A good follow up to The Tainted Cup that builds on the world while anchoring it with our two lead protagonists, Ana and Din. The dynamic between them is so Sherlock and Watson, and I think any fan of that will looooove this. What I love most of Bennett's writing is how layered he makes these mysteries - I am quite literally unable to predict what will happen next.

A darkly captivating fantasy that invites readers into another chilling mystery in the city of Yarrow. Immunis Ana Dolabra and Signum Dinios Kol return to navigate the treacherous layers of the Empire of Khanum, where themes of autocracy, colonialism, inequality, science, and patriotism pulse beneath the surface. The narrative resonates with modern-day parallels, offering both tension and reflection. Din Kol’s journey is filled with sharp twists and compelling discoveries, making this a satisfying continuation of the series.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House and Del Ray for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

The story begins with a classic locked-door mystery: A Treasury officer's corpse is found in the swamp, far from town—abducted from his quarters while the door and windows remained locked from the inside, in a building whose entrances and exits were all under constant guard. The Empire sends the great investigator Ana Dolabra and her assistant Dinios Kol to the canton of Yarrowdale, at the very edge of the Empire’s reach, to solve the case.

Before long Ana discovered that they were not investigating a disappearance, but a murder. The killing appears to be just the first move in an elaborate scheme, ultimately targeting the high-security compound known as the Shroud. It is a dangerous place where the Empire's greatest minds dissect fallen Titans to harness the volatile magic found in their blood. Its loss would cause the Empire itself to fail, robbed of the magic required to maintain power.

When the king of Yarrow is murdered, via the drop of corruption of the title, all seems lost. But Ana once again achieves what looked like an impossible solution, revealing the criminal mastermind behind it all while also foiling his final scheme. It is a satisfying conclusion to a multilayered mystery, and a worthy sequel to The Tainted Cup.

Thanks to NetGalley for the Advance Reader's Copy.

This author. This series. Loved the first, now this! I don’t know how he does it, but I felt so submerged in this world. I can’t wait to read more!

Better than the first book, and that's saying a lot.

A Drop of Corruption takes us as far as possible from the sea wall that served as the setting for The Tainted Cup. A decaying swamp city on the very border of the Empire serves us up our next impossible murder: an imperial treasurer has vanished from his room on the sixth floor, with all the doors and windows locked from the inside, and his remains found miles away. Whatever the reason, it just might be related to the highly fraught politics of this region suspended between Empire rule and the monarchal rule of a neighboring kingdom.

This was an absolute feast of gorgeously described settings, rich atmosphere, and unique worldbuilding. I'm so thoroughly charmed by the world of the Shadow of the Leviathan series - I'm usually a very character focused reader, and the characters in these books are enjoyable, but they're overshadowed by the outstandingly creative sandbox Robert Jackson Bennet has built to play in. Expect all of the fascinatingly creepy and sometimes disgusting magic of book 1, but dialed up times ten. I LOVED all of the places this book went, from the High Court of Yarrow to the incredibly ominous Shroud, and loved getting to see more of how people lived and operate within this somewhat sinister world. (Seriously, I demand a novella set entirely within the shroud.)

The mystery is just as twisty and inventive as I hoped and expected it would be, with that perfectly satisfying mix of things you'll probably guess, and things you definitely won't. Even better, it all starts to shed some light on the background and true nature of the most mysterious character in these books: Ana Dolabra herself.

I can't wait to come back for more.

This was a great sequel with a much more interesting mystery for me and my tastes. The first book sets up our characters and this world but the second one hits the ground running with a high stakes intense almost serial killer mystery that I really enjoyed. I also felt like our main character got to be more dynamic and less reactive in this installment, which also is more in line with my tastes. Pair that with the lore starting to open up and this world continuing to both gross me out and fascinate me and I am ready for another installment as soon as news of the next one is given!

Another fantastic mystery solved by Ana Dolabra and Dinius Kol! Robert Jackson Bennett is proficient at taking readers on a winding journey through the shadows of the Empire, untangling the case with perfect pace until the climactic reveal. This second entry gave us some excellent world-building in the Shroud, the blood of the mystical titans, and some of the ancient history that has been forgotten by most. What I love most about this series is that while the entries so far have not ended in "cliffhangers", they have given us a juicy tidbit that leaves us wanting to know where Ana and Din will go next!

