Sandra
First, I want to say thank you to my local library for saving me money.
Secondly… umm. This wasn’t any good. It’s horribly predictable. The world building, where is it? It’s pretty much non-existent. I can fine my missing pen more than I can find the world building. The chemistry and romance.. it’s like my father… missing. The plot twist was easily guessed before I got to the halfway mark.
The ending (imo) was rushed and the pacing was weird to me.
Anyway…
But… I will end with this:
Saying this is like the hunger games or divergent is a stretch.
This was a fascinating, confusing and frustrating read.
Johnny is boring and annoying. I do feel bad for him but at the same time I don’t. Now, I do feel bad about Johnny’s mom. That was sad to read about.
I loved the story when it followed the Navidson’s. That was exciting and fascinating. It made me question some things. Like… how the house is tied to the mental health of all those that are within the house. I was devastated about Tom and Jed.
Karen I didn’t really like. But that’s just because she is too weak but I was glad that she overcame a struggle for Will.
I do wonder what happened to the cat and dog.
I also think that “Mr. Monster” is a metaphor for the monster within people. Referring to the scene with Holloway during the 8 day exploration.
Also, I wouldn’t state that this was scary. It’s more psychological than horror.
As for my biggest issue with the book. The way a lot of the female side-characters are written and portrayed. It PMO. It was dehumanizing and sexiest. It’s like all the females are nothing more then a males toy and something that pleasures them. Besides Karen.
Update May 2025:
Review:
Thank you for allowing me to be an ARC reader for Firstborn of the Sun. This story was amazing, eventful, full of culture, emotional and beautifully written. It captured my full attention before I even got done reading the Prologue. By chapter five I was invested.
Now, the ARC did have some flaws that looked like that pesky autocorrect caused. But… that’s not why I didn’t give it a full five stars. I’m not giving it a full five stars because… now I need to go back in & reread it without the pressure of being an ARC reader.
Notes during my ARC reading:
Prologue:
The prologue is a strong opening to this book. However, there are a few small errors on page 9.
1) Second line from the top has “view.s”
2) Second paragraph, fifth line down. The spacing between “herself again” doesn’t match the rest of the formatting.
3) Second paragraph, 13th line down has “mó . rèmi”.
But overall… that prologue is absolutely amazingly and truly grabs the attention of the readers.
Loved the translation from prologue to chapter 1.
Chapter 1:
On page 17 the second line from the bottom there is a spelling mistake “form”. Which I think it was AutoCorrect's fault but it should be “from”
On the top of page 18, there is a wording issue of “one of one” instead it should be “one-on-one”
Chapter 3:
On page 39, 5th line from the bottom “… their bodies and leather short leather skirts…”
Not sure if a comma is supposed to be in there or if it’s supposed to be one or the other.
Page 44 the line said by Alawani “who are you?” was marked by another read as "needs new line?" because it might confuse the audience.
Page 45, 4th line from the top of page it was marked by another reader that before the word “Earlier” it does not have the start of speech marks but it ends with them.
Chapter 4:
Page 57, 3rd line from the bottom, another reader underlined this quote and asked if it should be italicized like the other memory quotes.
Chapter 5 to the end the mistakes are limited but I don’t remember because I was invested and forgot to mark them.
But... Overall, I believe another round or two of editing to check & fix the grammar, spelling and other small mistakes throughout the book (especially in the first 5 chapters.) (Not sure if it has already been mentioned/done). However, it is a beautiful story that packs a lot of emotions.
The quotes at the end of the chapters/start of new chapters are perfect and resonate with me.
It's truly one of the most diverse, emotional and amazing books I've read so far in 2025
October 2024:Y'all don't understand how excited I am for this book. I've been following the progress of this book since the very start. This is the one book I'm looking forward to in 2025.
I was utterly bored reading all 382 pages. I get that it’s a YA book.
However… it doesn’t excuse how surface level everything felt and how lackluster it was. The relationship and how it was going to end was a predictable wannabe Romeo and Juliet situation. Every single character, both main and side lacked depth and personality.
The games doesn’t happen until page 211. Everything before that was just nonstop monologuing. When we finally get to the games and everything starts happening the whole thing just fails to invoke any sort of emotions. I felt no panic, pain, turmoil, anger, etc. I was just like “oh. Okay”.
After the games the tour happens, some deaths occur that were easily predictable since the first few chapters.
It’s okay… I guess.
I will release the full review near it’s release time.
However, it is such a good story. I’ve been looking for something like this for a while. It is well done, the characters are developed nicely, the plot is intriguing. And the art is absolutely beautiful.
Thank you for allowing me to be an arc reader.
…
The sentence structure is horrible.
The world building isn’t fleshed out.
The character development is worse than it was in Fourth wing.
The pacing was all over the place.
Iron fLame has no value and no depth.
I’m only reading this series to understand why it’s so popular with the masses. So far and two books in I have yet to see the reason.
Overall rating: 4.5
I first would like to say that I received an ARC copy for an honest review. The second thing I would like to put out in the open is that I did go into Katabasis, right after finishing reading The Divine Comedy by Dante.
Now, let us begin
Quick synopsis of the book:Katabasis by R. F. Kuang is a modern story of a hero's descent to Hell. One night there was a horrible magical accident at Cambridge that caused the violent death of Professor Jacob Grimes. Which caused two students to embark on a journey to Katabasis. We follow the two heroes, Alice Law (Main Character) and Peter Murdoch (Second Main Character/Side Character), on the journey to bring Professor Grimes back.
Characters:
There are many characters throughout this book that we are introduced to. Some of these characters get a background story of why they are in hell, which could go on for a few pages. While other characters are...well... just there.
