Rating - 4.5⭐️

Ann Liang strikes again!!
Historical romance isn’t my usual genre but I ended up enjoying this book SO MUCH MORE than I thought I would!!! Ann Liang is such a talented writer and I don’t know how else to show my adoration for the books she’s written into existence🙇‍♀️.

Ann Liang’s writing style shines through with all her novels including this one. There’s something so hypnotic about her writing that leaves me unaware that I’ve read a majority of the book already until I’ve reached near the end. The setting was so atmospheric that I felt like I was truly inside the world she has written. The book also had a very romantic and yet, a tragic feel to it that I was so in awe of.

The characters!!! I adore them!! Fanli, Fuchai and Xishi my fav trio🤗 they were all emotionally complex characters and I especially have a soft spot for Fuchai🫶🏻 (I’m sorry but they can never make me hate you😭). Xishi was such a strong and determined character and I loved seeing all her schemes play out. Even till the very end, she never lost her spark. I want to comfort Fanli and give him a big hug because he’s so precious and I feel for you bro!!😭😭😭

This book turned me into a sobbing mess and every time I think about this book, tears automatically surfaces and threaten to spill from my eyes. Ann Liang, you have once again written a book that left its mark on my mind and soul. This is a story (and legend) I will never forget.

𝗔 𝗦𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗼 𝗗𝗿𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗥𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀 • 𝗔𝗻𝗻 𝗟𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗴
★★★★.𝟱

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗧𝗼 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁
- Fantasy
- Inspired by Asian mythology
- Forbidden love
- Political court intrigue
- Tragic romance

𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
I genuinely cannot stop thinking about this book. That ending was so powerful. The title to this book is so ironic since after reading this book, my river of tears and extensive sobbing could have drowned a small country.

I was so tense this whole book! The relationships are so multilayered and easy to invest in. There is a thread of sadness throughout the book which sets the tone perfectly for the plot. This book demonstrates how two men with too much power can destroy a world. And how particularly women are caught in the crossfire.

𝗤𝘂𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀
“𝘐𝘯 𝘢 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘪𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘥𝘦𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘺.”

“𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘣𝘭𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦𝘯? 𝘞𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘨𝘰𝘢𝘵𝘴.”

“𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘦𝘹𝘪𝘴𝘵, 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘸𝘢𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘺𝘵𝘩.”

Firstly, Gorgeous cover! Love it.
I’ve heard of the author before but never read of any her work, so was excited to get my hands on this one.
I found the story itself interesting and the author brought it to life beautifully. There did seem to be more attention to the scene setting and world building more than there was to character development.
This doesn’t bother me as much as I see that it’s has others, due to the fact that the author has a wonderful writing style and attention to detail. In the whole, it balances out into a good solid read.
I’m definitely going to go and read the author’s back catalogue after the one. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

This is one of my favourite books that I read this year. I loved all the characters and the ending was not expected. I wish there was a second book but I guess that's not possible. I can't wait for my deluxe edition to arrive. I will not say more words about it just read it.

🏞ꪖ ડꪮꪀᧁ 𝕥ꪮ ᦔ𝕣ꪮ᭙ꪀ 𝕣ⅈꪜꫀ𝕣ડ🏞
@annliangwrites

I read this book on the flight home from Rome last week and omg it was absolutely fantastic!

we follow Xishi as she is offered a rare opportunity by a famous military advisor; use her famed beauty to infiltrate the palace of the enemy king and weaken his reign from within. she is impeccably trained by Fanli the mysterious, reclusive military advisor, and despite all her reservations finds herself drawn to him beyond all sense.

I absolutely loved this book; yet again based on a myth/legend I'd never heard of before! it was incredibly enthralling read with captivating characters and worldbuilding; filled with rich description and details.
I loved how Xishi developed her relationship with her own beauty and how she was able to channel her backstory into determination to fulfill her task to the best of her ability - as well as how the novel examined the stereotypical "role" of a woman, especially in wartime.
I also loved how it realistically depicted how a person's perception of war can be shattered once they're removed from the outskirts of it and dropped right into the fray. It was really interesting to see how Xishis emotions changed and adapted throughout the novel and I really empathised with her near the end.
speaking of the end it absolutely brought me to tears; I wasn't expecting it at all yet it was so so fitting for the overall message of the novel: war is cruel and power will corrupt even the best of men.
I definitely reccomend this book! it comes out on the 3rd of October!

