3.5/5. I’ve been going back and forth about how exactly I feel about this book. This book was good. I liked the world building. The concept of magic as delusion was interesting to me and the magical quality of paradoxes reminded me a lot of how the silver translations worked in Babel, which I liked. I enjoyed the depiction of hell. Kuang did a great job of creating something new while still looking to traditional references like Dante. To me the world building was the highlight of the book, but I also love fantasy so we shouldn’t be all that surprised. However, there were certainly things that lost me in this book. There was lots of telling instead of showing, which particularly bothered me in moments where Alice was supposed to be losing control/being influenced by Hell itself as well as in the “romance” with Peter (if you are looking at this book thinking it is a romance/romantasy you will be disappointed). The other flaw I found was the overwhelming amount of facts and references. There were times it felt like a show of Kuang’s academic prowess, making the text feel pretentious instead of the characters. I can appreciate some philosophical discussion (seriously I’m all for the MIT philosophy department this year) and some literary references and the like, but it made it difficult to read at times, especially in the beginning of the novel before the plot picked up. The middle of the novel was by far my favorite and I got somewhat invested, but both the beginning and the end weren’t it for me (perhaps if it was longer?). I enjoyed the book, but it’s not the R.F. Kuang book I would recommend first. Thank you to HarperVoyager, Netgalley and the author for this ARC.

Truly one of the most fun and original stories ever told and the depictions of hell reminded me so much of beetlejuice — intriguing, yet horrifying. It unpacks the desperation and dark side of academia in a way only RF Kuang can.

Katabasis by RF Kuang ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️

No surprises here. Give me academic rivals to lovers in hell and I’m sat.
This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year and I had a great time. It didn’t destroy me like some of her other books have, but I think that’s to be expected as this is ultimately a love story. The commentary on women in academia (of which I found to be nuanced) was particularly powerful and a highlight of this book for me. Rebecca truly writes complex and flawed characters like no other.

One complaint I’ve seen about this book is the fact that it’s brimming with academic references. I am glad I read Dante’s Inferno prior to this because it really set the stage for Alice and Peter’s journey to hell. That being said, there were definitely a lot of references I missed, but I don’t think it took away from my understanding of the story at all. In fact, it perfectly sets the tone of two graduates students completely immersed in their discipline (quite literally). Comparing to other famous dark academia books, this is often the vibe of the genre and not specific to Kuang.

To elaborate- a common criticism about Babel is that people feel like it is talking down to them because everything is explained so explicitly (which I personally think is missing the point of the book because it’s supposed to read like an academic text in itself and thus the writing style reflects). Katabasis is very much the opposite— Alice and Peter are so absorbed by their academic bubble and so many references not explained to the reader because the characters both understand (which as I said above, seems also to be the point).

Ultimately this book deserves its flowers. The concept and magic system were interesting and unique, the vibes were immaculate, and the characters were complex (if annoying at times).

Thank you to Harper Collins for providing me an arc! I am so grateful I got to read this early.

i feel terrible. i need to stop requesting these types of books for the time being. objectively? gorgeous. such immersive writing with a story that sucks you in. that being said, for me personally, there was a little too much happening plot wise. i felt like we lost our footing at times. and with the romance? i didn't feel we needed everything all at once. that being said, true lovers of fantasy and all of its forms will likely love this

I honestly tried to like this book. Unfortunately, it didn’t land with me. The world building was very unique and I wish that I had enjoyed it. All the mathematical paradoxes were just beyond my understanding. Though the explanation and writing was good, the book was clunky.

Thank you to the publisher for this book.

Things I liked:
Kuang is in her element, using her academic knowledge to discuss traveling through Hell. For some readers, I can see this being a lot, but for me I adored the heavy use of this academic background.
Despite being heavy on academics, this was a fairly quick read. Kuang kept me engaged throughout the story to be able to read long chunks at a time.
The Magick system feels so unique. From logic puzzles, to imbued chalk, this felt original.
Kuang looks at abuse of power in the academic world, which is such an important topic. And this means not only sexual abuse, but things like unpaid labor, stealing research, etc etc.


