I really loved this story.

I picked A Song to Drown Rivers up without really knowing what it was about. I didn't read the blurb they give you, I just liked the cover and knew it was Asian inspired.

Boy did I go for a ride. Liang did a great job keeping me glued to the pages. She took politics and made it captivating. I needed to know what was going to happen next. How was Xishi going to entrance Fuchai? What would he do if he found out her plans?

Liang did a really nice job making me love Fuchai, the enemy king. I loved that he wasn't purely evil, but rather...morally grey as some would say. I liked how you could tell Xishi was torn between him and her duty to the Yue. At times I almost wished she didn't have to follow through with her plans.

The ending had me sobbing. I liked the change in perspective and I think it really added to the story.

This book had a great story and tackled some tough questions about morality, loyalty, and guilt. There were also a lot of great quotes throughout. I definitely recommend reading it.

Well, I can’t remember the last time I read a book where the ending truly ripped my heart out and stomped it into a million little pieces. Because this book did just that—however, I loved it so much.

I picked this one up not being familiar with the legend of Xishi. I don’t think that hindered my reading experience in any way. As soon as I began reading, I was hooked. The writing was captivating and so beautiful.

I fell in love with Xishi, and Fanli too, despite his cold exterior. While their romance wasn’t the prime focus of this story, I was still rooting for them and cheering them on. Until the very end. 🥲

I highly recommend getting yourself a copy of this. The hardcover is also gorgeous with beautiful sprayed edges! It’ll look good displayed on your shelf 🙂‍↕️

Couple of things to note before diving into this review. A Song to Drown Rivers is marked as a historical/romance fantasy and it does technically fit the bill.. but not in the way most people have come to expect. I was not personally bothered by it, but I know some people will be. If you are looking for a book steeped in magic or mythical creatures, this is not the story for you. If you are looking for a retelling of figure from Chinese history with very light fantasy elements, then go ahead and give this a try!

A Song to Drown Rivers is a beautifully written story based in ancient China. It touches upon the the story of Xi Shi, one of the first Four Beauties of Ancient China. I really enjoyed all elements of the book, and I feel like some what of a broken record here, I do think the story and characters would've benefited from this being--a minimum--a duology. I tend to really struggle with stand alone books for this reason. Especially ones where the story spans over a long period of time. A great stand alone doesn't leave you wishing there was MORE to the book (other than just wanting to stay longer with the characters/world that is). A Song to Drown Rivers had the potential to be a heart breaking master piece but because we aren't given a lot of time with the characters and their developments, the emotional impacts are shorted.

Not that they still weren't there. I was truly shocked by the ending. And I know this review sounds negative, but I did very much enjoy reading A Song to Drown Rivers. It has all the elements I love about a good story, I just wanted to be more invested.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China, A Song to Drown Rivers is an epic novel steeped in myth about womanhood, war, sacrifice, and love against all odds as the fate of two kingdoms hangs in a delicate balance.
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This book was so beautiful and heartbreaking in so many different ways! Xishi was such a badass. She was the most beautiful woman in her land and was sent as a tribute to their enemy. She had lost her sister in front of her, so her revenge was palpable her mission to infiltrate which she did very well. By the end the revenge was costing so many more lives, innocent and otherwise.
This story is heart wrenching at the end. I wasn’t expecting the range of emotion I was taken on in a few short pages. Fanli was so stoic and that ending for him 😭
This story was so beautifully written and loved every bit of it.

An incredible historical fiction novel showing the power of loyalty and love, and the strong theme of sacrifice.

This was such a rollercoaster of emotions, and I deeply felt each one from start to finish. The writing was intimate and incredibly detailed, giving life to even the most mundane parts of the book. The plot was easily digestible but still riveting. There are a few plot twists that came completely to a surprise to me. Though this is presented as a historical fantasy novel, there were no fantasy elements whatsoever. Normally this would be a markdown in my mind, but the historical element readers were given was done so well that I didn’t mind. The locations felt mystical and magical, even though they were very real in nature.

There is incredible inner dialogue with our FMC for the entirety of the book, and giving readers a chance to see the emotion in full was a gift to be able to experience. The character development was outstanding, and not just for our FMC. It was a joy to watch the change happen slowly. Though the spice was clean, the aspect of the love triangle and pretend feelings made up for it wholly in my mind.

I really enjoyed this book! The concept and its foundation in Chinese mythology were fantastic. It took me a bit of time to immerse myself in the story, but overall, it was an excellent read. Personally, some of Ann Liang's other books were more my groove, but this was a great way to see the breadth of her writing capabilities.

Rating 2

"How many women throughout history were blamed for the weaknesses of men? We made such convenient scapegoats. We were raised to be small, to be silent, to take whatever we were given and no more."

