This was just as swell as the first, and I was thrilled to get an early copy. With so much entertaining dialogue, it worked well as a read-aloud, although I'm sure I was mispronouncing a bunch of the words and names when reading it to my husband.
My kingdom for a glossary, though! The only supplemental material to refresh my memory was a chart of the military hierarchy--which was good to have--but as I was reacquainting myself with this insanely imagined world, I could have used a refresher on terms. Maybe the published version will have one.
The mystery is twisty, and more is revealed of the wider world and the secrets behind Ana's genius. I enjoyed Din's first-person narration and the camaraderie he developed with new character Malo as the book progressed. I do hope their paths cross again.
Book 2 is another winner! I love this author's imagination, and I look forward to more books in this world.

A Drop of Corruption
Is a continuation of the story started in The Tainted Cup, with a reprisal of Ana Dolabra, the fiery investigator who blindfolds herself to think better, and Dinios Kol, her partner with perfect memory. Ana and Din are tasked to solve the crime of a treasury man, gone missing and found murdered in the far reaches of the almost-annexed kingdom of Yarrow. But what they find when they get there unravels into a much deeper conspiracy that has far reaching consequences not only for Yarrow but for the entire Empire they serve.

I will be frank, this world that RJB has conceived of is one of the coolest fantasy settings I’ve seen. Plants rule here, where buildings are grown and people are augmented to have superhuman powers such as perfect recall and enhanced reasoning power. I love the descriptions of the world, the buildings, the jungle, the high city, it’s all just so imaginative.

The diversity of the characters is so refreshing as well. Women with bald heads, bisexual men, strong personalities, people with autistic tendencies. It’s a vibrant world with such great characters. Ana is hilarious and Din is the perfect foil. I loved the new character of Malo, she fit in perfectly with the strange cast.

The plot line was also fascinating, and the mystery so convoluted at times I had trouble following. But, it all became clear and the payout was worth it. I don’t think the pacing was maybe as good as the first novel in the series, but it kept me coming back for more.

4/5 stars!

I received an ARC from netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I thoroughly enjoyed this sequel to the Tainted Cup. Though the story in this sequel stands apart and independently of the first, I would recommend reading them in order. The mystery was interesting, though I felt as if it was convoluting at times . We do learn more about the magic system and about one character's mysterious background, which I am excited to read about in future books. This was full of twists and surprises, and I thought the conclusion to be quite satisfying. Overall, this was a great read!

The Tainted Cup was one of my favorite 2024 reads because it differed from what I had been reading—it was still fantasy (my genre of choice) but with Sherlock Holmes vibes. So, I was so excited to dive into A Drop of Corruption.

I loved certain aspects of the second installment, although I wanted a little more from some elements. Would I recommend it? Yes! If you enjoyed the first book, you should definitely read the second. The world continues to expand, and I look forward to what’s to come in the next book.

I enjoyed…
…continuing to get to know Din now that he has been in his role a bit longer, he trusts his abilities more, is piecing together clues on his own accord, and is confident in his understanding of Ana’s quarks. I still enjoy the story unfolding, where you get pieces of information as Din does, so you are coming to your conclusions as Din does. It also expands the view of the empire as you learn about Yarrowland, which I love as you are introduced to new characters and a new side to politics.

My one gap…
My biggest bummer of the read is Ana. I LOVED her in The Tainted Cup - she was running her own game. She was shrewd and confident as things unraveled. She had everyone’s number. However, in this read, I felt she was coming undone, which was likely on purpose, and I was just not ready for that yet. I wanted more of what I read before. Not someone who seemed to be yelling all the time but someone who was quietly figuring it out and strategically dropping the truth when she needed to.

All in all…
There continue to be many twists and turns to uncover “who did it,” similar to the style of book one. Although I wanted a slight shift from book one to keep me on my toes, this was still a fun read.

4.5 stars...first off thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the eARC of this book. It was quite the journey. I love the characters so much Ana and her neurodivergent-isms and Din was certainly put to the test on more than one occasion. These character are so well developed and the plot was great. A puzzle within a conundrum for sure. This story gave me Sherlock Holmes vibes and I'm not mad about it. It had magic, murder, mystery, mayhem, sleuthing. I would definitely recommend it to readers, especially if they read the first one.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House for the ARC! I enjoyed revisiting the world and Ana and Din. This story had similar energy to tainted cup with the painstaking interviews and evidence collection.

