>> FYI -- Preorder now and receive the stunning DELUXE LIMITED EDITION while supplies last―featuring a gold foiled cover, gorgeous sprayed edges with stenciled artwork, as well as exclusive metallic ink patterned end-papers and unique foiled front and back case stamps. ((IT’S G-DANG GORGEOUS!))

♡ "All of Yue will remember you; I swear it."

This beautifully, dark retelling of a Chinese folktale is told in first person POV through Xishi, our 20 year-old main lady. Setting is Old World, an alternate China, about said ancient tale -- "Xi Shi, Wang Zhaojun, Diao Chan and Yang Guifei are known as the 'Four Beauties in Ancient China', among which Xi Shi is the first." -- It had some Mulan vibes too, to this Western reader. There are extremely early hints of romance, and I'm honestly not sure where Xishi's automatic obsession comes from, except maybe that he saved her life upon their first meeting? Or maybe it's a reincarnation thing, since there is a possible, and super subtle, hint? I wanted more of an explanation and acknowledgment though. Even though this instant love infatuation was a tad annoying, I found the novel to be very well written; pretty visuals, tasty lines and similes. Mostly a decent flow but a few head tilting moments. Time isn't handled properly (ex: 85% in/chapter 22, it's been two years?? Uh, okay?) I also would have preferred more development or time with the other concubines. And what was with the chest pain? With the abundance in which it was referenced, I expected it be something, unless I missed it or needed to know the original lore. Which would be disappointing, if that's true. I enjoyed the very dark and tragic, unexpected ending.

♥ Bonus points: Chang'e reference!!!!

A Song To Drown Rivers was my second Ann Liang book, following This Time It's Real, and it did not disappoint! I love an arranged marriage/marriage of convenience story, and A Song To Drown Rivers hit that mark exactly. It also had an angsty slow-burn forbidden romance, I honestly think the BookTok girlies will eat this one up.

2.05!

I WAS VERY GENEROUS WITH THIS RATING

Everyone has been raving about Ann Liang's YA rom-coms so I had to see what the hype was about and I had gotten an arc of her new adult fantasy book on netgalley. So I thought why not really this first and to say I'm disappointed would be an understatement because this book was so lacking in almost every aspect. It could have done so much better but it failed to read that potential it was also very short? My arc was about 280 pages with 15 pages being additional stuff. I did enjoy it and that's why I'm giving it two stars, the writing was the better part and I had enjoyed reading it during the second half where I quite literally flew through it but I could not negate the wasted potential.

It could have been such a beautiful tragic novel, if it was done and this unfortunately was not done right. The fantasy elements were missing from this novel, they were so minute and not well explored. For a romantasy the romance felt missing too. The world building was lackluster and the action was barely there. The political/court intrigued could've been more drawn out more explored but that wasn't the case here either. The book fluctuated a lot sometimes it would be so slow and the other times it would be extremely fast and it was very off putting. The way it was written maybe fun and enjoyable but it lacks so many things that would make it actually good.

The characters were so mid and wasted 😭. Our love interest was present only for 25% of the book so we barely, barely got any content from his side or any development from his side both romantically and for his character. Zhengdan and Fuchais characters were wasted. I won't say why Zhengdan's was but Fuchai's character, he deserved so much better!!and his character could've been more flawed and more morally grey but he quite literally was a drunken fool 😭 Xishi our main character managed to do the bare minimum, seduce a drunken fool 😍👏🏻 that's it. That's what the 13 weeks worth of training taught her. The character development was simply non existent. They were just there and they moved around and the sorry finished..the ending was very disappointing as well. I couldn't feel anything because I wasn't that attached to the character but I was shocked by it and not really impressed tbh. Zixu was the only character who ate 😭😭 that one line where he says at the end 😭🔪 HE DEVOURED 😭😭

The romance was so disappointing. It was so rushed because the FMC and the MMC catch feeling like 20% in and the then 5% later the FMC leaves and then they meet twice during this whole fiasco and those moments were also brief. We got more of her scenes with Fuchais than the Fanli and it was so disappointing because when a book does not deliver on fantasy you expect the romance to overshadow it and this failed as well. The quotes were nice but the romance simply was not also that one scene where she says Fanlis name 😭😭 THE SECOND HAND EMBARRASSMENT 😭🤡

Also for an adult book there was nothing adult of sort, it read like a YA novel.

