I would like to thank Del Rey, Netgalley and the author for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

“The crowd departed, yet I remained, my thoughts black and cloudy from all the suffering I’d witnessed, memories I’d never scrub from my soul. Then I saw I did not stand alone…”

Read if you like:
🌿 Deadly plants
🪐 Interesting world building
🧩 Puzzles
😆 Snarky characters

Eccentric investigator Ana is called in to solve the mysterious death of an imperial officer: he was found torn apart by a tree erupting from his body. Ana’s assistant, Din, is an engraver, he’s been biologically altered to possess perfect memory. The mystery quickly escalates and the entire empire is under threat with a leviathan looming, ready to bring destruction with it.

This book was so much fun! If you enjoy Sherlock Holmes and fantasy, read this matchup. Ana brings the eccentricity and Din is a great stoic Watson. They play off each other so well. On top of that, the world building is incredible, the fantasy elements were so satisfying and the magic system is really unique. There were so many elements that the action got held up in some places but it’s so interesting that you have to just keep turning the page to see what happens next. The way all the puzzle pieces fit together in the end definitely has the Sherlock feeling. I’m looking forward to reading the next book.

Robert Jackson Bennett does it again! A genre bending fantasy/scifi masterpiece with well developed characters, a stunning and immersive plot and surprises around every corner.

Dine and Ana are most definitely a Stand Out team. They are banter and ways of interacting with each other. We're extremely relatable and very real. They were both extremely well developed characters that only got more interesting as the plot line further.

Speaking of the plot, what a wild ride. This was a Sherlock Holmes/Watson type mystery, and I really enjoyed it. There was lots of twist and turns, and I absolutely did not see the majority of things that unfolded coming. A few things were slightly predictable, however, the amazing twist and turns to get you to the endpoint, as well as the way it was revealed, completely outshined the fact that I had an inkling of what was going on.

Even the side characters invoked strong emotion and added so much to the plot line. There is a very small thread of a budding romance towards the middle to end of the book. But it is absolutely not in anyway part of the story itself.

A character I want to go a little deeper into is Ana. It is worth mentioning that while not specifically stated, Anna shows tendencies of being neurodivergent. And the best part about that is, it is extremely relatable and realistic. It's also seen as an advantage in not only her line of work, but in who makes her a person. I love the way that was handled and I thought it was done very well.

Book Name: The Tainted Cup
Author: **Robert Jackson Bennett

ARC

Thank you to NetGalley and **Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Del Rey** for an ARC of Robert Jackson Bennett’s The Tainted Cup

Stars: 1 (DNF)

- Slow
- Weirdly Clunky
- Fantasy wasn’t Fantasy-ing
- Mystery Felt Very “Removed”

Ok, this is on me, because obviously, this is a book that is being received well. Maybe it was the writing style or fantasy element but everything felt dulled in this book. it just felt off. Which is a personal issue, not an author or book issue.

Due to the Negative Nature of this review, I will not be posting it to Goodreads or retail sites with respect to the publisher and author.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-ARC! I am very grateful and happy to explore everything this author will write in the future as well!

Yes yes yes!! This was my first book by Robert Bennett and I can 100% say I will be reading more by him!!!

A fantastical trip into a strange and mesmerizing new world with murders to solve. There is not much you could look for in a book that this does not have: Mystery, a sympathetic hero, a quirky investigator and a world full of sights, smells and sounds that do not exist in our world. There are moral challenges to ponder and relationships to forge. I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to this unique and thought-provoking land.

A truly spectacular read! I was hooked from the beginning! A great mystery solving duo, the perfect level of snark and sarcasm, all built upon a compelling fantasy world. I want books in this series forever and ever. These characters have great chemistry and compliment each other incredibly well. The newbie and his imposter syndrome paired with the quirky experienced detective who *might* think a bit too highly of herself (but maybe she's just that good). The pairing is perfect.

The world is fantastic. I want to know everything about these Leviathans, the empire that blocked their path, the infusions and augmentations that were enabled by studying these great beasts and all the secrets I'm sure are hiding in this lore. Somebody please tell me book 2 will be coming soon.

4.5!

A fun mix of Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie and Knives Out! The Tainted Cup was such a refreshing read! I loved that it was a murder mystery set in a fantasy world with a really unique, yet understandable magic system and the characters were engaging and quirky.

