Did I stay up until 7AM reading this book? Fuck yes I did! And I don't regret a second of it. That alone should tell you how much I loved it.

From the characters, to the setting, to the plot, everything was masterfully done. Is one twist predictable? Yep! But what matters is how we got there, and boy oh boy, did I have a fucking wonderful time. Seriously, this book made laugh out loud at 4AM. It made me cry! Do you know how long it's been since I last cried reading a book? You don't, but I do, and it's been a bloody long time (coming from someone who read The Poppy War trilogy AND The Green Bone Saga in 2024!)

The best way I can describe this book is this: If We Were Villains and One Dark Window had a very witty, sarcastic, chaotic baby. Perfection.
I hadn't read any of the author's other books prior to this, but I sure will now, as I eagerly await the sequel.

Thank you NetGalley and Jo Fletcher for the ARC.

Play of Shadows is a new book set in the world of the Greatcoats and tells the tale of Damelas Chardemontaigne, a cowardly jobbing actor who finds himself at the centre of a plot to destabilise the country.

Initially, running like a fantasy version of Withnail and I, you half expect Danny to be there with his infamous Camberwell Carrot. However, once you get past a certain point, the book returns to De Castells familiar beats.

The book itself is a fantastic romp revolving around the power of stories and how history is written by the victors.

At the beginning of the story, we meet Damelas, who fearing for his life after running away from a duel with the infamous Vixen, inserts himself into a local acting troupe, invoking their protection so that he doesn’t have to take part.
All this because he is the grandson of two famous Greatcoats and happens to be named after his ancestor, who happened to be the very first Greatcoat. Unfortunately for Damelas, he is totally not up to the job of filling these massive boots.

The book itself is the very familiar formula that De Castell generally writes with, and if you are familiar with De Castell’s books the very heart of the story will not come as much of a surprise as it is filled with the usually well realised, larger than life characters, fantastic plotting and the ability to make the reader laugh or cry on a whim. However, what De Castell does differently in this book is to give a very different feel to this book, revolving the tale around a hapless hero and primarily basing it on theatre and pantomime, rather than the stock standard swashbuckling fare that is part and parcel of the other books.

However, fans will not be disappointed by a lack of well-choreographed fight scenes as Mr De Castell peppers plenty throughout the book.
As usual, there is plenty of humour in the book as well as the inklings of dark and De Castell balances the two brilliantly.

At times, the book has an almost episodic feel to it, and it reminds the reader of the old classic adventure serials or classic fiction such as Defoe and Dumas, but also used in more modern times by people like Wes Anderson.
And just to mention that there is a bonus for fans of the series as there is a welcome cameo at the end to give that warm fuzzy feeling.

In conclusion, I don’t know how to conclude this review, but I will finish by saying ‘Play of Shadows is feckin fantastic!’

I pre-ordered this book in January 2021 and I was very disappointed every time the release date got pushed back time and time again. Now I’ve finally read it and, let me tell you, it was well worth the wait.

Play of Shadows is so good. It opens with Damelas Shademantaigne running from a duel and into a theatre where he becomes an actor. However, it turns out that Damelas has this ability to channel the voices of the dead and that leads to a never ending nightmare where he is forced to act out the last days of one of Tristia’s most notorious villains and it turns out the truth is far different than the legend would suggest.

About half way through Play of Shadows, I put my iPad down and I thought to myself “I love this book” and it only got better towards the end. I loved the Greatcoats series and this is rather different but it is just as good. Damelas is an excellent main character and I loved every word I read about him. His interactions with the other characters were a lot of fun.

I’ve always loved de Castell’s writing style and this book is no different. It’s fast paced, very dynamic and there are plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader engaged from beginning to end.

