R.F. Kuang’s ‘Katabasis’ follows 2 grad students’ descent into hell

Best-selling author R.F. Kuang‘s new fantasy book, “Katabasis,” centers around two graduate students studying magic at Cambridge University who make a journey to hell to rescue their recently deceased thesis advisor.

At a recent event in Boston, Kuang spoke with Here & Now’s Emiko Tamagawa, and we air an excerpt of that conversation.

Book excerpt: ‘Katabasis’

By R.F. Kuang

Excerpted from the book “Katabasis” by R.F. Kuang. Copyright © 2025 by R.F. Kuang. From Voyager, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. Reprinted by permission.

This segment airs on September 5, 2025. Audio will be available after the broadcast.