Katabasis by R. F. Kuang

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 Katabasis by R. F. Kuang is a novel about PhD students. The two main students, Alice and Peter, are studying under Professor Grimes, who is known to be one of the best in the field. Grimes dies suddenly, leaving Alice and Peter in a lurch. Do they get a new advisor, or do they travel through hell to get Grimes back? Obviously, they choose the latter and go on a life-changing adventure.

I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. I read Poppy Wars, which was one of Kuang's earlier books, and didn't think it was very good. Katabasis, on the other hand, was fantastic, and I am really glad I gave it a chance. I really enjoyed reading about PhD students who enjoyed what they do. I feel like on social media, I see a lot of advice on how to avoid burnout and how to continue to love your major. I think that Alice and Peter had less of that and actually had fun and enjoyed what they did.

There were a lot of layers to this story, which made it very interesting to read. I loved learning more about the characters and the relationships between them as the story continued. There were plot twists and huge changes. It's something that you have to read to understand, but it was definitely one of the most twisted books I have read. There was a lot of fake sciency language (since it's magic), but I feel like you don't need to understand everything they say to appreciate the book.

The characters in Katabasis were fantastic. Professor Grimes reminded me of one of my favorite teachers, but only in the beginning. There was huge character development, especially in the main characters. There were also really awesome side characters like the cat and King Yama. They really elevated the story. You know when there are really boring side characters, and it ruins the whole book. This was not like that. On top of that, the main characters had really interesting internal monologues. Alice's did not feel like I was reading about a PhD student. Peter's was just a deep insight into how his life has worked out for him.

I would recommend this book to people who liked The Martian, as well as those who enjoy romantic rivals-to-lovers stories.

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