That said there were times this book dragged somewhat. I kept expecting there to be a point at which the plot picked up but they never really came.

Read if you think: Sherlock Holmes, Occupy Wall Street, and quiet quitting would all be more fun in a sci-fi fantasy setting.

Continue reading only if you've finished Book One.
Ana and Kol have spent a few years sleuthing together since The Tainted Cup, and they have now been sent to a region being annexed by the Empire to solve a locked-room murder. Ana, a brilliant detective in the tradition of Sherlock and Poirot, may have finally met her match in this book's antagonist, as the murderer seems to anticipate her at every turn.

This is a really fun mystery that keeps you guessing at every turn. I was a bit disappointed not to see more continuity from some storylines in the first book, but I loved exploring the Leviathan-haunted empire further. I look forward to discovering what hotbed of corruption Ana and Kol will expose in Book Three!

Rating: 4

Thank you to Random House Publishing for providing me with an advanced e-copy!

My nonspoilery review is that this was an enjoyable 4/5, but a step down from the first book. The world building and the mystery was still good and I really enjoyed how the mystery specifically pulls you into the different layers of the world and you see different perspectives on how people are affected. My main complaint is that this book didn’t seem to trust the reader as much as the first one. Clues were repeatedly pointed to, even having many sections where Dinn repeats them verbatim. I know that’s his whole thing, but it mostly felt heavy handed by the end of the book (with the exception of one particular moment that I loved and felt so much more like the first book). The characters are still strong here, but they also feel kind of static. I wanted more from the dynamic between Ana and Dinn, but it’s hard to talk about without getting Into spoilers. I am very curious/hopeful for book three to see how the groundwork laid in this book pays off.

Spoilers from here on! My big spoilerly complaint was that I felt like the one decision Dinn really makes in this book is spoon fed to him in a way I didn’t enjoy. I appreciate the themes of the story overall in terms of how thankless, invisible work can still be important but I also would’ve appreciated it more if that felt more like something Dinn had decided on his own. There’s literally a section where Thelani turns herself into justice and talks about how important and thankless the work of the Iudex is. Very heavy handed. Especially because one of the through lines of this story is corruption within the empire, but then the Iudex is treated like it’s somehow outside of that because they’re the ones hunting corruption? I think that the way that Ana is asking Dinn to watch over her for potential corruption was really good, but only glancingly dealt with at the end of the book! Maybe issues within the Iudex will be in the next one? Fingers crossed. Anyway, if we’re talking about Ana’s transformation to try and figure out the mystery, I feel like her need to go into an elevated state to sort things out was undercut by the fact that the mystery felt like it was too easy to solve with certain clues being repeated multiple times. The fact that the antagonist was the prince’s twin was something I guessed early on because we kept mentioning twins in the family, for instance.

Thank you Del Rey Team and Netgalley providing the ARC!

I ended this book with two main thoughts: first, I love the dynamic between Ana and Din. The connection between them is fantastic, and Malo's arrival brought new energy to the story. I would love to see them as a fixed trio in the investigations. Now, I can only think about how I need the third book as soon as possible!

The second thought is that this serie has already become one of my favorites. Since The Tainted Cup, I knew she had the potential for it. The universe created by the author is fascinating, and in this second book he managed to surpass himself.

Everything it's all so well written and planned that reading becomes a unique experience. Stories like this make it worth being a reader.

Ana and Din are, without a doubt, my favorite pair of investigators!

Loved the second book in the Shadow of the Leviathan series. It's a little bit slower than the first but still captivates in various directions that don't necessarily make sense at the moment but are blended together as the story and mystery progress. You still have the quirky, brilliant, and outlandish blindfolded Ana on the hunt with Din at her side and abroad collecting clues. You learn more about the world & realms they live in, the backgrounds & development of Din and Ana which gives additional context to the characters. The main mystery pulls you through wondering how it's going to shake out. Really enjoyed it, doesn't necessarily end on cliff hanger but leaves you wondering & hoping for another book. Would recommend to those who like Sherlock Holmes but in a fantasy novel & while it helps to read the first, you don't necessarily need to which is always refreshing.

Review also posted on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7033143669

4.5 stars. What a pleasant surprise to enjoy a sequel more than the first book in the series!

