Katabasis

Katabasis by R.F. Kuang promises Dark Academia elements, a trip to hell and mostly unlikeable characters (which is one of many things I love about Kuang's books) - and we get all that! I think this novel is for the Babel Lovers, the Dark Academia Readers who love social commentary and critique. Also the commentary on power dynamics and exploitation in academia was very fascinating. I really liked the philosophical approach and the complex layers that this story provides. If you are looking for a fast paced, actionpacked fantasy novel this might not be the one for you. But if you enjoy slow, intricate storytelling, layered characters and an excursion in deeper waters then this one is most definitely for you. The only thing that I would have liked more of was a more detailed description of hell, because it was so interesting and fascinating to me.

R. F. Kuang shows her talent for writing academia and demonstrates her knowledge about mythology once again. I really loved Babel and Yellowface, so this was a very nice addition to her previous books in terms of style and philosophical/literary themes, mixed together with a nice and subtle love-subplot. The mental strain and the workload of academia were heavily referenced, which evoked great sense of empathazing with the characters. The only problem I have with this book were the few passages that kept dragging a bit, mainly because of the complex concepts that were referenced. But it was overall still a very fun reading experience and felt so interesting to dive into the complex but compelling magical system.

4.5 stars Katabasis is definitely not a super easy read - It's not just a story in an academic setting, the academia is *very* present but that is also one half of the reason I liked it so much. The other half would be the characters - everyone from our main characters to who they interact with in hell has their own goals, convictions and philosophies and thus feels like their own interesting person. The 0.5 star detraction is because - probably also due to the very academic tone, and Alice being Alice - I couldn't quite fall into the emotions of the story a hundred percent.