Book Review: A Trade of Blood
Robert Jackson Bennett’s A Trade of Blood is the third book in his Shadow of the Leviathan series. This Romeo and Juliet inspired murder-mystery tale explores the costs of food production and technology in a fantasy setting. I loved it.
If you’re not familiar with the world of Bennet’s Shadow of the Leviathan series, I recommend picking up book one, The Tainted Cup, and book two, A Drop of Corruption before reading A Trade of Blood. They all work well as standalone mystery novels, but to truly understand this wonderful world Bennett has created, you need the baseline information provided in the first two novels.
A Trade of Blood is Sherlock Holmes blended with Attack on Titan and The Last of Us with a dash of Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle thrown in for good measure. I can hear you say, “But Justin, that’s an odd combination. How can that possibly be any good?”
Yes, it is an odd combination, but it works so well.
So, how do monstrous titans, a zombie fungus, the exploration of the meat industry, and two young lovers combine to form a good book? Well, you’ll have to read it to find out. The whole Shadow of the Leviathan series is absolutely wonderful, and the latest entry, A Trade of Blood is no different.
This time, Iudex investigators Ana Dolabra and Dinios Kol, find themselves in the farming canton of Sapirdad investigating the murder of a young woman. This appears to be an open and shut case, as the local constables already have the suspect in custody with plenty of eye witnesses on hand to testify to his guilt.
Yet, as things so often do, the case takes a peculiar turn when Dolabra and Din show up in town to investigate these two rival cattle baron families. There is much more happening in Sapirdad than murder. The stakes are high as a civil war between these two rival families could lead to famine across the empire as food production of the canton’s famous urhosi cattle, and other food stuffs, would grind to a halt.
I really enjoyed the latest entry into this world. We, that is the reader, gain a deeper understanding of how this strange fantasy world operates. While it does take a step back from the leviathan aspect and what is happening at the sea walls, we do get to meet a group of people with a whole new set of very interesting powers and get more background on the empire itself.
Bennet dives deeper into Din's past, with a very special addition to the story that I will not spoil. We also find out how Din ended up joining the Iudex and more of the reasons behind his transformation. His powers of remembrance are maturing, but there are side effects to that maturity that make Din’s condition untenable. I am curious to see how that dynamic will shake out in future books.
Ana Dolabra is still a huge mystery, but fractionally less so, by the end. We don’t get any huge reveals as to the nature of her powers, but her origin story is vaguely hinted at in the final pages. Ana’s relationship with Din is improving. She trusts him more, and she even shows affection and concern for him throughout this book in her own unusual way, of course.
A Trade of Blood hits a bookstore shelf near you on August 11, 2026. If you enjoyed this review and are interested in reading the book, you can pre-order it on bookshop.org.
Thank you, Net Galley, Del Ray, and Robert Jackson Bennet for the opportunity to review this ebook in advance of its publication. 4.5/5 Stars.
I’m Justin. I write about librarianship, leadership, public service, and books. If you found this piece relatable, leave me a like or send me an email. Subscribe if you want more of what’s bouncing around in my head. If you found this article helpful, consider buying me a coffee.
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