TYRANT'S THRONE is the fourth novel in the excellent Greatcoats fantasy series.
This novel features all of the elements that made the first three novels so good. It moves the story along nicely, and we see each character grow and adapt to their changing situations.

If you haven't read the series, I strongly recommend it. It's one of my favourite fantasy series of the last couple of decades: well-written, sympathetic characters, great action, a dash of humour, and just gripping.

Very highly recommended.

This fantasy version of France series ends on a high note, though a few issues appear. Thrilling and engaging conclusion.

From the publisher: After years of struggle and sacrifice, Falcio val Mond, First Cantor of the Greatcoats, is on the brink of fulfilling his dead king's dream: Aline, the king's daughter, is about to take the throne and restore the rule of law once and for all.


But for the Greatcoats, nothing is ever that simple. In the neighboring country of Avares, an enigmatic new warlord is uniting the barbarian armies that have long plagued Tristia's borders--and even worse, he is rumored to have a new ally: Trin, who's twice tried to kill Aline to claim the throne of Tristia for herself. With the armies of Avares at her back, led by a bloodthirsty warrior, she'll be unstoppable.


Falcio, Kest, and Brasti race north to stop her, but in those cold and treacherous climes they discover something altogether different, and far more dangerous: a new player is planning to take the throne of Tristia, and with a sense of dread the three friends realize that the Greatcoats, for all their skill, may not be able to stop him.


As the nobles of Tristia and even the Greatcoats themselves fight over who should rule, the Warlord of Avares threatens to invade. With so many powerful contenders vying for power, it will fall to Falcio to render the one verdict he cannot bring himself to utter, much less enforce. Should he help crown the young woman he vowed to put on the throne, or uphold the laws he swore to serve?



It took me awhile to get around to reading Tyrant's Throne by Sebastien de Castell, mostly because I had it as an ebook and I just didn't want to tackle it on my iPad. However, having just finished it, I find myself wishing I would have begun it when I first received my copy.



Tyrant's Throne is the fourth, and final, book in the Greatcoats series. Very quickly, this series is in the vein of the Three Musketeers stories by Alexandre Dumas. For example, a Greatcoat = a Musketeer. In fact, while reading the series, I often pictured the three leads, Falcio, Kest, and Brasti, as the actors who played Athos, Porthos, and Aramis in the BBC's most recent Musketeers series. And like the Three Musketeers, de Castell has filled his Greatcoats series with adventure, wit, honor, betrayal, sorrow, joy, tragedy, and friendship. All told, this made a perfect recipe for a series to read and enjoy.



In Tyrant's Throne, Falcio (the First Cantor, or leader) of the Greatcoats has finally achieved the mission his late King left for him: put his daughter Aline on the throne and restore the rule of Law in the country of Tristia. However, as in the case of all the books in the series, nothing is ever that simple, nor is it easily accomplished. Falcio and his friends are betrayed by numerous parties, they face the tragedy of death, they fight battles and wars, and deal with their inner demons. In the course of this tale, the reader meets several more Greatcoats. We explore more nooks and crannies of Tristia. We discover more of the secret history of Tristia, involving the Trattari, the Bardatti, the Honoroi, the Dashini, the Rangieri, and others. We see Falcio fly by the seat of his pants, Kest stand in against all odds, and Brasti display his lovable arrogance.



I could go on and on about the plot, but I really don't want to give anything away as far as details go. But, I would like to point out some things I really enjoyed about this book, and the series as a whole. De Castell's Greatcoats are wonderful characters, and I would rather like to read short stories involving some of the lesser known Greatcoats. Throughout Tyrant's Throne, and the series, there was a balance of joy and sorrow, triumph and despair, and de Castell did a spectacular job of conveying all of this. I was constantly surprised by the turns the story took, in a good way. They weren't predicatable, the specter of death was very real for all the characters, and the characters' personalities jumped off the page, particularly that of Falcio. A three-dimensional character, Falcio (the first person narrator of all four books) was equal parts idealistic hero, despairing friend and father figure, clever and sarcastic leader, and absolutely loyal in all areas. His interactions and relationship with Kest and Brasti formed the spine of the stories and I enjoyed the interactions and obvious brotherly love between the three of them.



I also want to compliment de Castell. Having read a number of series that maybe didn't end satisfactorily, I can only imagine how hard de Castell had to work to finish off the Greatcoats series on the right note. Let me tell you, he succeeded. The ending felt honest and true to the story he began in book one, Traitor's Blade. Nearly every thread was brought to some type of conclusion, and the quest to fulfill the King's dream was seen to its end. De Castell also took the time to spend a couple of chapters after the climax showing us what the characters were planning on doing next. This allowed us to spend a little more time with Falcio, Kest, Brasti, and the rest. It was as perfect an ending as I could have hoped for after reading all four books.