Unfortunately this book missed the mark for me. I will start off by saying that Ann Liang's writing is beautiful and the prose of this book was so intriguing, which is the only redeeming quality I can give this. The characters felt flat and one dimensional, I never got to a point where I felt connected to them and by the end, I could care less what happened to them. The romance between Xishi and Fanli came off as instalove and felt out of place. There was great potential for drama, tension and an epic, devastating love triangle but the opportunity was fumbled.
Not only did I dislike the characters but the plot plateaued for me around 30% (I am being generous here) and never picked back up. I almost forgot the kingdoms were fighting or that Xishi was sent to act as a spy.

This book had the potential to be absolutely incredible but sadly, it was a disappointment.

Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the e-Arc in exchange for my honest review.

A Song to Drown Rivers, is a fictional, historical retelling of the legendary Four Beauties of China. We follow Xishi, one of the four beauties, on her journey to use her beauty to sabotage and destroy the Wu Kingdom. This story was very well written and kept me engaged the entire time! I was especially interested in the exploration of the costs of war and of the idea that in war a hero to one group, is most likely a villain to another.

I did have to take off one star because of the categorization of this book that I did find to be a bit misleading. This was categorized as an adult, fantasy romance and I can't say I agree that this book is a fantasy novel. I kept waiting for some involvement of magic, or other fantasy elements, and they just never appeared. There were small fantasy elements at the very end of the book, but I would lean towards categorizing this book as a historical fiction similar to mythological retellings, rather than a fantasy novel. It also is categorized as an adult novel, however, there were many aspects of the romantic relationships that read YA.

That being said, if you're looking for historical fiction (very light on fantasy elements), and slow burn, YA romance then I highly recommend this book!!

This book has such captivating writing that I didn’t want to put it down from the start. It weaves a gripping narrative of the legend of Xishi, a story I wasn’t familiar with. I felt an intriguing mix of connection and distance with the characters. It was almost such a grand story that it was difficult to get too close, and maybe we weren’t meant to. It had the feel of a legend that took place long ago, and we are now getting to look into the details.

Surprisingly, I found myself deeply engrossed in the love triangle, a plot element I typically don't favor. I was certain I wouldn't sympathize with Fuchai, but I was proven wrong. The emotional depth of the narrative was compelling, and I found myself shedding tears, something that hadn’t happened to me for quite some time.

I see quite a few mixed reviews, but I enjoyed it despite being outside my usual reading taste.

Thank you so much to the publisher, NetGalley, and the author for an eARC of this book. All opinions are late but still all my own!

I really enjoyed this; I thought it was great! I loved its take on romantic fantasy, and actually loved that it is YA/there was no spice. I think if it had had any spice at all, it would have done a disservice to the story because - though marketed as a romantasy - there's so much more to the story than the romance woven within.

Though time flowed faster than what we'd normally see in a novel, I actually think it really worked with this one. I loved the way Xishi came into her own and was so cunning throughout her time in the Wu kingdom and especially with King Fuchai. I thought it was really touching that by the end, even though she had no real reason to, every complicated thing she ended up feeling for Fuchai was so real.

I also loved the ending. Absolutely heart-wrenching end to the story, and I ate it up.

I would definitely recommend this!

I could not put this down! I very much enjoyed the writing, pacing, and all the exquisite forms of character, plot, and romantic tension. 🤌 There were definitely some parts that were less believable but they did lend to a feeling of the story being a fairytale/legend retelling!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC!

Easy, quick read. Kept my interest enough that I wanted to keep reading it and find out how this story unravels. I was drawn to promises of espionage and spying, which, sure it happened. But it was quite rushed, bland, and uneventful. We seemed to fast forward through all of the training that happened in 12 weeks that supposedly made Xishi ready to infiltrate an enemy kingdom for years. What?

I'm not sure why this is categorized as fantasy. There were no fantasy elements whatsoever (unless we are considering Xishi's "otherworldly" beauty to check that box). Also, on that note, romance? Hardly. This is a historical fiction retelling, through and through.

I know there are a few different speculations for how the story of Xi Shi actually ends, but I did find the one Ann Liang wrote to be the ending I had hoped for. Tragic, maybe HEA (depending on your perspective).

I think that the plot and characters were really interesting and I liked the world building. However, it was pretty slow at the beginning for me, making it hard to keep reading.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-ARC of A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang. I absolutely loved this epic fantasy novel. Rating: 5 stars.

One of the unique aspects of this book is how it beautifully blends elements of womanhood, war, sacrifice, and love. Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of Ancient China’s Four Beauties, it’s a captivating historical fantasy that left me with happiness only a 5* read can leave.

Synopsis:
Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China, A Song to Drown Rivers is an epic historical fantasy that explores womanhood, war, sacrifice, and love against all odds.Xishi's beauty is seen as a gift to her village, where a woman’s best fate is to marry well and support her family. But when she captures the attention of Fanli, a young military strategist, he offers her a different path: use her beauty as a weapon to infiltrate the enemy kingdom of Wu, seduce the immoral king, and weaken them from within. As Xishi trains under Fanli’s guidance, perfecting everything from classical instruments to emotional concealment, the attraction between them grows, though both know the risks. Once inside the enemy court, Xishi must balance power, deception, and survival, knowing that one wrong move could bring down both kingdoms.

