It's like Sherlock Holmes but in a fantasy world, or like a magical Knives Out with plants.
I found this fantasy world-building murder mystery entertaining. The world Bennett paints is quite interesting and I loved the various characters. Ana Dolabra is an eccentric investigator who chooses to wear a blindfold, and Din, our narrator is her assistant "engraver" acting as her eyes and ears. Magical world building with a bit of political intrigue.

I haven't read Robert Jackson Bennett before but I'm interested is reading more of his works!

The Tainted Cup is such an intriguing premise and, for the most part, lives up to what it promises.

The book starts with a death in a weird way in incredibly wealthy familys home but expands I like that as you read, you’re given clues through worldbuilding and rewarded for learning about this world, which felt fun and makes the reader more invested.

I felt the beginning of the book was slow to start but it picks up the more you get into it.

Rating: 4.5/5

This book was absolutely wonderful and I enjoyed every second of it. The biggest draw for me was the incredible worldbuilding. Everything is so thought out and just wholly unique. One of my favorite things in fantasy is weird worlds, and this book definitely falls in that category! I get indescribable joy from reading about these worlds that are unlike anything I've read about before. In this book, there are things like the strange genetic modifications undertaken by society, the plant-like architecture, and the towering walls to hold out leviathans. It's just so perfectly done and I felt completely immersed and interested in this beautiful world.

I also found Din to be a loveable main character. Similar to my previous point, I thoroughly enjoy main characters who have a distinct personality. Din is stoic, reserved, innocent, and intelligent. These traits work excellently with and in the story, and I absolutely adored him. Other than Ana, no other characters stuck out to me, but I didn't mind this. They felt more like simplified characters to play a certain role, and I enjoyed that.

I do have one critique. For a murder mystery novel, I expect to be fully invested and unable to tear my eyes away until I can get answers. However it took me until I was around 50% into the book to feel that irresistible urge to keep reading. In fact, before then I found I really only felt like reading a chapter or two at a time, which is very abnormal for me. It is worth noting I never found the book boring, it was more that after a chapter or two I'd feel I got what I wanted for the day. I assume this is something to be contributed to the stakes not feeling high enough or perhaps something off with the pacing.

The story revolves around Din, a character sent on a mission by his boss, Ana, to investigate a peculiar murder. The murder is not your typical crime scene, as a tree sprouts from inside the victim's body and ruptures outwards. This unique premise of mystery, fantasy, and suspense initially piqued my interest, but unfortunately, the book failed to hold my interest. I found the characters unappealing and the plot too meandering.

Although my experience differs from most readers, I still recommend this book to fans of the genre because of its imaginative premise and potential for enjoyment.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group, and Robert Jackson Bennett for an advanced eBook in exchange for my honest review

QUOTE: ““I think you need reminding of what the Empire is even for.” I cocked an eyebrow at her, puzzled. “It’s not all this!” she said. She waved her hand at the shuttered window. “It’s not all walls and death and plotting! Nor is it dreary dispensations and bureaucracy! We do these ugly, dull things for a reason—to make a space where folk can live, celebrate, and know joy and love..”

A bit slow in the beginning but after the first few chapters, I fell in love with the characters. For me I think they were my favorite part of the book. However the world Bennett has created is extremely interesting too and I hope to read more of it. I also enjoyed the commentary about “empire” which to me equates to our government systems.

I was not sure what I was getting when I started this book, the only thing I knew about it was that it seemed that almost everyone that read it fell in love with it. Well, you can add me to that list. The story is like no other in many ways and a most exceptional "whodunnit" in others. The story mixes small plots concerning individuals with larger plots concerning the survival of many thousands of people. The story of Ana's assistant Din was one of the most interesting things that as we went along it revealed itself more and more to his amazement since he had talents, he knew nothing about. I could talk all day long about this book but the world and the characters and the way you canst suspicion on almost everyone than Ana blows it all away with observations that the author actually told us about in the story but most readers (like me) missed the clues and when revealed it was "Damn, I missed that and it was obvious" . So without writing a book myself I will just say this is more than deserving the high marks almost everyone is giving it and I can't wait to see what lies ahead in the future for these 2 and 5 Stars is not enough.

THE TAINTED CUP
Robert Jackson Bennett

We read THE TAINTED CUP with my Under the Radar Books Amazon Book Club. It was between this and a historical fiction pick. I’m glad we read this one.

THE TAINTED CUP stars Din in the imaginary world of Daretana. In this world Din is an engraver, someone who is magically anointed with the gift of a picture-perfect memory. Din uses this magic ability to serve as the eyes and ears on the ground for Ana who is unable to leave her home but still investigates murders with an exceptional solve rate.