Overall, a subpar novel which could have exploited more of its potential 😔

˖ ⋆ ˚𓆝 ˖ ｡ ⋆ 𓈒 𓆟 ˖ ⋆˚°𓆞 ˚ ｡ ⋆

This book is one of my most highly anticipated books and it's also my first Ann Liang book so I am so excited to read this!!! Got the arc back in Feb and I feel like this is the perfect time to read this<33

*Thank you to Netgalley for giving me an E-arc*

I am choosing not to review this book at this time, as I have decided to purchase the gorgeous sprayed edge copy and I will review when I receive it 🩷

Many thanks to St. Martin's Press for the eARC, Macmillan Audio for the ALC, and to author Ann Liang and narrator Natalie Naudus for their incredible talents. This review reflects my honest thoughts and opinions.
Publication Date: October 1, 2024

5 STARS

The fmc is forced into a political arranged marriage with the “horrible” king of the Wu Kingdom. In truth, she is infiltrating the enemy kingdom as a spy. One woman becomes the hero of her nation, not with a sword but with her survival instincts in a palatial prison and a life she did not choose.

This is lyrical, elegant historical fiction. There’s no magic. The only reason it might be shelved as fantasy is because it’s mythology retelling.

Reasons I Loved the Book:
1. THE AUDIOBOOK: No complaints regarding sound production and quality. Also, Natalie Naudus is an expert narrator of whom I’ve long been a fan. Her performance is versatile and natural, not overly dramatic and she uses subtle voice changes to cue different characters. She articulates the words clearly; I was easily able to listen at 2.5-3x speed and not miss a thing.
2. THE WRITING: The prose style falls in between simplistic workman’s style and purple/embellished prose. The flow is smooth and readable. Imagery is present and enhances the setting and vibes of the book but is not overly detailed.
3. THE ROMANCE: ohhhh my heart💗 This book has such a pure, slow burn love. The mutual longing is so beautifully angsty! You also get the forbidden trope—because the fmc and her trainer/spy handler indicate mutual attraction early on, even though she’s about to enter an arranged marriage with high stakes in a dangerous environment. They love each other more than anything else yet do their best to be honorable.

The story is deceptively simple. It is devastatingly beautiful.

I 100% recommend this title as one of my favorite reads of 2024.

I’m not crying, you’re crying.

A Song to Drown Rivers is beautifully and lyrically written, with extremely well developed characters. Everyone is more than they seem - more than a beauty, more than a vicious king, more than a ruthless minister of war. The complexity of the characters brought this story to life and elevated its themes of sacrifice, revenge, love, and loss. I was pulled in from the start and could not put it down. The ending was bittersweet, breaking my heart into a thousand pieces. If you love historical fantasy and are looking for your next good cry, this book has you covered.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Xishi’s Beauty is undeniable, an opportunity arises in which she can use it as a weapon against an enemy clan. Fanli, the kings military advisor is responsible for honing her beauty into the weapon and placing her as a spy in the palace to seduce the king from within. She could be the villages redemption or be discovered ensuring war and her people’s demise.

A Song to Drown Rivers is a beautifully written tale of love, revenge, and deceit. Xishi’s character shows that beauty is not her only weapon and her cleverness provides her with the opportunity to get revenge for her murdered sister. Despite there being a love interest and Xishi being made the kings concubine, this tale was very romantically wholesome and there was little more than kissing throughout. A very enjoyable read that I would definitely recommend…A must read for 2024!

Thank you to NetGalley for the early copy of this book! I did some brief research of the four beauties of China when I picked this book up and immediately was intrigued. This story follows Xishi as she is chosen for her unmatched beauty to become a concubine for the king of the Wu kingdom, the very kingdom that killed her younger sister. Trained to seduce and spy on the king, Xishi spends years living at the palace giving the king just enough to fall for her as the Yue kingdom prepares to invade.

I really enjoyed this book! While based on legend, this book had all the elements I love: bad ass female main characters, deceit and infiltration of an organization, forbidden love. It also fell in line with my recent desire to read ancient history and mythology books. I highly recommend this book!

I'll make this short and sweet: this book was a delight! I don't read much fantasy, but I really enjoyed A Song to Drown Rivers. The writing is as lovely as the cover, and the story flowed really well. Glad to have had the opportunity to read and review this title through NetGalley, as I had not been aware of Ann Liang before--I'm looking forward to reading more of her work.

An absolutely beautiful book with devastatingly achy moments. I forgot that it was based off of folklore and if you are wanting a happy ending, this isn’t it. And if you know the legend, then you know this. I did not. I cursed this book at the end. I should have known, but the writing was subpar and lyrical. I enjoyed so many lines.

