Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties in China, this book will charm you and you won't be able to stop reading.

Every time I think about this story, I feel devastated.
I loved every page, every second. I was so invested in the story.

The line between bad and good was so well written. You won't know how you should feel. You'll feel conflicted as much as Xishi.

Xishi needs to use her beauty as a weapon to seduce the King of Wu and save her Kingdom. She trained with Fanli, a military advisor. But their chemistry, their romance is forbidden.

I didn't see the end coming and it still hurts 💔.

But at the end of the day, a book that makes you feel that much in less than 400 pages, is an astonishing story !

If you love :

✨ Forbidden Romance ;
✨ Politics, intrigue ;
✨ Historical fantasy ;
✨ Womanhood ;
✨ Strong and Fierce FMC.

Thank you to St Martin Press

This book is devastating. If I didn’t have so much experience watching c-dramas, I would have crumbled with this book. But, I know how these stories tend to work, and I was preparing myself to be traumatized from the first word

Every scene with Xishi and Fuchai, I was scared and nervous FOR her. But no real consequences really came. Until his last breath, Fuchai really did love Xishi, to the point where he died willingly. Yes, he was supposedly the villain, but he was no worse than Goujian. He was just as cruel and inconsiderate of others’ lives as you’d expect any king to be

Fanli wasn’t the hero/MMC I expected him to be. To both him and Xishi, the attraction and love between them is obvious, yet all he does is push her away until the last second. I wanted to see more romance between Xishi and Fanli. We are mostly just told about how they look at each other, and how Xishi thinks of Fanli, but there’s no concrete moments to push their relationship. They supposedly spent 10 weeks together for her training, yet we barely see anything

I loved the use of Xishi’s younger sister’s death to push her desire for revenge, but later, it felt like Xishi’s motivation changed to being together with Fanli again. I wish there had been more closure for Xishi’s feelings about her sister. Also, I really loved Zhengdan and Luyi!

The emotions of the ending is what completely sold me on this book. First of all, I did not expect that ending. But it made me love the MCs’ relationship. When Fanli told the little boy to tell everyone in Xishi’s village that he and she were living happily 🥹. They both spent the rest of Fanli’s life and more to be together again. They had both put the kingdom ahead of themselves, but they can finally ignore everything else and be together ❤️‍🩹

This wasn’t for me. I feel like the world building wasn’t fleshed out enough, I needed more.

The romance piece also wasn’t developed enough for me. All in all, I needed more from this book.

A Song To Drown Rivers was a beautiful and sorrowful portrayal of grief and the morality of war. The imagery and world were immersive, the storyline compelling, and the characters well-crafted and easy to root for. The themes of unrelenting love, sacrifice, resilience, and empathy really shone through, and Xishi's character encompassed all those feelings. Her and Fanli's everlasting love as the overarching plot made the story shine. An absolutely beautiful and devastating novel.

*I received this eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc! 2.5/5 stars rounded up, overall a decent read but mostly just not living up to a lot of its potential

I definitely am not the first to say (nor will I be the last) that I don't vibe with insta love romance books. like, that's just UST you're talking about dude, not actual romantic love, and I feel like this holds true for xishi and fanli. they're both hotties, we get it - but there's just no conceivable reason shown to us why they even like each other? I mean, we get that whole meeting in the beginning and it felt like it was getting off to a good start but the whole trianing sequence felt more like physical attraction to me than love. top that off with the fact that fanli just disappears for a good chunk of the book - girl, what man is THAT cute that you're pining over him for years? make it make sense. liang's writing saves this a bit - it's beautiful and prose like and descriptive, and it goes a long way towards immersing you into the story and the setting. but while liang's writing was enjoyable, her character work was lacking in a lot of ways. there's a few minor storylines that have potential to add to character development but just end up getting forgotten. most disappointingly, I felt like liang could've done a lot more with developing her characters - xishi felt bland, fanli was just a dude, and fuchai was relegated to drunk clown. we constantly get told about how beautiful xishi is and how she's an amazing spy, but the results don't actually pan out that way and she constantly screws things up and somehow doesn't get discovered. the time skip felt like wasted potentional - court and political intrigue, life and death stakes, the future of her country riding in the balance. there's not enough of any of that for this to feel like a xishi's even a spy. fanli straight disappears for a while - how are we supposed to get any character insight, much less development if he's not even there? fuchai was a major missed opportunity - his character lacked real depth and he's kinda just a caricature of an evil king. overall, I think this book was just a little too ambitious for what we actually got

