Senlin Ascends (The Books of Babel, #1) by Josiah Bancroft

Synopsis:

The Tower of Babel is the greatest marvel in the world. Immense as a mountain, the ancient Tower holds unnumbered ringdoms, warring and peaceful, stacked one on the other like the layers of a cake. It is a world of geniuses and tyrants, of airships and steam engines, of unusual animals and mysterious machines.

Soon after arriving for his honeymoon at the Tower, the mild-mannered headmaster of a small village school, Thomas Senlin, gets separated from his wife, Marya, in the overwhelming swarm of tourists, residents, and miscreants.

Senlin is determined to find Marya, but to do so he'll have to navigate madhouses, ballrooms, and burlesque theaters. He must survive betrayal, assassination, and the long guns of a flying fortress. But if he hopes to find his wife, he will have to do more than just endure.

This quiet man of letters must become a man of action.
 

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

 

The best thing about this book is its main character, Thomas Senlin. Don't get me wrong, the world is super compelling and the writing is lovely, but the transformation that Senlin undergoes is the most satisfying character development I've ever read. When the novel begins, Senlin is a straight-laced, academic, easily-taken-advantage-of tourist. Slowly but surely, the Tower bleeds these traits out of Senlin and so by the novel's close, he's so unlike who he was at the start of his journey. His transformation to who he is by the end of the novel is very believable, and so despite being very different, he still feels like the Senlin who lost his wife at the novel's open.

I think too many writers stumble into the pitfall of changing their characters too drastically after one pivotal event, but not Josiah Bancroft. His writing of Senlin's change is gradual, shaped by tens of experiences, big and small. It feels real, because real people are shaped by everything that happens in their lives, not just one event. And this didn't just apply to Senlin. The other characters were just as artfully executed. Bancroft is a master at writing believable characters.

I really enjoyed the world-building in this novel. The Tower is a fascinating place, and I liked that while the world felt complex and rich with history, it didn't feel dense in a way that made it hard to follow. The world is still just as lush, but in a way that's more palatable than I think a China Miéville or N.K. Jemisin novel is. It feels strangely cozy, almost, even as these horrible things happen around Senlin. I guess the best way I can put it is that it feels realistically inhabitable, as though I or you could live there.

I'm really excited for the rest of this series. Bancroft is the triple-threat: unique world-building, lovely writing, and realistic, memorable characters. I'm so glad he's had such success! Senlin Ascends was the fantasy novel I didn't know I needed.