I've always been more of a fantasy reader than a mystery reader, so it actually means a lot to say that I thoroughly enjoyed the detective part of the story. The clues are nicely set up, and quite a few of the twists/schemes are delightfully clever. I was also glad to see that one of my main complaints about the first book -- the fact that many mysteries got solved by someone knowing a piece of information that the reader does not (oh! I didn't tell you this poison would cause mold on the wall!) -- no longer applies to this second installment. All the hints are skillfully tucked into seemingly unimportant dialogues and details, which makes it so satisfying whenever I manage to spot a cue. And when I don't, that just adds even more fun to the ah-ha moment.

The fantasy side, however, especially in the last part the book, is what made this story truly resonate with me and left me thinking. The tonal shift midway in the series is interesting, and the thematic emphasis on cultural clashes, bureaucracies, power corruptions, etc. makes it feel more like RJB's other fantasy mystery trilogy rather than the first book in this one, but that's exactly the way I like it. The occasional philosophical commentaries about the divine and the ephemeral, or about glory and duty, or relating to the bold references made in the author's acknowledgements, are precisely the reason why I love fantasy worlds. Seeing them in this book was a little unexpected, but very pleasantly so.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a pre-approved ARC, which forced me to fit this read into a terribly managed schedule that would've otherwise not allowed it. 3.5 stars for the first 70% of the book, 5 stars for the last 30%. Now I'm looking forward to the next one more than ever.

AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING I fucking love Ana so much she cracks me up! All the characters are so odd and unique, I love them all. The plot is so wild and keeps you on edge! Phenomenal writing

OMG, you guys—this book is, like, everything. Five shiny, fabulous stars. From the very first page, it’s a wild, twisty ride you cannot put down. Ana Dolabra is the kind of brilliant, chaotic investigator you want solving every impossible crime ever, and her assistant Din? Ugh, love him—so relatable, so funny, and somehow manages to keep up with Ana’s genius while staying grounded. Their dynamic is absolute perfection!

The mystery was a total brain candy. A locked-room murder with ghostly vibes and stakes so high you’re practically sweating. And the world-building? Stunning. Titans, magic, political intrigue—it’s all layered in this rich, immersive way that feels alive and buzzing. It’s like stepping into a world you never want to leave.

Also, can we talk about the writing? It’s sharp, witty, and totally bingeable. Every clue, every twist had me gasping. And that ending? SO satisfying. I’m officially obsessed with this series and will be waiting not-so-patiently for the next one.

Big thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion 💕

I am so grateful to have received an ARC for this book.

I truly cannot get enough of Din and Anna. The sequel to The Tainted Cup does not disappoint. We are on a new adventure with our mystery solving duo, and the case is focused on capturing a rogue madman, who is a threat to the entire Empire.

Robert Jackson Bennett does world building like no other, but he also makes his characters so interesting. Our characters grow throughout this story, and their companions in this mission made it even better.

If you love fantasy and mystery, this series is the perfect blend. I highly recommend. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

With The Tainted Cup, Robert Jackson Bennett introduced us to a fun and whimsical locked-door murder mystery set within a lush new fantasy world. We met Ana and Din (Sherlock and Watson, respectively) and were taken on a whirlwind adventure filled with unique characters, a magic system with a dark side, and whispers of the monsters that inhabit the land. Everything was just getting started, though, because in A Drop of Corruption, we skip right past the pleasantries and immediately dig in to what RJB has in store this time.

Ana and Din’s fresh whodunit takes them to Yarrowdale, a canton north of the sea walls that hasn’t quite been taken over by the Empire yet and remains its own autocracy. A high-ranking officer of the Empire has vanished, and it is up to Ana and Din to solve the case – and fast, as more problems are popping up quicker than they can fix them. A whole new host of characters are brought in, each with their own stand-out personalities, relationships, and abilities. While I was sad that nobody from the first book (except Ana and Din, of course) made an appearance, the new characters filled that gap beautifully and I really hope we will see a meshing of old and new in the final book.

