Commentary on colonialism told through a lens of dark academia and magic? Sign. Me. Up.

Reading Babel was such an awesome experience that I struggle to describe it. The book was plot heavy, but I did find the characters intriguing and deeply worth the emotional investment I put into them. Every word is imbued with meaning in way that feels both intellectual and beautiful.

Recommended for fans of language and linguistics, dark academia, and historical fiction that dabbles in magical realism. This is my favorite book of 2022 so far and I'll be thinking about it for a long time to come.

Thank you Harper Collins and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It’s official, Babel will live in my brain rent-free forever. Everyone needs to read this book. Everyone. R.F. Kuang has once again delivered a masterpiece of a story, one that has been painstakingly researched and rewoven into a historical fantasy heavily steeped in truth.
The author mentioned that this is her most ambitious novel yet, and she is not wrong. However, her book absolutely delivers on that ambition. It is powerful, brutal, and deeply thoughtful in its exploration of racism, classism, colonialism, love, family, and betrayal — all presented and examined in ways that leave you breathless. I’ve already purchased two signed copies for my own collection and will be pushing this book onto everyone’s radar for years to come.

Babel was absolutely stunning. I know this book is likely a standalone, but I would read a hundred more books set in this world.
Robin Swift is living in Canton when tragedy strikes and his mother dies. Not long after, a professor appears who is going to take Robin to England and teach him various languages. He eventually learns that this has all been a plan for him to go to Oxford and join Babel, a group of students studying translation and in turn endowing silver with magic.
This book is the epitome of dark academia with a steampunk edge. I loved the characters. I loved the setting. I loved the writing. I cannot say enough good things about this book. R F Kuang has created a masterpiece.

From the writing style and the pacing to the characters, Babel was an absolute delight to read! While not having read Kuang’s previous trilogy, she has cemented herself in my mind as one of the great writers of the 21st century.

Babel takes us a journey with Robin Swift, a Cantonese boy brought over to England in his adolescence because of his knack for languages. Professor Lovell is essentially grooming Robin to work in the translation department of Babel at Oxford.

Once Robin comes of age and joins Oxford, he finds camaraderie for the first time in his life. But things are not as they seem when an eerily familiar face seeks out Robin and asks for his help.

As a lifelong reader, I found the information about translation and languages fascinating. It’s so rare to find a well-rounded standalone book these days, especially one that doesn’t end on a cliffhanger. This is a book I will come back to year after year.

- How on earth does one review a masterpiece like BABEL? Kuang has written a book that is both a page turner and a burn it all down, salt the earth indictment of academia, colonization, patriarchy and more.
- The magic system in BABEL is brilliant, and a perfect parallel to the mechanics of British colonization. The translations, the footnotes, all of it occasionally makes you forget that this is a novel.
- As a white reviewer, I can't even begin to touch on Robin's internal struggles of choosing what path to take as a person of color thrown into the upper levels of whiteness at Babel. The pain and rage of it is laid so bare on the page. And I know I have been the Letty in conversations before. Kuang softens none of it.
- I know I'm not doing this justice. Please seek out reviews by people of color on this book, there is already a deep discourse around it and I'm sure that will continue for a long time.

In 1828, young Robin Swift, orphaned by a cholera epidemic, is taken away from his homeland of China and spirited off to England where he is given a home, an education, and eventually a place at Oxford University’s most prestigious college: The Royal Institute of Translation, also known as Babel, the storied tower wherein scholars learn the finer points of translation and use this knowledge to inscribe silver bars with words of magic that help to run Britain and further its drive towards empire. But behind this facade of academic prestige and imperial power lies a nest of corruption and bigotry, as the wealthy white men who hold power have no desire to share it with those they find inferior. As a Chinese man living in England, Robin faces his share of bigotry, and he and his misfit friends must decide where their loyalties lie: with the system that has given them power, or with their homelands that are slowly being crushed by Britain’s insatiable appetite for money and power.

