R. F. Kuang is in full form with this historical fantasy take on Oxford in the 1830s and the role that academia has played in furthering colonialism and empire. At times a love letter, an academic analysis, and a scathing condemnation of the school at its center, Babel is a must-read for anyone with a love of language.

An easy 5/5 stars! Before going into this book I really didn't know what to expect other than it being "dark academia." But this book delves into so much more and discusses themes such as power imbalances in academia, racism, colonization, and more. The characters and their development were fantastic but my favorite part of the book is the magic system! Etymology is something that I have always been fascinated in, and the magic system revolves around this idea. And it is brilliantly executed!

I received an ARC of Babel from Avon and Harper Voyager through NetGalley.

RFK's Babel was one of my most anticipated books of 2022, though from the get go, I was completely aware that it was a dark academia, a genre I do not have an amazing track record with. With that in mind I will go into this review saying this one is pretty subjective; Babel is sure to impress a lot of people. I did not like it. 2.5.

Babel tells the story of Robin, a Chinese boy taken from his homeland to England where he is made a ward by a mysterious benefactor who keeps him at an arms length. He is trained in the art of language, and eventually makes his way to Oxford to join their translation department. There he starts to uncover the true secrets of Oxford's purpose with students gifted with language like him, and the sinister underbelly of the university.

The The Poppy War, Babel is well researched and loosely based around real history- it can be be described as historical magical realism. RFK's writing and prose is the hi light of the story, and was the main reason I kept reading on. She is truly in my opinion, one of todays masters of prose. If I wasn't so intent on dropping books I didn't like, I would have continued on for this fact alone.

and Yes, I did DNF this book, so please also consider that in my review.

I do want to note before I get into the dislikes that one of the other positive elements of the book to me was Robin, the main character of the story. He is a soft, passive boy who struggles deeply with feelings of gratitude, insecurity, and resentment for the English and the university that he attends; ever increasingly aware of their colonization of his home. This is a biting, real, and beautiful character study and his character in particular is handled really well. he isn't a "badass", but his deep internal, quiet struggle reminds me a lot of Sansa Stark's chapters from ASOIAF. Observational, and increasingly growing in boldness. His mindset and how it slowly evolves over time as he learns about the true crimes of his new home are chilling, and his pain is deeply personal. The book also uses other characters to illustrate the full power of British colonialism at this time, expanding far past Robin's home.

Robin's *character arc* with regards to colonial England and his time in school is one of the hi lights of his character, but the story structure surrounding it is where the book starts to fall apart. Babel wavers between telling a subtle, smart, and heart-wrenching story about Colonialism before beating you over the head with it. The story structure starts to get really repetitive. Robin does a bunch of stuff at school, then ends up in a really pointed conversation about colonialism (usually with his friends) and it repeats. Some of these moments feel really ham fisted.

RFK already does an excellent job through Robin's arc and relationship with other characters in handling colonial themes, but there are so many beats that feel awkward, unpolished, and don't actually add anything to the story. I feel the same way about how school is handled. Chapters upon chapters of just talking about Oxford, what people are doing at Oxford, what Robin is studying. These two subjects are tossed around ad nauseam and sometimes feel like filler. Robin talks about school for half a chapter. Someone is racist and Robin's friend Ramy calls them out. More school. More someone is racist and Ramy calls them out. Repeat.

There are some really good scenes that feature these themes, but you also need to sit through a lot of 10 page descriptions about whats happening at school followed by a random racist encounter to get to the meat of things.

To recap, I understand this book is about school and colonialism, but these subjects often feel like they are swapped back and fourth without any meaningful plot or character advancement. After double digit micro aggressions, they all start to feel a little redundant- particularly by a character meant to be a shining caricature for this behavior. After so many scenes you wonder why this character is treated like family by the main characters when her only personality trait seems to be “being racist”. She is a “main character” in the promotional art, but only exists to be a thematic mouthpiece and to annoy the shit out of the reader with her ignorance.