I had such a good time reading Play of Shadows and it is very much a contender for my favourite book of the year. It was fantastic from the first page to the last and I just didn’t want to put it down. I can’t recommend it enough, particularly if you enjoyed the Greatcoats series. You’re going to love this one too.

when an actor has the memories of the dead and learns about the real history of the past.

this amazing historical fantasy will capture you at all points, bringing you into the story to the point where you don’t want to put the book down. watching damelas learn about his power, learn about the past to change the present was so interesting, nice watching him learn and grown.

i was confused at points with the discussion of greatcoats, it was explained to us like we should know who they are, so maybe the prequel should be read first, but if you can move past that then it a wonderful read. found family is a strong concept throughout this and you can feel it strongly and it makes the book more loveable, seeing this group of people fight and fall out, but also work together and not leave one alone to suffer.

i highly recommend this book to anyone who’s a lovely of historical fiction with a fantasy twist!

i want to thanks netgalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book for an honest review!

Set in the Greatcoats universe, Damelas Shademantaigne, the grandson of two famous greatcoats, flees a judicial duel with the Vixen and takes refuge amongst the actors of the Operato Belleza where, because of an ancient law he gains a respite from what he believes to be a duel he can’t win. He settles into the company, playing undemanding bit parts, until one day he hears a ghostly voice and blurts out a terrible truth about the city’s legendary hero. This puts him on the wrong side of the Iron Orchids, self appointed dealers of their own version of justice (think Proud Boys without the charm). Added to that, the Violet Duke wants Damelas to enact the unpopular truth. Aided by his solid friend, Bereto, an alluring Dashini assassin who could be ordered to kill him at any moment, a couple of street urchins, and a rag-tag company of players, Damelas has to sort out truth from legend in order to protect the city from an elusive conspiracy. This looks like the start of a spin-off sequence set soon after the end of Tyrant’s Throne (which wraps up the four books about Falcio, Kest and Brasti) and possibly close to the timeline of Borros (Crucible of Chaos). There’s a bonus appearance of a favourite character from the previous books, so it all ties in nicely.

"Play of Shadows" is the first book in the new fantasy series “Court of Shadows” by Sebastien de Castell. The narrative centres on Damelas, the grandson of two of the most acclaimed Greatswords, and a terrible swordhand, who is evading the most infamous dueller, the Vixen. The way he does it? Tricking his way into the company of actors, The Knights of the Curtain, who reside at the Operato Belleza.

The Belleza provides sanctuary due to an archaic law and Demalas maintains his residence at the Operato by performing supporting roles such as the Herald. However, on one particular show night, his world gets turned upside down after he fumbles his lines on stage and announces that the city’s most legendary hero may not be that after all…

De Castell exhibits a deft hand in character development, crafting a diverse cast who are flawed yet charming in their own way, with great humour and witty banter! Particularly noteworthy are Paeder's poignant reflections on his late wife, Virany, which resonate deeply and had me crying . De Castell definitely captured the feeling of eternal and unwavering love with this character.

Due to the complexity of the plot, there is a lot going on in this book, and I did occasionally struggle to keep up in places. I also found that the pacing of the book overall was quite varied, with some parts feeling much slower than others.

However, if you love the arts, fantasy plots thick with magic, spirits, betrayal, duelling and battles, this book is definitely for you! I look forward to reading more of de Castell’s work in future to see where these character’s end up.

Thank you to Netgalley and Jo Fletcher Books for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

4.5/5

I really enjoyed so many aspects of this book! I thought the story was wonderful and the fight scenes were intricate and thought out (which I’ve heard is a recurring theme in the authors work!)

I am definitely going to be looking for his other books!

It's no secret that I'm a fan of Sebastien de Castell and I was pretty sure I'd enjoy this one. I just wasn't expecting it to become my all time favourite of his books! A fully captivating, charming, rip-roaring adventure from the first page to the last.

