“That’s the problem with figuring shit out – eventually you run into someone who’d prefer all their shit remained thoroughly unfigured.”

Enter a world where plants and altered humans create an advanced way of life and a world where leviathans threaten mass destruction. The Empire of Khanum hosts an array of wonders and many dangers but when an Imperial Commander is found dead inside a mansion in Daretana, with a tree ruptured through his torso, it is a case that is both alarming and seemingly impossible. The nature of this death is so mysterious and gruesome it calls for a detective with a brilliant mind. Immunis Anagosa Dolabra (Ana) is one such detective well known for solving the most complex of mysteries, her high intelligence is well regarded and her eccentric ways always bode results. Along with her new assistant Signum Dinios Kol (Din), who’s altered abilities enable him to be Ana’s eyes and ears, they must solve the puzzle before everything turns to utter pandemonium.

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett is a remarkable genre-blend of fantasy, sci-fi and murder mystery which hosts an array of delightfully eclectic characters. Prepare to be swept away by a uniquely bizarre world and a case riddled with corruption.

From the beginning I found the worldbuilding in this book utterly incredible. Not only do we delve into a world that has taken all the elements of nature from fungus, to plants and even some animals, and engineered it for the purpose of human advancement, but we also have monsters in the form of gigantic clawed leviathans that emerge from the seas during the wet season, head towards land and if killed spread cryptic magic. There is a faction called The Apothetikal Iyalets who perform augmentations in the human body to create increased speed, strength, healing, a more powerful memory or more powerful cognitive abilities. The empire calls these altered humans Sublimes whose basic functions are to run the empire in an efficient and orderly manner. Bennet throws us into the middle of this already established complex way of life and only gives us insight into it as we read on which worked to hook me in. I don’t wish to explain the fantastical elements in any more detail as its discovery is a key part of the enjoyment but I loved the marriage between nature and advancement, it was wondrous and visually pleasing to imagine, but also pretty terrifying due to the flaw that comes with such experimentation—contagions. Furthermore the world is also made up of three Outer Rims, these are sea walls which provide some man-made defence against the Leviathans… but breaches do happen, which Bennet tensely reminds us of throughout.

The Tainted Cup primarily follows a twisty murder mystery and I found it very clever how Bennet intertwined this with the worldbuilding. Again, I won’t go into any actual details of the case itself as that may inadvertently lead to spoilers or clues, yet the atmosphere throughout is foreboding with a great sense of urgency and constant threat. As we travel from Daretana to Talagray we come closer to the sea walls, closer to the Leviathan’s strange magic and closer to the centre of experimentations where everything is both more official and chaotic. In Talagray everyone is a suspect and every new piece of evidence leads to further crimes and we inevitably traverse deeper into unknown dangers. There is no holding back on the grisly details of all the murders that occur, bringing a touch of body horror to the narrative. However, Bennet juxtaposes this incredibly darkly twisted tale with bantery humour and wonderfully quirky characters. 

“With her bone-white hair, wide smile, and yellow eyes, she often seemed vaguely feline: a mad house-cat, perhaps, roving through a home in pursuit of a suitable sunbeam, though always willing to torture the occasional mouse.”

At the head of the investigation is an absolute joy of a Sherlock Holmes and Watson-esque duo. Assistant Din is a rigid, formal and overall a law-abiding man. He’s a character who is often described as emotionally detached but as we the reader are treated to his first person narration we see this is not necessarily true. His augmentation to make him a Sublime Engraver means that his brain remembers everything, the good and the horrific, and I believe to stay sane with all that inside your head is to become emotionally guarded. Din seems to hold secrets close to his chest but we do see that the world around him, rightly so, terrifies and bewilders him. Whereas the investigator Ana is a bloody riot of a character. Ana’s abilities to interpret evidence and draw conclusions may seem uncanny but they do deliver results and for that she is much respected. Her surroundings are often a sensory overload so she spends much time blindfolded and secluded within her research. She’s eccentric, strangely excitable and foul-mouthed in the best of ways, she gives little thought to what she says in front of anyone no matter their station and she’s damn right crude. Of course I loved her for it! Ana may take a while to grow on some readers, but for me she was instantly my kind of fun. Together these two contrast and compliment each other perfectly, they often give off a vibe of cosyness and create such a compelling partnership. 

This is a novel that could be read as a standalone as the conclusion and the revelations are satisfying and bring much closure. Though I really am ecstatic that this is not the case and we will return for more.

The Tainted Cup is an uncanny, trippy read and I loved every page of it. 

“What a tool cynicism is to the corrupt, claiming the whole of the creation is broken and fraudulent, and thus we are all excused to indulge in whatever sins we wish—-for what’s a little more unfairness, in this unfair world?”

ARC provided by Kate at Hodderscape in exchange for an honest review—thank you for the copy!

The Tainted Cup is available now, order your copy on Bookshop.org