Finally, I highly recommend the Tyrant's Throne by Sebastien de Castell, and the entire Greatcoats series. It's not often that I come to the end of a book or series and find myself wishing I could spend more time with the characters (Lonsome Dove and The Time-Traveler's Wife come to mind right off the bat), but that's where I found myself when I finished the last page. Fortunately, de Castell has said that the Greatcoats will return sometime in the future. All I can say is "Bravo" and go grab a copy of the books and get started.



I received a previe

Sebastien de Castell concludes the Greatcoats saga with Tyrant's Throne. Falcio val Mond, the head of the Greatcoats, the justiciars of Tristia, is about to crown Aline the heir to the throne and reunite the country. Everything goes wrong; internal contests between the nobles and assault from a northern barbarian neighbour.
How do the Greatcoats defend the country and who are their defenders and enemies? Complicated fantasy with real tragedies and triumphs. Read and enjoy.

Finally this brilliant work of adventure, friendship, love, royalty and lots of others things came to an end and like its previous books it didn't disappoint me a bit.

After Blacksmith god's wrath catsle Aramor is almost destroyed and it takes generations to be built but Aline is trying her best to rule with the help of Realm Protector Valiana and other greatcoats. Falcio, Kest and Brasty come back neutralizing a traitor's plan and should face Dukes' request in exchange of putting Aline on throne.

Meanwhile a long lost greatcoat named Morn comes back from Avares the country to north of Tristia. He brings news that Trin is in the process of hiring barbarians to take the Tristia for herself so now Falcio and his two best friends and companions should travel north to see into this issue.

Like all the books in this series this one is full of heroism, friendship, sad and happy moments. These three characters Falcio, Kest and Brasty are whatever I can ask for righteous people in a story. Falcio specifically is by far one of the best protagonists I've ever encountered in my reading life.

Aline and Valiana, I loved both of them **Spoiler Alart** I cried like crazy for Aline, if there is only one reason I'm angry with SDC is Aline faith. She deserved much better in the end but maybe for the sake of the story it was necessary, don't know but still unhappy.

Other characters were solid in their own story line as well. maybe not my favorites but I appreciated presence of each one of them even Trin.

I will reread this series for sure. I'll visit them time to time and let myself to be pulled in all their encounters.

There are so many things that I want to say about this book that I don't feel that will be adequate to describe how much I am absolutely stunned by this series. It has grown to be one of my favorites and reading this book was such a bittersweet moment. On one hand, I love this story and will read anything Sebastian de Castell writes but on the other hand now that I've read it, it's over.

I cannot go into specifics about this book but suffice to say that if you're curious about this series you should check out the first book in the series The Traitors Blade. The books get better and better and I will always remember Falcio, Brasti, and Kest.

An excellent addition to the series. Will definitely recommend to my fantasy loving customers. Reminds me of the best swashbuckling stories like anything by Dumas or some of the fantasy novels of Steven Brust. Great stuff!!

I don’t think I can say just how much I adore this series. I’m forever happy with myself for picking up the first book as a digital ARC on a whim, because I had a grand ol’ time with it. It's made me laugh, it's made me cry, it's made me shake my fist at the sky cursing characters' names.

It’s really easy to call the Greatcoats series a fantastical-esque Three Musketeers, and I won’t totally disagree with that assessment. Brasti, Kest, and Falcio are quite like more-violent Musketeers with kick-ass signature coats. They have that similar combination of wildly-different personalities, trust-filled camaraderie, and rapier wit that made Musketeers so fun...but then de Castell also throws in enough political intrigue, grit, and violence to liken it to A Song of Ice and Fire (just with less dragons and ice-zombies).

One of my favourite parts of this series in general is how each book tends to begin relatively in media res and also in very unusual, unexpected ways. Whether it’s in the middle of a tournament, on the run, or, in this case, with the Greatcoats crashing a wedding performance. Are you laughing? You can laugh, it is rather hilarious in its way. The humour of these novels has always been deliciously dry and sarcastic — i.e. my favourite kind — and there’s no shortage of it here. Our three favourite renegades always have something to say on any given situation, but by this point…we’re four books in and these characters have earned any quip they make.

Actually, I think that’s something I want to talk about: that a book has “earned” things that happen. This book does — very much so. Elements of the finale may have (and probably are) a little cheesy, but they feel earned because these characters have been through hell and back and back again. They’ve fought hard in every way for what they were trying to achieve. And this book not only shows you that, but also does a great job of answering a plethora of questions that arose throughout the previous books.

My personal favorite being: how are the Greatcoats going to reunite this country — a country, by the way, that doesn’t seem to care about being reunited?

"What if people didn’t need outdated heroics and idealism? What if they didn’t need Greatcoats at all? What if the one thing my country needed most to survive was a tyrant?"