Things I disliked:
I didn't really see the love between Alice and Peter. They truly just seemed more like academic rivals, maybe friends. Maybe characters just needed to be fleshed out more for me to enjoy it.

This was certainly an interesting read. The theories of hell were unique and I definitely learned a lot about mathematics and logic puzzles. The setting is easily the star of this novel.

This work started with a bang, but then moved into a crawl. Things picked back up around the last third and stayed interesting until the end. My main problem was with the characters. I enjoy an unlikable character, but I found Alice and Peter to be so uninteresting until deep into the novel. Hard to stay invested when the characters themselves are insipid.

Overall I did really enjoy the world R F Kuang created and was back engaged by the end of this book. I’d recommend it to fantasy fans - particularly those interested in logic/philosophy.

Absolutely loved this book. This was my first RF Kuang book and man oh man I loved it. I loved the writing style, the plot, the characters, everything. Will definitely be picking up more RF Kuang books

4.5 stars!

As someone who has liked, but not loved, some of Kuang’s other works, I went into this knowing there was a chance it would let me down.

However, I think Katabasis blew my expectations out of the water. As someone involved in academia, I thought this was such an innovative way to describe Hell.

I get why this might not be for everyone and why it hasn’t lived up to everyone’s expectations. For me, I loved how Kuang shaped her version of Hell. I loved Peter and Alice, and I thought the character work was top notch. As always, Kuang’s writing was great.

The only reason I didn’t give this 5 stars is because I would have liked a little more thorough explanation of Hell at some points; some of the Courts (or “Circles” if you want to look at it through a Dante lens) weren’t differentiated enough and started to blur together.

If you are looking for a book with insane and intense Hell descriptions, Katabasis isn’t probably for you. However, if you want a book with in-depth character studies that slowly get revealed because of a journey through Hell, then pick up Katabasis as soon as possible.

Thank you for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

My most anticipated read of the year, and it did not disappoint.

Katabasis is a story about two postgrad students descending into hell to save their advisor.

R.F. Kuang is masterful in writing the banter between Alice and Peter. I was obsessed with every single one of their interactions and dialogues. It felt so real, so human. That is the strongest point of the book.

It's genius of R.F. Kuang to introduce all these paradoxes at the beginning. Yes, it feels like an info dump at first, but as you keep reading, you see how she weaves these paradoxes into Alice’s life, how they trap her, and how they shape her journey in hell with Peter.

The thing about R.F. Kuang is that, yes, she lectures you like you're a baby, but there’s a reason for it. She’s laying a foundation so that when you continue through the book, you’ll catch all the subtext and metaphors. And when it clicks, the payoff is amazing. You see why she brings up certain concepts early on, just so you’ll fully understand them later.

I’m not great with paradoxes—they confuse the hell out of me—but the way she explains them feels like a friend talking to you. Like she’s trying to make sure you don’t make a mistake on your way to hell.

And am I twitching or did she actually write this story in a chiastic circle? I feel like I can see it. I need to do a reread to confirm, but if she did, that’s just brilliant.

I also want to shout out R.F. Kuang for bringing in Chinese culture. I loved the part where she talks about King Yama and the ritual her family did during Ghost Festival. Chinese afterlife beliefs don’t get much attention in mainstream media, so I really appreciated that touch.

I also loved her perspective on the afterlife or hell. There’s one particular quote that completely shifted how I view it.

The only flaw here is the pacing. As much as I love the book, the middle section dragged a little, and that’s what slowed me down.

DNFed at 51%

I tried to invest into the storyline and characters. The plot and concepts are interesting and have the potential to be engaging, by Katabasis simply did not engage me. I was often bored, thinking about what other books I would rather be reading. There are jolting info dumb pages that break up the flow of the narrative, which pulled me out of the story multiple times. Half way through I decided that it simply was not worth my time to force myself to trudge through this book.

In the future I might try to read again, because I truly do like the concept.

