Quick Synopsis –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.

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.

Song This Reminds Me Of – Passenger by Noah Kahan

Publication Date – April 1, 2025

My Review of the First Book in the Series – The Tainted Cup By Robert Jackson Bennett

Bookshop Link – A Drop of Corruption a book by Robert Jackson Bennett – Bookshop.org US(If you use this link, I receive a portion of your purchase)

Content Notes – This book has a fair amount of violence and body horror. There is some off page death of children. There is some mild violence against dogs, but this is also off page. There is a depiction of indentured servitude that is central to the plot.

Rating – ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

Review – I liked this book better than the first one. I thought the characters were more grounded, there was a good pacing of character development with plot development, and the overall worldbuilding was solid. I do think there are points where the book gets bogged down by being over descriptive and because the book focused on an area not technically a part of the Empire, I thought it would have been interesting if Din and Ana could have discovered more about the Leviathans.

The core mystery of the book was a little easier to figure out, but I think that’s because I’ve gotten more used to the writing style of the author. Also, as a reader it’s not necessarily a bad thing if I can start to figure out the ending or at least think I have an idea of solving the central mystery. Even if I’m wrong, I like the feeling of trying to pick-up clues and suss the solution out with the characters. I think Din as a character has a more subtle character arc and growth, where Ana really gets more fleshed out for me. Especially because they as a team have more interactions with different axioms (enhanced characters) and these side characters really help shape Ana & Din as a team.

Overall I enjoyed this book, I’m definitely going to continue with the series. I hope the next book has a little more information about the world and isn’t as flowery.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group – Del Rey, Random House Worlds, Inklore | Del Rey for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.