John Mauro's Reviews > The Hod King

My review of The Hod King is published in Grimdark Magazine.

The Hod King is the third volume in Josiah Bancroft’s masterful Books of Babel tetralogy, combining the best features of the first two books of the series, Senlin Ascends and Arm of the Sphinx, while bringing new emotional depth to this tragic story.

The lead protagonist of the series is Thomas Senlin, a rural schoolteacher on his honeymoon at the famed Tower of Babel. Although Senlin considers himself to be well-educated on all things Babel-related, his scholarly knowledge is no match for the overwhelming chaos of the real Tower. Senlin’s hubris gets the best of him as he immediately loses his bride, Marya, near the entrance of the Tower. The main plotline of the series concerns Senlin’s quest to rescue Marya from the labyrinthine Tower.

The Tower of Babel is an overwhelmingly massive structure, taller than any modern skyscraper. The building is divided into layers called “ringdoms,” each with its own peculiar culture and politics. In the first book, Senlin Ascends, our hero struggles to make his way upward through the ringdoms, believing that he will find his wife at the Tower’s famous baths. Senlin must overcome a series of Kafkaesque absurdities at each level to continue his ascent. By the second book, Arm of the Sphinx, the previously naïve Senlin is determined to take charge of his destiny, assembling a ragtag crew of makeshift pirates, traveling through this steampunk world on a stolen airship.

The Hod King strikes just the right balance between the Kafka-inspired absurdity of Senlin Ascends and the multi-point-of-view adventures of Arm of the Sphinx. More importantly, The Hod King deepens the emotional impact of the story as we finally encounter Marya. A year has passed since the newlyweds were first separated outside the Tower. Senlin’s bride may not be as he remembers, and the question arises of whether she actually wants to be “saved.”

Senlin’s personal struggles are set against the backdrop of the greater mysteries of the Tower, including those of the enigmatic Sphinx and the Hod King. As unlikely as it seems, Senlin’s journey may be inexorably linked with the fate of the Tower itself.

Among the many brilliant aspects of the Books of Babel, I am particularly impressed with Josiah Bancroft’s use of theatrical motifs to deepen the story. The author skillfully hones his theatre-related imagery in The Hod King, driving home the theme of finding our true selves behind the many literal and figurative masks that we wear throughout our lives.

The Hod King is arguably the best volume in Josiah Bancroft’s Books of Babel series. Grimdark readers will especially love the complexity of this dark world, as well as Bancroft’s consistently outstanding characterization. The tetralogy concludes with The Fall of Babel.