The question of that very word, “tyrant”, is a good one, especially given all the negative connotations that are associate with it. And for a series that is all about promulgating the importance of being good and just to other humans, I love that it dealt with things like what a country needs in a ruler.

The intrigue of the series comes to a viscerally emotional close, so much so that I am in a small glass case of emotions because my heart was punched out of my chest. It’s fine. I also want to commend de Castell for improving in his writing of female characters as the series went along. I noted in my review of the first novel that while they were "fine", they were the weakest part, character-wise, of the novel and I hoped de Castell would improve in his treatment of them. He did, and there are a plethora of female characters for us to love and hate in equal measure, all with diverse ranges of strengths, weaknesses, personalities, and interests.

I'm going to miss the world of the Greatcoats; I'm going to miss these emotional-baggage-laden characters and their desire to unite their kingdom into a better world. I'll miss them trying to fulfill a dead king's dream...while starting to question whether that dream is> the right move for the people of their country. I'm going to miss the exhilarating action and all the fun I had with this series.

If you have not yet picked up the Greatcoats series, I recommend it. It's a wild and entertaining ride that manages to balance its lighter, more fun aspects with a gritty, riveting, and emotionally-rich story that earns every beat that it hits.

Tyrant’s Throne is, sadly, the fourth and final book in author Sebastien de Castell’s Greatcoats fantasy series. I picked up Traitor’s Blade, the first book in the series some five years ago just out of curiousity but, from the first page, it became one of my favourite stories and, with each succeeding book, my love of the story grew. It was everything I love in a fantasy series: wonderful worldbuilding that continually expanded but never lost its focus on what really mattered to keep the story moving; gods and saints that were not only not all-powerful but could die; a magic system that had limits; plenty of action; a nice touch of humour; and, perhaps most important at least to me given the surfeit of anti-heroes in fantasy lately, heroes who are a throwback to earlier fantasy series but without the pastoral beginnings or big hairy feet, who have weaknesses, human failings and quirks but who strive to do right even when right seems wrong to everyone else – it is, I think, fair to say that de Castille has created some of the most likeable and sympathetic characters in the genre.

And in all these respects, this final book doesn’t disappoint except in one albeit very important way - it means the story is over. However, de Castille hints that there may be more in the future for our three heroes Kest, Brasti, and, of course Falcio (who, perhaps, will finally get some respect?). Fingers or perhaps it should be swords crossed!

Thanks to Netgalley and Quercus Books for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review

The Greatcoats are back. Fans (of which I am one!) of Sebastien de Castell’s fantasy adventure series have been awaiting the release of the fourth and final book, Tyrant’s Throne. Naturally books 1, 2, and 3 should be read first. Then you’ll be pleased that Falcio val Mond, the “First Cantor,” and his brothers-in-arms, Kest and Brasti are still together and still determined to save the kingdom of Tristia from. . .well, from everything.

After the last book, Saint’s Blood, it was difficult to see what else de Castell could find to throw at the heroes. They had already battled evil aristocrats, brutal magical foes, and even gods. Despite deep bonds of friendship and loyalty to their dead king’s ideals, and, most importantly, the entertaining banter among the three leads, the series had become increasingly dark and violent. When this novel opened with a threatened public rape, I almost gave up on it without reading further. But I read on past and the story improved, thankfully.

Tristia is still being governed, loosely, by Valiana the Protector of the Realm, Falcio’s adopted daughter. And they are still awaiting the coronation of the heir to the throne, young Aline. But the nobility, each in their own little domains, are unwilling to see a female rule over them.

In the midst of the political maneuvering, Falcio gets to hankering for the clarity of the good old days when his role was to simply pick up his sword and fight for his beliefs. There is too much ambiguity in politics. He finds himself in too many situations where he is tempted to betray the king’s rule of law in order to do what he thinks is best for his loved ones and the kingdom–at least in the short term. Fortunately, his trusted comrades are there to keep him from abandoning the faith.

Tristia is, as always, faced with numerous threats from within, but the more immediate concern is a new threat from without. The barbarians from over the mountains, fierce warriors who intermittently terrorize the border dukedoms of Tristia but who haven’t been considered much of a threat because of technological and strategic inferiority, have found a new warlord. He provides them with weapons and teaches their armies to fight with discipline. They are coming over the mountains and the divided dukedoms of Tristia are in no way prepared for the fight.

Falcio is no soldier. He doesn’t lead armies, he fights alone or in his small band of Greatcoats. This new battle is one that he’s not sure he wants to undertake. Worse, he has to band together with the worst of his old enemies to fight the new ones. Is such a compromise worth it? Is Tristia worth it?