RFK also has this habit I am starting to notice where if she hates a character she is writing, she really makes an effort for the readers to not just hate them, but disengage from them entierly. She doesn't even give them interesting villain traits, she just makes them really cardboard stock villains that exemplify all of the worst and most annoying human characteristics. Nothing to chew on. When she writes characters like Vaisra and Daji for example, the love she pours into them despite them being villains is so apparent. They are full people- so we know she is capable of writing nearly irredeemable people as full and complete human beings.

Babel really takes and runs with this, giving you a clear cut “these are the characters I want you to be interested in, these are the characters who are obstacles”. I found non of them compelling or very human. She makes it extremely clear, by contrast, which characters she wants you to like the most.

The favoritism and underwriting of certain characters can make the book feel really hollow- as if a spotlight exists and only on certain characters as we move through the book. Even Victoire, one of the presumed main characters, who is really charming and interesting, is swept aside to focus on her favorites here. So of your main 4, you have a cardboard cutout of a racist, 1 interesting character, 1 character who says what everyone is thinking, and 1 background girl. The side characters are basically the same way, fading into the background or having no real humanity in them.

Babel isn't an ensemble told in first person- its mostly a story about two specific characters, and everyone else sort of moves them along like chess pieces; there existence seems to primarily be for these characters to react to.

It’s hard not to compare Babel to The Poppy War because they are so thematically married, and yet The Poppy War does it better on every level. School, themes of racism and colonialism, questioning the nature of violence when used to self liberate…these are all elements of the story that are woven into the heart and fabric of The Poppy War in a way where they feel carelessly stitched into the seams of Babel. Structurally, it’s a step down.

Babel is going to work for folks who care deeply about these themes regardless of how well they are written. There are some people that will view the importance of the thematic elements of the story and overlook some of the narrative awkwardness. I think this is a great book for fans of Ace of Spades and Ninth House and Legendborn- with a dash of The Secret History.

I have no doubt that it’s going to work for a lot of people. There’s a lot of unique ideas here; primarily, discussing how linguistics furthered the power of the British Empire and give fuel to their atrocities and how it can be compared to hoarding wealth, medicine, and resources. This element of this story is super well thought out and is extremely stirring. Robin's journey is given such love and attention and I hope will appeal to people.

This is not going to work for folks who aren’t primed to like it. It’s not going to work for people who don’t really love dark academia. It’s an extremely specific book based on a very specific passion of RFK’s blended with the themes of her previous stories. Sadly, I do not feel the character work or writing structure was enough to appeal to me as a bit of an outsider of the DA genre.

It wasn't those listed faults that pushed me away from completing this book (DNF @70%) it was that it was too boring and repetitive to overlook them, which could be the biggest sin of all.

She did it again!!!!!!!!!!!
I'll have to admit: I had to work for this book. The first two parts I thought incredibly boring and frankly mind-numbing, often wishing that the book was even longer so that the frequent time jumps would stop. The pacing was torturous slow and I couldn't find myself caring about anything, much less the characters. And while the social commentary was sharp and obviously made by an intelligent and educated person as we all know Kuang to be, I still found the way it was presented to be redundant. I can and do appreciate how cutthroat Kuang was in her anticolonialism and antiracism stance, but I do have to make a point for nuance in fiction, which was lacking in this book until the very last part, which was when I founf myself completely enthralled and amazed by Kuang's storytelling.
Being such a fan of The Poppy War trilogy, my expectations were sky high. She met them all in the last third of the novel, spinning such a meticulous tale of revolution and anticolonialism that I was completely blown away. The prose and worldbuilding never disappointed, the use of footnotes such a creative and innovative method of storytelling, and a great way for Kuang to make great use of her education. The magic system, too, was so interesting and well woven into the story. A true triumph.

SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU NETGALLEY AND HARPER VOYAGER. As a PhD canditate at Cam I am so ready for this. A proper review will come soon but for now OMG LET'S GOOOOOOO

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Alright so I finally read this book. What RF Kuang accomplishes here is no small feat. The magic system here makes absolute sense and it's brilliant. The four main characters are top notch. It was amazing seeing the tensions throughout and their eventual fall (hehe except redacted ;) ) As Robin returns from Canton, while on the boat, I feel like things turn a bit slow from then on and a tad bit underwhelming on some occasions, but it still didn't make the ending any less beautiful and heartwrenching. There were tears, there were tears. This is still a 5 star rating because RF Kuang is RF Kuang and her work is mesmerizing.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for the earc!!!

Dark academia supremacy. A true masterpiece with every word written. This book is ambitious and engaging and so intelligent--yet incredibly readable, accessible, and unputdownable. I loved every single moment of it.

Words cannot express how phenomenal this books is. What a beautiful, heartbreaking, and necessary story. I didn’t think it was possible for Kuang to produce something better than The Poppy War, but Babel is quite possibly the best book I have ever read. The story itself is so interesting, and the world of translation we’re thrown into is fascinating. But it’s her blend of intricate characters, masterful storytelling, and incredible social commentary that makes it such an impactful read. You know an author has achieved something miraculous when you find yourself thinking “wow, I never realized this before.” I can’t say much more without spoiling things, but I just want to make the following statement: sometimes it’s not about understanding people. There are some things that we will NEVER be able to understand because we’ll never experience it. Instead, it is a matter of truly listening to the individuals who come from different backgrounds as us and acknowledge that their feelings, beliefs, and experiences are valid, and that they are not wrong to oppose people, an institution, or an entire empire that sprinkled some niceties their way but ultimately abuses them systemically

Actual rating – 4.5*.

Babel is, unquestionably, Kuang’s most ambitious piece of writing so far. And it is a BRILLIANT success.

There is no doubt that academia IS where RFK shines the most and anyone can tell how much passion she put in those themes: the linguistics, colonialism, even the student life and Oxford – it was all written with a lot of care. Now the trick with Babel is that Kuang doesn’t leave us behind. She doesn’t just throw concepts at us in the usual (and sometimes pretentious) way dark academia tends to do. Instead, the academic concepts are introduced and explained in a way that enhanced the reading experience. It was very comprehensive and I felt like I was learning all while reading a story.

One thing that really helped tie everything together was the use of footnotes. Not only were they really interesting to read, but I loved how they were added as if they were real explanatory notes added by the author to help understand *real* events (and not just describing imaginary events). Those footnotes make us leave the realm of reading fantasy and instead make us feel as if we are reading some sociology essay. It all fit really well with the themes of the book and made it even more cohesive.

The pacing of the book was absolutely amazing. Even though it isn't a fast-pacing novel, you are pulled in the story from the very start and each page makes you want to turn the next one up to the very last. There was simply no big flop moment.

The magic system, which is based on translations, was definitely unique and so smart. I personally enjoy fantasy with subtle magic the most so the combination of silver-lining and the hyper-realistic set-up of mid-1800s England worked perfectly for me (on top of being brilliantly executed!).

The characters, however, left me with some mixed feelings. Robin, our main character, was my ride or die. Maybe it is because he’s the MC, but I was in on his every decision. Ramy was simple a very lovable character. I will quickly mention Griffin because I absolutely loved his character and was always looking forward to his next appearance. I couldn't go without mentioning him, someone had to! More controversial, however, are our female characters. Letty, for one, was written with all of RFK’s hatred and that much is clear. Clear to the point of it being sometimes too in-your-face. Her character represents peak white woman behavior. This is how she was intended to be written, no doubt. I do, however, think that the author could’ve put her point across without it being as redundant as it was. It was well executed but it ended up taking the spotlight from other characters I wished I could’ve seen more of, especially Victoire who would’ve desperately needed it. Victoire, the other main female character, only really gets to shine in the last part of the book. She is a very good and interesting character but I do wish she had been treated better in the early parts of the book.