This is my first Robert Jackson Bennett book. This is not the first book written by Bennett and you can tell. THE TAINTED CUP has such a unique story you can tell it was written by someone who had the authority to write with such freedom and of course, you can tell by the carriage of the story.

Such a unique story. Using parts of my brain to construct a world that I don’t normally use. Solving the mystery was as much fun as imagining an apple tree erupting from a character’s body. It is so much fun to read fantasy because fantasy and magic allow those problems normally encountered by us mortals to be solved. Suddenly I have a near-perfect memory, can defy gravity, and employ superhuman strength.

I loved the relationship between Din and Ana. It provided a unique and modern viewpoint on the relationship between the two characters. Molded after the relationship between literary giants Holmes and Watson but modernized. Somehow keeping the antiquity of Baker Street and introducing magic mushrooms, fantastical hierarchies, and quirky characters, allowed me to see things from a new readerly perspective.

Thanks to Netgalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Del Rey for the advanced copy! It was a pleasure to read and review!

THE TAINTED CUP...⭐⭐⭐

This was my first RJB book and I've heard so many good things about his work! I loved the mystery in a fantasy setting with a unique magic system. The writing style is different from what I usually read in the fantasy genre, and most of the time I enjoyed its modern feel, but there were some times when the language didn't quite fit in the world for me. Which I think is definitely a preference/me issue and not an actual critique of the author's style.

Absolutely adored this book! The characters have amazing wit and charisma. The muder mystery fantasy was absolutely fantastic. It kept me interested from the first page to the last. I cannot wait to learn more about these characters and this world in the coming books! So well written, and amazing world building.

This is a tricky one to review. A mystery-fantasy that was funny, gripping and a lot of fun.
The world building was fabulous, intriguing and unlike anything I have read before. I found the first quarter of the book to be brilliant, although as the mystery developed I did lose track of some characters and other elements.
The star of the book has to be Ana. An absolutely superbly written character, she had me laughing constantly at her quirkiness and intelligence.
I am really excited to continue this series and will definitely read more from Robert Jackson Bennett.

3.5 stars

This is the first book in a new fantasy series by Robert Jackson Bennett. This book was good but I am not a HUGE fantasy reader but I find that RJB is a good author for those who are trying to get into fantasy. The way he writes is very accessible and super immersive but not so much so that you feel like you are kinda drowning in the story.

The magic system in this book is well integrated and very quiet though it plays a major part in the series so far. I am not sure if the rest of the books are going to feel the same as this one it kind of felt like I was reading a stand alone story within this world. Im hoping that there is going to be a more connected plot line that flows through the rest of the books though i suppose time will tell.

I enjoyed the two main characters Din and Ana as well as the setting.

I look forward to the next book in the series though..

Thank you Random house and netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I did not get a chance to give this a full review before the publishing date in February but I gave it 4 stars

To give you an idea of how wrong I was in this murder mystery: my main suspect turned out to be the love interest...and I have seen multiple reviews praising him for being the greenest of flags.

I've really been getting into fantasy murder mysteries lately, so The Tainted Cup has been on my TBR for a little while. I didn't particularly enjoy Foundryside by the same author, so I was a little hesitant until I read the first chapter and was immediately intrigued.
Din is an engraver who can remember everything he sees and recall it whenever he wants, and he is working as an assistant to a very eccentric investigator - Ana - when a new murder case arises. It is quickly complicated by politics, and I'm going to be honest and say I didn't completely follow everything, but I understood enough to get the gist of all of the political motivations. Do I think you can accurately predict the murderers? Probably not. I did manage to sort of call a plot twist, but it was based entirely on vibes, and I only saw it about 2 chapters before the reveal. That being said, I did really enjoy just watching puzzle pieces fall into place and there was a bit of action too.
I think the highlight of this, though, is the dynamics between Din and Ana. I didn't realize how fun the eccentric mentor and cinnamon roll assistant could be until I saw the banter and the relationship between these two. Din reminded me a lot of Richa from Empire of Exiles, and Ana is just Ana. I didn't really love any of the side characters, mostly because I was paranoid that they all wanted to kill Din...but now that I know that most of these characters were innocent, book two will hopefully improve my opinion of them.
The Tainted Cup is an extremely twisty fantasy murder mystery with politics, spy antics, danger, and some amazing character dynamics.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-ARC!

4.25/5

4.2 / 5.0

I really enjoyed the world building in The Tainted Cup by RJ Bennet. The mystical mystery sleuths and quirky dialogue was very creative. I wanted the pacing to move a bit quicker but overall enjoyed reading this.

Until Next Time,
MC

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for access to this ARC to review.

