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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Slow pacing throughout the first 3/4, very unlikable characters and a romance that didn’t work at all for me. Writing is long winded and is constantly romanticizing academia at every turn in a way that gets tired. Especially having read this after Babel, which is a much better story.
Katabasis was one of the new releases I was most looking forward to this year and was beyond excited to get an advanced copy.
This book just didn’t work for me. There wasn’t enough character development for me to really care for the characters or to understand why they were doing what they were doing. It immediately jumped into the plot and I think if the book had eased the reader in, I would have felt more invested. I also felt like the writing was more YA than I am used to with this author.
I think if you are interested in some of the philosophy and religious takes in hell, this book would be a lot more interesting, I was not so I felt pretty bored the entire time.
I DNFed at 40%. I really gave it a shot but I just couldn’t force myself to read anymore.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the arc
adventurous
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Dante meets a reflection on the life of an academic meets YA-enemies-to-lovers meets Hadestown - this book is a hoot for lovers of classics, academia, and YA alike. I most loved how figures such as Dante, Orpheus, and Milton were referenced; as well as the very cross-cultural feeling of hell.
I do think that the romantic subplot was the least interesting part of the book and would myself have preferred that to have turned into a friendship.
I do think that the romantic subplot was the least interesting part of the book and would myself have preferred that to have turned into a friendship.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Thus far, I have loved everything that RF Kuang has written, but unfortunately I think she missed the mark with this one. The book initially starts off very fast-paced but just as quickly becomes as slow and meandering as I imagine an actual journey through Hell would be (maybe that was her point and I just missed it ...?), and several of the chapters felt more like fillers rather than necessities for the plot. One of my favorite things about her writing is how her intelligence always shines through and plays a role in the narrative, but in this case those instances felt ... too niche, almost? Overly academic to a fault? Even with the explanations provided, it kind of seemed like she was either expecting the reader to already know what was being referred to or to quickly grasp the relevance to the plot and the point being made via said explanations, which at least for me was not the case. It didn't make things harder to understand per se, but it didn't really add anything to the narrative either.
Also, and this is perhaps just a me issue, this book made me think about death and my own mortality far too much for my liking and far more than I bargained for, which maybe made it harder for me to fully lock in to the plot.
Overall, while I am still very fond of the general idea behind this book, I think Kuang was trying to tell too many stories at once and fit too many concepts into a single narrative, which ultimately has led to a book that loses its plot and becomes a chore to get through. She's an ambitious writer, and I love that, but there are times where that ambition becomes a folly, and this is unfortunately one of those times.
Also, and this is perhaps just a me issue, this book made me think about death and my own mortality far too much for my liking and far more than I bargained for, which maybe made it harder for me to fully lock in to the plot.
Overall, while I am still very fond of the general idea behind this book, I think Kuang was trying to tell too many stories at once and fit too many concepts into a single narrative, which ultimately has led to a book that loses its plot and becomes a chore to get through. She's an ambitious writer, and I love that, but there are times where that ambition becomes a folly, and this is unfortunately one of those times.