Alice Lawis the FMC that we follow through the journey of Katabasis. She is one of the students of Professor Grimes and is rather naive, timid, and does pretty much anything to get in the good graces of someone. Alice craves attention and validation from others. Throughout the story we see her grow and develop. We see her understand that every action has a positive or negative reaction. We experience her emotions about the events that have happened. This is all information I can provide without spoiling the book. But... in my opinion, she is well-written.
Peter Murdochis the MMC that travels along side Alice. He is both a primary and secondary character. Peter also knows Professor Grimes. Mr. Murdoch is... I would say, on the mysterious side but kind, loving, and loyal. He is smart and logical, whereas Alice is smart but does tend to act more on impulse/emotions. There is a point in Katabasis that made me cry but that is only because I enjoyed his company. Now, I can't say what because it might ruin it for you all. In my opinion, I believe that Peter's character was better written than Alice's character.
Professor Grimes is... well... a jerk. This is as nice as I can get for Grimes.
Now, there are other characters but I don't want to spoil the book for you all.
Overall, I enjoyed how the characters were written, how I got to experience their emotions, and how most of them developed throughout the story.
For those that request/require book trigger warnings. Here is the list I made while reading Katabasis:
Depictions of Death
Depictions of mutilation
Depictions of violence
Blood
Mentions of Suicide/thoughts of suicide
Snorthing Chalk
Plot & Pacing:
Personally, the plot was enjoyable and straightforward. It is a journey into the underworld, going through the 8 courts to accomplish a mission that the characters had set out on. It is that simple.
Now, there is this slight “romance” (if one wants to call it that) subplot that kinda occurs but it's no more than the typical elementary school kid saying “Oh, hey. I like you wanna date”. So, if you are going into this book for romance you might be disappointed. However, there was a point in the book where there was a flashback and Mr. Grimes was getting... handsy with a character named Charlotte and then Alice.
There are constant moments of character flashbacks. So, if that is something you don't like in books then this book might not be for you.
As for the pacing... it is up and down, slow then fast. The pacing is very much like a river. Parts of the story were calm and slow, while other parts moved rapidly.
Writing style:
This area has been difficult for me to articulate appropriately. There are times when the writing style is mature but then met with rudimentary/juvenile areas. At the beginning of the book, we have this philosophical monologue about the word Heap. Which... I found it highly annoying and maybe my usage of rudimentary is not correct. But... my thought during that time was “This is immature and basic”. However, we are then met with the adult-like mature writing style. And this pattern is throughout all of Katabasis. Once again it's like the river metaphor I gave during the plot & pacing section.
I also found the constant reiteration of Chalk, chalk magic, and everything else that had to do with the mentioning of CHALK utterly annoying.
I get it and I understood it within the first few chapters that talked about it.
But... with all that said I enjoyed the book even with its flaws.
In my opinion, one does not need to read a whole bunch of Classic books to understand Katabasis. However... I do think it might make the experience a little more enjoyable. And what I would recommend, is that y'all read The Divine Comedy before Katabasis. It will provide one with a general understanding of what R.F. Kuang is referencing throughout Katabasis.
I might not have been the intended audience for this book.
Water Moon was an okay read. The idea behind the book is what sparked my interest. However, it fell short.
The writing style and themes were a lovely idea but fell flat. This book was all over the place. The characters were one dimensional with an unnecessary romance. We go on this journey only for it to be anticlimactic in the end. It jumps around (not entirely bad).
I would say that this is a decent story for a teen to read.
Final Rating: 4.75
Notes:1) I wish there was a name pronunciation guide because I feel as though I'm horrible sounding out the characters' names. Example 1):Teyerien. I have been pronouncing his name as "Tear-e-en". Example 2:Supesien. For him, I've been pronouncing his name as "Sup-see-en" or just calling him "Sup".2) 11 Chapters all relatively short3) a good amount of dialogue mixed with the right amount of plot and developmentChapter 1:The first few pages were rough to understand at first but after re-reading it. It became more understandable. There are many comas that, in my opinion, are not needed nor should they be there. Example:“Yes,” Teyerien said. Another reason why they were almost strictly forbidden from mingling too close with others outside the Guild. Susceptible to large amounts of heartbreak, and no doubt, revenge. “Well, you do you, I guess.”In my opinion, it would read cleaner if it was written like this. “Yes,” Teyerien said. Another reason why they were almost strictly forbidden from mingling too close with others outside the Guild. Susceptible to large amounts of heartbreak and no doubt... revenge. “Well, you do you... I guess.”The reason why I used the ellipsis or the three dots is a more flattering way to show a longer pause or for the reader to catch their breath when reading. Also, it can be used as an informal device to catch a reader's attention, often replacing a dash or colon. However, this is a personal opinion that can be disregarded.Now, overall Chapter 1 was a solid start. Chapter 2:This chapter was solidChapter 3:Solid, The plot is being developed nicely.Chapter 4:Solid all-around characters, plot, and overall development of everything.Chapter 5:Oo. very good. Chapter 6:Feels like the longest chapter of the whole book but no complaints. Chapter 7:I didn't take any notes on this chapter because I was invested after chapter 5.Chapter 8:Maybe this was the longest chapter? But it's good. Like real good.Chapter 9:I guess trigger warning for those that need it. This chapter and chapter 8 had depictions of violence and blood. Chapter 10 & 11:I 100% stopped caring about the idea of taking notes because I was enjoying the story and was sad to see it come to an end. But there is fighting and I am glad my boy Teyerien is good. I was about to lose my mind.
Overall, it's a fantastic story with, a good plot, dialogue, and amazing characters. The only issue I had was with chapter 1 and... that could have been a “me issue” and the possibility of entering a new book. I'm not sure. So, rating this is between 4.5 to 5. I still have yet to be 100% decided but I've sat on this rating and review for longer than what I would have normally done.
