4 Stars

This was such a beautifully written book. Xishi is one of the most beautiful girls in the land and is sent to seduce the rival King and act as an undercover spy to take down their court. I was shocked by the ending and was not ready to say goodby to the characters of the book. Well done and highly recommend.

Thank you to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I was super excited for the Asian fantasy from Ann Liang, especially going into the fall! Unfortunately, I had a hard time getting into this book when I picked it up, but hoping that I'll love it when I pick it up again in the winter months.

3/5

I read this book fairly quickly but ended up feeling rather disappointed. The premise is great but I felt that the connection between the love interests was quite sudden and the ending felt like it came out of nowhere and wasn't particularly well explained. I think this could have benefited from a bit more character development, possibly additional POV's to make more sense of things, and some more background on the relationship between the main love interests as well as more of a deep dive into the other king to understand why the ending occured.

As a whole I really enjoyed this book.
It was well written and the characters were likable.
At times it was hard to decide who to trust and who to root for.
I wasn’t much of a fan of the ending, the MC went through so much only to be drowned in the end?

Oh, this was such a lovely read! I've really enjoyed her YA book, and this one sounded really engaging, and it was such a captivating story, I was rooting for Xishi, using her beauty as a weapon, infiltrating this court, to try and take it down from the inside!

Characters really came to life in this book, Xishi and Fanli were such incredible leads. They both had their reasons for doing this, and caring about them made it harder when they were in such an impossible situation. I adored them, and their story, and I'm glad that they did find a bit of happiness in the midst of such turmoil.

The intricacies of the plot, both of the story itself, and what the characters were dealing with, was so thrilling to read! The tension of infiltrating this court, kept up along as her position kept rising. I was rooting for her to succeed, and I was on the edge of my seat, hoping that she wouldn't fail.

That ending though? That was more on the bitter side of bittersweet. Once past a certain point, it was inevitable, but that was still hard to read. Though there was that last little bit that added a bit of joy, but still, not quite enough after all that they went through.

This was a spectacular read, and I can't wait to read more by Ann Liang!

3.5 stars. This is a well written stand alone young adult fantasy based on Ancient Chinese folklore. I enjoyed reading but not sure it will stick with me for long. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.

I devoured this book. I never wanted to put it down. This is a historical romance- not a romantasy since there is zero fantasy. The fmc is based upon one of the four legendary beauties of China. Xishi is chosen to infiltrate the enemy kingdom as the concubine to the king and make him so obsessed with her he won’t notice her bring his kingdom to ruin.

The politics of this story were very simple and easy to follow, and the characters are distinct and easy to keep track of. This is no grand epic, but it beautifully romantic. The hardcover is also gorgeous. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes Chinese history and romantic historical books. Forbidden love. Hidden identities. Arranged marriage sorta.

Based on an ancient myth, this book tells the story of Xishi of the Yue kingdom who is sent to the neighboring enemy Wu kingdom as a concubine. She gets caught up in impressing the king and engaging in court intrigue to the point that her plan of toppling kingdoms gets twisted and alliances are tested.

This was entertaining! I thought it was missing the depth of character development that I enjoy in myth retellings but it was still atmospheric and fast-paced enough to keep me guessing.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an ARC.

Xishi is a beautiful maiden who agrees to be a sacrifice for her country of Yue by training to be a courtesan and spy. Her mission is to distract King Fuchai from statecraft, among other things. Inevitably, and quite early on, she falls in love with Fanli, the young minister who trains her. Thus, Xishi must not only plot to ruin Fuchai’s kingdom but keep her heart’s desire a secret.

I wasn’t familiar with the legend of Xishi before reading this book, but I’ve gleaned through other reviews that this is a pretty straight-forward retelling. I can’t fault the author then for some aspects of the book that irritated me, like the main character being so stunningly beautiful that nearly every man she encounters falls in love with her. In some ways, it’s rather nice to encounter a retelling that sticks pretty closely to the original story– I feel like there’s often just change for the sake of change.

All that said, I found this to be a a slog. The story is all tell and no show. Xishi and Fanli’s relationship suffers from insta-love, and there’s an obnoxious pseudo love triangle shoehorned in. Problems are easily solved with a few demure words or pure luck. Xishi has a heart issue that seemingly disappears after it’s no longer convenient. And despite Xishi being a concubine, the story is surprisingly chaste– she apparently sleeps next to Fuchai for several years with nothing but a few kisses.

Lovely!!! Beautifully written, absolutely tugged at the strings of my soul. Highly recommend to fans of She Who Became the Sun.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a digital advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

On a positive note, the prose is gorgeous and I will definitely read something else from the author. The narrator was wonderful and I felt the she embodied the main character's strength and capability in a situation where she could have easily become a victim. On the negative side, the relationship between the characters all felt surface level and the plot felt disjointed. It felt very YA at times as well. Overall I probably won't think much if this story in the future.

I've been a huge fan of Ann Liang's contemporary YA books, so I was super excited to read a little something different from her. I ended up thoroughly enjoying this one! It was fairly simplistic and digestible, so I think this book could be easily accessible to a wider audience (especially if this is your first dip into this type of fantasy romance). I'm excited to see what Ann Liang's whips up next!

