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A review by definitelyjiji
Katabasis by R.F. Kuang
adventurous
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I started this book only really knowing that it was two graduate students travelling to hell to save their professor, and that RF Kuang said that she wanted to write something with a lil romance in it for once.
The first third of this book is excruciatingly slow. The exposition is extensive and split into seperate chapters, and in those chapters the prose falls flat, taking away from any of the exciting parts of the present narrative. The characters, Alice and Peter, are in hell, facing challenges and life-threatening situations yet you feel none of the tension in the first 200 pages. Their interactions are entertaining and there is an attempt to build intrigue about their past, but we don't learn anything personal about these two characters to be invested in them. Another big issue I had with this book is that, for a fantasy book, I didn't feel invested in the world-building at all. I understand magical realism as a concept, but this is literally hell. The descriptions and attempts at building atmosphere were weak and unsustained, and I think I expected to feel the character of each court more. I'm not sure that making those first few courts their campus worked well.
Now, that all sounds quite negative and maybe you're thinking "how can you give a book you kind of just ripped apart 4 stars?" and that is because after The Confession, a lot of this becomes a non-problem. There is a point in this book where the duo meet a character called Elspeth that finally gets the plot going. The exposition finally ends once the two characters finally start being honest with each other.
Up until this point, I really hated Alice as a character and thought she was a self-absorbed, cruel academic who was turning into her equally awful professor. Actually, I still thought this for a while afterwards but with more affection. There is something about a character admitting their flaws and struggling to overcome them that really gets me on their side. On Peter's side of things, I actually thought he was a bit of a wet rag, almost an archetypal perfect rival, but his personality starts to solidify once we start learning of his challenges.
Without the exposition and with all revealed, the story flows so much smoother. The stakes are higher, the descriptions really start shining through. I especially enjoyed the parts where Alice struggles with her memory and staying in touch with the present - RF Kuang is a good writer y'all.
I saw some people upset that it wasn't as romance-centered as they thought it would be since the marketing copy is "To hell with love - literally" and as a romance reader yes, this wasn't a romantasy novel. However, all of the turning points in this book center around the respect and admiration (and yes, love) these two characters have for each other. Who said RF Kuang couldn't be subtle? Because the romance was definitely very subtle. There were a few moments that made you want to scream at Alice (the scene where Peter says, "For whatever reason, I still thought you weren't like him" oh my). Under it all, this is a rivals-to-lovers, he-falls-first kind of situation.
I'm not one of those readers who hate how much academic jargon and explanations she writes into her stories - Babel is one of my favourite reads ever. The Big Themes of this book are ego in the persuit of knowledge, and abuse in academia. If you're into philosophy and logic this will be right up your alley because the magick is all based on logical reasoning which I personally found very cool. Did I understand all of it? Not really, but she does a good job of explaining parts that are necessary to understanding the plot progression. There was some great discussion about mortality, the dying body, suicidal ideation and the banality of life.
This is definitely a very generous 4 stars considering the faults and a third of the book being dull, but I really couldn't put it down after a certain point and that's usually my top criteria for a 4 star read. This book won't be for everyone. If you don't enjoy academia and hate it at the same time, if you've never been a nerd about anything, you won't enjoy it. If you think you'll find the references to classical texts and philosphers pretentious then you won't enjoy it. Like many, I think that if she spent a little more time sitting with this text then it could have been refined into something really unique and novel. I would never recommend a book to someone where you have to read 200 pages to get to the good part, but if you think you can get over that hurdle then read this!
The first third of this book is excruciatingly slow. The exposition is extensive and split into seperate chapters, and in those chapters the prose falls flat, taking away from any of the exciting parts of the present narrative. The characters, Alice and Peter, are in hell, facing challenges and life-threatening situations yet you feel none of the tension in the first 200 pages. Their interactions are entertaining and there is an attempt to build intrigue about their past, but we don't learn anything personal about these two characters to be invested in them. Another big issue I had with this book is that, for a fantasy book, I didn't feel invested in the world-building at all. I understand magical realism as a concept, but this is literally hell. The descriptions and attempts at building atmosphere were weak and unsustained, and I think I expected to feel the character of each court more. I'm not sure that making those first few courts their campus worked well.
Now, that all sounds quite negative and maybe you're thinking "how can you give a book you kind of just ripped apart 4 stars?" and that is because after The Confession, a lot of this becomes a non-problem. There is a point in this book where the duo meet a character called Elspeth that finally gets the plot going. The exposition finally ends once the two characters finally start being honest with each other.
Up until this point, I really hated Alice as a character and thought she was a self-absorbed, cruel academic who was turning into her equally awful professor. Actually, I still thought this for a while afterwards but with more affection. There is something about a character admitting their flaws and struggling to overcome them that really gets me on their side. On Peter's side of things, I actually thought he was a bit of a wet rag, almost an archetypal perfect rival, but his personality starts to solidify once we start learning of his challenges.
Without the exposition and with all revealed, the story flows so much smoother. The stakes are higher, the descriptions really start shining through. I especially enjoyed the parts where Alice struggles with her memory and staying in touch with the present - RF Kuang is a good writer y'all.
I saw some people upset that it wasn't as romance-centered as they thought it would be since the marketing copy is "To hell with love - literally" and as a romance reader yes, this wasn't a romantasy novel. However, all of the turning points in this book center around the respect and admiration (and yes, love) these two characters have for each other. Who said RF Kuang couldn't be subtle? Because the romance was definitely very subtle. There were a few moments that made you want to scream at Alice (the scene where Peter says, "For whatever reason, I still thought you weren't like him" oh my). Under it all, this is a rivals-to-lovers, he-falls-first kind of situation.
I'm not one of those readers who hate how much academic jargon and explanations she writes into her stories - Babel is one of my favourite reads ever. The Big Themes of this book are ego in the persuit of knowledge, and abuse in academia. If you're into philosophy and logic this will be right up your alley because the magick is all based on logical reasoning which I personally found very cool. Did I understand all of it? Not really, but she does a good job of explaining parts that are necessary to understanding the plot progression. There was some great discussion about mortality, the dying body, suicidal ideation and the banality of life.
This is definitely a very generous 4 stars considering the faults and a third of the book being dull, but I really couldn't put it down after a certain point and that's usually my top criteria for a 4 star read. This book won't be for everyone. If you don't enjoy academia and hate it at the same time, if you've never been a nerd about anything, you won't enjoy it. If you think you'll find the references to classical texts and philosphers pretentious then you won't enjoy it. Like many, I think that if she spent a little more time sitting with this text then it could have been refined into something really unique and novel. I would never recommend a book to someone where you have to read 200 pages to get to the good part, but if you think you can get over that hurdle then read this!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide