It’s entirely possible that I went into this book with high expectations that didn’t end up being completely met, though I did ultimately think it was a solid read. I flew through it in less than a day, which tells you something about the way it’s written. There were also certain lines and sentiments expressed that I thought were lovely, and I ended up with a collection of bookmarked passages.

But it did fall a bit short in every aspect of the story, and to me, it’s because all of it felt too lightly developed. I especially could have used just a tad more when it came to the characters and their relationships, which were truly the driving force of the story.

While I wouldn’t say I was as impressed as I was expecting to be, it was compelling enough that it held my attention the entire time I was reading it and I do find my curiosity about this author’s other works piqued.

Thank you NetGalley for this e-arc!
4 stars

i was so incredibly excited for this the minute ann liang announced it!

a song to drown rivers follows the legend of xishi who is one of the four beauties of china. she is sent to be a spy to infiltrate the enemy kingdom to help her home kingdom get revenge.

xishi is a strong willed woman is willing to do whatever it takes to ensure her loved ones and her people get to live in peace. her tactics of seducing the king and learning their ways were interesting and thrilling to see.

fanli is an interesting love interest but i wish we got to see more of him. i understand that circumstances were dire and xishi had to leave quickly but i wish there was a bit more buildup.

fuchai is a thrilling enemy character who had a strict upbringing as the future king. i was surprised to see him be soft and kind with xishi as i was fully expecting him to be ruthless and terrible towards her. it was a nice change of pace.

xishi’s internal struggles were realistic as she got to know fuchai more. her final realization broke my heart and in that moment i felt more for the king than i thought i could.

the ending ripped my heart out. i wasn’t familiar with the legend so i went into this story blind and i’m glad i did.

the pacing was fast which i don’t mind too much but i wish we got to see more of xishi’s training before she left for the wu kingdom. i wanted to see everything she trained for, each and every detail.

the prose was absolutely beautiful and i found myself rereading multiple lines because ann liang wrote them so beautifully. the setting was vivid and descriptive and brought ancient china to life.

all in all, i loved the story. i just wish it was a duology so we could’ve lived with these characters and this world a little bit more!

3.5/5 stars

A Song to Drown Rivers is an epic fantasy inspired by the Four Beauties of ancient China, and follows a woman named Xishi as she plots to bring the enemy kingdom to its knees.

I’ll be honest, I was tempted to DNF at 30%, and while I’m glad I didn’t, I do think the book had a very slow pace until about 90%.

The prose is beautiful, and I love the setting the author created, which was very immersive. Nevertheless, I struggled to connect to the main character’s desires despite her traumatic backstory. (Like, I understood *why* she wanted the things she did, I just struggled to truly *feel* them.)

I kept seeing people calling this book romantasy and I don’t think it should be categorized as either romance or fantasy. There is no magic present, but it is second world which classifies it as fantasy, and whilst much of the book is *about* romance, there is not a lot of actual romance (which totally works for the book, I just think it's important to note.)

The end of this book is positively beautiful and was done in a way I was not expecting, which I so appreciate.

(Also I thought music would play a much bigger role based on the title lol).

Overall, I liked the book, I just wished I liked it more.

DNF @35%🥴

Every time there is an East Asian book inspired by their mythologies or folklore, I get really excited. I had such high hopes for this book especially after seeing all the praise for Ann's contemporary books, although I haven't read them I have seen enough friends absolutely adore them. However, I really struggled with her writing in this one either because it is a different genre than her usual or something else entirely. The world building wasn't enough for me personally for being inspired from such rich culture, other than the initial barest introduction to the world, it didn't reflect any cultural or mythological richness I hoped it would possess.

The insta attraction was an immediate turn off but I'd have just gone with it if I wasn't reminded of how really really beautiful the FMC/MMC are on every other paragraph.While I understand that the FMC is a character inspired by mythology and to be considered as unearthly beauty it just was annoyingly redundant how many times I have to read how beautiful she was over and over again and the way she is aware of it, it just didn't work for me. I also get that the FMC is being trained to become a temptress(in 10 weeks that is) to be sent off to the enemy kingdom as a spy but it felt so unconvincing. The MMC , the ruthless general of them kingdom not only reveals a secret plan to a random village belle without even knowing if she'd accept which is probably not the wisest thing to do by one of the wisest general to exist as per the story and once she does he proceeds to teach her EVERYTHING, it just him and one other confidant that trains Xishi and her friend. The obvious romance ensues but unfortunately it is the weakest and underdeveloped as well, around 35% I realized I am just forcing myself to read without actually enjoying it, I really wish I enjoyed this one but unfortunately it didn't work for me .

