I received a free e-copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This has not affected my opinion and the following is an honest review.

I don't really know what to say about this book except that I absolutely loved it and it's the most trans book I've ever read. I felt it in my bones. I loved that both of the protagonists were in their 60s and yet they were still the ones who took up the mantle of freeing their land from an oppressive ruler. I loved that they were both trans, that it was a radically different experience and meant different things to each of them, that they had so much to learn from the world and each other despite their decades of life.

I loved that even though both nen-sasaïr and Uiziya were binary trans, there were nonbinary characters present too, that it was discussed how being nonbinary in this world was radically different again from being binary trans. I loved that both of them were often wrong in their assumptions about each other and their place in the world, that even though they questioned and suspected each other, they chose again and again to trust each other and to stand together.

I loved that even though transitioning was fraught for nen-sasaïr, he was always strong in his conviction that despite the difficulties he experienced and the struggle to find where he belonged, he knew that it was the right course and stood firm in his conviction that he did not need to be the man everyone expected him to be, that somewhere out there he would find a true name and a true place.

In short, I loved every single word of this book and I will for sure come back to it again and again because it's just. Absolutely glorious.

(On a lighter note, the thought I had upon realising that I wasn't going to be able to stop reading until the story was over was "why did I ever bother with Dune when this book exists??" If you have a hankering for a desert fantasy quest novel but Dune was too white-savioury and not queer enough for you, read this book instead.)

Rep: fat disabled trans woman MC, trans man MC, nonbinary side characters, queer-normative and polyamorous-normative world, ff and ff(m) and fmm relationships mentioned. Ownvoices trans rep. (Fat and disabled rep maybe also ownvoices? Not sure though.)

CWs: nen-sasaïr's gender is often weaponised against him ("why don't you go and sit with the <i>men</i>") by his grandchildren and occasionally by Uiziya; near the end of the book he is frequently misgendered and deadnamed; discussion of trans people being accepted or not accepted; the transition of a character is delayed by years bc their lover "could not love them if they were a man"; violence; murder; serious injury; a character feeds off another character's life force; discussion of a mobility aid being a way for someone to control someone else; misogyny (a character is arrested for the crime of being unveiled, even though her veil had been forcibly removed without her consent)

Gorgeous, queer, and fascinating. I've never read a book quite like this one before, and I'm so glad I did. What a beautiful world!

A stunningly beautiful fantasy. Lemberg creates a rich and complex world full of mystery and wonder, populated with a cast that is as diverse and full of life as the land they live in. I can't wait to read more from them.

A nameless man with nowhere to call home and a woman who longs to learn, but has spent forty years waiting for knowledge to come to her, set out on a journey of self-discovery together, searching for the four magical weaves of life, but also for some meaning to their own lives.

This beautifully woven tale explores the issues and emotions experienced by those who have a foot in more than one world: born in a body that doesn’t feel right to them; living in a body that feels right but is rejected by others; born in one country/culture, but living in another, and feeling ‘home’ in neither…

While an important ‘own voice’ narrative for trans/bi/non-binary readers, this story is also a desert song of pain, hope and determination, and a new fairytale for those who wish to explore beyond the bounds of their own lived experiences.

I'm not sure about this one. While there's a lot of worldbuilding to be had here, I felt it didn't quite do a good job of translating it. Not only that, but the plot seemed all over the place. I enjoyed the characters, but they got lost in the confusion around the world and plot, so I couldn't enjoy them as much as I wanted to. This wasn't much of a hit for me, but I could see it being something other people might enjoy.

The Four Profound Weaves // by R. B. Lemberg

The only thing I truly dislike about this book is that I waited so long to read it! While I can't pretend that I understood everything about it, I still thoroughly enjoyed reading it nonetheless. And it is short enough that I may even agree to a reread just to see how differently it will feel already knowing this world now. Aside from the writing itself, I really liked the presentation. I read this as an ebook but still there were illustrations at the beginning of each section that felt like they helped set the tone.

