I received this book for free from Netgalley, Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson BennettPublished by Random House Worlds on February 6, 2024
Genres: Fiction / Fantasy / Action & Adventure, Fiction / Fantasy / Epic, Fiction / Mystery & Detective / Traditional
Pages: 432
Format: ARC, eBook
Source: Netgalley, Publisher
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Buy on BookshopA Holmes and Watson–style detective duo take the stage in this fantasy with a mystery twist, from the Edgar-winning, multiple Hugo-nominated Robert Jackson Bennett
“Superbly blends mystery and fantasy . . . Give me more of this world and these characters ASAP!”—#1 New York Times bestselling author Meg Gardiner
In Daretana’s greatest mansion, a high imperial officer lies dead—killed, to all appearances, when a tree erupted from his body. Even here at the Empire’s borders, where contagions abound and the blood of the leviathans works strange magical changes, it’s a death both terrifying and impossible.
Assigned to investigate is Ana Dolabra, a detective whose reputation for brilliance is matched only by her eccentricities. Rumor has it that she wears a blindfold at all times, and that she can solve impossible cases without even stepping outside the walls of her home.
At her side is her new assistant, Dinios Kol, magically altered in ways that make him the perfect aide to Ana’s brilliance. Din is at turns scandalized, perplexed, and utterly infuriated by his new superior—but as the case unfolds and he watches Ana’s mind leap from one startling deduction to the next, he must admit that she is, indeed, the Empire’s greatest detective.
As the two close in on a mastermind and uncover a scheme that threatens the Empire itself, Din realizes he’s barely begun to assemble the puzzle that is Ana Dolabra—and wonders how long he’ll be able to keep his own secrets safe from her piercing intellect.
By an “endlessly inventive” (Vulture) author with a “wicked sense of humor” (NPR), The Tainted Cup mixes the charms of detective fiction with brilliant world-building to deliver a fiendishly clever mystery that’s at once instantly recognizable and thrillingly new.
There are only two small reasons why I’m not declaring this book my book of the year: 1) it’s January and 2) I technically read this last year. But if this volume doesn’t end up on a ton of ‘best of’ lists this year, then it’ll be a travesty. Here’s my summary of the book from after I finished it: “Holmes and Watson if Holmes was a small, feral, agoraphobic woman and Watson was a rule-following dyslexic with a photographic memory. And also if London was a Pacific Rim-esque world filled with kaiju, killer plants, and deadly fungus.”
And yes, I still agree with my original assessment. This book had me vibrating with tension. There are so many deadly secrets floating around! And the world-building is just fascinating. Basically if you set Pacific Rim in a fantasy world, and fast forwarded a couple hundred years, then you’d probably have this setting of carnivorous plants and deadly spores. Top that with the typical (okay, in this case, not-so-typical) homicidal intrigue of the ultra-rich and huge, ravenous monsters that are only stopped at the border wall through incredible personal sacrifice, and you’ve got a story that basically has my inner child jumping up and down in glee.
“Holmes and Watson if Holmes was a small, feral, agoraphobic woman and Watson was a rule-following dyslexic with a photographic memory.”
– Kia’s summary
Din, despite his job being one of supernaturally perfect memory, has his own secrets, and that makes him a fascinatingly unreliable narrator. It’s clear from the beginning that he cheated his way into his job, though the how of it is hidden, but is cheating really immoral when the world is literally stacked against you? His is the “if you see someone shoplifting baby food, no you didn’t” version of getting ahead in the world.
His boss, Ana Dolabra is… She is everything Sherlock Holmes would be if modern retelling stopped making him an asshole. Ana is compassionate, ruthless, and so intellectually superior to most people that she has trouble relating. She prefers sensory deprivation in a trunk to going out in public, and she’s prone to interrogating anyone she finds interesting to the point of forgetting social niceties such as food, drink, sleep, and her target’s other job duties. Her small physical size is outweighed by her towering and terrifying mind, and everyone she meets knows it. I love her so much.
I can’t wait for more, and there’s clearly more, and when it arrives it will be my Christmas. The Tainted Cup arrives on February 6th. Run, don’t walk to your local bookstore or library.