With her fourth novel, R.F. Kuang, author of the Poppy War trilogy, declared that she had written a story that was a “thematic response to The Secret History [by Donna Tartt] and a tonal retort to Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell [by Susanna Clarke]”. As both The Secret History and Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell are considered masterpieces of their respective genres, this is a bold claim, but not one without merit given what Babel sets out to do. It is, on its surface, a dark academia fantasy wherein a group of like-minded friends meet at university, where- as in The Secret History- the academic goals and desires they nurtured in childhood collide with the demands of adult life– often with disastrous results. Babel is also a story where, like Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, the magic that Britain has (or had in the past) affects the rest of the world in unexpected ways, and much is made of who is allowed access to it. This is the point where the books part ways, though. The Secret History depicts a college clique as it crumbles when the students’ desire for an aesthetic life becomes incompatible with reality and results in a death. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell gives us a fantastical English past where two magicians strive for similar goals, but with radically different notions of how to do it while the narrator mocks the society at nearly every turn in a Dickensian fashion.

Babel is an outsider’s story that borrows elements from the other two books, then heads down a very different road. Thanks to their skin color, gender, or homeland, the students at the heart of the story, Robin, Ramy, Victoire, and Letty, are all subject to the systemic bigotry that helped turn Britain (whether in reality or in this fantasy) into an empire. This Britain desperately needs their skills to fuel the magic that literally keeps the country together, but those on top are unwilling to give them even the basic respect due to them as human beings.

At first, Robin doesn’t notice this, or if it does he doesn’t let himself think about it. He already has so much to do with his studies that he can let himself forget the problems. But after a fateful encounter forces him to look at the racism and misogyny inherent in the system, Robin must think about the nature of his studies and his contributions to British magic. Will his contributions truly help other people, or is he betraying his own heritage by aiding a culture that intends to exploit everything it can? This question becomes more than just rhetorical when Robin hears that England intends to engage in an unjust war against China, and he must decide what lengths he is willing to go to in the name of justice.

Though it is far from a perfect book, the topics that Babel delves into combined with Kuang’s ability to skillfully weave them into the narrative without beating the reader over the head with them makes this book one of the most thought-provoking fantasy novels of the year.

An incredibly cohesive book... I thought with the length it has that it would wander and drag a bit, but that was not the case at all. Every single page, paragraph, and sentence is filled with purpose – and it keeps you hooked all the way through. An absolute page-turner.

Only taking away one star because at first I had a hard time connecting with the bond Robin had formed with his friends. It took a while for it to click the way I felt that the story wanted me to. But it happened eventually!

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of this book!
I can’t even begin to describe the emotions I felt while reading this book - everything about it was brilliant and so complex and now I feel empty after finishing it. As soon as this book comes out I will buy and read it again to hopefully mimic what I experienced while reading this book for the first time. I am now a firm R.F. Kuang enthusiast and will purchase the Poppy War trilogy immediately.

Babel by R.F. Kuang is a stand-alone dark academia fantasy novel.
 
We follow Robin, who is an orphaned boy, and he is brought from China to England  to live with his new guardian. There he gets the best education focused on languages, so he can attend Babel. Some people think he is just a student who can be easily influenced, but they forget that he has a mind of his own and starts to see the world as it really is and sympathizes more with resistance. He is a stunning protagonist and I loved to follow his journey. His fellow students Ramy, Letty and Victoire are by his side through all of it and they are amazing as well.
 
The setting in Oxford was stunning and Babel, the Royal Institute of Translation, is the center of it all. It was so atmospheric and truly a resounding setting. Next to translation, Babel is also the place for silver working. This magical craft deals with meanings lost through translation. I was in awe of that and Oxford at first stemmed like this utopian place. But the more you get to see behind this façade, the more in conflict you get as a lot is also connected to greed and colonialization. The book is called an arcane history and the historical aspects were done very well.
 
As a language student myself, I’m fascinated with all aspects of language, and I could see that the author has a background in that as well. This made the book even more powerful, and it felt so mesmerizing and gave a new perspective on it. The combination of language and knowledge and the power it comes with is just so fascinating.
 
Overall, Babel is an all-embracing book and I wish everyone would read it. 4,5 stars.
 