Review: Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I definitely think it reflects more of a romantasy vibe in that the romance is much more built up and focused on than the actual fantasy aspects of the book. But it kept me interested the entire time. I absolutely loved the writing and the story telling and the interactions between the three main characters. This is an example of a well done romantasy standalone.

Synopsis: Xishi’s beauty is seen as a blessing to the villagers of Yue—convinced that the best fate for a girl is to marry well and support her family. When Xishi draws the attention of the famous young military advisor, Fanli, he presents her with a rare opportunity: to use her beauty as a weapon. One that could topple the rival neighboring kingdom of Wu, improve the lives of her people, and avenge her sister’s murder. All she has to do is infiltrate the enemy palace as a spy, seduce their immoral king, and weaken them from within.

Trained by Fanli in everything from classical instruments to concealing emotion, Xishi hones her beauty into the perfect blade. But she knows Fanli can see through every deception she masters, the attraction between them burning away any falsehoods.

Once inside the enemy palace, Xishi finds herself under the hungry gaze of the king’s advisors while the king himself shows her great affection. Despite his gentleness, a brutality lurks and Xishi knows she can never let her guard down. But the higher Xishi climbs in the Wu court, the farther she and Fanli have to fall—and if she is unmasked as a traitor, she will bring both kingdoms down.

I knew I would enjoy this book, but I was not expecting to be completely swept away by it! A Song To Drown Rivers had me hooked from page one and kept me hooked all the way through. Xishi was such a beautiful character and I loved her so much. Her kindness, loyalty and bravery shine through and I loved every minute of her story. I knew nothing about this mythology going in, but found myself wanting to research as I was reading. I really enjoyed seeing her develop a sense of cunning as she dealt with being behind enemy lines, especially with Fuchai. The ending definitely made me tear up, both sad and happy tears. I highly recommend this one to fans of mythology, beautifully immersive writing and strong characters.
CW: death, violence, suicide, war


Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced digital reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

4-4.5 stars. This is beautifully-written historical fantasy based on the Xishi, one of the legendary Four Beauties of Ancient China. She is enlisted to be trained as a courtesan and a spy in the enemy king's court but falls in love with her trainer. Much of the story is about a woman's lot in life: "The men will fight for their thrones and their power and their legacies, but to them we are nothing more than crickets and ants, insignificant, expendable." But the author also touches on the paradoxes of war and how the common people on either side are the ones who pay the price.

Many thanks to the author and publisher of providing me with an arc of this new novel. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.

This is a beautifully heartbreaking book that I won't soon forget. From the vivid descriptions to the lyrical narrative, each page is literally a masterpiece of depth and emotion. The story is at once an age-old saga of kingdoms, wars and betrayals, and yet it's unique in its many labyrinthine twists, turns and surprises. I had to hold my breath as I quickly flew through the pages, knowing with a sense of dread what was coming, yet unable to stop the inevitable. But even when you think you know where this book is going, you'll come to find out, you don't know anything at all. Written so vibrantly, you almost experience this story like a painting, each scene unfolding in your mind like a brilliant splash of color. Mesmerizing in its intensity and haunting in its memory, it's one story you won't want to miss.

I feel a lot of fantasy stories fall into the trap of trying to do so much which ultimately has them not doing enough in certain aspects. World building, character development, and the romance could have been more developed, but for what we got was pretty okay. I’m more in love with the foundation and intention this story was made for as opposed to the final execution. I adore the writing itself, it was the structure and sometimes the pacing that set me back. I have to admit that this story did have me tearing up a bit, in a good way. This was not a perfect 5 but I look forward to reading more from this author.

