Skip to content

SENLIN ASCENDS

Written By:

Ian White
senlin

Do you ever feel like you’re the one person who doesn’t really get the joke, but you don’t want to admit it in case everyone else thinks you’re crazy? Well, that’s kind of how I felt about Senlin Ascends, a book that seems to be garnering extraordinarily positive reviews but which, I’m sorry to admit, pretty much left me cold.

What’s it about? A newly married couple called Senlin and Marya who visit the Tower of Babel on their honeymoon and are almost immediately separated. As Senlin searches for his wife he begins a journey through the Dantes Inferno-like ringdoms of the Tower, each of which is a miraculous and dangerous world in its own right. En route he encounters all manner of friends and foes and comes to the slow realisation that if he is ever going to see his bride again he must jettison his mild-mannered bookish ways and fight to rescue her.

What’s good about it? The quality of the writing. Josiah Bancroft is obviously an accomplished wordsmith and he knows how to weave a compelling sentence. This is a long book but it’s tightly and elegantly written and is surprisingly easy to read.

What doesn’t work? To be honest, this is where I’m feeling conflicted because I can appreciate the quality of the writing and I can usually eat this type of romantic high fantasy up with a spoon, but Senlin Ascends feels arch and overcooked, a kind of Ichabod Crane-does-The Pilgrim’s Progress, stuffed to the brim with eccentric ideas and intriguing characters but we’ve wandered around fantastical corridors like this too many times before and it all quickly becomes repetitive. It’s a lovely story, and Bancroft has polished it up and given it a great shine, but it’s still the same old allegory with very little new to add and the fact that there are (apparently) three more books to come is something I find vaguely depressing. Writing this strong deserves better ideas, but if Terry Gilliam ever directs a movie of this (he’d be the perfect filmmaker for this project) I’ll be first in line to buy a ticket.

SENLIN ASCENDS / AUTHOR: JOSIAH BANCROFT / PUBLISHER: ORBIT / RELEASE DATE: JANUARY 18TH 2018

Ian White

You May Also Like...

chinese remake of anaconda drops trailer

ANACONDA Trailer Grants First Look At Remake Of 1997 Horror Flick

Three sequels and a spinoff-crossover film wasn’t enough for the 1997 creature feature Anaconda, which not only has a new movie in development, but is getting a Chinese remake! From
Read More
black widow star scarlett johansson in talks to lead new universal jurassic world film

Scarlett Johansson In Talks To Join JURASSIC WORLD Film

Another MCU star appears to be taking up the reins for Universal’s new Jurassic World movie: two-time Oscar nominee Scarlett Johansson is reportedly in talks to lead the franchise that
Read More

Exclusive Reveal! Titan Comics to Deliver Prehistoric Hysterics in First 2 DUMB DINOS Collection

Titan Comics have exclusively revealed to STARBURST that they’re gearing up to publish the first-ever collection of the hilarious cult digital comic strip 2 Dumb Dinos, and we’re not the
Read More

New Dates For Lovecraftian Key of Dreams

Key of Dreams has announced new spaces for its titular immersive luxury horror event. The critically acclaimed company is known for its overnight experiences that dunk you into a strange
Read More

FAB Café to Host Free Film Screening of New Indie Comedy SECRETS OF A WALLABY BOY

We’re well known for our championing of truly independent filmmakers here at STARBURST, so it’s doubly exciting to be writing about one of our own! After joining the crew in
Read More
colin farrell returns as oswald cobblepot in the penguin series trailer

Colin Farrell Returns In THE PENGUIN Trailer

Colin Farrell returns as Gotham City’s answer to Tony Soprano in the first trailer for Max series The Penguin, which spins out of the world of the 2022 DC film
Read More