Anna Liang has written an incredibly lush historical fantasy novel that retells the myth of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China. Driven by her own personal vendetta against the Wu Kingdom, Xishi is recruited by Fanli, the Yue King's brilliant and enigmatic advisor to become a spy in the vise of a concubine for the Wu Kingdom. Renkowned for her beauty, loyalty and sacrifice, Xishi has become a legend and this story has done her justice.

Liang has created complex characters who become alive on the page. No one is who they seem from the "villains" to the "heroes". There was plenty of court intrigue to hold my attention. Xishi's conflicted feelings are so acutely described as she navigates the Wu court and learns how far she's willing to go for revenge. Her relationship with Fanli is bursting with yearning and desire through furtive glances and light touches that will make readers scream (in a good way) and will appeal to fans of forbidden love. While some readers might complain about the bittersweet ending, I found it fitting for the characters and the story. The story reminds us of the costs of war and what we lose in our tunnel vision of attaining power.

"Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famour Four Beauties of Ancient China...an epic historical fantasy about womanhood, war, sacrifice, and love... 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 [Fuchai], and weaken them from within. Trained by Fanli in everything from classical instruments to concealing emotion, Xishi hones her beauty into the perfect blade."

And so it begins. What can I say? I was drawn in from the start An easy read, simplistic writing; the story captured my interest. Certainly not literary fiction, but I didn't care--I sped on.

The story of Xishi [a young, astonishly beautiful peasant girl trained to become a concubine] and Fanli, Xishi, and Fuchai, palace ministers, servants and various underlings. This is a plot driven novel although the main characters are fully developed. Storytelling kept me going throughout. Love, revenge, sisterhood, palace intrigue. The opulence of kings and their palaces. Swordplay. Suspense. And more.

I didn't much like the ending--tone changes, but not sure what I would have wanted--neat and tidy? Left hanging? Won't get more from me.

Some tagged as fantasy, but IDK.

Recommend. 4.25

The elements are all here but felt incomplete in a way. The pacing is great and the story is really interesting. I’m always up for story retellings of ancient legends. I didn’t really get the fantasy elements here but the spying and bits of romance were really good. The last hundred pages were pretty intense and took a lot of unexpected twists and turns.

I received an arc from netgalley and the publisher.

i enjoyed this book so so much and i can always count on Ann Liang to not disappoint! i always find that i instantly connect with her writing and feel enveloped by the world she is creating.

despite this being Ann Liang's first mythological fantasy and historical fiction it was honestly so enjoyable. the centrality of Chinese mythology was so interesting to read about, and the effects of war were so harrowing but engaging, i truly never felt bored reading this. Liang's prose is so beautifully written, yet it also flows well so that it doesn't feel forced or uncomfortable.

Ann Liang's characterisation of all characters, even side characters, was such a joy to read. everyone was shown to have good and evil traits which creates conflicting feelings in the reader. this makes for a much more enjoyable read with plenty of grey area rather than simple black and white heroes or villains.

Xishi has such an incredible growth and journey in this book. she uses her beauty as a weapon in a war between kings. i felt so attached to her story and all that she was going through and had been through. it was impossible to not get emotional at times. i can't even begin to describe all the feelings this book gave me as they were all over the place.

i wholeheartedly recommend 'A Song to Drown Rivers' to anyone who is wanting to read a fantasy book inspired by Chinese mythology. it's a beautiful read that packs a strong emotional punch and will definitely linger in your mind for long after finishing!!

as a huge huge ann liang fan (i've read all her books and i adore them, this was one of my most highly anticipated reads of 2024. i was extremely excited to see a different genre from ann than her usual romcom, and i love books inspired by asian fantasy/mythology! unfortunately, this did not live up to my expectations :( that isn't to say, i didn't enjoy the book overall and will still read anything and everything that ann writes! she just announced that she's coming out with another romcom in spring 2025, so i will be requesting the arc for that and reading it.

referencing ann's social media posts, she marketed a song to drown rivers as an adult angsty fantasy with slow burn romance and a villain who is obsessed with the female lead. i agree with angsty and a villain obsessed with the female lead, though the villain didn't really turn out to be much of a villain? the angst in this book was super raw and real, and it had my heart aching. however, there wasn't enough slow burn because 1. there is a lot of telling that the xishi (our female lead) and fanli (male lead) are yearning for each other with their stolen glances and brushed fingertips, but there is little to actually show that. i didn't feel the tension being built up, it just ~ appeared ~. and 2. the male lead is absent for 1/2 of the book, so we never even get to see the slow burn fleshed out? unfortunately, there is a love triangle in this, and without spoiling too much, i like the second lead better :( and he deserved so much better :( similar to if you could see the sun, i would not classify either of these are true fantasies, as the fantastical element is relatively small. in this book, there is only a small fantastical element in the last 2 chapters. all of ann's books have been ya, and i think this book also read more like ya. there weren't any more mature themes referenced here than in her ya romcoms. lastly, the prose was a little too flowery for me. personally, all of the extensive descriptions of the settings were excessive.