Loved it!

Dinios Kol serves as the assistant to Ana Dolabra, a renowned Immunis (detective). Din is her eyes and ears as she confines herself to her quarters. He is also an engraver, enhanced to have a perfect memory triggered by scents. When an elite commander is murdered in the home of a powerful family, the two work together and are stuck in a web of a great conspiracy.

There is great world building without a big info dump, which I always appreciate. The characters, especially Ana and Din, are wonderful. There is also Neuro divergent representation. Din is dyslexic and Ana is agoraphobic. Din is desperate to keep his secret. He comes up with very creative solutions when faced with the necessity for quick reading.

This seems like the start to a series, and I very much hope it is!

If you want me to read a book, all you have to do is compare it to one of my favorite TV shows or movies. The Tainted Cup was sold to me as a Knives Out murder mystery set in Attack on Titan, and that's all I needed to hear to add it to my TBR, honestly. It's also written by @r.jackson.bennett, who wrote the amazing Foundryside!

I'm giving it 🌟🌟🌟🌟 for Ana alone, who reminds me of Monk and House. Two brilliant minds that were able to solve the unsolvable but had poor people skills 😂.

I think this series will be perfect for fans of procedurals and cozy mysteries but want more fantasy. I can wait to make this a year purchase.


Thank you, @netgalley for the ARC

Genre blurring at it's finest, Robert Jackson Bennett's new novel "The Tainted Cup" blends the mystery solving of a Nero Wolfe-esque quirky detective with an other worldly sci-fi setting, a la Frank Herbert's "Dune" series. For fans of sci-fi and fantasy, "The Tainted Cup" delivers intriguing world building and fascinating ideas about a planet and culture based around physical enhancements that can be grafted onto citizens, and an extensive caste system that rules over all of the inhabitants of the planet. Additionally, the continual Godzilla like threat of the ever preset leviathans, keeps the reader intrigued and curious about their existence and origin.

For the mystery lovers, Jackson Bennett introduces the brilliant and flawed Ana Dolabra, an investigator who works most times blindfolded to overcome all stimulus superfluous to her case. The book opens with one of the most unique murders you'll come across, and over it's chapters revels a far ranging and complex case that will leave the reader unsure of who might be involved, and who can be trusted.

Overall, I would recommend this book for fans of sci-fi and detective novels, as well as fans of literary genre blending. Like most sci-fi novels, the first third of the book can take a bit longer to get through as tons of terminology unique to this world are thrown at you, but those who stick with it will find that it starts to become second hand as you become more and more immersed in Jackson Bennett's world. The pacing is solid and keeps the story moving along without getting excessively bogged down in exposition or descriptions. All in all, and enjoyable and enticing read.

Technically a fantasy, but absolutely a murder mystery. As someone who is still dipping their toes in the pool of fantasy books, this was a great lead in for me.

Thanks to Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Attack on Titan meets Pacific Rim and Sherlock Holmes in this stunner of a story. I was obsessed with this book from start to finish. The description sounded amazing, the body horror drew me in, and the cover is gorgeous. Seems too good to be true, right? Nope! The Tainted Cup was incredible. I struggled to put it down, even at work, and spent a good portion of my shift hiding in the back room just so I could finish one more chapter…then one more…then another…
The writing was beautiful but easy to follow along with, and the characters…Oh, man, I love the characters. They were all very distinct in their appearances and personalities, and the interactions between them were often hilarious; I don’t know how I’m going to live without them until the next book comes out. I have endless theories about the leviathans.
If you begin reading and find yourself confused, give it a few chapters. Things will make more sense once you’re around the 10% mark. I already want to reread it.

Love these characters, the mystery is well planned, and the looming threat of a leviathan coming over the sea wall makes for an exciting read. Robert Bennett does not disappoint, and I look forward to reading more with these characters.

Dinios has been magically altered to be able to perfectly recall everything and his job is to assist detective Ana Dolabra who is brilliant and makes great deductions. When a high imperial officer is killed and they are called to investigate, they realize there may be a plot that threatens to undermine the Empire as they know it. Overall, an interesting mystery told in the style of Sherlock Holmes but set in a magical world based on the Roman empire. The world building is very complex and as more is uncovered it makes you curious how everything is tied together.