I very much enjoyed the first book in this series and I was looking forward to reading this one, but every time I picked this up to read it I would read a little and then put it down. I just figured it was my mood and I would get back to it later. Well, four months later I've finally finished it. I'm not sure what it was about this book that made it so hard for me to get into. Was it that the characters felt a bit off to me? They did but not right from the beginning. I don't know, but I do know that as I got further into the book my lack of interest didn't improve, it got worse.

Din's and Anna's character's were one's that I liked in the first book. Din much more so than Anna, because she has an abrasive personality, but she intrigued me as a character. She still does a bit, but I thought she was a little overblown in this book. Her eating habits turned my stomach this time around. Her profanity filled sentences had me tuning out instead of taking her seriously.

Din was preoccupied with sleeping around this time. I didn't like this aspect of the story at all. I wanted the version of Din that was in the first book. The Din that wanted to do his job and keep it. This one was depressed and preoccupied. I also didn't care for the time lapse between books. Obviously things happened to these characters that changed them in that period of time that we as readers weren't privy to.

Clearly I'm in the minority as most people have given this book 4 and 5 star ratings. I've even heard some reviewers say they liked this book better than the first one. I wanted to be able to agree with them. I hoped that putting off finishing this until I felt more in the mood for it, would do the trick. But unfortunately, I don't feel the same way. At this point, I'm not sure I want to continue with the series.

The second book in the series, A Drop of Corruption follows the next case/ adventure of Ana and Kol. Everything is larger: there are more side characters, the world is explored more, the mystery is more complex and the implications if they don't solve it in time may be world-ending.
If you loved The Tainted Cup, this sequel will be right up your alley!

Even better than the first book. I can’t wait to continue on this literary journey with Ana and Din.

I was so geeked when I saw this sequel was coming out. I love Ana and Din, and I couldn't wait to find out more about them. Robert Jackson Bennett did not disappoint. I'm just going to bullet point some things I delighted in and then explain why I'm not giving a full 5 stars despite how much I love this world RJB has built

- Ana. I don't think I need to explain, but Ana is everything to me. She's so unintentionally hilarious with her intelligence and snark. And we finally get to find out a little bit more about her! RJB is very smart to feed us bits of her backstory slowly to keep us hooked. She's the best. The way she razzes Din and in fact anyone else is fantastic - no one is safe from her quick wit and biting tongue! To be, she's like Dame Maggie Smith in Downton Abbey...the best

- Din. We get to see our reserved king get a little spicy, and I love this bi/pan icon. Seeing him grow in his detective skills is also so great. And some of my favorite moments in each book are when he goes psycho-mode with his sword. I'm rooting for him, always.

- Malo. Do I have a new favorite character? Maybe. I'll never get enough snide women who are unafraid to speak their mind. And her super sniffer is a great new tool to explore. Din is never going to catch a break with these ladies, and he's all the better for it. More Malo!

- Political intrigue and an opposition to inherited power and wealth. Babes, don't skip the author's note on this. It's so, so good, and and fantastic look into his motives as he's writing these books. I loved it.

Okay, so why not a full 5 stars? Maybe it's a bit unfair, but I found the mystery and detective work harder to follow in this book vs. the last. There's A LOT going on in this book, and there are a lot of characters to keep track of. There were times when I'll admit I got a bit lost which was frustrating. However, all in all, it's a small complaint.

Can't wait to see what And and Din (AND MALO) do next!


A big thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing an advanced digital copy for review - I'm so grateful!

While just as enjoyable as The Tainted Cup, Ana was more of a background character in A Drop of Corruption. She wasn't as witty or obnoxious as she was in the first book.

This was terrific - if you read and enjoyed book 1 you’re going to love this.

