said that he genuinely loves all these things, which is why he has dabbled in so many things. Moreover, they have all had some influence in his later career as an author. He published his debut novel “Traitor’s Blade” in 2014 and the title became the first of the swashbuckling “The Greatcoats” fantasy series of novels. The series has been nominated for several prestigious awards including Best Debut at the Gemmell Morningstar Award, Best Fantasy by Goodreads Choice Award, and Best New Writer by the John W Campbell Award among many others. He is also the author of the Carnegie Medal nominated “Spellsinger” young adult fantasy series. By 2019, he had more than ten titles to his name and he was under contract for six more and a new series. He lives with his wife and two aggressive cats in Vancouver, Canada.

Sebastien wrote the manuscript for his first novel in 1997, partly because he wanted to see if he had it in himself to write and in part because he was always distracted by stories in his mind whenever he tried to read. As a voracious reader, he soon ran out of great books to read by 2006 as he could not find anything that spoke to him. As such, he decided to write a book that he would have liked to read and this would become his debut novel “Traitor’s Blade.” What he learned was that by focusing on what he would have loved to read, other people would love the story too. As for his influences, he has said that he has been influenced by almost all the experiences he has had in his life. Castell’s lead character’s story is partly influenced by his degree in archeology while his work as a sword choreographer inspired much of the fight scenes in the series. Sometimes he gets inspiration from the little experiences he had working the different professions. He got the idea for the coats worn by Brasti, Kest, and Falcio from the actual greatcoat that his brother had at one time bought for him. During his days as an actor, he always found himself bringing the coat to work no matter how long he was waiting to film a scene or how hot or cold it was. He would keep everything he needed in it though he did not have the various potions, traps, and tricks that the likes of his lead in the Greatcoats series have.

As for literary inspiration, Sebastien de Castell draws from all manner of professionals including comic book authors, screenwriters, and authors. All of these have provided different perspectives that have helped him in crafting his novels When it comes to fantasy, he loves “Nine Princes in Amber” by Roger Zelazny which is one of his favorites given that it is written with no embellishment or fluff. He also loves the “Vlad Taltos” novels by Steven Brust as they taught him that fantasy works could still be interesting even if they are not written in ancient dialects. His works and especially “Traitor’s Blade” has been compared to “The Three Musketeers” by Alexandre Dumas though he has also clearly been influenced by the “Horatio Hornblower” series by CS Forester. He particularly loved the way the lead character took every battle like a puzzle that needed a solution rather than a simple contest of manliness or might. As for his settings and descriptions, he finds inspiration from noir authors such as Raymond Chandler. Aaron Sorkin who writes for film and television has been a significant influence on the dramatization of small moments and dialogue in his works. Finally, he is influenced by the excellent balance of grounded personal relationships and the bombastic nature of the heroes of the adventures and fantasies of Brian Michael.

Sebastien de Castell’s “Traitor’s Blade” introduces the first Cantor of the Greatcoats named Falcio. He had been trained in the laws of Tristia and the fighting arts and is now a traveling Greatcoat Magister upholding the King’s Law. The Magisters were once heroes but are now vilified for sleeping on the job and letting the Dukes overthrow the king and impale his head on a spike. The Kingdom of Tristia is tottering on the edge of collapse as the barbarians having smelt blood prepare to invade. The Dukes have brought nothing but chaos to the once peaceful kingdom even as the Greatcoats who are now reviled as traitors are scattered across the land, their coats that were formerly legend now in tatters. All they have to their name are the vows they had made to Paelis the King. They had told him that they would take back the kingdom from the usurpers. But to do that, they will have to come together or else what they had built over millennia would be burnt to the ground.

Following the events of “Traitor’s Blade” his debut, Sebastien de Castell comes back with a bang with the second novel “Knight’s Shadow.” The novel combines the witty banter and swashbuckling action of “The Three Musketeers” and fantasy adventure to make for a thrilling novel. The novel picks up from where the first left off with a dark story of betrayal and heroism in a kingdom that is being crushed by leaders who are mired in corruption. When the duke and his family are found dead in what is the grisliest murder in recent times, Falcio val Mond the First Cantor and great swordsman of the Greatcoats sets out to find the killer who has fled the scene. But even as he is seeking out the killer, he learns that he has been poisoned by one of his most lethal enemies and he may just die from it. As civil war and chaos take over the country, Falcio has very little time to deal with the persons hell-bent on destroying his homeland.

“Saint’s Blood” the third novel of the Greatcoats series by Sebastien de Castell opens to the leads about to find out that it is not that hard to kill a saint, as someone has just killed their friend. The Dukes had been looking for loopholes in the agreement that would allow them to renege on an agreement to put the rightful heir on the throne. But now with saints being discovered dead, it is rumored that the gods may be against her taking up the throne. But the churches are working to protect their interests by reintroducing the military orders of Inquisitors, assassins, and soldiers which threatens to turn the kingdom into a theocracy. Falcio needs to stop the chaos but first, he needs to find the killer as he is the source of all of their problems. The only clue he has to go on is a bizarre iron mask that drives the Saints mad and makes them vulnerable. But even when he finds the assassin, he will still have to fight him in a duel, and even with his skills, he is not sure he will be able to best the vastly experienced veteran.