In some ways this book goes back to the basics: nothing magical or supernatural and the story is better for it. The straightforward adventure is a fitting end to a thrilling series.

De Castell continues to satisfy yearnings for real swashbuckling fiction, while including humor and continuing to develop appealing characters--more, more, more!!

***Dan Ha Vath Fallatu***

Endings to series you enjoy are bittersweet and I would say that for me the end to this was probably just a little more bitter than sweet. I’m still really mad about that one thing that happened SdC you know what it was.

At the end of this you will definitely know:

① - Who is the ruler of Trista.

② - How Falcio managed to beat Kest in a duel.

③ - How to hold a conversation using grunts and moans while being beat up.

***There’s an art to taking a beating. Lying there on the ground as brutes of men punch and kick you into oblivion might not seem as complex a skill as wielding a sword, but trust me, it is. I’m a master at it.***

④ - How many ways Baristi can proposition and insult a woman in one try. He is really the master of both. Dariana has her hands full.

⑤ - How Kest was able to kill the Saint of Swords. Then you will have to debate whether he really did it or Brasti might have killed the Saint of Swords.

⑥ - What Monster has been up to.

I still loved all the time we spend with our three Musketeers and the bromance that is between them. I loved all of the fun banter as always and how the men are more family than most people ever feel towards actual family.

***Brasti jumped to his feet. “I have an idea.” No good has ever come from those four words coming out of that particular mouth. He waited patiently to be asked— almost a full second— then pointed at the deceased Margrave’s wedding barge. “We should become pirates!”
He caught my expression and hastily amended his suggestion. “I mean, good pirates, of course. Noble pirates.”
“‘ Noble pirates’?” Kest asked.
“How would that work, exactly?” I asked, having already forgotten my rule about Brasti and ideas.***

There are certain things that I’ve come to expect from this series:

❶ - Sabestian de Castell is going to surprise me at some point with a death that totally wrecks me. While I thought that the death in the last book would be the one that he couldn’t top (especially after I read the letter that was in his pocket that was in the back of the book), the major death in this book came close if not tied. Again I’m still pretty mad about it.

❷ - A bad guy might get a chance at redemption. Seriously how did Duke Jillard end up on team good. I still don’t know. Now Trin might not be as horrible as we have always thought. Well she is for me but it seems at least one person loves her unconditionally.

❸ - Falcio as always never gets the respect he deserves and more than once will end up on the side that looks like he is totally losing and up against impossible odds. He has made it through so much already but it seems that people often forget that.

Since my twentieth birthday, I’ve fought seventy-six judicial duels (not that I’m counting, Kest does that). I’ve been on the “vastly outnumbered” side of more than a dozen different battles, thwarted numerous assassinations and faced an uncountable number of other attempts on my life. The fact that I’m still here and the majority of my opponents aren’t should say something about my capacity for both survival and violence. And yet I swear there isn’t a single person in this damnable country who’s afraid of me.

❹ - There is always that moment of great hope when everything is starting to pull together and you dare to dream that maybe just maybe everything will all turn out alright. It’s a fools dream since you have read the other three books of this series and know that with every victory comes sorrow but alas you are a fool and hope for it anyway.

“Gentlemen,” I said to Kest and Brasti, “I’m of a mind to attempt something rather daring and heroic.”
Brasti grinned. “I assume this preposterous venture of yours is doomed to fail?”
“Assuredly. But we’re going to do it anyway. You know why?”
Kest had a broad smile, one I’d rarely seen before. “Because preposterous heroics are the only things we’ve ever been good at.”

❺ - The women of the story will surprise you with their strength. Whether that is their strength of character, the ability to care for others no matter the cost or how they change and flow with what is needed of them. I love that some are fighters, others politicians and others caregivers of sorts or combos of all. You don’t have to just be physically strong to be a powerhouse. The women of the story are as complex as the men if not more so. Aline especially shows so many forms of strength in this book especially and Valiana is always one of my favorites.

Is the book or ending perfect. Well no, but how could it be? I’m not sure I would have been happy with and they all lived Happily Ever After. It definitely left so many possibilities for future stories open and I appreciate that. (view spoiler)

There is a semi sappy part that almost makes up for the death of a character that I loved. But it still felt a little short after some of the deep heartaches of the overall series. So many things in this series were wonderful and so many were heartbreakingly terrible. It will be hard to say goodbye to our heroes but hopefully SdC has more stories in mind for this world and even more ways to break our hearts.

I'm so sorry. I didn't realize this was fourth in a series when I requested it. I will not be reading and reviewing this, as I have not read the first three. My apologies for the misunderstanding on my end. I had seen a review for this on youTube and wanted to review it myself. I will wait until I have read the rest of the series.