𝘔𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘔𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘺 • 𝘍𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘺 • 𝘚𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘍𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 • 𝘘𝘶𝘦𝘦𝘳
𝘗𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥: 6 February 2024

This ended up being a delightful Sherlock & Holmes style murder mystery, but set in a fantastical world where people are enhanced with magical grafts granting them special abilities, be it physical strength, photographic memory, calculation prowess, even pheromones to make a courtesan impossibly appealing.

Quaint yet futuristic, the book explores an alternate society: one with rungs of hierarchy, lots of tea drinking and sword fighting, with carrier pigeons and assassins and the entire world under threat of collapse should the Empire’s walls be breached by leviathans, otherworldly sea serpents.

Layer upon layer of deception are artfully woven into an engrossing whodunnit. Kol Din, the assistant engraver to our lead detective Ana Dolobra, is more than he seems, while Ana is just as eccentric and no-holds-barred unfiltered as I’d hoped. She cannot deal with too much stimulation and as such is a recluse who always appears blindfolded to tamp down sensory overload.

The exploration of humanity and depravity and corruption unraveling feels true to sci-fi. There are hints of a queer romance. I’m excited that this is only book 1 of a series. It nicely wraps up the mystery of the plant contagion, but leaves things open for a next case to be solved by this fun duo.

This was my first Robert Jackson Bennett book, and I loved it!!! I can't wait for book 2 in this series.

I adored the characters. The banter between them was snarky, witty, and at times hilarious.

This book gave me so many Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes, and Knives Out vibes. Those vibes combined with fantasy setting were the cherry on top!

Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review.

I enjoyed the characters of the story, they were well-rounded enough to keep the story interesting and to let their flaws occasionally be the reason they find something or drive the drama forward. The plot itself was great! The way the characters slowly unwind the mystery and figure out the clues plus I LOVED how the world itself has huge ties to the mystery.

I’ve always known RJB had a talent for telling a mystery fantasy after I read City of Stairs but The Tainted Cup really drives home how far he’s come in his writing and plotting since then. Overall The Tainted Cup is an incredible story for its genre and I'm eagerly awaiting the next adventure in this world.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Del Rey for an eARC of The Tainted Cup.

This was a great murder mystery, with an overarching scheme of comparing the threat of leviathans against the Empire. The two main characters, Ana and Din are a great pair. I had heard they were like Sherlock & Watson and I can definitely see the comparison. The magic system is slight with people being augmented to have special talents. In this book there are constant twists and turns. Multiple people are murdered and it's up to Ana to solve the case with Din's ability to engrave, or memorize, everything about the scenes and relay to Ana. The thought and care that accompanied the writing of this book is seen throughout. This was very interesting and I found myself reading it late into the night. I will definitely be picking up the sequel.

Let me start by saying I haven't read fantasy for years (not counting one urban fantasy series that I started years ago and is still going strong). But this book, was full on fantasy, with the odd and original premise of the characters and buildings being plant based and/or having parasites to "add" to them. I could never pin down the origin of the characters either, which I'm sure was the point, but at times reminded me of historical China, India, and the Roman empire. All the while this appeared to be a historical novel (at least to me), it also embodied all of the current issues we all deal with in the world today, just differently. The author did an exceptional job at world-building in this book. At first you are slightly confused and that's probably when I started linking it to past civilizations. Soon, there's a murder; they are poisoned, causing a tree to explosively grow from the person's body. We meet Din, a newly assigned assistant to the provocative and unconventional Investigator Ana. Din is treated quite poorly by almost everyone around him, yet he is forthright, follows the rules, and performs his job exceptionally. Ana's senses are acute and therefore cannot be around people except for short periods time and spends most of the book, blindfolded, to help. So while other investigators visit the scene, Din is sent in her place. Din's ability is too remember everything he sees and hears and is like a human video recorder, but must tie his memories to a scent.

This is a high profile murder with connections to higher goverment and a controlling "family" that has their fingers in everything in the empire. As the investigation progresses they end up in another canton where more murders take place all while the city is preparing for another Leviathan attack.

I LOVED this book!! It was fascinating with well developed characters and an interesting murder mystery with the subplot of possible anniliation. Ana and Din were a Sherlock and Watson duo, only better.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey and NetGalley for providing an eARC of one of the best fantasy books I've ever read. All opinions are my own.