A brief summary (paraphrased from the synopsis): the story starts with Damelas Shademantaigne, the grandson of two famous Greatcoats, on the run for his life. He's fleeing a judicial duel with the legendary Vixen and is relieved his fleeing is better than his fencing. He's able trick his way in to a company of actors and take refuge under an archaic law. Is he a better actor than fighter? Debatable. But he will have to make full use of both talents and all of his wiles and charm after a mysterious voice in his head causes him to tell the entire city that it's greatest hero (and the current ruler's ancestor) might actually be it's greatest villain.

This book is SO MUCH FUN. I loved reading a story set in 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘰𝘢𝘵𝘴 universe where the main character is decidedly not a Greatcoat. It's such a cool and different perspective on the legendary King's Magistrates. This story also rounds out the world in a way I won't go in to because spoilers, but rest assured: if you wanted to know more about the world of 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘰𝘢𝘵𝘴, this certainly delivers.

We also get to experience the author's love of theatre and actors in this one as it really shines through. Of course, this is a book by Sebastien de Castell, so there's also swashbuckling, plotting, dramatic and dastardly villains, a whole cast of wonderful characters, and darkness balanced with a healthy dose of humour. There is quite a sweet romance, as well! We even get a cameo from an old favourite.

Also, that last line. I cheered!

I will give a bit of a warning: as in 𝘊𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘰𝘴, there are some spoilers for 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘰𝘢𝘵𝘴 in here so read at your own discretion depending on where you're at with that series.

Anyway, I'm grinning like a fool just writing this review because that's how much I enjoyed this book. I've already preordered my copy and am looking forward to the eventual release of the next installment, 𝘓𝘢𝘥𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘉𝘭𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘴!

Huge thanks to Netgalley and Quercus Books for providing me with a free eARC.

I think my review could boil down to just four words. I'm not sure which four words best sum up my experience but there are some options:
I didn't like it.
It wasn't for me.
Alas, I did try.

I persevered, I battled to the bitter end and turned each and every one of the near to 500 pages hoping I would change my mind. As much as I wanted to get swept up in the story or the camaraderie, I just couldn't get behind the premise. As a fantasy reader, I've conjured up realistic dragons, dwarves and even the odd unicorn in my mind. I've placidly tagged along on doomed quests dreamt up with questionable logic or shaky motivations. However for whatever reason, I just couldn't let go and give in to the suspension of disbelief that the singular way the hidden truth of society's corruption could be uncovered is through a play-by-play reenactment of a ghost's long-forgotten memories in front of a live audience. It also didn't sit comfortably that the dangerous and bloodthirsty enemy were waiting in the shadowy wings, ready to swoop in and deliver death blows to all those who dared act in this blasphemous performance.. though they were of course always happy to watch and wait for the final curtain or intermission to intervene.

I'll admit, I have not read this author's previous works and so I'm not familiar with the rest of the books within the Greatcoat universe. I've also never been big on theatre or performance-based art, nor fencing or duelling. Perhaps the charm of this book was lost on me, due to my lack of understanding when it comes to those pursuits and the shared culture of those individuals who love them as much as the author does. I think for those people, this book will be a wonderful adventure and I do not want my opinion to deter or put them off in any way. De Castell's passion and knowledge shine through in his work, I can only regret that it was lost on me.

The writing was of great quality and I found myself indulging in a snort laugh or two at the humour (eaten by cows/eaten by crows moment was a personal favourite, as well as the panic of seeing red/facing the curtain). In line with any story set primarily on a stage and involving a troupe of performers, it did lean into the melodrama a tad. The pretentious, embellished language of the theatre was plentiful and there were more than a fair share of smug or over-dramatised characters indulging in poetic soliloquies and monologues, often to massage their egos and further inflate their self-importance. I would roll my eyes if I met them in person, so it's only natural I found myself doing the same when meeting them on the page.

Thank you Quercus Books & Sebastien de Castell for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

3.75 stars⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Quercus books for the e-arc of this new series. This is a great story full of fight scenes and these characters and the whole story line have a real heart. Not my type of book but it was a very good first book of a new series for the author.