At the end of the day, however, the flaws in the characters’ writing weren’t too big of a distraction simply because, while I liked the characters, it was the themes I loved reading about more. RF Kuang’s passion for linguistics was very taking and she explores the themes of colonialism and revolution with a lot of depth and cleverness. The criticism on the academic privilege (which can be extended to upper-classes in general) was also very insightful.

I will conclude by saying that it felt really amazing to me to be both enjoying a piece of fiction, “escaping” into the fantasy, while also feeling like reading a piece of mind. While the academics themes in the book are very heavy and definitely not everyone’s thing, it was absolutely mine. As always, I am more than looking forward to RF Kuang’s next work.

Goodreads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4373059455?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

RFK has grown a lot as an author. i’m so relieved to see how well-executed this book was. i usually avoid mentioning other books when reviewing, but seeing as this is from the same author anyway i thought i’d make an exception. anyway, the writing in TPW honestly gave me doubts whether RFK could rlly pull this off. babel is an ambitious book with important themes that could only either be a total bop or a flop. idk abt everybody else but when reading TPW you could tell that RFK was still grasping at words and plot, and while TPW had solid themes, it’s not as sophisticatedly executed as in babel. so i’m very happy to find that babel is an absolutely brilliant bop.

the themes are straightforward and presented in an authentic manner. it is dark academia, after all. i have always held an interest in linguistics and philology, and this tickled my brain in just the right way without being too overwhelming. you simply can’t compare this to other dark academia books. this is on another level of the genre. RFK has redefined dark academia and set a new standard for the entire genre. we sit through enlightening lectures (very nerdy!), go through rigorous exam season (miserable), and ofc— we experience whatever makes dark academia dark (but it’s darker, because the true horror of dark academia lies in the foundations of the institution themselves). RFK’s writing has grown to be more refined and mature too; the sentences flow better and paragraphs are smoother than before. the atmosphere, the tension, the setting of every scene is thick and palpable and (idk if it’s the coffee but) i thought my heart would burst out of my chest (haha). with babel, the author has proven herself capable of executing her ambitious ideas. it’s chock full of 19th century British vocabulary, footnotes, historical events, and philology and linguistics texts while still maintaining appropriate humor and a compelling storyline. it sounds intimidating and heavy, and you might be expecting an academic textbook by this— but RFK makes them accessible without dumbing it down too much. i reckon it’s appealing even to people who aren’t interested in philology, because the discussions grip you from the start and you could feel the passion of the author through the pages (in my case, the screen). it's sobering to reflect on the themes presented, because language is something people don't think much enough every day, and one doesn't realize how deeply connected it is to colonialism. it's excellently done.

but it’s not perfect ofc. the author's presence in the text is quite large; i could feel the sincerity and passion from RFK, but also her plan with certain characters and her train of thought. i found that RFK has a tendency to write specific traits into her main characters and she’s quite heavy-handed with it; it’s like she cannot help but write these kinds of personalities, which is okay, ofc, given the themes and context, but i wonder what type of characters the author could create without these fundamental traits and qualities to their personalities. i mostly enjoyed the characters though i still hope to see her write different types of characters next time.

anyway, despite the little stumbling, this is still an excellent book. i loved reading it! i love learning alongside the characters, experiencing campus life again, and having the story unfold so slowly. the gradual progression of the story felt SO GOOD, idk how else to describe it. i loved the first half better than the second half, and the last part of the book was my least favorite, but i still love the whole book.

TLDR ; this is not your usual dark academia, and i feel like it deserves its own category in the genre. this was absolutely fucking brilliant, what else can i say? just read it on your own and see for yourself.

I feel lucky to be alive at the same time as R.F. Kuang.

There are very few words to describe what Babel is, but masterpiece is definitely one of them. I was consumed, and my mind will remain with this book for a long time. A deconstruction of colonialism and empire, a revelation of what hides behind the golden sheen of promises. It's truth in the form of fiction, and holds every single brutality that comes with truth.

I am breathless. Be excited to be destroyed on every level, because it will destroy you down to your bones.