As I have gotten older I have noticed a change in my reaction to the conclusion of series I love. When I was younger, I would buy final books the moment I could and then power through them immediately, dying to know what happened next. Now, I look at them nervously with a little sadness as I think about how I won’t be getting any more. I usually sit on the book for awhile, savoring the coming end and thinking about all the good times with the series I have had. This was particularly true with Tyrant’s Throne, by Sebastien de Castell, the last of The Greatcoats series. If you have read any of my past posts you will know I absolutely adore this series, and I was terrified to start the finale. On the other hand, once I opened the first page of the book the worries washed away from me as I leaped into the wonderful mind of Falcio val Mond once more.

When we last left our heroes, they had just survived death by the narrowest of margins in a conflict that left their country in shambles. Once again they find themselves the janitors to the world biggest mess, but their country has been broken so many times at this point that the pieces are starting to look unrecognizable. After three internal conflicts, Tristia is now facing its first external conflict: Avares. Their barbarian neighbors to the northwest have raided Tristia for centuries, but an unknown force has united the country under one banner to invade Tristia once and for all in its moment of weakness. While Falcio tries to put Aline on the throne, they must bring together a group of individuals who hate one another to keep Tristia from being wiped off the map.

One of my favorite books of all time is Legend, by David Gemmell, and de Castell seems to have taken a page right out of his magnificent book. An age old threat, coming together to become an unstoppable force that must meet the immovable object of our protagonists. Once again de Castell has raised the stakes of his series with a fantastic new villain, and he has pulled together the threads of his past four books to create a very memorable conclusion. Tyrant’s Throne has everything you love about the previous books; heartbreaking moments, laugh out loud humor, a lovable/hateable cast of characters, a fascinating world, and a fantastic author’s voice. However, Tyrant’s Throne also brings its own voice to the chorus that is the series and presents us with a new and terrible theme: the corruption of Falcio. It was a direction that I did not expect Sebastian to take - and it left a horrible oily slick feeling on my brain while I was reading it (In a good way?). Falcio is so very close to achieving the goal that he has spent his life reaching towards, putting the daughter of his king on the throne. As he gets closer, he finds that he might be willing to break the ideals that he espouses in order to end the conflict once and for all. The exploration of Falcio and his adherance to his own rules was masterfully done, despite the sickening feeling it gave me. De Castell did an incredible job of devising scenarios where there just was no way to win and left you (and Falcio) to wonder what was the best way forward.

As I mentioned before, the final villain is fantastic. It was a perfect antagonist to conclude the series, and it felt like an excellent final foe for our trio. The book has a number of heartfelt moments that hit me hard, and while the book favored less humor than its predecessors due to a more somber tone; the book still had me in stitches repeatedly. De Castell still impresses me with his ability to work profound ideas into such funny characters, and I always love how deep these books can be while also remaining a fun swashbuckling romp. There was very little not to love with Tyrant’s Throne, but I do feel that the final battle was a little less climactic that his previous novels. The series finale sees a shift in focus from our trio of leads to the greater cast as a whole, and while I thought it was masterfully done I liked the tight focus on Falcio more.

That being said, my complaints with Tyrant’s Throne are a small footnote on an essay of why I loved it. The thing that impressed me most was the ending of the full series. De Castell manages to close out his story in a beautiful and magical way that also leaves the door wide open for him to pick the story up at a later date. He manages to do the rare thing of giving our cast full closure on this part of their lives, while also looking to the horizon and paving the way for a return of our greatcoats in the future. Sebastien continues to build his world and reveal new secrets about how it works, right up until the last page. While our trio might be done, the future looks exciting and interesting for our cast - and I would love to come back and see them soon.

So Greatcoats, it has been an incredible journey - and I thank you for allowing me to accompany Falcio on it. While this is certainly an end for the story of our greatcoats, I hope it is not THE end. So I will say goodbye for now and I hope to see your shining hearts again soon. As the door closes on one of my all time favorite series, I will be turning to de Castell’s new book Spellslinger to keep me company. For all of you who have not picked up The Traitor’s Blade yet, well have I got a recommendation for you…

Rating:

Tyrant’s Throne - 9.0/10
The Greatcoats - 9.5/10

Few series transcend their genre, bring readers of differing tastes together to brave dangers along behind its heroes. But when one does, this saga finds itself held up as an all-time great; descriptive terms such as the matchless, the peerless, the unparalleled pinnacle of the genre, and other even more flowery terms thrown around. At the end of the day though, what brands a series as a timeless classic is how it is remembered going forward, especially how many of its fans continue to recommend it to new reader for years and decades to come. Sebastien de Castell’s Greatcoats series now among that small, heralded group of fantasy sagas for me personally. Tyrant’s Throne delivering the finishing touches to propel it into the best swashbuckling fantasy ever written; Falcio val Mond and comrades able to proudly parade among the elites of the genre. And I for one will be trumpeting its praises for as long as I draw breath.