This is another case of high expectations and disappointing results. I’ll start by saying this book is beautifully written. The writing has a lyrical flow and pulls you into the setting. For me, the pacing seemed uneven. There were long stretches of prose where literally nothing happened, followed by short bursts of frenetic activity that ended abruptly.

The book had many characters and I found it helpful to read along while listening to the audiobook. The narration by Natalie Naudus was superb and kept me going through the challenging parts. Her ability to infuse each character with life was remarkable. I highly recommend the audio version of this book for the production quality. It is excellent.

This is not really a romance, though there is a romantic thread. It is more a tale of historical espionage where a young woman of uncommon beauty is recruited to spy on a corrupt leader. I felt the character development was lacking and never reached its full potential. Considering the lushness of the prose, this felt like a missed opportunity.

I’m glad I read this book. The time period and setting were fascinating and the intrigue provided suspense throughout.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and St. Martin’s Press for the advance copies in exchange for my unbiased review.

Thank you to Ann Liang, St. Martin’s, and NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions are my own.

A Song to Drown Rivers was an interesting dip into Chinese legend and folklore, telling the story of Xishi, a beautiful girl from a rural village who is recruited into seducing the king of a rival nation and bringing down his kingdom. The espionage was cool and Xishi was a badass woman - I do just wish more of the romance that seemed to have been developed off page had been more on page, with both Fanli and Fuchai. I didn’t really see where Xishi’s love for Fanli came from, nor her growing feelings for Fuchai.

Overall, an enjoyable read.

POV: single first person

You can expect: espionage, bringing down a kingdom, seduction.

Rep: Chinese MCs

CW: death of a sibling (past), murder, violence, gore

I was very much enjoying this lovely Chinese story until the end happened and then I was not enjoying the story at all. I was so disappointed by what happened to the female main character. Xishi gets sent to the Wu kingdom to be a concubine for King Fuchai due to her extreme beauty. She was really going as a spy and did very well on her mission. I don’t want to spoil the end but it is not happy. I really enjoyed the characters and the diversity of the story. All in all I’m glad I read this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy of this book.

An interesting historical retelling!

I have to say I wasn't too familiar with the origin this story was derived from. It was interesting and the overall premise was intriguing.

The pacing of this story was very quick. I felt like it moved fast, but almost too fast. I felt like we were never able to really feel out any of the moments. Like the feelings between Fanli and Xishi seemed so rushed, and it was hard to feel their love or the beginning of their romance. Because the pacing moved so fast, I felt like all the connections between characters fell flat.

Overall, the story was nice, but it was lacking depth. I wanted more from the characters, and it just wasn't there. It was still a decent read, just not anything super special.

I would like to give a big thanks to the publisher, the author, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rating: 4/5

I loved this book. Historical fiction / tragedy is an incredible genre on its own, and this is the first time I've read one. This book follows Xishi, a beautiful girl who grew up in a war-torn village and is presented with an opportunity to avenge the death of her little sister.

This book was a slow start, but eventually kicked up. There were a few plot holes here and there, but nothing that took away from the plot itself. It shows the tragedy of war and kings and men, and who the real enemy is never who you think it might be. That there is a human under the monster, and a monster under the human. This book shows what happens when men are made to seem like gods in the eyes of other people. This book expertly navigates a treacherous court life while drawing the reader in.

While I devoured this book, I wish there was more. More of the minor characters, to get to know them deeper than a surface level. I wanted more emotion, more depth, more world-building, just more.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and have it as one of my favorites for the year.

