I loved book 1 in this series and was very excited to see that book 2 was coming out so soon.

This sequel did not disappoint. Is it long? Yes. It is needed for the plot? I think so.

Din and Ana are out on another major case where someone from the Empire has been murdered under very suspicious circumstances. There is also a dead king in an empire that was supposed to become part of the empire.

With perfect storytelling, Bennett spins this tale while building another piece of the world we are getting with this series. The added characters are well written and I loved this mystery.

𝗠𝗬 𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦:

☆ 1000/10.
☆ Infinite 5 stars
☆ Perfection
☆ Absolutely no notes.
☆ Lives completely rent free in my head and I love it.
☆ Utterly Obsessed.
☆ I will take no criticism of this book
☆ Permanent auto-buy author
☆ I absolutely need to read his back-log.

Seriously.. this man's writing is on a whole 'nother level and I'm addicted to it.


𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗟𝗗 𝗕𝗨𝗜𝗟𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚: RJB drops you right back into his fascinating fantasy world of dangerous plant life, human augmentation, and deadly leviathans. He remained incredibly consistent with the world he built in 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘊𝘶𝘱, while still expanding on not just the Empire, but one of the neighboring regions its trying to absorb.

𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: Ana is still a fricken chaos queen and I love her so damn much. Din continued to grow, keeping his personal character arc intriguing to follow. Once again, we were given colorful side characters that fully brought this region to life, especially with the introduction of Malo. She played off Din beautifully, almost taking on the roll of Din's foil - highlighting his flaws and forcing him to learn and grow out of them. She was a splendid addition to the murder mystery solving crew.

𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗧: I honestly stopped trying to guess where RJB was taking us cuz lord I was wrong each time. This man is phenomenal with red herrings and subtle foreshadowing. Fast past, super addictive to read

𝗩𝗜𝗕𝗘𝗦: Immaculate. No notes.

𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: ★★★★★ x ∞

*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐈𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄:
☆ Sherlock and Watson
☆ Neurodivergents with “superpowers”
☆ Murder Mystery
☆ High Fantasy
☆ Politcal Intrigue
☆ If the Leviathans don't kill you, then the plants might, and if they don't, then the people will.

In the second installment of the fantasy series following Ana Dolabra and her assistant Dinios Kol, the pair travel to the remote Yarrowdale to investigate the death of one of the Empire’s treasury officers. What starts out as a murder case leads to a much more complicated and intricate plot that could topple the stability of the Empire.

I hesitate to go into too many details because this book is just so full of twists and turns that I don’t want to spoil any surprises. The author has created a complicated and detailed world for the reader to enjoy. Not only is the world building incredibly creative, but the plot itself is so involved that you won’t want to put the book down. The main characters, Ana and Din, are an unexpected, quirky duo that complement each other’s strengths. Their development throughout as both individuals and a team is very well done.

I would suggest reading the first book in the series (The Tainted Cup) to understand the world the story is operating in, but it’s not 100% necessary. This story has creativity, mystery, and heart. Highly recommend this book!

Got a few chapters in, and am just not feeling it. Some of it is just me, and some of it is the result of having lost the momentum of the first book. May try again later.

A Drop of Corruption is the sequel to Robert Jackson Bennett’s spectacular epic fantasy/murder mystery The Tainted Cup. Assistant investigator Din and his brilliant but mercurial boss Ana are called in to the fringes of the Empire—Yarrowdale where its integration into the Empire is not sitting well with the local monarchy. A Treasury officer has disappeared in impossible circumstances and only pieces of him are found days later. There, they find a hotbed of increasingly daring smugglers, a petty kingdom squeezing the Empire for more, and a mysterious adversary who seems to match Ana in brilliance and foresight.

This was a stunning sequel, and I loved it just as much as I did the first book. Robert Jackson Bennett once again manages to deliver a murder mystery that is twisty and surprising. From the locked door mystery to the intriguing court politics to the unnerving criminal mastermind, everything felt fresh and different even as a second installment.

While the visuals may not be as visceral, it successfully carries over the dark and bleak atmospheric and evocatively gritty vibe. And even without the threat of leviathans breaching the Empire’s walls hanging over the book, it still manages to make their presence felt in the Shroud, an off-coast facility where the bodies of leviathans are taken and harvested to produce the augmentation elixirs and innovations vital to the Empire’s fight against these titan (hence the importance of Yarrowdale to the Empire’s survival).

Continuing their Watson-and-Holmes dynamic, Din is now a fully fledged assistant investigator and is growing into his own and managing Ana. However, he is still struggling with his own wants and desires over duty and his family’s debts. I actually really liked how much of a bisexual mess he was and I particularly enjoyed the hilarious judgement coming from Ana. We also get more hints about Ana as she slowly reveals her secrets to Din. They’re a duo I would keep reading more of, and I would also appreciate the return of a certain Captain from the first book.