Yarrowdale handles an enormous portion of the reagent manufacturing for the Empire, and they process pure leviathan blood and organs at the Shroud, an isolated compound that looms in the Bay of Yarrow like one of the titans themselves. The hush-hush surrounding the Shroud throughout the story makes it so interesting, and leaves you desperate for just a little bit more information about it. To me, the Shroud was one of the best parts of the book, as it drove nearly the entire plot while simultaneously feeding the reader more and more bits about the world as a whole and how it functions. Politics also play a larger role in this book than they did in its predecessor, and it is very tastefully done, again giving the reader exposition in maddening little doses.

Din is a very relatable character, and he makes this series so enjoyable. His inner monologue is witty and emotional at all the right times, and he has very deep, complicated relationships with both others and himself that make you feel for him and root for the resolution of their obstacles. I especially love him and Ana. Their development is heartwarming and I just know something awful is going to happen in the third book that makes me regret ever starting this series in the first place.

Nobody does plot twists like RJB, and A Drop of Corruption is no exception. I was holding my breath the entire way through, and it’s one of those books where I found myself excited to finish up all my other tasks so I could just sit down and read. This second installment lives up to its promises from book one and then some, and I can’t recommend the Shadow of the Leviathan series enough.

Thank you to Del Rey for providing an advance copy! Expected publication April 1, 2025.

A Drop of Corruption
by Robert Jackson Bennett
Pub Date: Apr 01 2025

In the canton of Yarrowdale, at the very edge of the Empire’s reach, a Treasury officer has disappeared into thin air—vanishing from a room within a heavily guarded tower, its door and windows locked from the inside.

To solve the case, the Empire calls on its most brilliant and mercurial detective, the great Ana Dolabra. At her side, as always, is her bemused assistant Dinios Kol.

Ana soon discovers that they are investigating not a disappearance but a murder—and one of surpassing cunning, carried out by an opponent who can pass through warded doors like a ghost.
Worse still, the killer may be targeting the high-security compound known as the Shroud, where the Empire harvests fallen titans for the volatile magic found in their blood. Should it fall, the Empire itself will grind to a halt, robbed of the magic that allows its wheels of power to turn.

Din has seen his superior solve impossible cases before. But as the death toll grows and their quarry predicts each of Ana’s moves with uncanny foresight, he fears that she has at last met an enemy she can’t defeat.

10/10 again. The fantasy world created in this novel unfolds slowly, drawing you into a magical realm of augmented creatures - not quite humans. Beyond the standard murder mystery plot, the main characters Din and Ana unravel a political thriller in this next installment. Eagerly awaiting book 3!

4/5 - Thank you to Netgalley and Random House for an eARC in exchange for an honest review! I was so excited to dive into the next Shadow of the Leviathan book after really enjoying The Tainted Cup, and it mostly delivered on my high expectations. The magic system was explored more thoroughly, and specifically this idea of transmutation was pleasantly pervasive throughout multiple aspects of the story. We see the magic system at play in both everyday activities like repairing houses and in crucially important rituals for protecting the society at large, as well as in how people are augmented for specific purposes. The language characterizing magical effects was vivid, painting beautiful and sometimes gruesome images that really sucked me in.

The part of the world building that I didn't like so much was that it took place in an entirely different location than the first. The physical environment was different as well as the government and culture. Because the very intricate mystery took away from the world building in the first book, I was looking forward to getting much more of that in this one, but instead we sort of started back at square one. Of note, this new nation-state is an autocracy, separate from the more oligarch/ruling class empire of Khanum. I do really appreciate the author's note discussing this creative choice as a response to the fantasy genre's obsession and glorification of monarchy, where he creates this environment of a once beautiful but now defunct kingdom that does nothing for the people it serves. This comes with a big BUT though, which is that it resulted in what I read as pro-imperialism rhetoric, where some of the main characters in this oppressive monarchy are supportive of the neighboring empire to come in and "free" them. The way this was written made me uncomfortable at times. And as a last note on world building... where were the Leviathans T_T ??? None of the questions I had at the end of the first book were answered and they make essentially no appearances in this one. I don't know if all of this is very cleverly intentional being that the series name is the SHADOW of the Leviathan and we aren't really ever meant to interact with the real thing, but it feels like a major tease.