We got exactly what I was looking for here. A deeper exploration of our main characters as well as a more full look at the world as a whole. There are still a LOT of things left unknown and I am dying to read the next book, but I don’t feel left in the dark. We continue to be teased with the inner workings of this authors mind as he shows us little by little where his creativity is taking us. I really cannot wait for more in this series.

The only reason this is a 4 and not 5 star read for me is, and I don’t really think this is a spoiler but I’ll tag the review just in case, I don’t think you could really figure out the entirety of the mystery on your own because of the fantasy setting. In book one this happened once, but here it felt ever so slightly more prominent. It didn’t bother me too much, but I had to flip a switch in my brain to allow myself to read this more as a fantasy novel rather than a murder mystery novel. It’s a very difficult balance to strike.

This is probably closer to a 4.5 than a 4.

5 STAR SEQUEL!

Oh, it was something else being thrown back into this world. Din and Ana back it again solving mysteries across the lands.

RJB has crafted a fantastic follow up to A Tainted Cup - this sequel is SO MUCH better than the first book. We learn more about this vast world of the leviathans, more about the people of the lands but more importantly we learn more about Ana and Din.

The relationship between the two has grown so much. We get a glimpse of Din's internal struggle about whether this job is for him, on whether he is actually making a difference. We learn about how lonely is and how he's kinda of desperate to fill that hole (I hope we get to see a certain someone from book one come back for my boy Din, please!)

I liked how we even delved deeper into who or rather what Ana may be (the scene when she was eating the liver and mushrooms! with the creepy teeth? whoa!)

And, finally the mystery itself. Tbh, part one was ok...part two had me sitting up but part 3? WOW, I gasped no less than 3 maybe 4 times when everything was being revealed. My guesses were right and wrong. LOL

I can't wait for the third book and to follow more of Ana and Din's adventure! FYI, just like the first book I HIGHLY recommend the audiobook.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC

Incredible world building, intriguing characters and a fast pace, twisty murder mystery- this book has is all and I loved it. Din and Anna are back and i loved their partnership even more in this second installment. This world is wild--full of strange bio technology, secret politics, and monsters that will kill you! It is an interesting exploration of the the tension between empire and sovereignty, the narratives that drive colonialism, and the cost of power. But what makes this series is the working relationship between Din and Ana. Some readers may get a little lost in the fantasy terminology, but if you stick with it, it is well worth the investment.

Robert Jackson Bennett is my favorite fanatsy author. In this second installment we continue the story of Din and Ana as they are tasked with solving a locked room murder. I immensely enjoyed this book, the continued world building and the secrets we learn in this books are amazing and so well done.

incredibly detailed world-building, with nice protagonists!! Robert Jackson B always writes murder mystery that well

Set just months after The Tainted Cup, Ana Dolabra and her reluctant but sharp-eyed assistant, Dinios Kol, are sent to the remote canton of Yarrowdale to investigate the mysterious disappearance of a Treasury officer from a locked, guarded room. What starts as a puzzling case quickly unravels into a murder mystery entwined with a conspiracy targeting the Shroud, a high-security facility where the Empire harvests volatile magic from fallen Titans. As Ana navigates a deadly game of wits, Din worries that she may have finally met her match.

I thought I loved Ana and Din in the first book, but their dynamic only deepens here. Their relationship feels honest and real, it’s not all rainbows and sunshine. Bennett brilliantly captures the tension and trust-building between partners still figuring each other out, making their evolving bond one of the book’s most compelling elements.

This series has been described as Sherlock Holmes, but with Watson as the main character in a fully imagined world, and that couldn’t be more spot on. I didn’t know I needed this series until I read it, but now I can’t imagine missing it.

Excited to see what RJB does next in this world! Not as enthusiastic about this one as I was about the last, but still plenty of room to explore.

I love this series and I hope we get infinite more of them! I did think we might get more classic fantasy detailed world building in this book but once I settled into this being at its core a sort of fantasy police procedural mystery, I really loved it. The twist is one I tend to not enjoy in books but it was, like the first book, set up in such a way that if you took all the clues you could solve it along with Ana and Din. Ana's need to present the solved puzzle in the most dramatic way possible is so funny and I love her for it.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy!