Yoke of Stars
R. B. Lemberg
(Author)
21,000+ Reviews
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Description
An apprentice assassin and an inquisitive linguist trade interwoven tales in order to enact revenge. Ukrainian author R. B. Lemberg (The Four Profound Weaves) returns to their legendary Birdverse in an ode to the transformative power of storytelling. "Haunting, nuanced, and hopeful, Yoke of Stars is essential reading."--Izzy Wasserstein, author of These Fragile Graces, This Fugitive Heart In the School of Assassins, Stone Orphan waits for a first assignment. After their first kill, they will graduate and attain the coveted cloth of bone. But instead of a commission, Stone Orphan gets an inquisitive linguist, Ulín. Ulín has heard the Orphan Star's song of despair, mirroring her own, and drawing her to the School of Assassins. But Ulín is far more interested in learning Stone Orphan's language than deciding whom she wishes to kill. Unable to contain their curiosity, Stone Orphan offers to exchange stories with Ulín to help her decide the fate of three men. By turns, Stone Orphan and Ulín narrate tales of love, suffering, exile, and self-determination, and two wounded souls find hope in each other through the radical act of listening.
Product Details
Price
$15.95
$14.83
Publisher
Tachyon Publications
Publish Date
July 16, 2024
Pages
192
Dimensions
5.02 X 8.02 X 0.57 inches | 0.4 pounds
Language
English
Type
Paperback
EAN/UPC
9781616964184
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About the Author
Le Guin Feminist Science-Fiction Fellowship recipient R. B. Lemberg is a queer, bigender fantasist, poet, and professor. Lemberg's Birdverse novella The Four Profound Weaves was a finalist for the Nebula, Ignyte, Locus, and World Fantasy Awards. Their stories and poems have appeared in Beneath Ceaseless Skies, We Are Here: Best Queer Speculative Fiction, Sisters of the Revolution, and many other publications. Lemberg was born in L'viv, Ukraine, and currently lives and teaches in Kansas with their family.
Reviews
"Haunting, nuanced, and hopeful, Yoke of Stars is essential reading. In these hard times, Yoke of Stars feels as necessary as air, as water, as kindness."
--Izzy Wasserstein, author of These Fragile Graces, This Fugitive Heart "Yoke of Stars is a gorgeously wrought Birdverse tale. . . . The way the stories in the book touch and interweave, the way the characters in them tug and pull at each other, is beautifully done."
--Maria Haskins, author of Wolves and Girls "Welcome back to Birdverse. At the School of Assassins, Stone Orphan sits alone in a room, waiting to learn about the job that will let her graduate. When prospective client Ulín arrives, Stone Orphan is intrigued by her language more than her case. For Ulín has three people who have wronged her, but she is not sure whom she wants to die. Curious about Ulín's path to their door, Stone Orphan asks to trade stories, to help her decide which of three men should die. As each narrates their journey to this moment, both learn about language, love, loss, and the decisions they have made. VERDICT Lemberg once again after (Geometries of Belonging) draws readers into their storyverse, playing with names, identities, and language itself. Alternating points of view show how separate paths can come together in more ways than one, highlighting the deeper connection of people, no matter their background."
--Library Journal "For fellow word-nerds, Lemberg's linguistic explorations are a thought-provoking journey into how language influences all of us. Lemberg's command of language and narrative nuance makes this a haunting, beautiful read."
--Marian Crane, author of the Lonhra Sequence "R. B. Lemberg's Birdverse is one of fantasy's most immersive, lyrical and mind-expanding universes, to which this dream of a novella adds dazzling new depths."
--Jason Sanford, author of Plague Birds "This is a beautiful novella written for those who crave thought-provoking fantasy stories that stray from stereotypes and reflect the issues of our own world back to us with wisdom and patience."
--The Fantasy Hive
"When I tell you that this book essentially altered my neural pathways, I mean that in so many good ways. Everything about this book from the writing, the imagery, the character development, the world building, is just luminous. A gorgeous, lush, super queer fantasy."
--Wulfe Wulfemeyer, the Raven Book Store "An unforgettable queer fantasy novel about the power--good and bad--that our words hold."
--Foreword Praise for R. B. Lemberg's Birdverse "Lush lyricism of the mythology, culture and history . . . an enchanting world of star lore, magic and gender identity."
--Tlotlo Tsamaase, author of The Silence of the Wilting Skin "In all their fiction from the fascinating Birdverse world, Lemberg centers marginalized identities: queer, trans, neurodiverse, elderly, and more.
