The Tainted Cup

by Robert Jackson Bennett

☆ Shortlisted for the 2025 Edgar Allan Poe Awards

The Tainted Cup is a murder mystery set in a fantastical, dystopian world, where everyone lives in fear of being crushed by sea creatures currently kept out by a wall.

Recommendations from our site

“The Tainted Cup belongs to a popular new hybrid genre, fantasy mystery, but is probably more fantasy than mystery” Read more...

The Best Mystery Books of 2025

Sophie Roell, Journalist

“Detective fiction is given a magical twist in Robert Jackson Bennett’s The Tainted Cup. The Edgar-winning author combines intricate world-building with a Sherlockian murder investigation to create a fantastical, richly imagined story, the first in a planned trilogy.” Read more...

Cal Flyn, Five Books Editor