let's talk characters: xishi is smart and cunning, and not gonna lie, i was swooning for her. she's incredibly smooth and does end up seducing fuchai, and i don't blame him! fanli is almost too perfect for me, so i do prefer fuchai.. sorry girlies. i do not know how xishi didn't end up falling for fuchai when they spent 2 years together, whereas she only spend ten weeks with fanli lol. i did cry when zhendan died, was extremely sad when fuchai died too, and was so shocked to see that xishi died??? i was hoping for a happy or at least bittersweet ending, but alas.

overall, really enthralling read since i binged this in one day the same day i received the arc. ann's writing and storytelling is always magical, and i'm excited to continue to read everything else she writes.

A Song to Drown Rivers is a beautiful retelling of Xishi, one of the Four Beauties. Xishi’s beauty is well known in her small village of Yue. When she meets the handsome Fanli, he helps train her to become the ultimate weapon against the Wu king. She evolves from a simple village girl to a pivotal player in downfall of the Wu Kingdom.

Ann Liang's story telling of this ancient Chinese story was beautiful from start to end. Everything was fast paced and kept me reading late into the night. I wish the story was longer, and that we coul have had more sweet moments between Xishi and Fanli, but it was still perfect.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This hauntingly beautiful tale is lingering with me, even several days after finishing. I cannot even concentrate on my newest reads because I cannot stop thinking about this one!

Xishi is a beautiful young woman grieving the loss of her sister in war. When she is recruited by Fanli, the king's advisor, to become a concubine to the Wu King and be a spy, a chain of events is set in motion that will change their lives forever.

Told with lyrical prose and a haunting sense of beauty, this novel is hard to put down but even harder to forget!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the eARC!

Tropes:
🥷🏻Hidden identity
🏰Court intrigue
🚫Forbidden romance
🧧Chinese mythology
⏳ slow burn romance
🩹tends to his wounds
Thank you to NetGalley for giving this ARC, and this doesn’t influence my review. I am honored to receive an ARC for a book from one of my fav authors. I absolutely adore her other books.
This book was inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous four beauties of ancient China. This book was different than all the books I read, nevertheless I enjoyed it the same. The romance was swoon-worthy, the plot hooked you in, and everything that unraveled surprised me. I absolutely did not expect the ending, but realized it made sense. Go read it!

I loved this book! Xishi is an awesome heroine, strong, complex and clever. The writing is beautiful and very cinematic. I didn't know any of the legends of the Four Beauties of China - though I looked them up after I was finished with this book. In the legends there are two different fates for Xishi. I think Liang chose well for this retelling. I loved that the story and the characters were layered. There are some scenes where I for sure could have used some tissue for my crying eyes! Maybe Liang will write the other three Beauties' stories. I would read them!

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this advance copy for review.

This is one of those books that you can't quite put down once you start, the kind of book that in the moments where you have to stop reading, you find your mind drifting back to it. Liang has done a fantastic job in weaving together a familiar plot (even if you aren't familiar with Xishi's tale specifically, the story beats should still feel familiar) and infusing it with the humanity and context each of the characters needs to really bring the tale to life. It's much more a historical fiction retelling than anything fantasy (there's a very small bit at the end, and even that is less fantasy and more just slightly fantastical/romantic), and it's interesting to get that balance between an ancient setting and timeless human conditions.

I loved getting Xishi's context and side on her part in spying and bringing down the Wu, but while we get very brief flashes of "everyday people getting ignored by the big political moves", I wish there were more done with it. There's a poignant scene at the end with Zhengdan's mother and then from Xishi's realizations, but it's a brief observation for what feels like it could be much more of a theme of the novel, especially given the ends of so many of the characters, dead for someone else's political aims or pride. I do love how Xishi starts to confront the status her beauty gives her, at odds with the lack of status she has by being a woman, and how she can use that to her advantage, but again I wish it were woven a little more strongly into the novel as a whole, rather than being touched upon briefly before going back.

I think the best thing about this is just how multi-faceted all of the characters are; we get to see so many sides of all of them, and while I know a lot of people are going to be mad at the ending, I think it's honestly perfect. I think the last few chapters are the strongest in the book, a true culmination of everything set up leading up to them; I'll be thinking about the last quarter for a long while.