Thank you so much to Harper Voyager for sending me a copy of Babel in exchange for an honest review. I’m still blown away that I actually got an arc.

I enjoyed this story immensely and had to read it slowly so I could truly enjoy RF Kuang’s writing. the story tackles so many important issues that still impact society today that I ended up looking up each historical event that was mentioned as I read. I loved the characters too and understood why they did certain things even if they were considered “terrible”. Kuang’s writing has a way of making you think deeply about the world despite her books being fiction.

I loved Babel immensely and couldn’t put this down. If you’re looking for a dark academia fantasy read, this is definitely for you.

Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution is R. F. Kuang’s standalone adult fantasy novel that centers on the story of Babel—a prestigious institute of translation in University of Oxford and its four students, as they uncover the sinister truths that surround the institution they’ve entered. Babel is an ambitious exploration of several ideas that tightly interweave colonialism, language, academia and paths to decolonization.

As a matter of personal preference, I generally don’t gravitate towards books labeled ‘dark academia’, but in case of Babel, being a fan of Kuang’s work and knowing the premise I was immensely excited to read it. And boy, it did not disappoint. Babel is an incredible book. It is bold, impressive and uncompromising. I can confidently say this is my new favorite Kuang novel.

Babel is obviously a passion project for R. F. Kuang; Almost every page is packed with her expertise and her interest in the subjects she tackles and as a result the reading experience is so rich and enthralling. Babel is definitely heavy on the academics, and as a scholar herself, the author presents a thorough coverage of translation and etymology, while keeping it entertaining and, honestly, addicting to read about. One of my favorite parts of the novel was the insanely interesting magic system which is based on the art of translation and its nuance—it was new and unexpected, I had never read anything quite like it and exploring this completely new idea of a magic system based on language was so intriguing.

The more academic aspects of the novel worked wonderfully. While I was hesitant about the idea of footnotes, I absolutely loved the ones in Babel—they were informative, interesting and to the point. In fact, at some point I was looking forward to the historical tidbits that were mostly given to the reader through footnotes. I was ridiculously invested in the actual studying process of the characters, I was as excited to learn about the exam paper they were about to take as some of the twists — it was Insanely Entertaining.

In terms of the plot, Babel is slow in development, as it takes quite some time to set up the scene and for the main events to get going. The slow pace in the first half of the novel, however, doesn’t feel heavy or boring; the setup itself is super fun to read about. The ambience of Oxford, its architecture, its academic practices and customs is described so vividly; it successfully immerses the reader into the Royal Institute of Translation. In typical Kuang fashion, the second half of the novel is filled with twists and reveals that make it hard to put the book down. Kuang takes her time to establish the chilling realities of colonization and just how the colonizers view the territories and the people they’ve taken. The ending of Babel is one of the strongest endings I’ve read. This story is so complete and fulfilling to finish; the ending definitely left some unanswered questions but it was still very satisfying and bittersweet.

Undoubtedly, the themes of Babel and how Kuang manages to tackle them are my favorite aspects of the novel. Kuang’s commentary on language and colonialism is nuanced and incredibly sharp. The themes are expertly woven into the narrative: the discussion of colonialism, the supposed ‘gratitude’ the colonies owe to the British empire, as well as the pivotal point — the necessity of violence to overcome the oppressor — feel deeply personal and well explored, as each character presents a new lens to view these issues and ideas through. The characters’ experiences, their insight into just how inventive Colonialism can be, their stories and their pain feel real and tangible. The value of a language, the importance of the mother tongue is also explored in Babel, as it becomes the sole link that connects our characters to their respective motherlands they’ve been taken from. There is also a generational quality to the discussion of these ideas —we see families of people reflect upon their legacy and their destiny as children of colonies forced into the world of the colonizers. The richness of the themes is what dominates the novel, and while it could be argued that they are tackled in a somewhat heavy-handed manner, in my opinion that’s part of the charm of this novel; Kuang doesn’t shy away from the difficult questions and the difficult answers that revolve around colonialism and its cataclysmic impacts.