○

thank you to @netgalley for my e-arc 🫶

This has been on my wishlist for so long and so was thrilled when I was sent an early copy.

It is my first of Liang's books, but it sounded so mystical and mysterious and so addictive - and it was.

I don't think I've read any books set in (albeit fictional) Chinese culture, so that was an interesting angle, and it was a nice interlude to the various Christmas books I was reading at the time.

It's hard to classify the genre It is historical, yes - I am unsure of the era but it definitely had this feeling of Chinese legacy to it. But it had action, mystery, subterfuge, family drama, romance; it had a bit of everything but never felt too heavy. It is so addictive that you just want to stay with it.

Xishi is our main character. She's an open book when it comes to her emotions, but at the same time she is closed and secretive, which I know is a paradox but go with it. She's had to learn to hide herself away for her beauty means more than anything else to anyone who meets her. But she is determined and she is willing, and she is grieving. It was fascinating to read her journey, from sometimes timid to strong and powerful. But I think underneath it all, she's always been this strong character, just possibly not in an obvious way. I could see her being looked up to.

We then have two main male characters. Fanli, one of the King's advisors who trains Xishi in everything she needs to know to fool a King. He's mysterious, quiet, and beautiful. But we don't seem much of him, and I'd have quite liked just a little bit more because he was delicious. And then we have King Fuchai. The enemy. I know he's meant to be this big evil character who we all hate but he leapt off the page and I found him charming. Possibly slimy and deceptively charming, but I couldn't help it, the heart wants what it wants.

Ann has really given us a sense of space. From the struggling village of huts trying to build back up after war, to the opulent King's palace to everywhere in between, you can really place yourself anywhere and get a feel for it.

I don't think it's a spoiler to say that the "training" part of the book takes up much of the first half, with the actual task coming in at about 40-45% of the way through. At first I wondered if that was too late, if the first half was too dragged out and the second too rushed, but I surprised myself by just how much I enjoyed the training sections and would have quite easily read a whole book of that. But then the second half was just as good. And so, it almost feels like the first section is too long but I wanted more, and the second section too short and I wanted more. But overall, I loved both halves and I didn't actually feel they were too rushed or drawn out in the end, she's found the right balance of enjoying what is there but wishing it didn't have to end.

Now I know this is a fictional book, and I don't know how much is real or not, but there is so much rich Chinese culture in it, it's glorious and beautiful and eye-opening. I don't know much, if anything, about Chinese culture and so it was interesting to read about that as well as enjoyed it as a novel.

Now that I've finished, I can say it is an utterly fabulous story with fantastic writing. Everything about it is just right. And by the end, I was in tears, it's that beautiful. It will definitely be on my 'Best Books of 2024' list. It is a work of art.

Sadly, this did not work out for me. I attempted to try immersive reading approach with this one by listening to the audiobook and reading the eARC at the same time but it was excruciatingly boring. The narrator had a dull voice too.

A tragic retelling of one of China's renowned Four Beauties, Xishi, that really tugs at the heartstrings!
I was hooked from the first chapter, where you're immediately introduced to key characters and the state of play. Just as Xishi seduces Fuchai, the author seduces the reader with the vibrant, enchanting writing style that really set up each scene vividly. I loved watching Xishi and Fanli fall in love slowly and innocently, but I also felt so much compassion and sympathy for Fuchai by the end of it, despite everything. Darker themes such as the treatment of women in war, hierarchy and servitude, and suicidal honour are all woven through the narrative as catalysts for other events, and it's truly masterfully executed!
The ONLY thing that held me back from giving 5 stars (I rated it as 4.75 stars) was that I wanted more of a build-up between Xishi and Fanli. Their part of the story felt brushed over and unfulfilling, but maybe that was part of the point!
I highly recommend to those who enjoy historical romance, particularly set in China.