So, I’m pretty new to the world and work of Sebastien De Castell, having only read The Malevolent Seven before entering the world of Play of Shadows. Before I continue for all those Greatcoat fans, this book isn’t part of the main series and shouldn’t be picked up with a hope of continuing their story however, it can be read as a standalone and for a newbie like me to the Greatcoat world is a great introduction.
De Castell delivers stylish and witty world building, snarky and fun quotes and characters, conspiracies, mystery, politics and more, all bound up in a fabulous fantasy set in the world of the theatre. Still questioning whether you should pick this one up, read on…
The story is told from the perspective of the protagonist Damelas Chademantaigne, a terrible below par actor, terrible duellist, coward extraordinaire with a preference for running rather than facing a fight but, also a pretty nice guy. Damelas grew up in the care of his grandparents, famed Greatcoats who seemed to overshadow him, leaving him feeling like he could never live up to their hopes and expectations. He has spent his whole life avoiding challenge and following his life long habits, finds himself employed in a theatre as a bit part actor after running away from a duel.
However, there is much more to Damelas than even he suspected, as he discovers that he has a skill that can take him back to inhabit and perform the memories of infamous people who died a century earlier. This magic system is not one I’ve come across in this format before and it was fascinating to read Castell’s development of it into this format, which serves to investigate and bring to light the mystery of events that took place a hundred years earlier.
The plot of the story is well drawn out, bringing together found family and self-discovery tropes within the story, but patience is required initially as the start can feel a little slow however, I would urge you to keep going, the plot and arc are totally engaging and there is some fantastic humour and down right sardonic sarcasm to enjoy.
I absolutely loved the cast of characters, from the truly epitome of the evil villain to the wonderfully flawed theatre cast and crew – they are beautifully eccentric and definitely have a unique approach to self defense that is a delight. I really enjoyed this book and will be on the lookout for the next book in the series, particularly as it will provide an opportunity to dive even deeper into this world and get to know this wonderful cast of characters even more.

Thank you so much to Quercus Books, Jo Fletcher Books and NetGalley for the arc of Play of Shadows by Sebastien De Castell in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Behold! A return to the world of the Greatcoats. You can't guess how excited I was when I learnt this book would be set in the same world as my faves; Falcio, Kest and Brasti. Despite being set in the world of the Greatcoats, this isn't a Greatcoat book by any means, something which took me a minute to get used too, but De Castell brings his usual wit, underdog style characters and adventure to this story that ensured I stayed glued to the pages.

Damelas is a sub-par actor, a lousy dueler, but a pretty decent person all in all. Forever in the shadow of his Grandparents, both famed Greatcoats themselves, he never feels like he can live up to their expectations, so he never even tries. But suddenly he starts seeing visions of the past, visions that start taking over his body, and one night he finds himself walking on stage and spouting something many would find seditious. Now under the watchful eye of the Duke and his beautiful assassin, Damelas finds himself drawn into a mystery and conspiracy hundreds of years in the making.

This is a chunk of a book and, in parts I did think it dragged a little, but De Castell knows what he's doing. He uses the slower parts, the parts that seem a little superfluous, to endear us to his well built and chunky cast of characters. Characters that are charming but also incredibly flawed. Though Damelas Shademantaigne may be the star of the show, he is by no means the only star of the book, rather his band of merry men, and women, sometimes steal the show from him. His POV is used to shine the limelight on those around him, as much as to show how well he shines and I really enjoyed how De Castell used him, his actions and some of the situations he finds himself in, to ensure we fall in love with pretty much every character in this book. From Beretto, Damelas's one friend in life, to the other members of his acting troupe, every character is effortlessly brought to life, and they all have a pivotal part to play in the story. My favourites absolutely being Rhyleis and Shariza, both kick ass women in their own rights.

