- The Good: Light-hearted and fun story featuring plants, fungi, and monsters
- The Bad: Limited character development; unnecessary Holmes-Watson comparison
- The Literary: Impressive fantasy world-building for a murder mystery novel
The body of a high Imperial officer is found dead in one of the one most opulent mansions in Daretana. The cause of death is evident—a tree erupted from his chest. Eccentric and brilliant investigator Ana Dolabra comes to pursue the case, with her new assistant Dinios Kol at her side.
The summary paragraph above highlights the murder mystery aspect of this novel on purpose, as it’s the real driving force of the plot, which comes together in the final pages quite nicely. Marketing for the book makes the Holmes-Watson comparison, which relies on the odd-pair relationship between Ana and Din, and Ana’s quirkiness.
But what I like most about this novel is the fantasy worldbuilding. Din is a recently graduated Sublime, magically altered to fulfill a job or role in society. He’s an engraver, and with the aid of smell he has perfect memory recall. He’s hired by Ana to observe and report for her. Personal augmentations are common in this world, including enhanced strength or vision, or even math skills.
The empire is surrounded by sea walls, and each wet season giant leviathans emerge from the deep ocean, threatening all citizens within. A military force mans the outermost walls, but not just to project the people, but also the land. The leviathan blood and tissue drastically affect the flora and fauna, potentially making a place uninhabitable for humans. The murder itself is quickly found to be caused by Dappleglass poisoning, a leviathan-modified plant triggered by water and heat to release spores that cause plant matter to grow almost instantaneously.
Soon after Din investigates the initial murder, a leviathan breaches the sea wall, and Ana and Din learn that the engineers responsible for the wall were also killed by Dappleglass poisoning. Despite the looming threat of the leviathans, this isn’t an action-packed narrative. Instead, prepare yourself for a murder mystery that includes the politics and power struggles between the military and the influential wealthy family dynasties, all in a high fantasy setting.
I am not as impressed with the Holmes-Watson character duo. They are fine. Their dialogue and interchanges allow for much needed humor. But Ana, our Holmes, is a little too eccentric. She’s a recluse, wears a blindfold to reduce sensory input, lies on the floor, asks awkward and personal questions, and likes to take illicit mind-altering substances. She never struggles or has any personality besides being peculiar. Din is quite green and comes from a low social status, but his only fault is that he’s dyslexic and trying to hide it. If perhaps the Holmes-Watson comparison wasn’t there from the start, I may have enjoyed their odd-couple relationship more.
I really enjoyed the mash-up of genres in this easy and fun read! Recommended for fans of murder mystery making their way into the fantasy.