3.7 stars
It seems like I keep hearing about this book from many sources, most recently at a book club event at my favourite book store. It is often described as a Sherlock and Watson mystery in a fantasy world. The world, with all its contagions and rot, reminded me a bit of Paolo Bacigalupi's The Windup Girl. The language of the Empire, describing its ranks with Latin titles, made me think of Jim Butcher's Furies of Calderon. But Ana Dolabra is very much an eccentric Sherlock to Dinios Kol's calm, grounded Watson.
Unlike the original Watson, Din has more on the ball. Not everything, so Ana pulls a rabbit out of her hat on several occasions, amazing him. Being an engraver (someone who can commit everything they can see to memory), Dinios has advantages over poor old Watson and he uses his brain to their mutual benefit more than once. On the other hand, engraving was his only talent—he failed every other class dismally and had to figure out a route around that obstacle. In other words, he is sneaky, a trait that is useful in crime investigation.
I didn't expect to enjoy this novel as much as I did. I'm surprised to find that I'm very interested in the next installment.
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