I really enjoyed this audiobook and narrator excerpt. It was my fault for not reading the fine print and I was so confused when it cut off mid storyline while I was driving and I couldn’t get it to play further. Can’t wait for the full version to come out!

Super excited for this book! Bummed that this was only the first two chapters but none the less, I can tell this is going to be a good one!

I loved this beginning snippet and cannot wait for more from this book! It was atmospheric ad intriguing.

I’m so excited to hear the rest of this! Love the premise and the style of the prose. Narrators are wonderful as well!!

Wow! So far I'm loving this and was very sad to realize this is just a sample. R. F. Kuang's prose is as delightful as ever and this might be her funniest book yet. I was worried that it might be a dense read but so far it isn't at all. Hell is portrayed as both familiar and new. I love all the references but I think even people who don't catch them can enjoy this. Excited to continue! Review to come once I finish my eARC.

This was an interesting book and I loved the play on Mythology and contemprary texts. This was a highly engaging book and I cannot wait to read the kindle format to find out what happens next.

What a fantastic opening to a story that is sure to fully capture me upon publishing. The narrator strikes the perfect tone and inflection for the character and story at large.
Between my absolute trust in RF Kuang to tell a story with expertise and precision and my own experience with graduate school I know this is a book I will be racing to pick up come August at which time I will return for a full review.

Thank you for the ARC audio sample!

An interesting glimpse into the alternate world that Kuang has set up. The narrator did an excellent job carrying the tone of the book and there was just enough there to interest me in continuing on with the book come August.

I feel like the publisher should have been more transparent that this was less than an hour sample of the book, not the whole title.

Katabasis delivers a compelling and gripping story with rich worldbuilding and complex characters. R. F. Kuang’s storytelling kept me engaged throughout, blending dark fantasy with thought-provoking themes.

That said, I found the narrator’s voice a bit difficult to understand at times, which occasionally pulled me out of the experience. Despite that, the plot and emotional depth made it a strong and memorable read overall.

Need to return to review. This eAudio ARC is a sample of a few chapters. So far, great but can't review completely without the full book.

I was one of the people who didn’t realize this was only a sample of the audiobook when I requested it. That being said, I think that the first 50 minutes are a good introduction to the book and I’m curious to see where this goes! I liked the explanation about how magic works in the universe as well.

Alice Law is in her final year of graduate school at Cambridge studying analytical Magick. The only thing stopping her from getting her degree and entering the field of her dreams is that her advisor, Jacob Grimes, has just died in a magical mishap and it might be her fault. Alice does the only logical thing and plans her trip to Hell so that she can bring him back, finish her degree, and get a stellar letter of recommendation. A slight problem with her plan is that her academic rival, Peter Murdoch, has the same one in mind. The two have to put aside their differences and put their heads together to find the professor and figure out a way for all three of them to return. A witty and academic journey through Hell.

Overall I enjoyed Katabasis, particularly the flashbacks to life at Cambridge and the stories of Alice and Peter. The story starts with the reader thinking the characters are going to be one way, but then you get to know them better and realize the depth of them. There were some trials and characters in Hell that were interesting, but a lot of it also felt quite empty. It makes sense for the Greek interpretation of Hell, but it also doesn't make for a super engaging setting for a book. The story leans very heavily into the graduate school aspects, so if readers aren't interested in that they probably won't enjoy this one. I do enjoy stories with an academic setting, so I liked reading about Alice, Peter, and Jacob's grad school woes. I listened to a sample of the audiobook and the narrators did a good job with it. I felt that they matched the setting and tone of the book well. I would recommend this one to fans of R. F. Kuang, those who enjoy retellings of Greek myths, and fans of dark academia.

Smart, historic and magical romp!! I was having so much fun in the excerpt I think I gasped when it ended because I wanted to keep going. Love this from RF Kuang - feels like back to the fun and dark humor of Yellowface with a delightful magical world!

I am so sad that this is only a sample because it was so engaging! I would have sat here all day listening to this story because I am so invested. I love the way the narrators engage the reader. They’re academics and the narration definitely reads that way. They remind me of the way professors speak in such a good way. I would definitely continue to read this as an audiobook and would recommend that as the best medium.

I can’t wait to continue the story.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

It's difficult to give any kind of meaningful feedback and/or analysis after reading what is essentially less than 8% of the finished product. I liked the first two chapters well enough, but I would've loved to know this was only a sample going in.

I feel like the publisher was not very transparent that this would be just a sample - the first 49 minutes of the book - but R. F. Kuang always starts so strong so I am waiting and desperate for the full book to release

I was really enjoying this but I was only able to listen to the first 49 minutes as the full book was not on my netgalley app.

I am very excited to read this book, so much that I didn’t notice this wasn’t the full audiobook. I can’t wait to listen to the full story!

Like others have said, I was surprised when I found this was only a part of the audiobook. The start was very intriguing and I look forward to reading more of it!