A historical novel set in ancient China, based on the legend of the beautiful Xishi. Short and sweet, although fairly bland. Rushed romantic relationships, not much character development or definitely no fantasy elements. Overall just ok.

I really enjoyed this book. Xishi was an interesting protagonist and the conflict of her heart versus her duty was really interesting to read. I also really enjoyed the relationship she has with some of the other characters such as her lady's maid. I will say the pacing was a bit all over the place at points and while I raced through the novel I could see this being an issue for some. It did mean some of the other characters couldn't really be explored such as Fuchai's advisor. We know he was incredibly loyal to his father but it isn't clear WHY. It then meant his character ARC of dealing with Fuchai wasn't as clear as it could be. I would say this does also read more YA than an adult novel which I think could put some readers off as well. Overall though, as someone unfamiliar with the story I had fun with this novel.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC!

Oh My...
FIRSTLY, ANN LIANG HAD HOLD OF MY HEART WITH THIS TALE. It's tragic and gripping and honestly just WOW.

You can expect an epic fantasy, that explores womanhood, beauty, war, sacrifice and love, which will grip you from page one and pull on your heart strings.

Not only is "A Song to Drown Rivers" a captivating read with a exquisite romance, but it's a tale that explores how war effects everything, how kings often fight not for their people but power and how women navigate war, love and sacrifice. It's a tale filled with strong women standing up for what they believe to be right. The espionage and political intrigue was on POINT, the characters were all realistic and complex, the world was well crafted and I know this tale won't leave my mind anytime soon.

Ann Liang has crafted a seamless and beautiful tale, one that gripped both my attention and my heart.

So, I've read Liang's first two books (Her third is sitting on the top of my physical TBR; I promise I'll get to it soon), both of which have been YA. With how much I enjoyed her writing and characters, I thought they would translate well into this book.

I've been wrong about numerous things before, and I will continue to get things wrong.

Despite the depth and lush Liang puts into setting and descriptors, the character building I've come to expect from her has vanished here. We're told who the characters are through Xishi's eyes, but I personally couldn't find much interesting about anyone them beyond what they do/say throughout the story. It doesn't help that Xishi is so mind-numbingly obtuse about Fanli before continuing to pine for this dude after spending two and a half months training with him (They only see each other in person one time while she's in Wu). It's even worse when you consider the training is brushed away in three chapters, leaving all their development and relationship building completely obscured to the reader. I could care less about this romance. Xishi dying and Fanli's mourning of her didn't magically make it better for me.

One thing I will give Liang is the country-girl-turned-spy. Despite me suspending my belief at the timeline, spy Xishi was actually interesting. She had to blackmail fellow concubines, and she actually started to sympathize with Wu's king (Who I didn't find as dynamic as Xishi was, but her sympathizing with her kingdom's number one enemy was in itself pretty intriguing). There were also some hints that Yue weren't any better, that both sides' views of the other were a reflection, but it's not as explored in depth as much as it should.

Overall, this book wasn't for me. It's clear this will touch a lot more people than I, and I wish them all the best for it.

I had high hopes for this following the slew of excitement that surrounded Ann Liang's announcement of an adult romantasy book. Unfortunately, this book fell short on both the above aspects for me.

The world-building was minimal, but more or less sufficient to establish a sort of context for the characters. Context, because I feel that it wasn't enough to really flesh out any background. Unfortunately, with this pegged as "adult romantasy", I expected more in terms of a magic system, or even just any element that could be considered marginally fantastical. This can't even be pegged as an alternate history, but rather, it falls awkwardly in between fantasy and history. All that was present, however, felt more YA than adult, whether in content, characterisation or writing style.

There are a lot of myths surrounding Xishi, and I really appreciated this attempt to humanise her, but it didn't hit for me: descriptions didn't seem to go past her looks, even with her love interest (who was introduced in rather a shallow manner, I felt, albeit at a very opportune juncture), who didn't make much of an impression at all. However much Xishi got in personality, Fanli got even less, simply because of how they seemed to be falling in love with each other, the moment they met. This insta-love trope might have worked out, had they gotten more chances to interact down the line, but instead, Xishi spends her time pining while Fanli is supposedly performing his soldierly missions elsewhere.