Something I really admire is how it was able to include so many different things for being such a short book! From having an interesting magic system and approach to transgender and transformation to all the different cultures. In less than 200 pages, it managed to address a multitude of themes, including, but not limited to, body image, identity, spirituality, familial relationships, and responsibilities not only to yourself but also to your family and your society. The unabashed candidness that was reached during the characters' self-reflection has the potential to evoke some big feelings for those inclined to be emotional while reading (I will neither confirm nor deny this regarding myself) and I liked how this not only revealed their inner fears but gave me a chance to confront my own.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review. I am looking forward to more from this author in the future.

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This one was a really good reading! I enjoy the plot and I fell in love with the characters.
Such a good book!

I would absolutely recommend it

It was different from the normal fantasy novels. This was my first book by the author. I felt it was little slow, however it was an interesting read

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Great plot! I love the pacing. It is very well written

Thank you kindly to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this review copy.

This was a very mythical, poetic fairytale. Beautiful and interesting at the same time. I`m just sad that it was over so quickly. I had hoped a bit for more flesh, and character development or details so we`d get to know them more. But that is just me. Beautiful nontheless.

I really enjoyed this lush fantasy about trans elders, full of folklore and a quiet magic. It's full of meaning and metaphor, but it's done so beautifully, it never feels false or heavy-handed.

I struggled with this one. I appreciate Lemberg's world building and the ability to tell a tale touching on so many issues, but at times it was confusing. I liked the story and many of the characters, but keeping up with some things caused me to take months to finish this book.

This novella was a fun, interesting read. I think Lemberg genuinely manages to capture the feel of Le Guin in it, while also providing amazing trans rep, amidst themes of death, stagnation and change. I thought the way Lemberg decided to use aging protagonists was important in that; there was a sense that for them, time seemed to be 'running out', and Lemberg then uses this existential fear to explore just how age isn't a definition of worth, or how starting 'late' isn't a barrier to finding your place in the world.

I'd also like to commend how Lemberg wrote the villain of this book. While focused in a central character, they're really a personification of bigotry (such as transphobia), stagnation and conservatism. In a way, The Four Profound Weaves is a coded allegory for how marginalized people must navigate today's world, encountering everyday perils and fears -- in addition to those only they will encounter.

I do however, think it suffers a little from two factors: One, this is a book missing its prologue -- Grandmother-Nai-Leylit's Cloth of Winds is a prequel short story to this novella, and it features a monumentally important event for one of the two main characters of The Four Profound Weaves. Secondly, it suffers from classic novella syndrome by being a little too short. I would have loved to see its themes explored in depth in a little more.

Still, this is a nice, short read for anyone who's interested in a story with good prose, protagonists that aren't molded after the usual expectations and forefront rep of marginalized people.

As a result of my various committee appointments and commitments I am unable to disclose my personal thoughts on this title at this time. Please see my star rating for a general overview of how I felt about this title. Additionally, you may check my GoodReads for additional information on what thoughts I’m able to share publicly. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this and any other titles you are in charge of.

R.B. Lemberg is a stunning author with a beautiful book that I know I will be rereading more often than others. I loved this new piece of the Birdverse universe and can't wait to read more!

tw: transphobia

DNF at 44%

Recommend this for

People who read other stories in this universe.

What I liked

Not much. I liked the potential and the whole concept of the story more than I liked the execution of it.

What I didn’t like

I tried to make this one work multiple times. I thought this book could stand on its own, but it really doesn’t. I believe you have to read the other stories in this universe to understand what’s happening here. And I wish this was disclosed. Usually, novellas have world building in them, or they explain, at least briefly, what happened to these characters and why we’re following them. Nothing is explained here. I felt zero attachment to the characters, I was constantly trying to understand how the magic works and overall, I was a bit bored. The writing style didn’t do it for me either. It’s sad because I feel like this could have been a great story with great trans representation, but all of these issues deprived me of that.