While I really liked the characters of the novel, it definitely took some time for me to warm up to them (Ramiz is my absolute favorite, I Love him, he is everything to me). And to be honest, this is where most of my issues with the novel lie. Themes are the central part of the narrative, which sometimes pushes the characters to the side, there are certain moments that don’t have quite the emotional impact they were supposed to have. This doesn’t necessarily mean that these moments fall flat, but they come off as too fast and too abrupt in the narrative. Specifically I was most frustrated with how Letty’s and Ramy’s character arcs were handled. I wish Victoire had more page time, because when she’s the center of the attention she shines so brightly. And though I was frustrated because of how some character work was handled, ultimately, it didn’t ruin the experience since everything else was fantastic.

Kuang has grown so much as a writer. While I enjoyed The Poppy War trilogy, I think Babel takes it all to the next level: the prose, the themes, the pacing—it all feels so well handled and satisfying to go through. The prose is incredible, it manages to convey the themes effectively, create a bond between the reader and some of the characters and advance the plot at an appropriate pace.

I went into this book with really high expectations, yet I still found myself surprised because I enjoyed it immensely. I love this book. This is what dark academia books should be. This book is meticulous in detail, comprehensive and well-written in all regards. Of course, there are still things that frustrate me, that I wish were done differently (hence my rating not being a full 5 stars), but I’m willing to overlook those, since as a whole this was a Great read. Babel is magnificent; flawed in certain ways, but absolutely magnificent.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader's copy of Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution.

Babel is dark academia doing what dark academia should do, and it was pretty amazing.

The very first thing you’ll really notice when reading Babel is how full it is. it is overflowing with meaning and sickening history it is incredibly difficult to digest at points. fans of The Poppy War will surely notice some thematic overlaps, but through creatively refreshing methods: what the poppy war showed about colonization on the battlefield from a girl who rises through the military ranks, Babel does through the perspective of a student blinded by privilege given to him by an empire that turns around and acts the most violent towards him, both physically and psychologically.

(side note: rf kuang has a way to hook you completely from the very first chapter its really very impressive. i found myself shutting off my phone and taking a quick pace around my room very early on due to rage. this did not subside a single time throughout)

When it gets gritty, and it does get gritty, the attention to detail is fantastic. Everything just feels very real the whole way through, despite the very obvious fact (which I somehow did not know before i started it) that the story relies on magic. There is so much thought and research and intention poured into every minuscule idea and event and consequence and political entity in this novel that once you get around the halfway mark, you will be so immersed you will not be able to stop reading. (that’s a promise) The “magic,” by the way, is cool as fuck. Silver-working is one of those concepts in a fantasy/ contemporary fantasy esque novel that i can’t help but sit and wonder how on earth the author came up with it. I’m almost jealous at how brilliant Kuang is. It’s such a genius way to bring language as a resource of imperialism to life and seamlessly holds its place as the essence of the novel.

Babel nestles right in the middle of character driven/plot driven and, again, It works the way it’s supposed to. I don’t want to babble (hahaha) on about the characters too much, as i think you will find much more reward in it to meet them for the first time and follow their journey knowing as little as possible beforehand, but phew! The woman knows how to write a character arc, I tell ya. Watch your backs, people.

There’s so much I want to talk about but can’t both because spoilers, and I definitely do not want to co-opt and risk watering down many of the messages in Babel from a perspective that is not intimately familiar with it’s experiences, but this book will betray you in all the best and all the worst ways you can think of. R.F. Kuang has a way of slowly suffocating you but then allowing one, final, wonderful gasp of air before delivering that earth shattering blow. (and of course, you’ll be sitting there asking for more as usual)

pre-order this now. consume everything you can that relates to the subject matter before you read it. and enjoy it!!

expected this one to hurt. spoiler alert, it hurt! and now i can’t stop thinking about it.

