A Song to Drown Rivers was a beautiful and lyrical read. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel and think that many people will enjoy it as well. Thank you St. Martin’s Press for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. The book was published October 1 and is now available.

Unrequited love, revenge, political intrigue, infiltrating the enemy’s kingdom, and war - all with Xishi at its center. I really appreciate Xishi’s character arc and how she grew to play the game when in her enemy’s court. The book was haunting, and I think the ending will stick with me for a long while. It reminded me of another one of my favorite books, which I’ll refrain from naming for fear of spoilers, but it was beautiful.

I highly recommend A Song to Drown Rivers, especially if you’re a fan of lyrical prose, strong female characters, and historical fiction. I will say I wouldn’t categorize this as a fantasy novel, so know that if that’s what you’re really looking for.

✨What to expect✨
-Political intrigue
-Mystery/Suspense
-Chinese Lore
-Love Triangle

I will be honest, I was pretty bored with this book. I did not really connect to the writing and I saw where the plot was going from the very beginning and don’t even get me started on the love triangle. I am so sad to say this but this is a no from me 😭

Xishi lives in the village of Yue with her parents still mourning the loss of her beloved younger sister at the hands of the Wu warriors. Fanli is a military advisor of the king who recognizes that Xishi's beauty can be used as a weapon to help infiltrate the enemy palace of Wu. She agrees so she can help the kingdom and avenge her sister's murder.

He trains her in everything from dancing and etiquette to the art of seduction and sends her to the king. Her goal is to infiltrate the court and make the king fall in love with her. Once inside the palace, the king is drawn to her and she rises through the court. But, one mistake can bring the whole kingdom crashing down. She must strategize and navigate enemy territory without drawing any suspicion or her punishment would be torture and then death.

I absolutely loved this book and could not put it down. The story is beautifully written. The plot pulled me in from the first page and was non-stop throughout the book. My heart felt the pain of Xishi's loss and the anxiety of living a second life "undercover". This story is heartwrenching and beautiful at the same time #gifted

Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the Four Beauties of Ancient China, A Song to Drown Rivers is an epic historical fantasy about womanhood, war, and love against all odds.

Xishi’s beauty is seen as a blessing to the villagers in the Yue Kingdom as she will bring fortune to her family. One day she is rescued by Fanli a young military advisor. This will not be their only meeting: Fanli comes to her home and presents to her and her parents an offer. The kingdom needs a spy to watch the Wu king who has taken over their lands. With her beauty, Xishi is perfect. She accepts as she hates the Wu and how they killed her little sister.

Trained by Fanli in everything from classical instruments to concealing emotion, Xishi and her friend Zhengdan (who acts as a “palace lady”) are as ready as they can be for their mission. It takes time but Xishi is able to seduce the kind and begin the machination of the Yue kingdom. Her life is on the line, can she save her kingdom while keeping her own life?

Anne Liang creates a beautiful and desperate world. The images of the castle Xishi must go to are contrasted with the poor, drab village she came from. This effect makes the royal world even more lush. This gaucheness becomes a tool for Xishi as she gets the King to eat away at the Kingdom’s resources seeing the beauty of a person and a place as a weapon gives the world a dark edge creating tension as the darkness and light meet. The tension is there in every brick he builds. Will Xishi live? Would the Wu be defeated? I had a hard time putting the book down.

I had not heard of or looked at the folklore behind Xishi before this book, as I didn’t want to ruin it. There are several different tales so those who know the stories can be surprised at which avenue the author takes. Liang hits you in the gut with emotions, and I haven’t cried over a book this hard in some time. This tale truly honors the woman of legend.

Emotional, tragic, and beautiful, A Song to Drown Rivers will capture your imagination and your heart.

Publication Date: Oct 1
I received an ARC for review; all opinions are my own.

Ann Liang has once again proven her literary magic with "A Song to Drown Rivers" – and let me tell you, five stars are a gross understatement for this epic tale! This book is an absolute gem, a stunning, compelling, and emotionally charged journey that left me breathless.

This heartbreakingly romantic retelling of Xishi's story, one of the legendary Four Great Beauties of China, is nothing short of a literary marvel. Liang effortlessly weaves a narrative that draws you into the tumultuous world of a wartorn village, where the protagonist, Xishi, evolves from a simple village girl to a pivotal player in the political intrigue of the Wu Kingdom.

The beauty of this novel lies not only in its captivating characters but also in the exquisite romance between Xishi and Fanli. Their forbidden attraction adds layers of intensity to the story, making it impossible to put down. Liang skillfully navigates the complexities of courtly manners, espionage, and the struggle to conceal true emotions, creating a gripping narrative that resonates with both passion and intrigue.

The characters are not just names on a page; they're living, breathing entities with motivations that unravel like a meticulously crafted tapestry. Xishi's journey and the desperation of women in a world dominated by the ambitions of men are explored with a depth that tugs at the soul.

From the very first page, the writing grabbed me, pulling me into a vividly painted world where every setting felt palpable. The attention to detail and the well-crafted characters make this novel a feast for the senses.

Ann Liang has outdone herself, creating a world that is both enchanting and thought-provoking. If you're ready for an emotional rollercoaster through a world of love, politics, and self-discovery, this book is an absolute must-read!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

🌊A Song to Drown Rivers 🌊

THIS BOOK. Oofa, that was a journey.

Xishi is a beautiful villager who is selected by her king and training by his minister, Fanli. She is to be a gift concubine to the rival neighbor Wu king, to seduce him and then ruin him. Xishi also wants what she can’t have and Fanli is always just out of reach.

This is emotional and heart wrenching. Stressful and heartbreaking. WOW.

Check this one out for:
🌊 Romantasy / forbidden love
🌊 Master manipulation schemes
🌊 War time angst

I’m still REELING about the ending, y’all. What!!! So wild.

I alternated between the ALC and the ARC. The narration was absolutely fabulous, the intonation, and the fun of hearing the name pronunciations really added to the story experience.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio for the ARC/ALC! A Song to Drown Rivers is on shelves now. My opinions are my own.

I truly truly love learning about cultural myths through retellings and this is no exception. although i can’t speak on the accuracy of the myth, this was a fun read and i really enjoyed it!

I have been in such a book reading slump lately and then I picked up this book! I was instantly pulled into this world and these characters. I could not put it down. Such a refreshing and interesting read!

This one was just okay.
Could have been great. (I am having the absolute worst luck with books lately.)
I feel like this book was lacking in every direction. For a book being marketed as romantasy, it felt like the romance and fantasy elements were missing. I am also a major fan of political/court intrigue and wish those parts were more fleshed out.
The characters were okay, but didn’t feel like anything special. The love interest was barely in the book and the romance was just ehhh. 🤷‍♀️

Overall, an okay adult book that reads more like a YA book.

The prettiest packages can hide the deadliest of gifts.

Xishi is reminded all too often of how beautiful she is, but being beautiful doesn’t help keep her mother and father fed or help her wash bolts of silk down at the river. If anything, being beautiful means she has to keep her guard up at all times, because in their war-torn country it would be all too easy for a soldier to capture her and no one would be any the wiser until she was long gone.

But then Fanli, the king’s minister, shows up and begs her to be of service to her country: Will she come and train to be a concubine for their enemy’s king? She need not worry about bedding him. He has plenty of other concubines; but they will teach her to be a spy and how to twist the king around her finger to do whatever she says. In return, she will covertly ensure the way can be cleared for her countrymen to invade the enemy’s lands and take over. She’s the kingdom’s fairest maiden, and only she’ll do.

Fanli should’ve recognized the inherent risks of training someone to be a spy: They learn to read you too. There’s also an inherent risk in training someone beautiful how to make men breathless: They’ll make you breathless too. Especially when they want you the way Xishi wants Fanli. They just have to make it through her assignment and watch out for the enemy king.

A Song to Drown Rivers ended up surprising me in a good way. The very beginning is a little unsteady, maybe even a little slow. I wasn’t sure about it at first, but once Xishi and company started out on their adventure the story started perking up (along with myself). I started enjoying the characters and the story more and more as it progressed. By the time Xishi and her companion are dropped off in the enemy kingdom’s capital I was fully invested and ready to go.

At heart, I see A Song to Drown Rivers as a political fantasy first and romantasy second. Most of Xishi’s inner narrative is about keeping her head and steeling her heart because there is an inherent danger with undercover and espionage work: the danger of going native, of falling in love with your mark, of growing to love your cage (these are not terms Xishi would use, of course, but no matter what time in history a story takes place in the dilemmas of war are the same). She’s there to sow division, exploit weaknesses, and to sway the king’s opinion. All of the romantic aspects of the story are a secondary element, especially in the first two acts.

It’s a great standalone read and I highly recommend it.

I was provided a copy of this title by the author and publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.

File Under: AAPI Fiction/Fantasy/Romantasy/Folklore Retelling/Historical Fantasy/OwnVoices/Political Fantasy/Standalone

If you look at the cover of A Song to Drown Rivers, you might think it is a fantasy. In a way, it is. Though the stories have been embellished into legend status over the years, the story of Xishi and Fanli is based on historical figures. ASTDR follows Xishi, a beautiful young woman, as she is trained and given to an enemy king to seduce him and pave the way for her own people to besiege the enemy king and his land.

