A Drop of Corruption is the follow-up to 2024’s The Tainted Cup and the second installment in Robert Jackson Bennett’s Shadow of the Leviathan series. We’re once again riding shotgun with Ana and Din as they investigate a murder, this time in the delightfully rotting heart of Yarrowdale.
I really enjoyed The Tainted Cup last year, but A Drop of Corruption takes it to the next level. I love this book. It is ridiculously creative. More than once I caught myself thinking, How does he come up with this stuff? The world-building is incredible. Vivid, layered, utterly original, and steeped in corruption. You can almost smell the rot.
This isn’t just a perfect sequel, it’s a perfect book. No second book syndrome here. The characters are at their peak, their dynamics honed and crackling, and the central mystery is just as world-altering and twisty as in the first novel. It’s clear Bennett knows exactly what he’s doing with this series.
I figured out who the killer was somewhere around the halfway point, but that didn’t take away from the experience at all. The mystery is clever, well-constructed, and satisfying from start to finish. It’s less about the final reveal and more about how every piece clicks into place along the way.
It took me about two weeks to finish this one, but that’s on me, not the book. The current political situation in Turkey makes it hard to focus on anything else. We’re, quite literally, fighting for our democracy here. That’s why Bennett’s Author’s Note at the end hit me harder than I think he anticipated. It felt like a quiet, unexpected comfort. When he wrote that note, things weren’t this dire here, but now, in the midst of the protests, reading his thoughts on autocrats felt good.
Five stars. I need the next book yesterday. Not because of a cliffhanger, just because I want more. A million more of these would be ideal, honestly.
I read City of Stairs last year and found it a bit slow and dull, despite its impressive world-building. Then I picked up The Tainted Cup and liked it a lot. Now? A Drop of Corruption has me hooked. I will definitely go back to The Divine Cities with fresh eyes later this year.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced reader copy
in exchange for an honest review.
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