A Drop of Corruption delivers another stunner of an epic fantasy murder mystery.

*Thank you to Random House Publishing Group for the eARC via NetGalley

What a great sequel to such a bizarre and intriguing world. I liked this better than the first one, and loved seeing the character development. The relationship between Din and Ana grew substantially and changed in a beautiful way. Don’t get me wrong, he still finds her to be utterly mad and is regularly still disgusted by her habits, but there’s more awe and respect built throughout this super intense investigation. The side characters were wonderful and weird, I loved learning so much about such a drastically different part of this world. The amount of new information about the intricacies of part of the processes required to maintain the Empire was staggering and much appreciated. The theme of corruption within autocracies was brilliant during such a fragile time in our own global politics. My only minor complaint is that I am desperate to confirm or deny a theory about the leviathans and now have to wait for another book while slowly being driven as mad as Ana, great job to Bennett for keeping me hooked on this world. Thanks to NetGalley for providing this!

Thank you Robert Jackson Bennett, NetGalley and Del Rey for this ARC

A Drop of Corruption is the second book in the Shadow of the Leviathan trilogy (at the moment), which follows Ana Dolabra, a brilliant - if a bit weird- investigator, and her assistant, Dinios Kol. The world created by Robert Jackson Bennett is expanded to perfection, Din and Ana’s characters become even more three dimensional (if that is even possible).

Technicalities aside (like two grammatical mistakes and a name switcheroo), I’m still wiping away tears. The journey that Bennett took me was trilling, but that ending? It was beautiful, sweet and golden.

A Drop of Corruption is a wonderful return to the world of Ana, Din, the leviathans and everything that comes with them. We are dropped into the city of Yarrow, a city not yet part of the Empire of Khanum but absolutely vital to its inner workings through the presence of The Shroud off the coast.
As expected, one seemingly impossible murder leads to a string of revelations about the killer and their motives, and the characters turn to the task of trying to stop the next move from being made.
This installment of the series brings more of a thriller vibe to it rather than a straight murder mystery, and brings more action, drama and suspense into the quest to find and stop the murderer. We learn more about the characters and in particular, we discover a little bit more about the mystery of Ana herself. Each of the side characters are intricately characterised with their own voices and agendas, and add extra layers to the progression of solving the murders.
We thoroughly enjoyed this latest book in the series and highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for more Ana and Din mystery and chaos.

First I'd like to thank NetGalley for allowing me to read the ARC ahead of release!
While I felt like quite some time past between events in the series it all comes back with a bang! A new mystery to solve and disasters to avoid and prevent! Some new characters which I really enjoyed and more in-depth look at the various jobs and advances of the empire.
My favorite part is deep in the book, it feels almost like a possession sequence or characters talking through another. That whole 2 or so chapters had me absolutely riveted to the page.
I loved the growth between our two main characters and the world is still amazing. Can't wait for the official release!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5 STARS for Drop of Corruption – a brilliant fantasy-mystery from the author of The Tainted Cup! If you crave a 🕵️‍♂️ Sherlock + Watson style adventure with witty protagonists set in a richly developed fantasy empire, be sure to grab a copy when this book publishes on April 1, 2025!

📖 A QUICK 411:
Dinios Kol serves the Iudex, the Empire’s institution of justice, with a mind altered to forget nothing. He assists Ana Dolabra, a brilliant investigator who lives blindfolded to shield her mind from the chaos of the world. He observes and remembers; she analyzes and uncovers hidden truths. Together, they bring justice to the Empire. ⚖️🔍

⭐ ALL THE STARS FOR:
- The entertaining banter between Ana and Din 😂
- Every well-placed detail is relevant to the story 🎯
- Fast-paced action + a criminal mastermind 🏃‍♂️💨
- Amazing side characters— don't underestimate anyone! 😲
- A satisfying ending with all the loose ends tied up 🎀

I especially love when authors leverage fantasy to illustrate real-world issues... so 🎩 HATS OFF to Robert Jackson Bennett who confirms this in his Author's Note.

“Our headlines are dominated by regimes with one nigh-all-powerful man at the top making any number of terrible choices, and then—to the bafflement of the entire globe—doubling down on them, thus inflicting massive suffering on his people. It seems the talents that make a man capable of navigating palace intrigue until he wins the throne generally don’t coexist with the talents required for—or even a passing interest in—good governance.”

🔥 FAVORITE QUOTES:
🗡️ “You know, you are not a stupid person, Din.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” I said, pleased.
“Or, rather, not an unusually stupid person.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” I said, far less pleased.