I really enjoyed this book a lot. The writing is stunning. I loved the imagery. I thought this book was really beautiful. I enjoyed the romance. I liked Xishi as a main character. This book was very easy to read, and i was able to finish it in 2 days. Overall, I enjoyed this story a lot and look forward to reading more from this author.

overall, i enjoyed this book. ann liang’s prose was beautiful and it was easy to fall into the atmospheric setting of the story. the political tensions of the court were interesting to read about and i kept thinking about the book even when i wasn’t reading it. xishi and fanli’s story was beautiful and heart-pulling and i would’ve read many, many more scenes with them. xishi’s emotional turmoil was easy to understand and i felt all her ups and downs as she struggled to survive. and despite the fact that i usually don’t like love triangles, i didn’t mind this one at all.

i did feel that the pacing of the story was off in some places; at times things progressed too slowly and at other times a bit too fast. there was also just something missing for me in the book. I think i expected there to be a bit more action in the story. most of the story was about the political unrest, yet there were moments where i thought there would be more fighting and there wasn’t, and i think it threw me off.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley.

4.5 Stars
I loved this book even though it broke my heart with how it ended lol. I was rooting for Xishi the entire time, she was such a great FMC and she truly deserved so much more. I actually wouldn't have minded if this was longer - I would happily take more of these characters (they all really deserved better)! Also, I know I wasn't supposed to ride so hard for Fuchai since he's technically the enemy king but I just loved him so much (but also loved Fanli of course lol). Buying myself the Fairyloot special edition of this because I loved it that much!

Thank you NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

I really enjoyed this beautifully written historical fiction tale. I do not know the original story that it was based off of to compare it, but it definitely kept my attention from start to finish. It was full of action, political intrigue and hints of romance. Although it was beautifully written, it was definitely tragic, and not quite the happy ending it thats what you prefer. I personally almost wish this book was made into a duology with a different ending. I would have loved to spend more time with some of these characters in this interesting world.

‘A Song to Drown Rivers’ is a standalone fantasy novel that clocks in at just over 300 pages and I think that is my biggest issue with the book. Due to the length of the book many scenes feel glossed over or written too quickly. I think it’s difficult to fully develop and explore many of the events in such a short time frame. Additionally, the book is marketed as an adult fantasy novel, but the writing feels more new adult/younger to me. I also wish there were more fantasy elements throughout the story and I spent most of the book confused as to why this was listed as fantasy. Overall, I think the themes were good (i.e. that there’s often no “right” side in war and the only people who win are those in power), but I would’ve liked the story to be more developed.

3.5/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Song To Drown Rivers is a beautifully written story filled with Chinese historical fantasy and romance!

The novel remains enjoyable for those who are not too familiar with the legend of the Four Beauties of Ancient China.

Overall, ASTDR was pretty fun to read, though it doesn’t offer anything new for its intended genre nor new impressions. While the novel is absolutely rich in lore, nothing else stood out to me as a fantasy reader; the fantasy system felt neglected to me & and the romance, if not instant, was underdeveloped.

3.5 stars. Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China. Xishi is known for her beauty and is seen as a blessing to her village, Yue. when Xishi meets Fanli, a military adviser, he proposes the idea of using her beauty to defeat the rivaling kingdom, Wu. Xishi agrees and becomes a spy, living with the king who is enchanted by her beauty. The only downside is if Xishi gets caught, then both kingdoms will be taken down.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this e-arc.*

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first novel by Ann Liang that I've read, and while I think this was a quick read (despite some of the violence), it still left me wanting for more substance. I had high expectations going into this because the fact that it was based on legend sounded very intriguing and promising. The premise is that Xishi, described as one of the four great beauties of Ancient China, of the Yue Kingdom is used as a spy and sent to the (enemy) Wu kingdom as a concubine to King Fuchai. Her aim is to bring down the Wu kingdom - her journey including whether or not she is successful (along with a side plot of a love story) forms the basic premise of this book.

The story had a lot of potential, but I think that one of its biggest flaws was that while the pacing kept my interest, the story lacked the depth required for such a premise. Additionally, the love story also lacked depth such that I didn't really understand why Xishi and her love interest fell for each other, and neither did I root for their happy ending together. This may be a controversial take but I thought the novel really came into its own in the last quarter of the book (yes, including that ending!). It‘s disappointing because the premise and writing had a lot of potential. It read more like a YA novel than an adult historical fantasy.

