"Rich with allusion and illusion, Kuang crafts a witty, gory, harrowing ride that thoroughly roasts the perils and power structures of academia, while never losing sight of what it means to have a fragile, human heart." — #1 New York Times bestselling author, Leigh Bardugo
“A spellbinding and poignant story that had me riveted to the pages, R.F. Kuang’s KATABASIS is more than a novel to savor. This book is an experience. I envy those who get to read it for the first time.”
— Rebecca Ross, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Divine Rivals
"A must-read for fans of Naomi Novik, Olivie Blake, and Lev Grossman’s scholastic fantasies, with explorations of purpose, grief, and relationships that open the novel to a more universal audience." — Library Journal (starred review)
“This is a book of ideas, and as such, Kuang’s creativity shines, her vehicle for story a prose that’s smooth as butter. Katabasis is a formidable, timeless work, destined to be a modern classic.” — Olivie Blake, New York Times bestselling author of The Atlas Six
"This is a tightly constructed novel that aims a clear lens on academia, with both its faults and its virtues. The heady draw of discovery is ever-present, even if what Alice is discovering is Hell. A learned, literary manifesto on academia—and its darkness.”
— Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“What an adventure! Katabasis is a tour de force – literate, witty, and wise, it thrills and delights all the way to a hugely satisfying conclusion. I enjoyed it tremendously.” — Gareth Brown, international bestselling author of The Book of Doors
"Wickedly sharp and unexpectedly sweet, going to hell has never been this entertaining." — Shannon Chakraborty, New York Times bestselling author of The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi
“A balance of literary deep thinking, pop commercial fun, and outrageous audacity. Kuang uniquely and authentically writes the Academy with the right mix of love and rage.” — Rebecca Roanhorse, New York Times bestselling author
"A philosophical tribute to love, Katabasis is the latest master turn by a master novelist. Under the surface of R.F. Kuang’s rigorous treatment of logic and hell is an endless reservoir of vitality and a deep thirst for life. This timeless search for meaning is for any reader struggling to find purpose in a deeply flawed world." — Vaishnavi Patel, New York Times bestselling author of Kaikeyi
“There can be no other explanation: Kuang is a wizard. Each character, each sentence, each chapter of Katabasis is like an exquisitely crafted incantation that only Kuang herself could have cast. I was ensorcelled from page one, and once I started reading it I found myself unable to think about anything else until long after I turned the final page. That’s when I realized that Kuang had me right where she wanted me all along: Completely spellbound… and loving every minute of it.” — John Joseph Adams, series editor of Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy
★ 2025-04-04
A Ph.D. candidate in Analytical Magick tackles a new academic challenge: rescuing her advisor from Hell.
Alice Law is about to complete her graduate program at Cambridge under the auspices of Jacob Grimes, one of the foremost Magick scholars in the world. There’s just one problem: A spell gone wrong has led to Grimes’ sudden demise, and it may have been her fault. Alice feels bad about that, plus she needs Grimes to approve her dissertation and help her get a job, so she starts researching ways to travel to Hell. Her plans are interrupted by Peter Murdoch, one of Grimes' other students—"He was simply born brilliant…Alice couldn't stand him"—and she reluctantly agrees to join forces. Despite the accounts of Dante and the like, Hell is full of surprises, including (sometimes) a remarkable resemblance to a college campus. As Alice and Peter journey deeper, they encounter nefarious deities; twisted, once-human enemies; and Shades from Grimes’ past with their own agendas. Hell will test Alice and Peter in ways their academic careers have not, dredging up their pasts at Cambridge, their messy relationships with their advisor, and their distrust of each other—after all, academia is a cutthroat game. The stakes are high, with mortal souls on the line, as Alice grapples with the question of whether academia even matters. Kuang melds a fantasy adventure (don’t look too closely at the magic—that’s not the point) with a rumination on academia’s problems to create a new take on the journey through the underworld. Alice is deeply flawed but also deeply understandable, stuck in a system that damages her while making questionable choices that feed into the same system; this is a tightly constructed novel that aims a clear lens on academia, with both its faults and its virtues. The heady draw of discovery is ever-present, even if what Alice is discovering is Hell.
A learned, literary manifesto on academia—and its darkness.
