Review: The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgalley, however I did opt to listen to the final version of the audiobook upon publication.  As always all opinions are my own.  The audiobook is fantastic, the narrator does a wonderful job with the many characters, given each one a unique voice and accent.  I found this very important as there are many players in this mystery and having them each have a unique voice made it very easy to keep track of everyone.

This was fantastic!  I don't think I've ever read a fantasy mystery, and if I have it wasn't anything like this.  The author paints a vivid world of flora and fauna that are so unique.  The characters are equally interesting and people can undergo augmentations to heighten their senses, assist them in their daily jobs, or to look more aesthetically pleasing.  Our cast of characters are mainly members of the military, our main character Din is an apprentice assigned to eccentric Senior Investigator Ana.  Din is her eyes during the investigation, while she pieces together the intricate puzzle involving a murder, high society, and strange creatures that threaten humanity.

This has a bit of everything.  If you enjoy a good mentor-mentee detective type mystery with an intricate fantasy element this is the book for you.  If you don't like books with complex plotlines and a long list of characters, this may not be the book for you.  This has great elements of political intrigue and conspiracy as well.  It was such a great mash up of so many great things.  This has such great world building, the materials, people, and other entities of the world are describes so well and are often made of unexpected material or altered to be more appealing or used in unique ways.  The plot moves at a great pace as well and there are nice elements of humor and action to keep the reader interested.  I couldn't put this down!

This is currently showing as a trilogy, however this doesn't end on a cliffhanger.  The main storyline ends with the promise of Din and Ana to have future investigations.  The current mystery has been solved and I'm so looking forward to seeing what kind of adventures they get into next  This world promises to have lots of mysteries to uncover.

View all my reviews