Navigational Entanglements is the newest Sci-Fi novella from Aliette de Bodard (the Xuya Universe, Dominion of the Fallen, Dragons and Blades), one of my favorite authors. Like de Bodard's Xuya works, this is set in a sci-fi universe (with some magic-esque attributes) where the world is Vietnamese-inspired, although this work is not actually a Xuya work (that universe is seemingly more direct sci-fi and prominently features mindships, which are not present here). And de Bodard uses this new setting to tell a story of a pair of young adults, Nhi and Hạc Cúc being sent on a mission with two other young Navigators by their rival clans, which forces them to confront their internal struggles as well as their own moral codes and desires to do what's right.
It's a really well done novella, dealing strongly with a pair of protagonists (who fall for each other of course) dealing with their own insecurities or disabilities - Nhi is on the spectrum and has a hard time dealing with people, Hạc Cúc is massively insecure about not living up to their legendary mentor - and putting them into a super interesting scifi world with some interesting themes.
