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carlysgrowingtbr 's review for:
Katabasis
by R.F. Kuang
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
To Hell, With Love.....
Book Stats:
📖: 380
Genre: Dark academia
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Format: eARC from publisher
Series: Standalone
Audiobook Stats:
⏰: 18 hours 34 minutes
🎤: Morag Sims, Will Watt
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Format: Single POV / Dual narrator
This audiobook is gonna get a little bit of a mixed bag for me. The female narrator was quite good and I enjoyed her rendition of Alice. I feel like she gave the character a lot of emotion and depth. But the random intervals of the male narrator really threw me off. Every time he came in to read a purely academic and explanatory chapter it took me out of the book completely.
Themes:
💫: Women in a male dominated field
💫: Women in STEM
💫: Revenge and female rage
💫: Sacrifice and friendship
Representation:
🪽: Depression
🪽: Crohn's Disease/Chronic Illness
Tropes:
💗: Animal Companion
🥵: Spice: mild kissing only
Potential Triggers: suicidal ideation, violence, body horror **check authors page/socials for full list.
General Thoughts:
Right off the bat Katabasis strikes me as much more academic based than Babel. Since this book discusses a topic that I am not well-versed in, I did find it hard to hold my attention during some of the more lengthy academic explanations. But the overall storyline was so interesting that I definitely felt compelled to stay through.
The magical realism set within this world is extremely interesting and I do love the academic basis for which it's founded on. Although those explanations as previously mentioned, did get a little dry at times.
I think a hard point for many readers, especially readers who need to "like" their main characters will be that Alice and Peter are both pretty unlikable for a good chunk of this book. Eventually, we do learn more about their motivations, pasts and reasonings for why they come across as they do. I do believe it gives them a sense of depth that is pretty unmatched in other dark academia books. This is a very character driven tale, and you have to hold in with the characters to get the full payout.
I do believe this is the closest to a romance that Kuang has ever attempted. It is still not romance forward or heavy, but was a nice touch.
I did enjoy the overall storyline and plot. It was engaging and the characters were interesting. I felt like the world made sense and I had a good grasp on the intricacies of Hell and its inhabitants. The movement between past and present timelines were well done and I enjoyed both perspectives.
Disclaimer: I read this book as a eARC from the publisher and NetGalley and a self purchased audiobook. All opinions are my own. This is my honest and voluntary review.