Final thoughts

If you want to give this one a fair chance, read the other stories in this universe first. I don’t know if I’ll ever do that, but right now I’m just going to say this is not for me.

A very complex first person narrative with deeply personal sentiments woven in. R. B. Lemberg gives us an OwnVoices story from the perspective of someone trans. We are dropped into a fantasy world with multiple cultures and beliefs with varying magic interspersed between. Four Profound Weaves is the type of book you could write entire English papers on given its depth, subject matter, and complicated core two characters.
While a wonderfully put together book; I personally found the writing style a bit challenging. It was repetitive in places and yet much too vague in others.

First Person POV
There are advantages and disadvantages to a first person narrative as used in Found Profound Weaves. While on one hand we get a deeply personal perspective from the characters and have an opportunity to experience their thoughts and true feelings; we also loose a lot of context and description of the world around us. Especially when the author writes like Lemberg and leaves out the details about the world that a normal person living their life wouldn’t “explain” to themselves. This technique often used in teen novels cheapens the first person narrative to a degree but also helps give context and description to the reader. It’s a difficult balance to find for any author; and for me Lemberg goes too far into the true personal thoughts of the characters and I felt like I didn’t really ever understand the fantasy world they live in.

Personal Insights
The huge benefit of the POV of our two main characters, however, is that we truly feel and know their most intimate thoughts. This allows Lemberg to share with the reader a lot more about how someone trans thinks and feels. There are revelations in here that feel so personal and yet are very insightful to someone on the outside like myself (I am a bisexual female). If you want to truly appreciate an OurVoices novel and learn something new I would highly recommend diving into Four Profound Weaves.
”I did not fit among women, among men. Even far from home with only myself for company, I did not fit.”

Fantasy and Magic
The reason why this didn’t resonate for me is that I wanted to know so much more about the cultures, magic, and set-up of this fantasy world. In such a short novel we are given so little to truly give the reader more than a notion of what this world encompasses. I know there is a whole collection of books set in this world to search out and read; but I just craved more each time I learned a new perspective or use of the magic. Lemberg has setup a fantasy world with my personal favourite type of magics; ones that have consequences. Not only draining strength of the user, but also misfiring or causing unintended harm. Near the end of the book more of this is seen and understood but I wanted so much more and struggled to stay engaged without this larger context at times.

Overall
This is a special story given its insights into the thoughts and feelings of someone trans. As a fantasy book it lacked a certain detail and context I personally crave. There is a lot of potential in this fantasy world; and even for our two lead characters to continue telling us their stories. If the narrative were slightly different and more depth given to the actual fantasy world I think I would have loved this. As it stands now I struggled in places to keep going. I’m glad I did as the ending is wonderful and I do think there is something special to this book. Definitely one of those try it out and see if you like it books; especially if you want an OwnVoices trans representation. I’m confident anyone will find something to think about from the thoughts our characters share with the reader. Kudos to Lemberg for giving such a huge personal chunk of themselves over for the reader to experience and understand.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

The Four Profound Weaves (Tachyon, 2020) by R.M. Lemberg is a wonderful novella set in the author’s acclaimed Birdverse. It has the air of a fairytale, with trans and queer characters at its centre. The story drew me in and made me cry multiple times as characters were able to just live their realities. The eponymous four profound weaves are magical ways in which the characters in this world are able to weave things (and themselves) from nature. But to vanquish an evil ruler, they have to learn how to weave from death… I really liked this novella, and I highly recommend it if you like lyrical, magical stories.

A hugely captivating read. It was also heartbreaking and magical. Really enjoyed Absolutely magical read.

Very weird, hard to read, moving, interesting, excellent. In many ways a story about liberation, although it was hard to lock onto the stakes for the characters involved because their world was (culturally and magically) different enough that it was hard to adapt to over this length.