babel follows 4 scholars who are brought to oxford to study a variety of languages and enhance/expand the magical capabilities of silver through translation. this is extremely simplified, as i could not do explaining the intricacies of this book justice. throughout the course of the novel, we see the 4 characters grow in unexpected ways, as they embark on a revolution to dismantle imperialistic expansion one bar of silver at a time.

this book is one that will stick with me for some time. dark academia is something i do not typically read a lot of; however, for me, this was an exceptional read. while the pacing of the first half of the book was slow and i wanted to see more fantasy elements, once it picked up around the halfway mark, i couldn’t put it down. there are certain scenes in my head that i just can’t stop thinking about. and the plot twists …. just wow. kuang is so masterful with her word choices & intended messages; i will be recommending this to everyone as a must read upon its release in august (especially those who love linguistics and translation). please make sure to check the trigger warnings before reading.

thank you to netgalley & avon and harper voyager for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I’m trying to write a really calm and professional review here but after reading this book I don’t think there’s a possibility. I am honestly astonished by what Kuang achieved in this book.
This story is masterful and powerful and immersive in a way i can’t even begin to describe. Characters are so captivating, they had me wholeheartedly invested immediately especially Robin. All i'm going to say is, if you loved Kuang’s Kitay, you will adore Robin.
Overall Babel is fantastic read and R. F. Kuang is remarkable at breaking my heart while at the same time making me want to read and re-read her books.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for sharing this ARC with me in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to RF Kuang and Harper Voyager for the ARC!

When I first read The Poppy War, I was immediately blown away not only by Kuang’s talent, but by her ability to craft a good story. I devoured the series like it was oxygen and quickly turned to her other content, listening to podcasts, scrolling through her twitter, and reading reviews, but I eventually discovered that she wouldn’t have another book out for several months — and even then, the only thing I knew about it was that it was set at Oxford. I was dying to read more of her work, especially if it could be as genuinely breathtaking as her first series.

But make no mistake: this book is not The Poppy War. Kuang has previously said it is her most ambitious story to date, and that is truly the only way I can accurately describe it. Kuang took the dark academia genre and made it her bitch with Babel, because not only have I never read anything like this, but I doubt I will ever read anything quite on its level again. I knew going into Babel that RF Kuang was probably going to write my favorite book of the year, because she’s just that talented. But I in no way expected her to blow every single expectation I had out of the water the way she did. I hesitate to compare it to her previous books, because they a) belong to different genres and b) exist in different universes. But Babel is a literal masterpiece and I need to scream about it. (ALSO, THE COVER!!! I could write a whole review to talk about it, but I am not going to because I need to keep my dignity. Know that I love it and I shrieked when I saw it.)

The characters — There is so much amazing content in this book, and honestly, craft-wise, it feels leagues ahead of The Poppy War, despite that book being one of my favorites of all time purely from a writing standpoint. But what made The Poppy War stand out to me so much was the incredibly characterization of each and every cast member. And, similarly to that book, one of Babel’s strongest and most compelling features is its characters. Robin is a banger of a main character. Like, I canNOT stress this enough, I love him to the moon and back. He is so well-rounded, thoughtful, interesting, etc etc (I COULD GO ON), and he stood out to me while reading as one of the best characters I’ve ever read in a story. His character development is beyond immaculate and after finishing the story I had to sit back and wonder just how RF Kuang managed to pull his storyline out her ass because DAMN!!! His struggles with his upbringing, with his mother, with Lovell, with Britain — all of it is not only handled beautifully, but treated with such care and time that other authors should buy copies and start taking notes as soon as possible. She continues to set the standard for what characters can be and all I can say is Robin Swift superiority!!! He is the best boy. I love him so much.

It isn’t only Robin that’s amazing. Babel has a diverse, well-rounded cast full of unique and interesting characters that genuinely feel like real people. From the beginning of the story, Kuang takes care to make you invested in each and every one of them. Even hateable characters are well-characterized and thought out, and the villains in this story are just beyond. The inner circle of Robin, Ramy, Letty, and Victoire was so complex and full of different dynamics and I always felt like I was kept on my toes while reading about them. Not once did anyone get boring, nor did I feel like I wanted to skip a scene. Kuang created these characters and they feel real enough that I could swear they live and breathe somewhere in real life.