Hello Fellow Readers,

I was so excited about this book, I wanted to like it so badly but couldn't get into it. A murder mystery set in a fantasy world is my dream genre-blending but in this case, I just wasn't able to like the main investigator. Ana wears a blindfold and doesn't like to leave the house, so she has Dinios go out to the murder sites. Dinios is an engraver, he uses techniques that allow him to perfectly recall everything he sees and hears, which he reports back to Ana. Had the main investigator just been Dinios and Ana were taken out of the picture I probably would have liked this book a lot more as I found Ana Insufferable (which I think was probably intentional by the author, but in this case hindered the book for me).

Also, there were a lot of things I felt like I was just expected to know, which made me feel like I must have missed something and I even went back and reread a couple of chapters to make sure. The mystery and murder itself seemed extremely interesting, like the fact that the victim was murdered from a tree being grown from within his body is pretty cool but gruesome.

Overall, I know a lot of people like this book but I don't think it was for me.

The Tainted Cup is the first book in a new series, this was a new author for me who I am always willing to give a chance. Fantasy is not one of my favorite genres, yet I decided to give this book a go. In general I found this to be a interesting read even if not one of the genres I enjoy reading. I enjoyed the main character, even though I didn't really connect with the story line. Having said that although not my favorite, I would still recommend to others.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher, I am leaving my review voluntarily.

The first of a series. Not read this author before but am interested to continue in this. thank you net galley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for a review.

Rating: Two Stars

I am really disappointed to say that this was not a book for me. I really loved the idea of it, fantasy/sci fi, world building, mystery solving....but in execution I was absolutely overwhelemed. I had a really hard time keeping up with the world we were in, what the different roles were in this society, and how exactly the world had been built. No matter how much I referenced the map and the military ranks list, I still had no idea what was going on. I personally could have benefitted from a list of the different roles/jobs the people in this society held and what exactly these roles were. On the bright side, I did enjoy the two main characters Ana and Din. I enjoyed Ana's eccentricities and her mysterious ways of solving a crime. The story itself was decent, I was able to grasp just enough to get through the book and have the most basic understanding of the outcome. Overall, this was not a book for me, but I can see why others would really enjoy this world and the unique role of the plants and modifications they gave to society. I do not see myself continuing this series, but I deeply appreciate the chance to read and review this book honestly in exchange for the advanced reader copy. Thank you Netgally and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for this opportunity.

This is going to be a favorite book of the year (easiest five-star thus far) and quite possibly of all time. I absolutely loved everything about this story! I can’t wait to continue with this series. This has also prompted me to get my hands on previous series from this author because now I want to read everything he has ever written. I can’t even express to you in words how much I enjoyed this story. It’s exactly the something-new-and-fresh-for-the-genre that we need. Everything was perfection for me. The unique, complex (yet so easily grasped), intriguing worldbuilding and magic system. The loveable, quirky, fun, characters/personalities. The murder mystery, political, doomsday, suspenseful, expertly-paced plot. And the writing was absolutely brilliant, with just the right balance of exposition and reader interpretation. This is narrative craft at its best. Though I never wanted it to end, I couldn’t wait to get to the conclusion, which so neatly tied up the story while leaving the wider world open for more. It’s a definite must-read! I’ll forever be looking for another experience like I had with this one.

This was my first 5 star read of 2024!
Let me start by saying, I've read so many Holmes/Watson type mysteries, there is rarely one that can keep me guessing anymore. The Tainted Cup is very much the exception, and it is incredibly refreshing.

Set in a high fantasy world, the bio-punk type elements are what ultimately drew me to this title, but the perfectly imperfect characters are the reason I stayed. This book opens with a high-profile murder, which sets the tone and gives an idea of the world you're about to enter. Main character Din is an engraver, which means he can remember just about everything he see's and hears, making him key to relaying information to Ana in order to solve a rash of suspicious biological murders.

Ana is the 'Holmes' here, but with a hilariously abrasive personality. To call her an introvert would be an understatement, as she doesn't leave unless she needs to. Instead, she relies on Din for most information, at least until she catches the occasional poor soul in her home like a spider catches a bug in their web: unable to leave until she begrudgingly relents.

A leviathan crashes through an outer wall, setting the rest of the story into motion. It develops in such a way that there are small clues sprinkled in, though you really can't be sure which is important until the end. There is a fairly large and diverse cast of characters, all of which play a role in the goings-on of the empire. Ultimately, I feel there is so much more to this book than can be simply summarized in a few short paragraphs.

What I will leave you with is this: RJB does such an amazing job at ending this story, it makes me want to start over from the beginning. I loved everything about this world and these characters. This closes so perfectly it could be a stand-alone, though I have so much interest in this world, I cannot wait for what is to come next.