The nuance in this story is top tier. The deeper Xishi got into her deal, the more I wondered what she would do next. The enemy king might have been my favorite character, if only for how he was written. The theme of loyalty to one's people but realizing that both sides have done bad things and both sides think the other is the evil one plays out so well in the story and I just loved that.

The ending felt devastating, and I am impressed at how this story was contained into one book.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the e-ARC!

Thank you to Ann Liang, St. Martin's Press, and Netgalley for a free advanced reader copy of "A Song to Drown Rivers: Deluxe Edition" for an honest review. I love, love, loved this book. The writing was so rich. The lovestory was yearningly of the page. The sweeping nature of the politics. The tragedies experienced along the way. The realistic, yet heartbreaking, ending.

The only things I think could have been shored up are—more politics among the foreign court, more of the other courtesans, and more understanding (or realization of the lack of understanding) of the court in her home due to the odd angle she came into all of this with.

I was provided both an ebook and audio ARC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

The audiobook narrator was great and really brought Xishi's story to life. Her story is an emotional one filled with sacrifice, forbidden love, espionage, and loss. The narrator does a wonderful job with the various characters and really brings the emotions forward when appropriate and masks them as Xishi would according to her training to carry out her mission.

I'm not familiar with the Legend of Xishi or the Four Beauties of China, but you bet I'll be looking into them after reading this. For me a good author inspires me to look more into what inspired the writing, and this certainly did. Our main character Xishi is very beautiful, and she has been selected to infiltrate the enemy kingdom and seduce their king and bring down the kingdom from the inside. She enters training to be his dedicated concubine and her goal is to pass information back to her people. She is all to happy to join the cause to avenge the brutal murder of her younger sister. As she spends time in the enemy court she learns much, but she never expected to gain the kings true affection and get to know him as a person.

This was a beautifully told story. It is filled with emotional moments as Xishi navigates the dangers and politics of the enemy palace and the enemy kings moods. She must carefully craft her every movement and everything she says to ensure she is portraying the loyal, faithful concubine while maintaining her double agent role. Everywhere she turns someone is plotting and she must be careful to not let something slip. She suffers great losses and must never let any emotions show.

This is my first book by Ann Liang, but it certainly won't be my last. It was such a wonderful book an it has such a beautiful cover. I highly recommend it if you enjoy historical fiction that feels a bit like a fairy tale.

I am sorry Ann Liang.....

This is not for me, the building story just didnt work for me. However thank you for the e-ARC

Big thank you to the publisher & Netgalley for the e-arc!

The concept of this book was so intriguing that I was extremely excited to read it. Unfortunately, I feel like there was a lack of connection to bring this story together. Our characters didn’t feel fleshed out and it almost felt like the first draft of the story.

I’m interested to see if the author improves, but this one sadly fell flat for me.

I wanted to love this so much but a few aspects ruined it for me. I do not enjoy Insta Love- especially not in a book that's supposed to be more fantasy-esque. I felt like I was being told about romantic tension but not actually seeing it on page. The character development felt "meh" to me.

➸ 4 stars

“The string of fate, it ensures that you are bound for eternity, that your souls will find their way back to each other in every life.”

𓍢⊹ ࣪ thank you to netgalley for the arc!

i enjoyed this book so much and i fear i will never recover from this. it was utterly devastating, tragic, and beautifully heartbreaking. i was a sobbing mess when i finished it. as much as i enjoyed this book and this reading experience, i did have a lot of things i didn’t like about it so let’s get into it!

full review is available on my goodreads!

This book had everything I love and more in a book:
historical romance
fantasy
mythology retelling
love triangles
cliffhangers

This book does have insta love so I want to warn people because I know not everyone loves that trope! But this book is addicting and intoxicating. The love triangle between Xishi, Fanli and Fuchai is so beautiful and tragic. This book is shorter than expected and does have a tragic ending but it will make you fall in love with the characters! I wish we did have more time to get to know them as characters better but I did really enjoy them all as characters. This book is going to make you fall in love with mythological retellings if you don't already!

Thank you for the ARC through Netgalley for an honest review.

This really was beautiful and engaging from start to finish. I loved the historical aspect, evocative writing, and relationship/character work. You really see the evolution of our main character and the realizations she comes to about power, war, and the ambition of men. Although listed as a fantasy this features very few fantastical elements. Save for the end, which I really enjoyed. This is a new author for me and I’m hopeful she writes more stories with this feel!

I received an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I really enjoyed this take on a historical fantasy story inspired by the legend of Xishi. It was different for sure. I enjoyed the infiltration of enemy territory aspect in the form of a woman going in to pretend to fall for the King. This story definitely had me intrigued the whole time and even though she was sent in as a spy, I felt chemistry so she did her job well. I definitely wasn’t ready for the story to end on such a cliffhanger!