A beautifully woven story inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China.

Xishi, hand selected from her small village for her unparalleled beauty and bravery, is trained to become the perfect weapon. A weapon to crumble the enemy kingdom from within. A Song to Drown Rivers is an epic historical fantasy about womanhood, war, sacrifice, and love against all odds.

This was my first Ann Liang book and I've already added all her blacklists to my tbr. Her writing was so vivid and beautiful I felt like I was immersed in the story and truly didn't want to leave.

Xishi's experience throughout her journey broke my heart over and over again.
The yearning was devastating and so well written. Her ambivalence made her so much more human and relatable to me. Her experience of recognizing the world isn't so absolute and making some devastating choices resonated. The yearning was unmatched. It had a solid depictons of heartbreak, and the brutality of war while finding the humanity in both sides.

Potential spoiler* I will warn you this book broke my heart and didn't put it back together, so consider yourself warned ...

I definitely recommend for lovers of Historical Fiction/Fantasy.

Unfortunately, "A Song to Drown Rivers" was a huge letdown. It didn't sit well with me.

The story started strong, then slowed down considerably for much of the rest of the story. I was kind of over it by the 80% mark but skim-read what was left. In hindsight, I wish I had DNF-ed long before then.

I have mixed feelings about Xishi (MC). There were inconsistencies about her capabilities to complete the mission. Sometimes she seemed skilled and callous. At other times, like fumbling incompetence. Her unique beauty (a paramount factor to the success of his mission) and mystery illness (which was never really explained, unless I missed that) quickly became irrelevant.

I do believe she genuinely thought what she was doing was for the greater good, to save her people. But I liked her less and less as time went on and her stubborn refusal to see the bigger picture until it was too late. By the end, I felt frustrated by her and furious for her.

Disappointing and underwhelming, this kind of story didn't work for me.

Thanks again St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the e-ARC to read in exchange for an honest review!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read a digital ARC of "A Song to Drown River" by Ann Liang. This novel has a release date of October 1, 2024. I have never heard of the legend of Xishi, but I learned enough in this beautiful, tragic novel based on Asian mythology. Xishi was a beauty from the village of Yue, who Fanli trained to use her beauty as a weapon. Xishi's task was to make Fancai, presented as immoral the King of Wue, fall in love with her while gathering intel for the Yue kingdom. The writing is beautiful, and the characters are well-fleshed out. I enjoyed the intricate and intriguing relationships Xishi had with Zhengdan, Fanchai, the concubine, the ambassadors of Wue, the king of Yue, and especially Fanli. You could sense the love and respect between them.

"A Song to Drown Rivers" is a saga of intrigue, revenge, deception, heartbreak, wisdom, treachery, betrayal, and, most of all, love and loyalty. The powerful conclusion took me by surprise—wow!! Ann Liang has written an engaging narrative that draws the reader into Xishi's transformative journey from the village of Yue to the Kingdom of Wue. I highly recommend this beautiful, lyrical, and haunting novel.


4.5/5 stars

There is beauty within sacrifice. Xishu's life is wrought with danger, but that doesn't stop her from saving a little girl's life at the riverbank. This act doesn't go unnoticed, and it sets Xishu on a path where beauty is her weapon and revenge is the goal. She is accompanied by a dear friend into enemy territory where she hopes her skills will be enough to bring down an empire. Through first love, sacrifice, loss, and betrayal, Xishu has to decide if this path is ultimately worth the cost. The author did her job if the ending punches you in the gut.

A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang was an absolutely stunning.
A beautifully written historical fiction story about revenge, war, power and betrayal.
These characters were absolutely extraordinary. They were well-developed and intriguing.
This is one book I’m going to scream about!
It had me in tears by the time I was done!

Thank You NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of this novel.

