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A Drop of Corruption

Pages
480
Published
2025
Language
English

Synopsis

A Drop of Corruption is the second novel in Robert Jackson Bennett's Shadow of the Leviathan series, following The Tainted Cup.

In the canton of Yarrowdale, at the edge of the Empire's reach, a Treasury officer disappears without a trace from inside a heavily guarded tower — its door and windows locked from the inside. The Empire summons its most brilliant and unconventional investigator, Ana Dolabra, to solve the impossible case, with her chronically exhausted assistant Dinios Kol once again serving as her eyes and ears in the field.

As Ana and Din work the case, they uncover a conspiracy reaching into the Empire's administration of its outer cantons — a mystery that widens far beyond a single locked room.

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About the author

R
Robert Jackson Bennett

Robert Jackson Bennett (born June 22, 1984, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana) is an American author of speculative fiction. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with honors in English in 2005 and lives in Austin, Texas. His novels include the Divine Cities trilogy, the Founders trilogy, and the Shadow of the Leviathan series, which opens with The Tainted Cup, winner of the 2025 Hugo Award for Best Novel and the 2025 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel.

Characters

Ana DolabraProtagonist

Brilliant, eccentric imperial investigator.

Dinios KolProtagonist

Ana's augmented assistant, narrator of the investigation.

Tira MaloSupporting

A local warden/officer in Yarrowdale who assists Ana and Din with the investigation.

All characters in A Drop of Corruption

Frequently asked questions

  • Has A Drop of Corruption won any awards?

    It was a finalist for the 2026 Hugo Award for Best Novel and the 2026 Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel, but did not win either.

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