If you're going into this expecting The Greatcoats you might be a little disappointed. It took me a minute to get my bearings, to make me realise that this was going to be a different kind of story than I was expecting. Still one featuring hero's, of a sense, and the evil that they have to defeat, but despite the amount of fighting that takes place, it's a story where the hero doesn't win through battles, but through something much more mundane, sharing the truth. The magic system that De Castell features in this book is an expansion from the Greatcoats series and that allows us to see a type of magic we've never seen before. One which allows Damelas to almost call on figures from the past, bring them onto the stage with him, pouring a truth into his performance, but also bringing to light a piece of history that has been wrongly remembered. I enjoyed the parts where this magic was used, seeing Dameles interact with the historical figures, sometimes even loosing himself to their memories. It added an emotional aspect to the book, but these parts are also what allows him to investigate the current evil he is facing.

I did mention it above, but the pacing was off slightly. It took a while for the actual plot to get going, and I did feel in parts it slowed down a little and made the story drag BUT, despite all that I struggled to put this book down, thanks in large to the strength of his characters, but also the plot itself. It's a mystery that winds itself throughout the story, always keeping us on our toes, making sure we know just enough to stay invested, but never too much to allow us to get ahead of the characters. De Castell's use of plot twists, as well as the slightly more exhilarating scenes, help to propel the plot along, and I enjoyed the romantic aspects that he included. Similarly to the Greatcoats, the romance never takes over the plot, rather adds to it, making us even more invested in the characters and their outcome.

The ending. I loved the ending & I even may have squealed a little bit when a certain character turned up. If you love underdog characters, strong women, plenty of humour, wit and action, I can't recommend this enough. Fans of the Greatcoats will love it, and I think people coming to this world for the first time will find it a great introduction.

A thrilling ride filled with fights, wit, humour, and an actually quite chilling understanding of real world politics and the potential power of subversive conspiracies. It does seem to take an unnecessarily long time to tell the tale but manages to be engaging and entertaining throughout.

A great new swashbuckling series with no-one’s-idea-of-a-hero main character and his trusty band of actors and friends. This is set in the Greatcoats world, some time on. Damelas is in fact the grandson of two Greatcoats. The story is crammed full of fight scenes, at which Sebastien de Castell excels. As always with his books, the characters and story have real heart. Very satisfying! Many thanks to Netgalley for an arc of this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Jo Fletcher Books (part of Quercus) for providing me with an ARC of Play of Shadows.

Sadly, this was a 2.5-star read. With this being my most anticipated book of 2024, the expectations were high. Go figure, it was quite a disappointment to find out this wasn't what I had hoped for at all. It is being described as having "swordplay, magic, intrigue, friendships and a swashbuckling adventure" elements I absolutely enjoy in the fantasy I read. But unfortunately, all these topics were lacking. I was never drawn into the story the way I feel like I was supposed to. The characters seemed two-dimensional, especially our main character and his best friend.

This is a hefty book, with my copy being 500 pages exactly, this did feel like a commitment. Don't get me wrong, in comparison to my usual reading pace, I read this fast, with 4 days in total to get through it all. Getting through it quickly did have to do with the writing style, the story is never boring, although it isn't exactly exciting either. The short chapters were a great choice, they kept the story well-structured.

There are two elements put into the plot that significantly dragged my rating down, I will not talk about them in depth, because they might be regarded as spoilers, but I will describe them vaguely.
- The main character goes through the same experience as the main character in Scarlet by Genevieve Cogman. If you know, you know.
- Something very convenient happens towards the end. I enjoy it if authors show some courage and build up the tension, but the opposite happened here.

You might like this book if:
- You have read the other books set in the Greatcoats universe. I haven't. This is considered as a companion to the series, but having read the series previously isn't necessary. There are a lot of mentions to the already existing characters. You'll probably also understand the world building better, as for me, it took quite a while to get used to the different terms.
- You like the setting of a theatre. Most of the story is set in a theatre, we get some scenes from within the city, but that's basically it for different types of settings.
- You judge books by their cover. I'll have to be honest, the visuals of this book are gorgeous. The cover and the illustrations introducing each part of the story are a joy to look at.