🗡️ “This 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.”

Thank you to NetGalley, Robert Jackson Bennett, Random House Publishing Group - Del Rey, and Random House Worlds, Inklore | Del Rey for the advance reader copy in exchange for my honest review!

I love this series and I'm so excited for there to be more. I enjoyed learning more about Ana's back story and Din's motivations and about the leviathons and how their blood is used, and more about a new aspect of this incredibly unique world. I took a long time to read this book, but I was still liking it the whole time. My biggest disappointment was that I figured out a lot of mystery before Ana did, and so I lost the big shock value of the final moment. But I still loved it and can't wait for the next book.

Din and Ana are back!!!

I swear RJB keeps getting better. He blends genres perfectly and I am reeling from some of the revelations at the end of this book. This is an extremely well crafted mystery with the perfect amount of intrigue, politics, fantasy, and horror. I always appreciate how Bennett drops a million threads for the reader to speculate on.

Can't wait to see how some of the implications from book 2 continue in book 3. Now... I wait lol.

"We built this, I thought. We have built this unnatural thing, and it has built us in turn."

What a fantastic book. A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett is the second book in the Shadow of the Leviathan series, and another Ana and Din novel.

When the first book, The Tainted Cup, was described as Sherlock Holmes meets epic fantasy, I expected that to be an exaggeration. But no, the comparison is apt, and I find these murder mysteries to be my favorites since first reading The Hound of the Baskervilles.

While this series takes place in an epic fantasy world, the author doesn't overwhelm you with the details but shows you the fantastical aspects, and how the empire of this land works, through the eyes of our characters and yet another murder mystery. I especially enjoyed our side characters in A Drop of Corruption, and the threat and mystery of the leviathans is still present.

I enjoyed this second installment even more than the first, and after some of my suspicions have been confirmed here, I cannot wait to read the next one. This series is a new all-time favorite for me, definitely a 5 star. (Also, I love the naked hardback covers from Del Rey).

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Del Rey for the copy of the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Drop of Corruption did not disappoint. Overall, it was everything you would want to see in a sequel to the Tainted Cup and more. While the book is long, the story is fast paced and had me engaged the entire time. A Drop of Corruption manages to be dark and beautiful with descriptions that will leave you both horrified and impressed. My only complaint is that the dialogue was somewhat crude which I could have done without but it does fit the theme, characters, and setting. Overall this was a five star read and I’d like to thank the author, publishers, and NetGalley for providing an advance review copy in exchange for an honest review.

4.25 STARS! 🌟 Huge thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Del Rey, Random House Worlds, Inklore | Del Rey for the ARC via NetGalley! 💌

A locked-room mystery, an eccentric genius detective, and a high-stakes fantasy world where magic is everything? SIGN ME UP. 😩🔥

Ana Dolabra is BACK, and she's as unhinged and brilliant as ever. 😭💖 If you thought The Tainted Cup was a wild ride, A Drop of Corruption takes it up a notch—bigger stakes, sharper twists, and even more of Ana's chaotic genius.

From page one, I was HOOKED. A Treasury officer vanishes from a locked room—no doors opened, no windows broken, no trace of how he got out. Just gone. And of course, only one person can crack this: Ana, with Din (our Watson-esque, eternally exasperated narrator) by her side.

WHAT I LOVED:

✔️ The Mystery: Clever, layered, and impossible to predict. The deeper Ana and Din dig, the more it unravels into something MUCH bigger than a simple murder.

✔️ Ana & Din’s Banter: I LIVE for their dynamic. Ana is as sharp and socially oblivious as ever, and Din’s resigned acceptance of her antics makes it even funnier. Their snarky, ride-or-die partnership is the heart of this series.

✔️ The Magic System: Titan blood as a power source?? The Shroud as a high-security compound where they harvest it?? I’M OBSESSED.

✔️ Themes of Corruption & Power: It’s not just a whodunit—this book dives deep into power, bureaucracy, and the ugly truths behind empires.

The author’s note at the end is a MUST-READ because beneath all the murder and chaos, there’s some SERIOUS commentary on power, corruption, and control. And I love that in my fantasy mysteries.

And OMG, that ending?? 😭 I NEED BOOK THREE ASAP.

Whether you're here for the mystery, the mind-blowing worldbuilding, or just to watch Ana and Din verbally spar their way through life, A Drop of Corruption DELIVERS.

If you love:
🔎 Sherlock-style detective brilliance
✨ A rich fantasy world with a unique magic system
🖤 Snarky, morally grey characters
📖 Mysteries that make your brain hurt (in a good way)

Then this book is FOR YOU.