--Buzzfeed [STARRED REVIEW] "Lush, dreamlike prose and nuanced explorations of trans and queer identity."
--Booklist "The world-building is full of deep lore and casual queerness, and Lemberg's magic system is appropriately wild and poetic."
--Washington Post "Lemberg writes movingly and magnificently about disaster, survival, and hope."
--Kate Elliott, author of the Crown of Stars series "Beautiful and queer and challenging and tender."
--Autistic Book Party "It made me cry, and gave me strength."
--Trans Narrative "Imagery that glows on the page."
--Patricia A. McKillip, author of The Forgotten Beasts of Eld [STARRED REVIEW] "A beautiful, heartfelt story of change, family, identity, and courage."
--Library Journal "The anti-authoritarian, queer-mystical fairy tale we need right now."
--Annalee Newitz, author of Autonomous and The Future of Another Timeline [STARRED REVIEW] "This diverse, folkloric fantasy world is a delight to visit."
--Publishers Weekly
--Izzy Wasserstein, author of These Fragile Graces, This Fugitive Heart "Yoke of Stars is a gorgeously wrought Birdverse tale. . . . The way the stories in the book touch and interweave, the way the characters in them tug and pull at each other, is beautifully done."
--Maria Haskins, author of Wolves and Girls "Welcome back to Birdverse. At the School of Assassins, Stone Orphan sits alone in a room, waiting to learn about the job that will let her graduate. When prospective client Ulín arrives, Stone Orphan is intrigued by her language more than her case. For Ulín has three people who have wronged her, but she is not sure whom she wants to die. Curious about Ulín's path to their door, Stone Orphan asks to trade stories, to help her decide which of three men should die. As each narrates their journey to this moment, both learn about language, love, loss, and the decisions they have made. VERDICT Lemberg once again after (Geometries of Belonging) draws readers into their storyverse, playing with names, identities, and language itself. Alternating points of view show how separate paths can come together in more ways than one, highlighting the deeper connection of people, no matter their background."
--Library Journal "For fellow word-nerds, Lemberg's linguistic explorations are a thought-provoking journey into how language influences all of us. Lemberg's command of language and narrative nuance makes this a haunting, beautiful read."
--Marian Crane, author of the Lonhra Sequence "R. B. Lemberg's Birdverse is one of fantasy's most immersive, lyrical and mind-expanding universes, to which this dream of a novella adds dazzling new depths."
--Jason Sanford, author of Plague Birds "This is a beautiful novella written for those who crave thought-provoking fantasy stories that stray from stereotypes and reflect the issues of our own world back to us with wisdom and patience."
--The Fantasy Hive
"When I tell you that this book essentially altered my neural pathways, I mean that in so many good ways. Everything about this book from the writing, the imagery, the character development, the world building, is just luminous. A gorgeous, lush, super queer fantasy."
--Wulfe Wulfemeyer, the Raven Book Store "An unforgettable queer fantasy novel about the power--good and bad--that our words hold."
--Foreword Praise for R. B. Lemberg's Birdverse "Lush lyricism of the mythology, culture and history . . . an enchanting world of star lore, magic and gender identity."
--Tlotlo Tsamaase, author of The Silence of the Wilting Skin "In all their fiction from the fascinating Birdverse world, Lemberg centers marginalized identities: queer, trans, neurodiverse, elderly, and more.
--Buzzfeed [STARRED REVIEW] "Lush, dreamlike prose and nuanced explorations of trans and queer identity."
--Booklist "The world-building is full of deep lore and casual queerness, and Lemberg's magic system is appropriately wild and poetic."
--Washington Post "Lemberg writes movingly and magnificently about disaster, survival, and hope."
--Kate Elliott, author of the Crown of Stars series "Beautiful and queer and challenging and tender."
--Autistic Book Party "It made me cry, and gave me strength."
--Trans Narrative "Imagery that glows on the page."
--Patricia A. McKillip, author of The Forgotten Beasts of Eld [STARRED REVIEW] "A beautiful, heartfelt story of change, family, identity, and courage."
--Library Journal "The anti-authoritarian, queer-mystical fairy tale we need right now."
--Annalee Newitz, author of Autonomous and The Future of Another Timeline [STARRED REVIEW] "This diverse, folkloric fantasy world is a delight to visit."
--Publishers Weekly