Sadly, I won't be continuing the series.

How have I not heard of Sebastian De Castelo until now? I’m honestly shocked, as it appears there is a Greatcoats series that I’ve now added to my TBR as it sounds amazing.

Alas, let’s talk about Play of Shadows, which I read as a standalone. I’m not sure how this book fares as a continuation of a series, but for me it was a wonderful addition to the fantasy genre. It has everything to make a great fantasy novel (and a beginning of a series), from the world building, dueling, complex characters and conspiracies… mixed with the art of theatre. It added a dramatic and over the top layer that, somehow, works beautifully.

Our main character is a man, descendant of Greatcoats and of whom much is expected because of that, that takes refuge in a theatre after running away from a duel. Eventually, he finds out that he has a rare talent that allows him to re-enact scenes of the past and to discover that history, as it is known, is a lie. So he is swept in a conspiracy based on historical events that transpired one hundred years before.

The only less positive thing I have to point out is that the beginning felt a bit slow. But eventually picked up the pace and became fast paced and exciting.

The characters are incredibly flawed but charming, with a sense of humor that made me laugh out loud in some scenes. The eccentric theatre troupe and their attempts to survive violence, danger, the judgement of their audience and political threats, while always keeping hope and sight of what is right, made this such an enjoyable read for me.

I am definitely continuing this series, as I expect that the next book will be even better as it will expand on the mystery and adventure with this cast of wonderful characters.

Thank you very much Quercus Books, Jo Fletcher Books and NetGallery for providing me this ARC.

This is the third book from this author I’ve read and I’ve enjoyed them all! I read an eARC of this book so thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley.

This was such a wonderful addition to the fantasy genre. It’s a mix of theatre , duelling, conspiracy and fantasy. This kind of more bardic leaning fantasy I just love.

We have a man on the run from a duel against a woman called the Vixen who will surely kill him. He takes refuge in a theatre where special laws prevent performers from taking part in duels of the kind he’s trying to avoid. A year later and an unusual occurrence during a performance sheds new light on the historical events that inspired the play one hundred years earlier.

This book was phenomenally exciting. It was so fast paced, danger and intrigue round every corner. The characters are so flawed yet charming and the book is genuinely funny at times. The mystery is clever, with long held beliefs challenged as events in the past threaten the safety of the city in the future. The setting all being within one city was a fantastic choice, it added such a sense of being trapped for our main character who faces threats from multiple directions.

I thoroughly enjoyed this, I have read the first Greatcoat book which precedes this, but you could read this standalone and still have a fantastic time with this eccentric theatre troupe and their attempts to survive both danger, the judgement of their audience and new political threats.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. I liked this, the magical system of the Veristors was quite unique and the story was a nicely paced easy read. I do wish that a bit more lore of the wider world had been included, for example as someone who has not read the greatcoats series it would have been nice to get more of sense of what the greatcoats are and why the main characters grandparents are considered famous. Nonetheless a solid read that I am likely to continue with.

Sebastien de Castell es un autor que había entrado y salido de mi radar en varias ocasiones pero al que no había leído todavía, por lo que Play of Shadows, una novela nueva situada en un universo donde ya había desarrollado toda una saga parecía una oportunidad estupenda para darle un tiento a su escritura. Si me gustaba, había más material del que tirar y si no, pues no pasaba nada. Es por esto también que puedo asegurar que Play of Shadows se puede leer perfectamente sin conocer las otras entregas, aunque aparezcan algunos personajes que son famosos por razones desconocidas para el neófito.