Now excuse me while I stare at my calendar waiting for the next one. 😭💖

A big thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Del Rey, Random House Worlds, Inklore | Del Rey for the eARC in exchange of an honest review.

I enjoyed the world that was created in the Tainted Cup and looked forward to diving back in.
Unfortunately, this one fell a little flat for me. I still had a fun time following the investigation, but felt like it was missing the 'je-ne-sais-quoi' the first book had.

If you enjoyed the first book, it's definitely still worth picking up, I'm sure it will be a favorite for most!

I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, which I am providing here. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy of the ARC.

I did not think it was possible for me to like the sequel to the first book more than the first one, but between the political intrigue, the magic introduced, the character development, and Din just being Din, this book is my favorite in the series so far. The second in the series follows after the first one in a brand new mystery that expands not just our understanding of the characters but also the universe that Bennett has created. It's awesome to see a world that is so flawlessly complex but feels like a world that could easily exist. The characters are realistic, meaning they have reactions that feel true to themselves and to not just further the plot. The aspects of the story are consistent and the characters are just some of my favorite in fantasy. Din, our loveable, confused, bisexual is back and is just as confused but is starting to almost settle into the wild life he has found himself in. His story expands and we get a bit more of a look at his internal struggles that are maturing alongside him. Ana is just as strange but I find myself so intrigued by her as a character especially because of the revelations in the first two books in the series.

I honestly cannot wait to see where this series goes and I hope that it is longer than a trilogy because I don't know that I'll ever be tired of these characters. This book has high ratings for a good reason and I can't recommend the series enough to my fantasy lovers! Five out of five!

Building upon The Tainted Cup, A Drop of Corruption follows Din and Ana as they tackle yet another twisty, dark mystery set in Bennett's truly unique world. This follows another high stakes locked-room case that tests Ana and Din as complications arise at every point.

Ana is still the same entertaining conundrum character we know and love. Din is still a hot mess of complications and determination. I didn't really love how Din tried to deal with his feelings of the Captain he left behind form the first book. But the growing relationship between Din and Ana was great and I can't wait to see more from them.

The mystery itself is multifaceted and complex. Maybe slightly predictable but nevertheless entertaining and kept me hooked in until the end.

I cannot wait to read more in this series!

So grateful to Netgalley and Del Ray for the eARC!

Unbelievably unputdownable. I swear, anything from this series is gold! I love how RJB knits together the worldbuilding and the humorous and ever so smart Dinios Kol and Ana Dolabra. The dialogues are fun to read but also engaging as it evokes its murder mystery tone. The ending was really good and I’m hoping to read more of Din and Ana and their adventures! I just can’t wrap my mind around the fact that this book is great fantasy-wise and also character-wise. Ana Dolabra is AMAZING. Dinios Kol is sooo fun to read about and I’m glad this book was his point of view. Can’t wait for the next installment!!

Many thanks to NetGalley, Random House and Robert Bennett Jackson for the ARC on which this review is based.

A Drop of Corruption builds upon The Tainted Cup with another entertaining mystery set in Bennett’s unique fantasy world. The novel follows investigator Ana Dolabra and her assistant, Din Kol, as they tackle a high-stakes case involving a gruesome murder, missing body parts, and a conspiracy that could shake the empire. The locked-room mystery, unsettling biological elements, and razor-sharp dialogue keep the tension high.

Ana remains a brilliant yet enigmatic force, but Din undergoes a notable transformation. Where he was once eager and ambitious, he now grapples with disillusionment, questioning his role in the empire. Also, Din’s coping mechanism to get over the love interest he left behind in Talagray left me unimpressed. The dynamic between Ana and Din continues to be a strong point, though there is a desire for more emotional depth in their interactions. Malo is an interesting and witty new character - an augmented jungle warden/ranger who’s got enhanced senses of smell and night vision

The setting remains one of the book’s greatest strengths, with the introduction of new environments like the jungle kingdom of Yarrow and the enigmatic Shroud, a structure linked to the empire’s use of Leviathans. While the political intrigue is complex, it occasionally slows the pacing and feels less engaging than the core mystery. The mystery is gripping, with strong opening chapters and fascinating forensic details.

The mid-book revelation of the culprit diminishes some of the tension. The antagonist is OK and lacks the sense of intellectual rivalry needed for a true game of cat-and-mouse.

A Drop of Corruption is a worthy sequel, showcasing Bennett’s talent for intricate storytelling, immersive world-building, and clever mysteries. While it doesn’t quite match the freshness of the first book, it remains an engaging read with strong characters and thought-provoking themes. Fans of The Tainted Cup will enjoy the continued journey, even if they may hope for more surprises in future installments.