Ramy (and Ramy and Robin’s relationship) was funny and captivating to read. I wanted the world for him and when we got to read his POV I was thrilled because RAMY!!!! Ugh. Him! He is the best. I want to give him a hug. Same for Victoire — I really loved her, and more than that, I loved how she represents a “strong female character” that isn’t necessarily sarcastic or the typical, SJM-style badass: she’s soft, kind, but incredibly strong. She doesn’t take anyone’s shit and I loved that. Letty, too, was complicated and well-characterized; her arc is truly amazing and her interlude in the story is so well written. I won’t go into too much detail here because I’m hesitant to spoil any of the story, but she reflects society today in a way that is impossible to ignore. Her final scenes with the rest of the group might be fictional, but the script feels rooted in truth. Real people like her exist, and on the page, this fact feels like it’s punching you in the face. Kuang did an amazing job with all of these characters, and having finished the story I feel slightly empty. How can she keep doing this to me? Give me more content, I beg you :((

The plot — How RF Kuang came up with this mindfuckery of a plot I’ll never know, but god am I grateful she did. It’s unique, somehow both fast and slow at the same time, and never boring; it takes the dark academia genre that people know and love and made it into something entirely new. Not once did the book lag for me; not once did I feel like it was moving slow or I was bored. I was hooked from the start, first on the thrill of reading one of her books after so long, but within two pages, on Robin and his story.

It’s definitely a hard story, and it earns its place in the adult fiction category. While I did feel heavy many times while reading, the plot never stands too still for long, and even when bombshell after bombshell was being dropped, the plot was picking up speed, moving at a breakneck pace. There is never a dull moment in Robin’s life, even when it seems like there isn’t much going on on a superficial level. Kuang takes care to make each page worthy of the reader’s attention, and it pays off. Her pacing has always been spectacular, but Babel felt like a category of its own to me.

One thing I loved about this book was how the pacing worked in relation to the years. The book (somewhat like Naomi Novik’s Scholomance books) skips large chunks of time in favor of recapping them in a few paragraphs, keeping the reader invested in the meat of the story. Babel doesn’t bother slogging through boring information that isn’t necessary to the reading experience; instead, it throws it out and sticks to what’s important. I found this to be one of the best reading experiences I’ve ever had because at any time, I could open the book and fall right back into the plot without issues.

The history — This story feels like a love letter to academia in many ways, and you can definitely tell that Kuang is a scholar while reading. The writing is beautiful without being pretentious, and while reading I was reminded of how much I love her writing; it’s one of my favorite styles of all time. Babel combines Kuang’s gorgeous prose with real history (this is lame but seeing bits of information I learned in AP world was such a rush) and I feel lucky to have gotten to read it. The amount of research it must have taken to write this story is insane.

Also, I’m surprised that it was as accessible as it was — I’m not a big fan of classics, and I was nervous going into this book that I wouldn’t like the writing style if it had to do so much with academia and a classic-y time period (there was Charles Dickens, okay?). But Babel is incredibly well-written, not in a pretentious sense, but in a thorough, explained way. Unlike many authors who have had similar education, Kuang’s writing is in no way pretentious or condescending, and it never gets boring. There are no metaphors upon metaphors upon metaphors, and nothing about the story is hard to believe. It feels as though Babel belongs at Oxford, and everything that occurs is just part of a history we were never taught in our classrooms.

To be honest, I can’t believe I got to read this story for free. It feels like it should be in a museum somewhere. This has become my favorite book of the year by far; I love it beyond words. The characters, the story, the history, the writing, all of it — I’ve never read anything like it, and now I feel just as starved for similar content as I did the moment I finished The Poppy War. Kuang is a master at what she does, and I am literally at her feet begging for any morsel of content she’ll give me. This book was beyond good, and I can’t wait to see what she does next!!!!