This book was a departure from my usual reading habits. When I read fantasy, it tends to be sweeping, swashbuckling, and romance-forward. This treasure of a novel was none of those things, but it was a delight from start to finish. The culture and politics of the world Bennett created are so rich and intriguing, and I'm dying to know more about the bizarre system of nature-magic that keeps their world turning.

Dinios Kol is an Assistant Investigator in the Iudex, the branch of the Imperial government that investigates and prosecutes crime. His brain has been altered through the application of magical suffusions to give him complete, perfect recall of everything he sees and hears, making him a useful tool for his boss, the eccentric, foul-mouthed recluse, Ana Dolabra.

Din is called upon to investigate a peculiar death scene on Ana's behalf: an Imperial officer has been found in a house belonging to the influential Haza nobles with a tree growing out of his chest.

Their investigation takes Ana and Din to the outer limits of the Empire, where heavily guarded sea walls are the only thing protecting the people from incursions of gigantic monsters who come from the deep. There, ten more officers in the Engineering division have died under similarly botanical circumstances.

This book manages to balance complex worldbuilding, dark and violent intrigues, and humor tremendously well, with Din playing the straight man to the other characters' eccentricities. He proves to be a competent investigator, but he's like the Watson to Ana's Sherlock, who keeps most of her intellectual machinations to herself until they can be revealed to the best possible dramatic effect. I loved to see the representations of neurodivergence, particularly with Ana (who has sensory issues, among other complex needs) and Din, who has dyslexia.

The conclusion of the mystery was so satisfying, and I quite enjoyed the dynamic between Din, Ana, and the other principal characters. And, as a dedicated romantasy reader, I appreciated that there was one teeny tiny little kernel of a romantic spark, which I have put in my pocket and will treasure forever.

I sincerely hope that Bennett will be giving us more of this world, and soon.