One star for DNFing and the second star is for an interesting idea that did not come to fruition in a way I enjoyed.

I was excited to dive into this after The Poppy War books, but this didn't quite hit for me. Kuang's writing is still sharp and thoughtful, but it felt more distant than earlier works. The pacing occasionally dragged, and I struggled to connect. I respect the idea, which is dark and intensely fascinating & unique, but it just didn't land for me.

genius. brilliant. showstopping. nuanced. complex. philosophical. heartbreaking. healing.

I LOVED THIS SO MUCH!! Rebecca does it again!! I had the HIGHEST expectations for Katabasis because I love all of Kuang’s books so much and this was a most anticipated book of 2025 for me. I took my good old time reading this book because there just was so much to pick up on and so many layers to the story, to Kuang’s depiction of hell, to Alice’s character. But my goodness was this a BOOK. I love love love the depiction of Alice’s depression/suicidal ideation and abuse and how her journey through hell was a metaphor for her fight back to life. I found Kuang’s version of Hell so fascinating and I LOVED the many philosophical texts she drew on.

Katabasis is a literary/mythical trope describing a hero’s journey into the underworld or Hell, often to retrieve a lost thing or gain knowledge from the dead. In Katabasis, Alice sets off for her descent into Hell to find her Professor, who she believes she is responsible for killing. She is accompanied, much to her displeasure, by one of her classmates, Peter. Alice and Peter are forced to journey through the many layers/levels of Hell to locate their Professor, but their journey through Hell really is a journey of self discovery, reflection, and reckoning.

As someone who LOVED Babel, Katabasis had a similar dark academia/fantasy feel to it which I LOVED. Also similar to Babel, Kuang really explores many complex subjects like depression, grief, power dynamics, abusive relationships, the value of education, and love in this book. Above all, I just was fascinated by this glimpse into Kuang’s mind and the way she drew together so many iconic descriptions of what Hell/the underworld is from many different pieces of media and strung them together to create her own version of Hell.

I also loved the way that Alice’s depression/struggles with mental health were depicted, especially as tied to her academic success and self worth. I could relate so much to Alice’s character. I think that the emotional depth of the inner turmoil she was going through and the journey of knowledge and healing she goes through, even when descending into Hell and the worst of her memories, so closely mirrored some of my own journeys wading through the worst of depression.

I will say it again and again, Kuang is a GENIUS!! This is a must read for dark academia/fantasy lovers - make sure to take your time with it!! I will definitely need a reread to soak this all in but this is a favorite, top tier book of the year for me!! Thanks to Harper Voyager for the gifted book!!

Alice & Peter are setting aside their rivalry as graduate students in the field of Magick and take off to hell together, to save their Professor’s soul after an accident. They need his recommendation for their future and not even hell is gonna stop them from getting it.

I will keep it short and write a detailed review once the book has been released.
First of all, biggest thanks to HarperCollins for letting me have an ARC, I was beyond excited and was shouting at the top of my lungs when I woke up and saw the email!

This book screams dark academia, which I freaking loooove. I loved the Charakter development, the story itself, the freaking amount of research Kuang must have put into this to feed us so many many informations. I found them so interesting sometimes, it made me want to research them even more.

Also, biggest compliment for making certain health issues a topic in this, made me love it even more.

I don't want to say more so that I don‘t spoil your reading experience in any way, but boy did I love it!

Def gonna read it again, once I've got my hardcopy delivered!!

4,5/5! ★

I have to admit, upon reading this novel, that R. F. Kuang's fiction is just not to my personal taste. It's the first one I even managed to finish, having previously stalled out on Babel and The Poppy War. However, a lot of my customers love her books, so I will buy and sell multiple copies of this book.

The structure and concept of this book is quite appealing. Alice Law is at magic college, obsessively determined to succeed. When exploitative working conditions lead to her making a mistake that gorily kills her mentor Professor Grimes, Alice decides that she still needs his recommendation... so she goes to Hell to fetch him back. She's followed by another student, Peter, who is a perfect genius who she doesn't realize is in love with her. Their journey through Hell takes up almost all of the book, interspersed by flashbacks to college.