Things I loved:
• Xishi is an incredible main character with depth.
• The themes of war, womanhood, sacrifice, and the personal cost women pay in these battles.
• I appreciated the exploration of who the real monsters are when kings fight for power.
• The retelling of an ancient Chinese legend enriched the story and made it even better.
• The love story between Xishi and Fanli was beautifully written.

Things I disliked:
• Nothing! I loved everything about this novel.
Highly Recommend.

e-ARC from NetGalley.

This is truly a tragic tale overflowing with beautiful writing. Unfortunately, I did not feel the way I was meant to feel

The relationship between Xishi and Fanli never felt real or established to me. Their first interaction held so much promise, but the rest of their time together felt like wasted potential. I did believe in Xishi and Fuchai, but not enough time was spent with just the two of them, and Xishi's (understandable) refusal to accept her feelings for him stole some of the impact from the conclusion of the story.

I think this is a good story that was well executed, but I think I'll love it more when/if it's translated to film.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of this book. I have read Ann Liang's other young adult novels but was incredibly excited to see a historical mythology retelling. This is a retelling of Xishi--one of the famed Four Beauties of Ancient China. This book was lush, poignant, and yearning. Xishi is selected by Fanli, royal advisor to King Gouchian of the Yue kingdom, to act as a courtesan and infiltrate the court of their enemies, the Wu. There, she attracts the attention of the Wu king Fuchai. The pacing of this novel was great, balancing small everyday details with the larger sweeping tale of wars and battles among empires and royal courts. As I was reading, I only wished that the beginning 3rd of the book held more details about how Fanli and Xishi fell in love while she was training to be a noblewoman. However, this is a tiny criticism as their love story felt beautiful and poignant, particularly by the novel's end. The ending of the story is heartbreaking and poignant, but ultimately satisfying. As a fan of the recent Asian mythology retellings written by Sue Lynn Tan and Elizabeth Lim, I think anyone interested in ancient China will love this story. I began by reading the Netgalley digital version of the story but quickly invested in the Barnes and Noble 1st edition printing with its sprayed edges because it was so beautiful. The book's cover matches the beauty of the epic story. Highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

THE ENDING????????? WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT TO ME???? AHHHHHHHHHHH

A Song to Drown Rivers is based on a traditional Chinese legend and follows Xishi, known in her village for her great beauty, who is sent to the Wu Kingdom under false pretenses as a bride to King Fuchai where she is tasked to spy on the kingdom and turn the tides of battle. It was an incredibly captivating and breathtaking read. Not only was Xishi a great fleshed out character but so were our other two main characters General Funli and King Fuchai. I really found myself wishing better for Fuchai despite him being the enemy. My biggest and only complaint is that I wish the weeks Xishi spent in the beginning of the book with Funli were more detailed. Overall and incredible read and I would love to read more fantasy from Ann Liang. 4.5

A beauty who is tasked to seduce an enemy king in order to avenge her sister's death and save the lives of her people...but finds herself for the handsome military advisor, a heart breaking story of sacrifice, forbidden romance, and womanhood. Xishi is a beauty, which would be seen as a. blessing as she would be able to secure a good marriage to support her family... except she draws the attention of a famous military leader, Fanli. Fanli offers her an opportunity: in exchange for her using her beauty to seduce and help destroy a neighboring kingdom that seeks to ruin them and work as a spy.... he will protect her family and she would save their people. Xishi and Fanli grow closer and closer.. but as she delves deeper into the enemy king's court the higher the risks become and the deadlier the game gets as all eyes are on her and if her act isn't perfected then she could lose her life and the life of everyone she holds dear. This was a fantastic read and the ending was heartbreaking. I am a sucker for stories like these and this one was inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the Four Beauties of Ancient China. This is a beautiful story of the lengths that we would go to to protect what we love, the endurance and constant trials that Xishi is put through is just testament to her strength. I really had fun reading this one and would absolutely recommend it! If you love forbidden romance, political intrigue, and inner strength, I would absolutely say add this book to your TBR.

Release Date: October 1,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

this novel would have benefited by being at least 100 pages longer. a lot of things just felt underdeveloped, but ann liang’s writing is beautiful and the imagery of the world was the best part.

This is the book all of the little girls who watched Mulan and are now adults! I absolutely adored this book! I’ve never read an Asian fantasy so I am glad this is my first. It was easy to get into and to fall in love with the characters quickly. Sometimes fantasies can be confusing and I loose interest quick especially with a lot of long and unique names. This was not the case with this gem! Perfect for those who are just getting into fantasy.