A review by scarletkeiller
Babel by R.F. Kuang

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This was an unbelievable read. The stakes are so high and despairingly real. Kuang's writing is exceptional and she manages to make a work of speculative fiction feel like a true historical text. This world is so well crafted and I can do nothing but sing Babel's praises! The further I got into the book, the more I would read in one sitting because the tension was nauseating.
Things happen so suddenly (just as they do in real life), often with no closure, no time to process what has happened. Characters don't get to say what they need to say, confess what they want to confess. They are there one moment and then they are gone. This would be a five star read for me, but I feel the epilogue takes away from the emotional impact of the final chapter. You want to sit with these feelings of grief and horror about the state of the world, the hopelessness and the injustice, and then you are ripped out of it by a violent tone change. It just felt like an anticlimax. After such an exceptional book it felt odd to end on such a flat note. Also, creating what seems like a slow burn queer romance b-plot, only for both characters to be killed off before they can ever really acknowledge how they felt for one another (even if just to themselves) felt a bit of a waste. That part of the story definitely could have been developed more. The book was quite sexless in general so I wish it had either built on the queer story or kept their relationship as a strong friendship instead.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings