Katabasis

By: R.F. Kuang

Narrated by: Morag Sims, Will Watt

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

©2026 R.F. Kuang (P)2025 HarperCollins Publishers

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

Phenomenal Narration, but the Story Stretches Thin

I have mixed feelings about Katabasis. On one hand, the audiobook production quality is top-tier. The narrator’s voice was incredible—rich, atmospheric, and perfectly suited to the tone of the world. If I were rating based on the performance alone, it would be five stars.
However, the story itself eventually felt like chewing gum: it started with a lot of flavor, but the more I chewed, the more it lost its appeal. The premise of the "descent" is interesting, but the pacing becomes quite stagnant. I found myself waiting for the protagonist to stop the internal whining and actually do something. It felt like a lot of repetitive travel and internal monologue that didn't move the needle, making the middle of the book feel quite boring. I expected something more engaging or a plot that rewarded the time investment, but it just felt stretched too thin.

Bottom line: Listen for the amazing voice work, but be prepared for a slow-burn story that sometimes forgets to keep the "fire" going.