As the concluding chapter in the Greatcoats series, Tyrant’s Throne immediately takes off with the daring do, wisecracking laughs and twisted, political machinations it has become known for. The wedding of two Tristian royals lending itself to yet another rousing dose of Castell action with our leading man pronouncing proudly the most memorable lines since Inigo Montoya in The Princess Bride:

My name, your lordship, is Falcio val Mond. . . I am the First Cantor of the Greatcoats, also called the King’s Heart. You might not know it yet . . . but you are having a very bad day.

As our viewpoint character, Falcio Val Mond has guided readers from the grim depths of Traitor's Blades through the frantic trials of Knight's Shadow to the gloomy despair of Saint's Blood. His constant soul searching, self-induced delusions, unflinching devotion, and unfailing determination the constant pole around which the seething pool of vile politics, horrid sacrifices, and grim deeds revolve in the quest to place King Paelis’ daughter Aline on the throne of Tristia. Yet, now, when he is so close to completing his last mission for his beloved king, circumstances grow even worse for Falcio.

First, there is a war brewing with the Avareans. Second, there is a final showdown with the horrible Trin, who has done nothing but cause our Greatcoats unending grief. And, third, Falcio finds any unexpected enemy — his own self. His demons come to torment him; his most cherished memories turned into horrid illusions of the truth; the very foundation of his life as a Greatcoat rocked by the revelations he must confront. The terrible spiraling of events and choices threatening to send our hero into an abyss of despair from which even he cannot ascend.

But as always, Falcio is not cowed by any threat. His single-minded faith in his beloved ideals causing him to move ever forward, even when he makes terrible mistakes. Our hero able to stand proudly before his innumerable, more powerful foes at the worst of moments and flippantly declare, “Everyone hush now . . . I’m about to be impressive.”

[FALCIO IMAGE]

And he is. No matter the trial, the grief, the torment, or the disillusion, Falcio val Mond is a man of ideal, a warrior of principle, who will not give in to the forces dragging him down. He is the King’s Heart, and such a man can never be defeated!

I have to say I really didn’t believe there was anything left for Sebastien de Castell to throw at Falcio after three books. He has been tortured (mentally and emotionally), seen his dreams shattered more than a few times, and faced the death of all he loved seemingly at every turn. But I was wrong yet again, for Tyrant’s Throne plunges our hero into even greater fires of adversity, forcing him to take a long look at himself and his beliefs before raising the more refined version of my favorite Greatcoat like a blazing phoenix. It is harsh, painful to read at times, but it is such a perfect ending to our hero’s journey that I cannot now imagine Falcio and the Greatcoats’ story ending any other way.

Mixed into the exquisite flagellation, Sebastien de Castell still dazzles with his ability to deliver swashbuckling action, amazing camaraderie, funny moments, and classic heroics. His narrative finding the perfect balance between every emotion, tugging your heart strings one way and another; each twist in the plot spanning the spectrum from crushing despair to soaring excitement. Tyrant’s Throne giving its frequent readers everything they could have ever hoped for in a finale, leaving one awed yet heartbroken that it had to finally come to an end.

Since my return to the fantasy genre about four years ago, Sebastien de Castell is among my favorites authors; his Greatcoats series listed among my most beloved fantasy series ever, resting proudly next to those of Tolkien, Donaldson, and many more. And while Tyrant’s Throne is a fitting ending to this adventure, I dearly hope it will not be our last visit to the colorful world of Falcio and friends. This place having too many fascinating stories yet to tell. But until then, I will cherish my memories of my adventures riding and fighting alongside Falcio and the Greatcoats, proclaiming to all the villains of the world that “THE GREATCOATS ARE COMING!”

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review. I’d like to thank them for allowing me to receive this review copy and inform everyone that the review you have read is my opinion alone.

Do you know what's worse than having to wait months or years before the next book in a series is coming?

Knowing that there isn't another coming.

I'm in shock right now. I'll probably cry myself to sleep tonight. Because it can't be over.

It. Really. Just. Can't. Be. Over.

I know. There is an art in knowing when a series must end. There is a point where it must stop. A series can't be drug along unceremoniously through the dirt and mud until you've beaten it to death ten times over. No one likes that.

But damn it, I wasn't done with you yet Falcio! Do you know what I want to do right now? I want to go back and read Traitor's Blade all over again because I refuse to be done with it.

This is far and away the best book in the entire series. It will rip out your soul with bloody claws, stomp it black and blue, and if that wasn't enough, it will light it on fire and scatter its ashes to the wind. It just isn't fair.

Anyway.