This story is about a love that transcends in many ways, but it is not a traditional historical romance. Xishi is a stunning beauty in an impoverished warstruck nation. Conquered, subjugated and terrorized by the powerful Wu kingdom, the people of neighbouring Yue struggle. Their subjugated king, Goujian, can do little more than appease the ruthless Wu king, Fuchai, known for the fierce punishment he metes out to all he believes to have faltered in the worship he demands. This includes even the members of his opulent household, from lowly servants and concubines to his highest ranked advisors. He is fickle, impulsive, quick-tempered and brutal. He has no interest in the Yue aside from what Wu exploitation can provide.

Ann Liang writes in a spare yet evocative style, herself transcending the borders of a short novel by drawing on Chinese myth, legend and tradition, as she learned from her parents and grandparents in childhood. Her story does not focus on the enmity between the kings. Goujian is an important catalyst, but he is mostly off-stage. The real drama centres on the relationship between the peasant girl Xishie and his highest strategic advisor and closest friend, the handsome, brilliant and austere warrior Fanli. When Fanli devises a plan to send the fiefdom’s most beautiful woman as a gift to Fuchai, he personally overseas her transformation into a enticing concubine who uses her every skill to win over the king. What ensues are events both hoped for and unexpected. Xishi has been warned since earliest childhood that great beauty brings power but also danger. In the Wu court, she finds both in extraordinary measure. Despite a fine ending, I really wanted the tale to continue.

── "...if for some reason, I cannot see you again, then I shall suffer either way.”

we love a man who is desperate for the woman he desires ! ann liang’s brain is a beautiful, magical place. the romance she writes always hits for me, and xishi and fanli were no different. liang has such a dreamy style of writing. she manages to articulate words in a way that makes them feel like they r so full of life. u can tell that she genuinely has a lot of love and care for the stories, characters, and relationships she creates.

i LOVED xishi and fanli. the tension btw these two throughout the book was so scrumptious omg. i was going insane over their scenes.

₊˚.༄ in conclusion, a song to drown rivers was such a great read! it is definitely not my favorite ann liang book, but it is an enjoyable historical fiction romance fantasy. i highly recommend!

my goodreads review ! : https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6229333490?book_show_action=false

Back on the Ann Liang book train, all aboard!

A Song To Drown Rivers is a book that fits into a few genres: Historical, romance, and mythology.
It is full of suspense and lyrical descriptions that left me highlighting multiple times a page.

This story follows Xishi in ancient China who is known for being an extraordinary beauty in her hometown. She gets plucked from her life to be a spy, specially trained to seduce the enemy King and distract him as her country plans to invade.

I was apprehensive about starting a book set in a time and land that I had no prior knowledge about but Ann Liang made it an enjoyable experience.

I fell into the story as easily as one may fall into a river: immediately immersed and engaged.

The way Liang writes is so beautifully poetic that I have to take a breath sometimes to pause and fully take in the vibrant world she wove together.
May it be joyous and full of celebration in the small comforts of life, delectable imagery of mouth watering dishes and desserts, or a painful tapestry of all the horror of war, painted red with the blood of pawns flicked over the board by ruthless kings.

She crafted memorable characters.

Xishi, grounded and passionate, yet dutiful.

Zhengdan, strong and a great friend.

Fanli, beautiful and self-controlled (my favorite character).

Fuchai, bright and vibrant, yet lonely.

And even Wu Zixu! Dedication and loyalty all the way.

There’s room for improvement, sure. The middle felt like it needed something more but I still flipped through pages in the middle of the night, heart pumping, sweating, praying that Xishi will make it out alive.

Ending thoughts… Definitely read the book. I think it’s great.
The book is worth it for the descriptions and Fanli alone, but you’ll stay for so much more.

Thank you so much to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the eARC of this gorgeous book. What an honor!

I am not familiar with the source material for "A Song to Drown Rivers", which probably contributed to my enjoyment as it didn't feel over done. But it was significantly hindered by Xishi's lack of personality and the 2000s era YA feeling of her introduction, which focused on such superficial troubles it failed to properly set stakes. In addition to this the writing itself was not engaging and lacked complexity, which makes it feel like this book would be more suited to a YA market and may have been mis-marketed as adult.

This story is so beautiful and well written. It has a depth of emotion that is heartbreaking and hopeful. The characters are complex and interesting. I would recommend this book.