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A review by tfitz_
Katabasis by R.F. Kuang
adventurous
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
While I enjoyed parts of the narrative and the character dynamics between Prof Grimes and Alice and Peter, I felt a lot of important character moments were explained through exposition and jarring flashbacks, and in particular I felt that until we got a big background dump on Peter his character was held at an arm’s length and the reader was given no opportunity to really glean his inner nature.
A lot of the narrative also felt very loose in its construction, a lot of what makes a good journey to me is the travel needs to be done with sufficient intent, but it felt that a lot of the time the characters were really just meandering and dragged along with the plot, instead of driving it.
What I enjoyed the most was the commentary on the internalised misogyny not just in academia but really in all parts of society. It was what I found the most interesting.
A lot of the narrative also felt very loose in its construction, a lot of what makes a good journey to me is the travel needs to be done with sufficient intent, but it felt that a lot of the time the characters were really just meandering and dragged along with the plot, instead of driving it.
What I enjoyed the most was the commentary on the internalised misogyny not just in academia but really in all parts of society. It was what I found the most interesting.