This is supposed to be a review and it's really a rather terrible one. Sorry, I'm not sorry. There isn't anything I can say about this one that hasn't been said about the first three. The writing is excellent. The characters are real and flawed and perform great feats of idiotic heroism. I'm not going to discuss plot here because I refuse to ruin it for anyone. Just know the conclusion is solid and there are no messy plot threads left hanging. The pacing is much faster here because the villains are out there in the open almost from the beginning, which means all Falcio and Kest and Brasti have to do is defeat them.

HA!

To sum it all up: Read this immediately. If you have not read Traitor's Blade yet, read it immediately. Then follow on with Knight's Shadow and Saint's Blood, and go back to step one. Finally, come and join me so we can wallow in our misery and self pity together.

Thank you to Quercus (Hatchette Books) and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

P.S. What the hell else am I supposed to read after this?

Just as Falcio val Mond is about to fulfill his dead King's dream of crowning his daughter Aline, trouble rears its head again. The monstrous Trin has reportedly reappeared in the neighboring country of Avares with a horde of their warriors at her back. Falcio, Kest, and Brasti head North only to find even more trouble than they anticipated. Falcio finds himself torn between upholding the law and following the King's dream.

Tyrant's Throne is the worthy conclusion to the Greatcoats series. There is sorrow, humor, desperation, and slivers of hope scattered throughout the pages. My heart was absolutely breaking at certain points, but the camaraderie between Falcio, Kest, and Brasti helped carry the story through the low moments.

In many ways the Tyrant's Throne is a mystery. The synopsis doesn't give much away so I won't either, but Trin is only part of the iceberg of problems facing the Greatcoats. I can say that nearly every longstanding question that arose in the series is answered in this novel.

As always the greatest strength of the series was the characters and their relationships. The flawed hero Falcio, the incredibly loyal Kest, and the lovable jokester Brasti. While they've all grown and changed in the series their relationship has remained the same. The supporting characters have also helped make the Tyrant's Throne and the series a beautiful tapestry of characterization.

In the end the Tyrant's Throne was not what I expected yet it was an incredibly fitting ending to the tale of Falcio val Mond and his faithful friends Kest and Brasti.

3.5 out of 5 stars

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Using NetGalley is pretty simple. There are two spaces for feedback to the publisher, and two questions. One is whether you would buy the book for yourself or a friend, which I sometimes parrot in reviews of real dogs and say that I would not buy the book for myself or a friend. But I don't think I have ever said yes to the other one which is whether I would like to contact the author. I'm not the New York Times or the London Review of Books, after all, and I know enough writers not to want to badger them with more silly fan questions. I didn't tick the yes box on the "Tyrant's Throne" review either, but by the gods, I would like to meet Sebastien de Castell and buy him dinner or flowers or something. I have not envied a writer so much in years.

I received a review copy of "Tyrant's Throne: Greatcoats #4" by Sebastien de Castell (Quercus US) through NetGalley.com.

OMG!! This book made me cry in sad ways and in happy ways!

This is the best book of the series to me even though it's the last book and I loved them all. I can't believe it's over. It just can't be over. Not with that ending. I want more =)

I will always love the boys: Kest, Brasti & Falcio. Their banter is the best ever in the books. And I was thinking I might not like this series. Here is some advice, don't think, just read, because you never know.

"My name is Kest Murrowson, a magistrate of the Greatcoats." He paused for effect, before adding unnecessarily, "And I am the Queen's Shield."

"To answer your question, friend, my name is Brasti Goodbow, and I am the Queen's Jest."

"My name your Lordship, is Falcio val Mond." I am the First Cantor of the Greatcoats, also called the King's Heart."



The boys are sent off on a mission to go and find some more people to help secure Aline as Queen among other things. They go off into this bitter land and find some things they weren't prepared for.

They return home with this bad news and set up to fight more people. Yeah, they don't get a break.

There are more revelations. There is the evil Trin. There are a lot of things going on in this book. People die =(

I think the conclusion of this series was excellent. I love it so very much, but I'm sad. Yes, I know they can be read over and over, but still, I want more stories.

I can't wait to add this edition to my shelves along with the first three, when it comes to paperback.

*I would like to thank Netgalley and the Publisher for a copy of this book.*

[with apologies to the author]