The love story was sweet - but I had a hard time buying into the seemingly-forced culture references. Overall, solid book - but hard to get into. Liang is phenomenal at writing a truly sweet romance and love.

I had heard nothing but rave reviews about Liang's YA contemporaries and I have been a fan of the rise of Asian inspired fantasies, so given that and the gorgeous first edition, I was very excited about this book. Unfortunately, I struggled through a lot of this.

For one, this is marketed as a fantasy but it really isn't. Or it is, but in the sense that books like [book:Circe|35959740] are fantasy. What it actually is, is a retelling of the Chinese myth of Xishi, one of the Four Beauties of Ancient China, who because of her beauty is chosen to spy on the king of a neighboring kingdom. Honestly, I should have known based on that, that my expectations were too high.

The best part of this was the prose by far, so I am intrigued to see what else Liang writes, but the rest of it was very mid in my opinion. In the first 25% I kept finding myself pulled out of the story because the insta-romance and pace made the story feel like we went from 1 to 100 so I kept thinking I missed chapters. Once we settled into life at the palace, things started feeling more even, but because the first part felt so rushed I was never able to fully sink into the story. And then every time it was mentioned that Fanli spent so much time training Xishi my brain kept going but did he though? This left my mind to wander in some of the more emotional beats of the book, which left me feeling disconnected because I could tell that certain scenes were intended to make me feel deeply but I just didn't.

Overall, I think the bones of this book are great but it needed more in depth execution for me. Especially if you're marketing this as an adult fantasy. Like there was a smidge of fantasy at the end but it was 99% historical and the characters read incredibly young. So maybe that was part of my disappointment because if I had gone in expecting YA fantasy the tone and lack of depth would have been less jarring.

Ann Liang’s A Song to Drown Rivers is a mesmerizing exploration of love, loss, and the power of memory, woven into a narrative as fluid and unpredictable as the rivers it depicts. The book’s poetic prose and atmospheric imagery create an immersive experience that pulls readers into a world where myth and reality collide.

Liang excels in crafting vivid, almost tactile descriptions that bring her settings to life, making every moment feel steeped in mystery and melancholy. The characters, particularly the protagonist, are deeply complex, their struggles resonating with universal themes of identity and belonging. The interwoven folklore adds layers of depth and intrigue, creating a tapestry that feels both timeless and fresh.

The pacing, however, occasionally stumbles, with certain sections feeling overly drawn out while others rush by too quickly. This unevenness can distract from the story’s emotional core. Additionally, while the narrative’s ambiguity is part of its charm, some readers may find themselves yearning for more resolution in the ending.

Despite these minor flaws, A Song to Drown Rivers is an unforgettable debut that showcases Liang’s immense talent and potential. It’s a book that invites readers to lose themselves in its pages and ponder its themes long after the final chapter.

This was an interesting book. I liked that it was a retelling of a fable but found it to be a little repetitive. By the end I was invested in the characters and sad to learn their fates.

A Song to Drown Rivers is the epitome of duty to ones country over their own wants.

Xishi is forced to use her beauty to become a concubine to Fuchai, the king of a rival kingdom. If she succeeds in her quest to seduce him and have him catering to her every want she may save her country. She has to leave all she knows behind including her new found love interest. Is it all worth it in the end?

Ann Liang does a phenomenal job of creating an emotional attachment to these characters.

Inspired by the Legend Xish; from ancient China. Rival Kingdoms are battling, our POV Xish sets out to seduce the King Enemy Wu. On an offer from a young Military Advisor who finds her and trains/prepares her for battle. While under his training, They develop a romance. Things start to unravel while she then find herself in King Wus Palace and catches the kings eye.
So many twists, action packed, love triangle! This was a great story! My only difficulty was all the politics; just not my thing. I would have loved more Fantasy elements in the story given the genre. The romance could have been a little more. Found the plot pace wonky and scattered. Overall, really enjoyed it. wonderful YA historical Romantasy!

Thank you Netgalley for my advance copy, in exchange for my honest review/opinion.

A Song to Drown Rivers is the retelling of the Chinese legend of Xishi. Renowned for her beauty, Xishi catches the eye of a military advisor, Fanli, and is given the opportunity to be a spy for her kingdom. She is trained to infiltrate the Wu kingdom, seduce the king, and bring down his empire from within.
I thought the writing was beautiful, and I found myself mostly engaged while reading. However, I was hoping for more action, considering Xishi is supposed to be a spy, but we barely got any thrilling spy scenes. There was also definitely a case of insta-love here. The love interest is absent for much of the book, so I just didn’t understand how Xishi loved him so much already. The romance didn’t impact me as emotionally as I think it was supposed to. Ultimately, I think it should’ve been a bit longer. If we had more time, we could have seen the romance develop properly, and more of Xishi’s training, which was lacking. Also, I’m not sure why this is categorized as fantasy, because it felt more like historical fiction to me, with the smallest pinch of fantasy. Overall, the story was enjoyable, but needed a bit more time to flesh out the characters and the romance.

This is one of my top books of 2024! I loved everything about it. The writing, plot, characterization, romance... it was all absolutely amazing. I loved learning about the story of Xi Shi and Fan Li. I think Ann Liang did an amazing job handling this story and leaning into the difficult aspects inherent to this kind of story. I can't wait to read more from her and hope she writes more novels based of ancient Chinese history.