Something that automatically knocks this down one star: these are actually 5E versions of races from the Pathfinder RPG (specifically from its Advanced Race Guide), but this is never indicated in either the introduction or in their Open Game License text. (This is why the "everborn" is misidentified as the "samsaran" on the first page - that was the race's name in Pathfinder.) This may have been an oversight, and this work definitely goes beyond its Pathfinder roots, but it unfortunately gives the impression that the author is passing off the ideas of others as their own. (If this is corrected, I will gladly restore the removed star.)

With that out of the way, thoughts on each race:

• Catfolk: Distinct from either the Pathfinder catfolk or the 5E tabaxi, these catfolk are matriarchal by default and split into two subraces - the more human-like faol and the more cat-like saebul. The race and subraces have pretty solid mechanics, and the lore is quite well-thought out. This probably the winner of the four, although it'd be odd to have both this and tabaxi in the same setting, since they occupy the same niche despite differences.
• Everborn: At its core, a fairly direct conversion of the Pathfinder samsaran. The two subraces have interesting concepts but we don't get much on this besides mechanics. The lore is OK but seems vague on certain points (like exactly how they reincarnate). Probably the least interesting of the four options.
• Hagborn: A straightforward conversion of Pathfinder's changeling, although the three subraces are different from and more interesting than their Pathfinder equivalents. The expansions on their Pathfinder lore work out pretty well, especially the different possible relationships with their hag mother.
• Tengu: Also pretty similar to the Pathfinder version, with a few of its Pathfinder traits split between the two subraces (which are just OK concept-wise). The lore for the race expands upon the Pathfinder baseline, emphasizing their desire to show off their "possessions" in a fairly broad sense. Tengu culture still comes off as a little one-note, but it's a good effort. They do feel different enough from the official 5E kenku that you could probably get away with having both, but it might still seem redundant.

The product wraps up with a selection of new subraces for dwarves (cloud and tome), elves (frost and ghost), halflings (trickfinger and wiseheart), and gnomes (river). Unlike the earlier content, these appear to be original creations, and are all pretty neat additions.

In summary, this is worthwhile if you're looking for 5E conversions of the Pathfinder races, with the subraces at the end a nice bonus.

Nice depth of content.

If you add up all of the PHB pages dedicated to race, you get 25 pages across 9 races. And those PHB pages are heavy in pictures. This one is about a dozen pages for 4 races (Hagborn, Samsaran, Tengu and Catfolk). With limited art, there is a serious amount of content here.

I really love the core structure of how the races are detailed. Each race has sections like "Love & Mating", "Alignment & Religion", "Clans & Families" and "Aging & Death". These are all thought through quite carefully, the races go well beyond just a simple stats list.

From a design side, all of the races are reasonable and seem pretty balanced. The Catfolk grant +2/+2 instead of the usual +2/+1, which is a little odd, but the overall design is still solid.

There are some extra sub-races at the end, but these are really just a bonus. The list price is worth the while.

The key spots for future are the one that are hard to do on a small budget. More artwork would definitely be nice, especially for the Catfolk where the two distinct sub-races look very different but we only have a picture of one. The book could also really use a designer's touch. Page numbers are hard to read. The core racial stats are "cut into" the descriptive text about each race, so you have two columns bleeding into one column without so much as a horizontal rule to cut them up. The text is all straight black, no color variation, almost no font variation, it's all a little hard on the eyes.

Overall though, I'm impressed. There are lots of "freebie" races out in the wilds of the internet, but very few of them have as much detail as these ones.

Disclosure: I received a free review copy.

Let me begin by saying that this product impressed the hell out of me.

It clocks in at 16 pages with 12.5 pages of content (1 page for cover, 1/2 a page for credits, 1 page for OGL, and 1 page for an ad). Formatting and presentation are excellent, with every usable part of the page being well utilized for space.

Additionally, the content is excellent. The races provided are not only fitted with sound rules, but also with excellent exposition that makes the races stand out.

Provided within are Catfolk, Hagborn, Samsaran, and Tengu, and sub races for each. Also, the book provides number of new sub-races for dwarves, halflings, elves, and gnomes. Though the latter is a lot more brief, it is an excellent example of what a sub-race can be.

The highlight of this product is the showcasing of the racial write ups, giving the utmost attention to the society and background considerations for the new races. While the mere fact that this product provides new races at all is amazing (considering the hitherto infancy of 5th edition), this product blazes a trail and leaves an example of what new race books for 5th edition should be, and look like.

Bravo. 5 out of 5!