Lots of people will undoubtedly love this book. I found it thuddingly obvious and lacking in charm. The magic is boring and highly technical. Alice is frustratingly oblivious, self-centered, and monomaniacal - which is clearly a character choice, but I did not enjoy reading about her. Peter really is exactly as perfect as she thinks he is - his dark secret is that he has Crohn's disease. Hell was kind of dull. The humor was only mildly amusing.

I will continue to stock Kuang's books but this is probably the last time I will attempt to actually read one.

This book was an unexpected read! **spoiler-free**
I've been interested in checking out Kuang's works because I've heard such good things. I was pleasantly surprised and a little disappointed. The premise of the book was amazing and unique. The characters were written well, though Alice got a bit repetitive at times. I loved the prose and writing in the book. The only aspect that brought it down was the constant information dumping throughout. Information was woven in and out of every chapter, and I will say it was INTERESTING content, however it took away from the main story. As someone with no philosophy background, some concepts seemed to be a humble brag of how much research Kuang undertook for this book or just an insert to make the magic system work. The sheer amount of concepts mentioned in the book took me out of the character's headspaces at moments and what was actually happening. Concepts and world were intriguing overall. It wasn't a bad read, but I wouldn't say it's the greatest. 4.5 stars out of 5. Thank you to the publisher who sent me the digital ARC!

RF Kuang is undeniably one of the smartest authors out there right now. And she makes me feel smarter for reading her work.

In this one, a couple of grad students descend into Hell to retrieve their academic advisor.

Initially, I complained that it was slow in parts but in retrospect I think that was purposeful to make the reader feel like they were also in hell. It’s not an upbeat place and I felt that in my bones as I was reading.

There was a non traditional romance, deities playing games, complicated villains, the study of magick, a cat. The only thing I could have used more of was the leader of the underworld (who has a lot of names but is basically satan?). I liked his vibe and want to know more about him and what he does.

If you read this, and you feel like you aren’t getting into it, wait till you get to the part with the red and green apples and then see how you feel. That’s where it really picked up for me.

Lastly: how do we pronounce this? Kat-uh-BASIS? Kat-uh-BASS-is? Kat-AB-asis? (I ask this still not completely sure if her other book is BAY-bull or BAB-bull.)

After their advisor dies in a gory, macabre accident, Alice and Peter, a pair of cut-throat Cambridge postgraduate magicians, literally descend into hell to retrieve his soul—ostensibly so they can still get him to write their recommendation letters. Oh, the things academics will do for a tenure-track position! I adored the first third of the book, in which the dark academia literary trope and academia itself come in for an affectionate, but incisive, drubbing. (If you're not interested in or familiar with academia, I can see the opening sections being incredibly boring as characters run up against academic roadblocks while exploring a satirical version of university-as-hell.) I also thought the most prominent supporting characters were drawn incredibly well: Elspeth, the scary-ass Kripkes, and even Gradus. But as the book dragged on, it became repetitive and too bogged down in flashbacks (which were repetitive). Also, did I mention, the story was repetitive? Yes, Peter's aloofness is driven by his desperate desire to ensure no one knows about his chronic illness so that he can never be defined by it. And, yes, Alice is really fucking depressed and doesn't take care of herself. Couldn't a single flashback have told that story? Did we really need to see Peter as a child?

Ultimately, this one was pretty forgettable, which is almost more devastating than if it had been terrible. It could have been an elegant satire instead of a repetitive and didactic spin through philosophical theories and clinical depression. It could have been an epic romance instead of a paint-by-numbers relationship between two emotional fuckups with no chemistry.

I love books about journeys to hell and I love books about academia, so this was a perfect read for me. Kuang does a great job with the characters and with hell and with the overall arc of the narrative. Enjoyed this one immensely.

R. F. Kuang is a MASTER. I truly believe this woman can do no wrong and walks on water.

Katabasis is thought provoking, atmospheric ride that just left me yearning to be back. I think this is her best work to date.