In this authoritative study, originally published in 1980, R. J. Bennett examines who receives what benefit, where and at what cost, from the social services. He adopts an integrated approach to taxes, benefits and intergovernmental grants, drawing empirical examples from a wide range of countries, including the USA, the UK, Canada, Australia and Europe.

****AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER**An unthinkable crime. A fatal conspiracy. A suspect without a trace.The heir to one of the Empire's most powerful families sits in jail, accused of murder. His hands are covered in his victim's blood, and he can neither deny his guilt nor explain his actions.If the great detective Ana Dolabra - along with her assistant Dinios Kol - cannot save him, the farming canton of Sa...

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Detective Ana Dolabra must prove a condemned man’s innocence and confront a terrifying magical technology in this fantasy-mystery from the author of The Tainted Cup, winner of the Hugo and World Fantasy awards.“Wildly imaginative, sometimes pointed, often hair-raising, and very entertaining, a series that has been a hit with everyone I’ve recommended it to.”—Laura Miller, SlateT...

**HUGO AWARD WINNER • WORLD FANTASY AWARD WINNER • NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A Holmes and Watson–style detective duo take the stage in this fantasy with a mystery twist, from acclaimed author Robert Jackson Bennett“Like an endearing fantasy version of Knives Out . . . A great murder mystery is hard to pull off, but Bennett structures his perfectly.”—T. J. Klune, The New York Times“Combines the best of Lovecraft and Doyle.”—Matt Dinniman, New York Times

Detective Ana Dolabra must prove a condemned man’s innocence and confront a terrifying magical technology in this fantasy-mystery from the bestselling author of The Tainted Cup, winner of the Hugo and World Fantasy awards.The heir to one of the Empire’s most powerful families sits in jail, accused of murder. His hands are covered in the victim’s blood, and he can neither deny his guilt nor explain his actions.But if the great detective Ana Dolabra ...

**NATIONAL BESTSELLER • HUGO AWARD FINALIST • ONE OF BOOKPAGE’S TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR • AN ELLE BEST BOOK OF THE YEARThe eccentric detective Ana Dolabra matches wits with a seemingly omniscient adversary in this brilliant fantasy-mystery from the author of The Tainted Cup.**“Wonderfully clever and compulsively readable . . . another winning blend of fantasy and classic detection.”—Publishers WeeklyIn the cant...

“The exciting beginning of a promising new epic fantasy series. Prepare for ancient mysteries, innovative magic, and heart-pounding heists.”—Brandon Sanderson“Complex characters, magic that is tech and vice versa, a world bound by warring trade dynasties: Bennett will leave you in awe once you remember to breathe!”—Tamora PierceIn a city that runs on industrialized magic, a secret war will be fought to overwrite reality itself—the first...

HUGO AND LOCUS AWARD FINALIST • In the first book of an epic fantasy trilogy, master spy Shara Thivani investigates a murder in a mysterious city of dead gods, living assassins, and buried histories, from the nationally bestselling author of The Tainted Cup.“Readers seeking a truly refreshing fantasy milieu should travel to Bulikov, and welcome its conquest.”—N. K. Jemison, The New York TimesWith the gods on its side, the ...

**WINNER OF THE 2025 HUGO AWARD FOR BEST NOVEL**A peculiar crime. A brilliant investigator. A mystery of epic proportions.In an opulent mansion at the borders of the Empire, an Imperial officer lies dead - killed when a tree spontaneously erupted from his body. Even here, where contagions abound and the blood of the Leviathans works strange magical changes, it's a death at once terrifying and impossible.Called in to solve t...

Black Static issue 71 (September-October 2019) contains new cutting edge horror fiction by Stephen Hargadon, Sarah Read, Steven Sheil, Daniel Bennet, and Seán Padraic Birnie. The cover art is by Joachim Luetke, and interior illustrations are by Richard Wagner, Jim Burns, Warwick Fraser-Coombe and others. Regular features: Into the Woods by Ralph Robert Moore; Notes from the Borderland by Lynda E. Rucker; Case Notes book reviews by Georgina Bruce, Laura Mauro, Andrew Hook, Daniel Carpenter,...

A special omnibus edition, collecting all three books of Robert Jackson Bennett’s acclaimed Divine Cities trilogy in a single volume.In a world where terrifying, capricious gods once walked the earth, enslaving and brutalizing millions, three unforgettable protagonists struggle to come to terms with the mysteries these divinities left behind— and to make sure these cruel masters do not rise again.In City of Stairs, an unassuming young woman named S...

'A riveting murder mystery wrapped in a twisty conspiracy' FONDA LEE'A twisty detective story, a weird fantasy, a thrilling adventure' MAX GLADSTONEIn sequel to the Hugo award-winning The Tainted Cup**, an eccentric detective matches wits with a seemingly omniscient adversary in this brilliant bio-punk fantasy mystery.**An impossible crime has occurred. A Treasury officer ha...