De Castell turned to Kest. “How would you rate our chances?”
Kest rifled through the manuscript. “We’ll get four and five-star reviews and show up on a dozen Best of the Year lists, after which you’ll get one, no two, major nominations. People will be very sad it’s over and will repeatedly beg you for more. Falcio will appear on five or six “Best Characters in a Series” lists, which won’t do much for his humility I hate to say.”
“I’ll have you know I have the best humility of anyone.”
“My point exactly. I’ll get a Top 10 mention on a list of Best Swordsperson in a fantasy work, but poor Brasti will almost certainly be forgotten, unless someone makes a list of “Characters Who You Only Remember as ‘That Other Guy’”
Brasti glanced up from polishing his bow.
Falcio raised a finger before Brasti could speak. “Please tell me that isn’t a euphemism. I really—”
De Castell interrupted. “Don’t break perspective Falcio. And yes, we all hope it isn’t a euphemism.”
Brasti looked at his polishing cloth. “Nah, it’s just a mix of spit and ale and some other stuff I’m gonna leave a mystery just to drive Falcio crazy. Anyway, Kest is right. I will be recalled as ‘That Other Guy.” As in that other guy who killed a god and kept pulling the silly men with little pointy sticks, who did not kill any gods ever, out of certain death.”’
“Certain is a bit of an overstatement; I always had a plan.”
Kest smiled at Brasti. “Falcio had a plan.”
“So then, Absolutely certain death?” Brasti asked Kest.
“Definitely,” Kest answered.
“I think you two are confusing certain with near-certain. See, if we weren’t in positions of near-certain death, then we couldn’t be lauded for our daring feats of valor. ‘Maybe has a chance of dying’ just doesn’t cut it.”
Brasti snorted. “Lauded, he says. Is that what you call it when you’re jailed—”
“Several times,” Kest interrupted.
“Beaten.”
“Multiple times”
“Marched up a mountain”
“To be both jailed and beaten.”
“Labeled a traitor.”
“By official royal seal.”
“And are forced to face an army that has overwhelming numbers.”
“Plus better fighters and weapons.”
Falcio covered a yawn. “You two done?”
“Did I miss anything?” Brasti asked Kest.
“You left out being betrayed.”
“I thought about putting it in there, but everyone kept shifting sides so often I still haven’t figured out if we ever actually were betrayed or not.”
“How’d you know who to aim your arrows at then?”
“I just looked to see who was most annoyed by Falcio’s speeches.”
“That’s a pretty fine distinction to make.”
“Nah, the ones on our side mostly looked sleepy.”
Falcio turned to De Castell. “See what you saddled me with?”
The author shrugged. “I gave you what you needed.”
“Shoulda thrown in more of a sense of self-preservation while you were at it,” Brasti said. “Especially when it meant preserving us too.”
“A bit more pragmatism wouldn’t have hurt,” Kest added.
“An awareness of when he’s beaten.”
“A little less idealism.”
“A lot more knowledge of women.”
“A lot more knowledge of women.”
“I just said that,” Basti objected.
“He needed to hear it twice.”
“Oh. True.”
Falcio looked with a beseeching eye to De Castell. “Can’t you do anything?”
De Castell looked at him with a mix of frustration and compassion. “Oh Falcio, what more would you want? I gave you insurmountable odds. The fate of your country and loved ones at stake. Chance upon chance to raise the downtrodden, protect the oppressed, and redeem the fallen.”
“Is he talking about us?” Basti whispered to Kest.
“Shhh,” Kest said, waving him off.
De Castell went on as if he hadn’t heard. “I gave you a foe unlike any other you’ve faced, one all the more dangerous for the ways in which he was just like you. I brought old characters back on stage. Gave you the chance to set right the ways in which your greatest sorrow has been made use of. I gave you wrenching choices: who to save, who to sacrifice, vengeance versus peace, and most cutting of all, I made you choose between the two things you had always thought entwined as one: Justice and Law.”
“That’s all a bit obtuse for me,” Basti said.
“You mean abstruse,” Kest told him. “And be quiet, I’m listening.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“I gave you answers to questions raised all the way in Book One. I gave you duels and battles, jailbreaks and rescues, twists and turns, brilliants resolutions and heart-breaking closes.”
Brasti nudged Kest in the ribs. “Bit full of himself, ain’t he? No wonder he and Falcio get along so well.”
“Falcio, I gave you grief and joy and despair and hope and sorrow and love and loss and friendship. I gave you life. And of course, I gave you a chance, several chances, to ‘attempt something rather daring and heroic’.”
“Don’t forget ‘doomed to fail,’” Brasti chimed in.
“Because ‘preposterous heroics are the only things we’ve ever been good at,’” Kest added.
“I even gave you, Falcio,” De Castell continued, “something too many fantasy authors don’t give their favorite characters.”
Brasti winced. “Did he just call Falcio his favorite? We’ll never hear the end of that.”
“What’s that,” Falcio asked. “A jaunty attitude? A rugged handsomeness?”
“An ending,” De Castell said.
“Ahh. Yes.” Falcio smiled, a genuine smile relieved of all tension or forced cheer. “There is that.”
“Wait. What?” Brasti said. “We’re done?”
“No Brasti,” De Castell answered, looking at them all. “But you are free. Free to do what you’d please now.”
“But,” Brasti began.
“Everyone shush now,” Falcio said. “I’m about to be impressive.”