(ARC kindly provided in exchange for a review.)

Wow, just wow. I am so thoroughly impressed by the writing of this story and this author. I can’t imagine how much research went into this book! This is THE book to read this Fall.

This was such a thought provoking book. It's my first dark academia book so I'm not sure if I just don't like the genre or if it was overhyped but this book did not live up to my expectations. Maybe I just feel like the main character was a little too whiny. As the daughter of immigrants, I understand how colonialism still pervades in our society today. I honestly related to a lot of the students. However, I just didn't feel as emotionally attached to anyone as I was when I read Kuang's Poppy War Trilogy. That entire series was a 5 star read for me so I also wonder if I am biased because I read those books pretty recently.

I did love the mix of historical fiction, dark academia, and fantasy. I thought it was a really creative book and I think maybe i just wasn't in the right mindset for this book.

If you like dark academic, historical fiction, fantasy, bringing down the man... then you'll love this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for the gifted copy!

Babel explores how linguistics and translation relate to colonialism by experiencing the magical school of translation at an alternate Oxford through the eyes of four students with disparate backgrounds. This version of Britain has used the magical resource of translation to grow the gap between it and it's competitors. This progress comes at the cost of their colonies, whose languages are leveraged to improve the empire's technology but only on British soil. In order for the translation magic to work, users must be fluent in multiple languages . The best resource being people from the subjugated colonies. Despite all their love of translation and Oxford is it possible for Robin's cohort to ignore the cost of the privilege they now enjoy?

I know it sounds like there's a lot going on here, but the vision of Babel is singular, and by the end, fully realized. It has stayed with me long after finishing and I have no doubt it will be one of my favorite books of 2022.

Beautifully written. A must-read for fans of Dark Academia and Historical Fantasy. The book weaves an amazing fantasy landscape around Oxford University, creating a a world that feels just under the surface of our own.. It is certainly no accident that the book explores colonization and power dynamics at this particular University. Fans of many different genres will enjoy this intelligent story.

Thank you Harper Collins and NetGalley for providing me with a physical arc and an ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I think I’m between 4.5 and 5 stars for this book.

The former half took way too long for me to get into. There were so many intricate details on this world, that I just wanted things to happen faster and was waiting for it to occur.

The latter half was just so immersive and I could not put the book down. In typical R.F. Kuang style, it ripped you apart and was just a great ending. It was well-thought and I just really appreciated the cast of characters with their own internal struggles that we were able to explore to varying degrees.

I cannot wait for you all to read this next week.

I loved this book. Great world-setting, character development, and sense of place. I got really sucked in by this story, and didn't feel it was too long.

This is an absolute triumph. I love everything about it- the characters, the setting, the discussions, the way it gave me anxiety, and made me so angry.

One of the best books I have ever read. Certainly the best book of this year. It is so intelligent and thoughtful and really lets you escape. So many important themes and motifs too. This book has everything a great story requires and then some. Highly recommend it to everyone.

This book is a magnificent example of dark academia and complex fantasy book. The writing is amazing and I'm pretty sure I would read anything written by this author. I loved this book even though it was a little hard to get into at first. I will definitely get a physical copy and recommend this to people. I fell in love with these characters and was amazed by how their struggles were portrayed and by how real they were. The ending and basically the whole book broke my heart

Thank you Netgalley, author, and the publishers for allowing me the opportunity to read this e-arc.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. Wow wow. I knew to brace myself based on reviews for this author’s previous works- The Poppy Wars trilogy (which, full disclosure, I own but have not read yet), but this book was such a heavy trip. In a good way!

The “magic” system was absolutely fascinating to me, and I loved the explanations behind how it worked.

The characters at first seemed a little unfleshed out, but they definitely gained dimension as the book went on, and I managed to feel a lot of different emotions about them.

The anti colonialism theme was certainly obvious and present, but absolutely necessary, because so many people still aren’t getting it.

This is certainly a book that’s going to sit with me for quite awhile, judging by the sheer amount of highlights in my ecopy alone.