woahnellie 's review for:

Katabasis by R.F. Kuang

4.0

adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: N/A

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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I love RF Kuang’s writing, and Katabasis was no exception. It didn’t make me feel as deeply as The Poppy War or Babel, but I definitely had a lot of fun with it. I especially loved how Hell was depicted and how she pulled from mythology about Hell and Death from around the world. You so often see the Underworld depicted as just the Greek Underworld, but she incorporated elements from Egypt, China, Rome, and many other cultures.

Alice and Peter could be obnoxious at times, but I became endeared to them by the end and am immensely pleased they got a happy ending. I have cried TOO MANY TIMES over one of her books, it was nice to be dry eyed for once! I also loved that Peter was chronically ill: the chapter where he revealed his past resonated deeply with me as a T1D. T1D is of course different than what Peter was going through with Crohn’s Disease, but the way it was described as “The Beast” and the way Peter talked about having an invisible disability really struck home. It was very powerful, especially since disabled characters aren’t often represented in fantasy, at least in the books I read.

One thing I will say is that some of the logic and philosophy in this book can be tough. Kuang does elaborate on the theories she talks about, but it did make my head spin! I just took it slow and reread if needed-- and if that still didn’t help me understand, I just went with it and let myself enjoy the rest of the book lol. Either way, I had a great time reading Katabasis, and think it was definitely worth the preorder and wait for publication!