Senlin Ascends: Book One of the Books of Babel

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It’s very clear Bancroft has a real love for his characters, he takes care to make every one of them fully realised, with their own quirky habits and their own reasons for being in the Tower.

Also, unlike the previous three books, The Fall of Babel is bursting with action scenes, and in my opinion, they’re not engaging because Bancroft’s prose isn’t suitable for it.

Honestly, this book reminded me of reading The Queen of Fire by Anthony Ryan; Vaelin was the focus in Blood Song, but he has become a side character in the final book. While an evening storm rattled the shutters and a glass of port wine warmed in his hand, Senlin would read into the wee hours of the night.

My general impression is that your reception of the book is going to be determined by how you’d answer the above questions. Temporary bamboo rafters protruded everywhere over them, bowing under jute rugs, strings of onions, punched tin lanterns, and braided leather belts. Speaking of writing – „The books of Babel“ had never been an easy read for someone who‘s not a native speaker (that's me, obviously). But most of all, the simple conversations that feel so impeccably human: words full of fault, grief, apologies, and glimmers of hope.

The ending of the previous instalment has made it clear that this book will be about the incoming apocalypses. Will Thomas be able to keep his soul as he learns the Tower's often deadly rules, or will he simply be one more person broken by the Tower? I won’t spoil anything by giving examples but I appreciated the way Bancroft illustrated how the forever evolving Tower altered many of the people too. And, finally, we have undoubtedly learned that this whole quadrilogy had really been all about Senlin. That being said: This series is more than a mere reference to the Tower of Babel; it is a reinvention of a story featuring a great, magnificent and proud building whose creators, in their hubris, were so much convinced of its magnificence that they ultimately allowed its demise.

This is the beauty of Bancroft’s prose, he is an author who pays attention to detail, who can effectively bring these characters and this world to life. I mean, I even reread the previous three books just to refresh my memory before I read The Fall of Babel so I can enjoy every detail of it.For comparison, Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson (460k words) took me a week to start and finish, and The Stand Uncut Edition by Stephen King (468k words) took me ten days.