The mystery in this one was as delicious as the first. My expectations were met in terms of the complexity and interest. The plot twists became somewhat more predictable by the end but especially at the beginning it was very new and fresh and interesting. Our Din and Ana duo continue to be very fun to follow along with. Ana is still easily my favorite character, and I felt like she was developed in a satisfying way over the course of this book, we got more hints to her true identity and saw different sides of her. Din on the other hand, while continuing to be a great straight-man for Ana's wackiness, did not develop as much as I would have liked in this installment. We learn more about him and his circumstances, but despite seeing everything through his eyes I still don't feel like I have a really good understanding of who he is or what he wants. There is a decision he goes back and forth on that reveals a bit more about him, but his whole characterization is just a bit flat when compared to everyone and everything else in this series. I was also hoping that we would get more on the romance side of things that the author seemed to be pointing at by the end of book one, but that too was stalled. We see Din's bisexuality come out more in this book and I'm a huge fan of that representation, but I'm a bit worried that the author is just throwing that in for the sake of having representation and these things he is struggling with in his love life won't ever end up mattering to the story line. I very much hope I am wrong about that and the yearning that is building up gets more depth and eventual resolution (because I do LOVE some yearning). The other note on representation was I thought the author's choices in discussing gender identity were strange. There is a scene when Din talks to two characters and has an internal dialogue that their genders are ambiguous and reflects that maybe identifying their gender is not important and should not be assumed (yay!) but then he proceeds to gender these two characters, who have definitely not offered up their gender identities at all, specifically calling them "him" and "her" throughout the rest of the scene.

The last thing I have to say is about language. In general the writing was very quick and smart and easy to get absorbed into, making it very fun to read. However, there was such a strange shift in the vernacular and tone of all the characters over the course of the book that was jarring to me and took me out of it a bit. The beginning of this book, like the last, felt like it was supposed to be set in a world resembling our past in a lot of ways, but with very modern language. Or at least modern language with some flairs of the past. Then by the end it felt like everyone was talking in a very high-brow, old-timey, more inaccessible vernacular. As an example, in the beginning there is a passage:

"I appreciate when you throw rocks at my ideas, Din. Keeps me from going too far up my own ass. Proceed."

This is golden, its why I love these books. Then by the end of the book the same character says:

"A song. For I have practiced greatly upon the Pithian lyres, as you may soon see, and would much enjoy providing you with music! That should make a fitting end to these sad days, yes?".

Again maybe that was a specific creative choice, but if so it went over my head and just felt weird. At the end of the day though the author does a beautiful job of summing up truths that are universal. One of my favorite lines is:

"Work can never satisfy, Din, for it can never finish. The dead cannot be restored. Vice and bribery will never be totally banished from the cantons. And the drop of corruption that lies within every society shall always persist. The duty of the Iudex is not to boldly vanquish it but to manage it. We keep the stain from spreading, yes, but it is never gone."

Overall with some things improving from the first book and other aspects becoming more disappointing, my rating is the same as The Tainted Cup and I am definitely looking forward to book 3!

First, Thank you Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for sending me this arc. The following review and opinions are my own.

This is the second book I read in the genre “Fantasy Mistery”. As the first book in the series, it can be described as Sherlock Holmes meets Harry Dresden and together they work from the Folley. I found the sequel surprisingly better than the first book, and this is exactly how it should be: Make a great entrance and have a steep build up in the following book. Well done. So again, we accompany Din and his ‘boss’ Ana on a surreal and thrilling journey in solving a murder crime and a plausible conspiracy in the empire. We get more insight in the characters themselves as well as their personal struggle. I connected a lot more with them here than I did in the Tainted Cup. I found the dialogues more witty and intriguing, the pace of the plot was well balanced. However, I didn’t enjoy the story as much as I would like to have. A lot happening and still nothing happening, if you get my drift. A bit too complex and confusing for me at times, too long acts of observations, lots of scenery changes where I had issues to follow through. In addition, I was hungry for more knowledge of the mysteries surrounding Ana and the whole system of the world itself. The things you get fed are a tad too vague for me. The writing is excellent, no doubt, which makes it definitely readable, but not one of my favourites in the end. Even though the plot seems deep, twisted and cleverly woven, it lacks the certain something, feels a bit bland and I miss the overall excitement. Maybe it’s just a personal preference, or maybe I’m not in the detective game at all.

I have been a long-time fan of RJB and was delighted to be given the opportunity to read this book!

The world building continues and finding out more about Ana and Dinios. It looks like there is another book coming eventually, yeah!
Another fun murder mystery.

#NetGalley