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Katabasis

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Katabasis

By: R.F. Kuang
Narrated by: Morag Sims, Will Watt
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About this listen

Prepare for one hell of a journey…

'A big, bold fantasy romp' GUARDIAN

'R.F. Kuang is making magic' ELLE

'[A] truly original and spellbinding hero's-journey story' VOGUE

' I devoured it' RED

One of the BBC's 25 best books of 2025

Katabasis, noun, Ancient Greek. The story of a hero's descent to the underworld.

Grad student Alice Law has only ever had one goal: to become the brightest mind in the field of analytic magick.

But the only person who can make her dream come true is dead and – inconveniently – in Hell. And Alice, along with her biggest rival Peter Murdoch, is going after him.

But Hell is not as the philosophers claim, its rules are upside-down, and if she’s going to get out of there alive, she and Peter will have to work together.

That’s if they can agree on anything.

Will they triumph, or kill each other trying?

2025’s most unexpected love story is going to be hell in the new No.1 Sunday Times bestselling novel by R.F. Kuang.

'Literary super-stardom doesn't seem too far out of her reach' THE HERALD

‘Mind-bending fantasy’ GRAZIA

©2025 R.F. Kuang (P)2025 HarperCollins Publishers Action & Adventure Asian & Pacific Islander Creators Dark Fantasy Editors Select Epic Fantasy Witty

Editorial Review

A descent I longed to stay in
R.F. Kuang has been an auto-download for me ever since The Poppy War trilogy broke my little soul, so I knew Katabasis would hit hard. But I didn’t expect it to stay with me like this. A dark, cerebral descent into the underworld, the story is layered with mythology, philosophy, and academic tension so sharp it hurts in the best way. Alice Law accidentally kills her mentor in a magical mishap and will do anything to bring him back, including venturing into literal Hell. Unfortunately for her, Peter Murdoch—her academic rival and former crush—is on the same path. What follows is a spellbinding blend of dark academia, mythic horror, and enemies-to-lovers romance in which every level of suffering mirrors the sins they are trying to outrun. Narrators Morag Sims and Will Watt deliver powerful performances that amplify the stakes and intimacy. Intense, brilliant, and emotionally consuming, Katabasis has easily become one of my favorite listens of the year.—Patty R., Audible Editor

Critic Reviews

‘It’s Dante’s Inferno meets The Secret History and it’s at the top of our read-next pile’ Elle

'A novel to savour … I envy those who get to read it for the first time' Rebecca Ross

'A witty, gory, harrowing ride' Leigh Bardugo

'A formidable, timeless work, destined to be a modern classic' Olivie Blake

‘A sprawling, erudite tale of magic … teeming with intelligence, ideas and humour’ Marie Claire

'The unrolling of a daring concept' Daily Mail

'An arresting and deeply affecting novel' SFX

' A rich novel of romance, history and magic’ iPaper

'An immersive, worldbuilding adventure … I devoured it' Red

'Profound … Linger[s] on the mind' New Statesmen

'Bitingly funny dark academia' Arts Hub

KATABASIS IS A RADIO 2 BOOK CLUB SUMMER SELECTION, ELLE'S BOOK OF THE MONTH, AND INCLUDED IN THE GUARDIAN'S ROUND-UP OF MOST ANTICIPATED 2025 FICTION.

BABEL WAS A BRITISH BOOK OF THE YEAR, BLACKWELL’S BOOK OF THE YEAR, A WATERSTONES BOOK OF THE YEAR FINALIST AND THE DAILY MAIL BEST BOOK OF 2022

All stars
Most relevant
Some really interesting ideas and themes. Maybe a few too many, but still worth a listen. Narration is good too.

Very interesting

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A pretty decent fantasy novel. As with her other work Kuang doesn't write one-dimensional characters, she wants the audience to grapple with morality and choices. It makes some chapters less cookie cutter enjoyable but it's also more interesting and makes you think.
If you like puzzles, riddles, maths etc you'll probably enjoy the book more.
I think some other reviews on Audible are kind of bitter and unfair. It's a good narrative, and explores much more than simply a relationship, but oppression and control, the academy, myth and belief, personal growth etc..
The narration is almost top notch, only loses one star for the editing issue with the different voice.

an enjoyable fantasy novel

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I don’t like surprised with new voices suddenly added at the end - why would you do that??

I liked the story, but I like maths and philosophy. It would be a very tedious tale if you did not.

You need to love philosophy and maths

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Amazing performance by the narrators bringing alive such an incredible story. First R.F. Kuang book for me and definitely need to get into her other books now. Just the sheer amount of knowledge and research that went into writing a book like this is astonishing to me. But even with all the science and history, that I personally don't have a solid background in, the book is still easy to follow and never makes you feel dumb. The ending of the book was incredibly satisfying and had me sobbing, it tied together everything so well. Just incredible, can't wait to read more of her work.

10/10 no notes

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This is an exploration of uni student love, not a book on a journey through hell. It is structured to split the story into the flashback awkwardness of 2 unlikable characters whilst they traverse a very tame hellscape. it's a nice character exploration in a unique set and setting, this is no walk through hell. the walk through hell is listening to spectrum students misidentifying their feelings for each other.

this is young adult fiction

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