La idea de la que parte es muy atractiva, ya que un joven que huye de un duelo en el que no tiene ninguna posibilidad de victoria solicita una especie de derecho de acogida, pero en vez de en una iglesia en un teatro, por que la ley impide que los actores puedan luchar. Tras una serie de casualidades, consigue su objetivo y le veremos un año después ya totalmente integrado en la compañía de actores. Otra característica muy curiosa de este mundo es que algunos actores son poseídos por los espíritus de los protagonistas de los hechos históricos que representan en el escenario, dotando a la obra de mucha más credibilidad e intriga. O al menos, eso es lo que se dice, porque ya hace mucho tiempo que no parece ser muy cierta esta afirmación. El mundo tras las tramoyas es muy divertido y el comienzo de la novela es entretenidísimo, sobre todo por la impresionante capacidad interpretativa del lector de audiolibro, Joe Jameson , que realmente se pone en el papel de cada farsante y timador que pasa por las páginas de la novela.

Por desgracia, el resto de la novela no llega a ser tan atractiva. La idea de descubrir una conspiración en el presente gracias a los sucesos acontecidos en el pasado y mezclar las dos líneas temporales como imágenes superpuestas me parece bastante atractiva, pero ciertamente limitante, ya que solo podemos ver del pasado el punto de vista del espíritu que posee al actor, dando lugar a una percepción solipsista y engañosa. El libro se alarga, creo que innecesariamente, en estos juegos de sombras (guiño, guiño, codazo, codazo) del pasado para intentar encontrar las raíces de la conspiración, pero la resolución me parece un tanto burda.

Los personajes principales están muy bien definidos, pero en la segunda fila de los secundarios creo que el autor se ha esforzado menos o al menos no ha conseguido que sean tan perfectamente distinguibles. La mayoría de los actores de la compañía, salvo honrosas excepciones, son un conjunto en el que cuesta discernir la individualidad. Se podría decir que estos figurantes tienen líneas de diálogo olvidables. Es posible que en las siguientes entregas de la serie este error se subsane, si de Castell va dando más importancia a otros personajes para dotar de más profundidad al mundo.

Play of Shadows me parece un libro entretenido, con un comienzo más fulgurante que lo que acaba ofreciendo al final, así que no ha conseguido dirimir mi duda sobre si seguir con el autor o no. Ya se verá en un futuro.

Oh my life, why have I not heard of Sebastien De Castell until now? I began reading Play of Shadows a couple of weeks ago, thanks to an ARC from Netgalley, Quercus Books, Jo Fletcher book and the author Sebastien De Castell, and savoured it chapter by chapter, utterly entranced, but then, I also had the opportunity to listen to the audiobook, also from Netgalley, Quercus audio and narrated by the incredible Joe Jameson which I used for the last quarter of the book and oh my crikey, mindblowingly brilliant!

The novel is based on Damelas Chademantaigne, a merchants messenger whose sword skills come from acting classes and not deuellists professional training. Damelas runs from an angry mob (the chants are utterly inspired) and tricks a company of actors to unwittingly give him refuge. What was his crime? Why were the mob chasing him? Who is the Vixen and why are they braying for his blood?

De Castell is a master of dialogue and the narrative has a very good balance between dialogue and description, creating a very immersive atmosphere. So much so, I can almost smell the theatre floorboards. Joe Jameson is the perfect choice for De Castells dialogue. He is versatile and incredibly talented, giving each individual character a strong personality and maintaining the character continuity

Play of Shadows has everything a reader could want, action, adventure, swordplay and intrigue, A highly polished plotline and immersive subplots create a full, fleshy dramatic novel that is rich and lustrous, strong yet tender and s such, I am utterly intrigued as to what the other books will be like

I cannot praise this book and the production enough. It was flipping glorious and so very worth the wait. The read is absolutely brilliant, completely chefs kiss and adding the audiobook is the cherry on top. I will certainly be investing in this series, beginning with Play of Shadows when it is released on 28 March 2024. Bravo

Thank you very, very much to NetGalley, Netgalley, Quercus Books, Jo Fletcher Books, the author Sebastien De Castell and narrator Joe Jameson for this outstanding ARC and ALC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own.