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.

Loved this unique fantasy/historical read. It took me a bit to get sucked into this story, but the last 30% had me completely hooked. That ending… 😭 The only thing keeping it from 5 stars is i wish there was a bit more actual romance in the pages.

Thank you so much to the author & publisher for this ARC!

In war-torn Yue, Xishi's exquisite face is more a curse than a blessing. It takes the acumen of Fanli, the deposed King Goujian's most trusted advisor, to see a third option and hone her beauty into a weapon. He trains the country girl as a courtesan and sends her to seduce and ruin King Fuchai, who overthrew Yue. While both Xishi and Fanli are too dutiful to act on their mutual attraction, it throbs on every page. Based on a Chinese legend, but the characters all seem fresh and vibrant.

ARC Review:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ for A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang

A beautiful woman, Xishi, is given by the Kingdom of Yue to their oppressors in an effort to gain back some trust. While training to be a spy from within the enemy’s court, Xishi develops a relationship with Fanli, the Yue’s military advisor. Will Xishi be able to help her Kingdom by taking down the king of the Wu?

This was such a beautiful story. It’s based on a legend I was unfamiliar with before reading this, but I can’t imagine this not doing it justice. The writing was descriptive, emotional, and flowed so well that I would often finish “just one more chapter” until I was long over due to stop reading. I liked the characters love story, but to me the best part was the way it discusses war and all the complexities that encompass it.

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

Such a beautifully written story. Filled with longing. I told Ann that I slowed down while reading so that I could savor it.

For a book told in first person, Xishi felt very distant. Her feelings for both Fanli and the king felt told rather than shown - especially the king as she supposedly grows more and more attached to him. I wanted to see more of her internal conflict, rather than just a handful of moments where she goes “well I guess he as a person isn’t so bad.”

What I loved most were the descriptive passages: the gruesome and violent tournaments, the opulent and elaborate palaces, the flashy and colorful banquets and dances. There were also some really good character death scenes, though specifying which ones would be major spoilers.

The passage of time was fairly unclear, though I suppose when looking back it’s obvious that certain things would take weeks or months to do, but as things were happening, the time needed to make them happen was unclear. I also had a hard time connecting the opening scene with the rest of the book; what was the point of it beyond introducing Fanli and Xishi without the barrier of Xishi’s unnatural beauty?

Overall, though, would definitely pick up more books by this author.

My second Ann Liang book. 4⭐.
I ummed and ahhh’ed about whether I wanted to give this book 3.5 stars or 4 stars... I think I'd just indulge Ann.(*shrugs)
The prose is surprisingly beautiful. Ann's writing is excellent, there were times she pulled me into the moment. The tension, the back-and-forth? Delicious.
Ultimately, though, I wanted more from this book.
Cons: too rose-tinted. The political scheming is amateurish and juvenile (never write schemes like that again plz, 这些基础的宫斗套路已经被中国女频网文用烂了😿). And each character just so flat that feels like a young adult, which, in my opinion, is the most YA aspect of this book. (Like, have you ever seen a 20-something king resists having sex with a stunning beauty who belongs to him and he's madly in love with for several years? Ridiculous.🤦‍♀️) But err I vibed with it anyway.
The ending was okay. I get it, and the way how Fan li handled Xishi's reputation did improve the ending's quality.
I think the story could have been longer, more comprehensive, and more detailed. It shouldn't have been limited by its length. In the end, I still appreciate Ann for telling the story of 西施 and 范蠡, creating a retelling that, while not highly original, is still beautifully done.

2.75 Stars

It was… fine.
I don’t know if it even deserves the three stars and I’m a little confused if I read the same book as all these five star reviews…

From the very beginning, I was disappointed with the instant love between Xishi and Fail. It felt so forced! She kept monologuing things such as “I only wanted the familiarity of Fanli’s touch” and “But I knew Fanli all too well” when she quite literally does not. They were together three months and then separated for years! She does not know him!! There were at least three other pairings in the novel that had more chemistry.
So much of it felt like filler. The actual plot lines were much too fast and shallow, leaving me underwhelmed and unaffected by what was clearly meant to be shocking and heartbreaking.

Mild, Vague spoilers below:

In addition, the “foreshadowing” wasn’t foreshadowing at all. The characters quite literally say aloud what their deaths ultimately will be. I caught on immediately and it took all suspense out of the novel. Finally, the end began to touch on some very important aspects of politics but only glossed it before going into depth about a lack luster romance.

The whole book completely fell flat, could have been a novella or at least much shorter, and read almost like a YA novel.. and not in a good way, unfortunately.

A Song to Drown Rivers is a historical fantasy based on the story of Xi Shi, one of China’s legendary Four Beauties. It follows the events of the legend very closely, with a few exceptions.

Xishi is so stunning that she comes to the attention of the King of Yue and his advisor, Fanli. They decide to train her as a spy and send her on a revenge mission to the neighboring King of Wu, using her to topple his regime. Posing as a concubine, she is meant to distract the enemy king and open the way for her people to invade.

It’s a beautiful story with skillful writing. I love a woman using her intelligence and turning men’s weakness, and incomprehension of her as more than an object, against them. The romance is bittersweet, (though not very spicy, for those looking for that) but what I liked most about this story was Xishi’s character growth. Her family experienced trauma at the hands of Wu soldiers, and so it’s understandable that she has a deeply ingrained hatred for all Wu people, considering them all heinous, murdering villains. Once forced to live among them, she begins to realize how similar Wu and Yue people are, and that the only thing truly separating them is a line on a map. She meets people who experienced the same atrocities she did, but at the hands of her own people. You can see as her world expands.

My only quibble is that there are aspects of this story that are unrealistic in terms of adult behavior, and the timeline is ridiculous – an untrained, innocent village girl is trained to become a royal spy extraordinaire in only 10 months? – but keep in mind, this is a YA book, so I don’t really count that against the story at all.

And that ENDING! Now that was entirely unexpected, and I loved it. For me, that ending made up for any minor criticisms I may have had along the way.

If you like historical fantasy, particularly inspired by Chinese legends, and you like YA romantasy, check this one out.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an early copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion!

i was NOT prepared for that ending...
like WHAT?!?!? why ann liang?!??!
i have actually not read a bad ann liang book, and i've read all of them now (if you could see the sun, this time its real, i hope this doesn't find you, i am not jessica chen)
she know how to write a perfect book in length, characters, general writing, and making you FEEL THINGS
i always love the chinese connections
and how can she write every genre so well
if you want a sad, historical fantasy, inspired by old chinese legend, beautiful characters and so much more, this book is definitely for you
i honestly don't know what else to say except read this when it comes out, as well as, ALL of ann liangs other books!
i loved absolutely everything about this

I loved this. Let me start by talking about the romance. A love triangle. Normally I'm not into this. It feels overdone and not unique anymore but this one really worked for me. The writing in this book is so good. The characters feel real. The ending was just ugh. I cried a lot.