I just finished A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang, and I gotta be real—it didn’t hit like I hoped. 😕 First off, a huge shoutout to NetGalley, Ann Liang, and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts! 💌 The book drops October 1st, and while it’s 290 pages, it zipped by like a breeze.

✧ Forbidden Romance 💔
✧ Historical Fiction 🏰
✧ Spy Mission 🛡
✧ Court Intrigue 👑
✧ Slow Pacing 🕰
✧ Insta-Love 💘
✧ Retelling 🌹
✧ Bittersweet Ending 😢

So, I went into this expecting an epic, heart-wrenching historical fantasy inspired by the legend of Xishi—on paper, that sounds incredible, right? But... I was left feeling kinda meh. The romance, which should’ve been the emotional heart of the story, was rushed and totally flat. Insta-love vibes were everywhere, but instead of giving me butterflies, it was more like, "Wait, that’s it?!" 😬 I was seriously craving a slow burn where I’m internally screaming, "JUST KISS ALREADY!" but nah, didn’t get that at all.

The fantasy elements? Yeah, they’re there but barely explored. I was waiting for some jaw-dropping world-building, but it felt a bit too bland. And the pacing? Oof, it was all over the place! Some parts dragged on forever, while others were over before I could even process them. 😕

Now, let’s talk about Xishi and Fanli—the characters with so much potential. But guess what? Fanli, our supposed swoon-worthy love interest, barely shows up! Like, where is this guy?! For a new adult fantasy, this definitely read like YA, so if you’re expecting something a bit more mature, maybe manage your expectations.

But hey, Ann Liang’s writing style? Super easy to read, and that’s what kept me going. The second half of the book was stronger, but I still wanted more—more depth, more feels, more everything. I was ready to ugly cry by the end, but instead, I was like, "Oh, so that’s it?" 😬

Overall, it’s a quick read that might appeal to fans of Ann Liang’s previous books, but for me? It didn’t really bring anything new or memorable to the table.

3.7 🌟

I read this and listened to the audiobook to compare the two. Honestly, reading it was amazing but the audiobook truly made this book 100 times better due to the amazing narrator! I throughly enjoyed this story. The mystery behind the the king and the character development of Xishi was interesting to watch play out throughout the story. I loved that the Xishu was chosen to become the weapon to help her people and take down the Wu kingdom. It was intriguing how the story turned after that (chapter 2 so not a spoiler). But it truly picked up after that point and had so many twists and action packed moments throughout to keep you interested. And that ending.... yall. I have no words!! I loved this one, especially the audiobook format!

I received the ARC in Audiobook format from Mcmillan Audio as well as a book ARC from St Martin's Press and NetGalley to listen/read/review both formats. All of the statements above are my true opinions after fully reading and listening to this book.

Wow. It took me a while to collect my thoughts on this one. I had so many feelings that it was hard to put them into words. On the one hand, I absolutely loved this story. I was rooting for Xishi the whole time, and her emotions so easily flowed into me as I read. I was invested in her journey and had so much hope that her story would end happily.

Ann Liang’s prose is masterful. It is hard to believe that this is the same author who has written multiple YA romances. Yes, her other books are also great, but the prose here is just next level. I found myself rereading and highlighting sentences just because of how beautiful they were. She creates an atmosphere that is both so tragic and hauntingly beautiful. This is not just a retelling of a legend; it is a love story, a story of regret, loss, sacrifice, and the realities of war.

On the other hand, this story also devastated and depressed me (in the best possible way). It evoked so much hope and wonder in me, yet also such deep sorrow and emptiness. I had never before heard of the legend this book is based off of, and I’m glad I went into it blind. I don’t think I would have enjoyed it as much if I had any idea of how it would end. The only thing I wish was explored more was the “fantasy” aspect; this definitely reads more as a retelling or historical fiction than a fantasy. We only really see any true fantastical elements in the last 10% of the book (and in such a heartrending way).

This story and these characters are going to stay with me for a long time. I’m excited to see what Ann Liang writes next, because I’ll definitely be reading!