The pacing was also a little clunky for me. The story was a slight drag, with Xishi supposedly being the emperor's concubine, but we never had anything in that area that would qualify as "adult" in the least. The book picked up a little toward the last quarter, but with the lack of eventful-ness in the first three quarters, the timeline felt excessively rushed.

I do wish I could have enjoyed this as much as many others seem to. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

unfortunately i ended up dnfing this at 25% - as much as i was excited for the story and to read a retelling of xishi i just could not get into this.

i think it would work well for ya audiences though!

thank you so much to netgalley, the publisher and the author for the arc 🫶🏻

A Song To Drown Rivers was a wild ride.

ASTDR was engaging from start to finish and I respect Liang for the ending she gave but I do think my man Fuchai deserved better.

It read like a YA fictional historical romance to me, and I think it worked as a YA novel but not a an adult novel for that I think more detail could have been added in during the 'battle' scenes - as short as they were, more exploration of the military history/history in general, just something could've elevated the story more. I'm glad that the initial instant love between Fanli and Xishi was developed through her training, that natural progression stopped the romance from being totally insta-love. Although, there was a lot that didn't make sense in some of the actions of the characters that made me think the novel was more YA than Adult. For example, Zhengdan's Inigo Montoya moment going totally against her training. I'm not sure what the fantasy elements were supposed to be if that categorisation referred specifically to the last few pages but I thought it was misleading in that sense. I also like Fuchai and whilst I am aware that ASTDR is inspired by the legend of Xishi, I think Liang could have done something more with his character who was in a way pathetic, perhaps a redemption.

The ending was brave and Liang hit home with the emotional torture I just went though.

Thank you to Ann Liang, Pan Macmillan, Tor and Netgally for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

BOYS WHAT WAS THAT ENDING THIS BOOK WAS PHENOMENAL.
Ok first off i personally loved both Fanli and Fuchai 🫡🫢 soooo whooo do should i chose to love more…. (I haven’t decided yet but if i have to make a guess i think i like Fanli more even though we didnt get to see relationship/romantic Fanli 🫥💔)
SECONDLY WHY DID THEY ALL HAVE TO DIE BROOO MY HEART CANNOT TAKE THIS I WAS SO PREPARED TO SEE XISHI AND FANLI’S FUTURE TOGETHER. FANLI IS TOTALLY A GIRL DAD YOU CANNOT TELL ME HE IS NOT.
THIRD WHY IS THE KING STILL LIVING AND RULING 🤨🤨🤨 BRO NEEDED REVENGE FOR KILLING OUR GIRL LIKE THAT LIKE HOW DARE HE 👿 HE IS THE REASON WE GET TO SEE XISHI AND FANLI’S ENDING HOW DARE HE STEAL OUR FLUFFY ROMCOM SCENES.
NOW DO NOT GET ME STARTED ON THAT PLOT BOYS IT WAS SOOO GOOD. I kept thinking of the other concubines and it was giving the book The Selection and i was so scared that it was going to turn out a disaster like that but my girl Ann Liang just knows how to write a good book just like every other shes written so far shes just a queen.
BACK TO THE PLOT BOYS THAT ENDING I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING I WAS LIKE FANLI’S NOTE IS SO STRANGE THEN BOOM SHES THROWN INTO A RIVER?!? 😨
….Honestly such queen behaviour death like shoutout to xishi for dying in such a dramatic flawless way.

ALSO BIGGGGGGGG SHOUTOUT TO NETGALLEY FOR GIVING ME AN ARC THEY ARE THE REAL ONES HERE THEY JUST KNEW I NEEDED AN ANN LIANG BOOK AND WAS LIKE I GOTCHA🫡😋 (delulu)

OKAY NOW FOR MY FAV QUOTES 😈😈😈
(Only a few since netgalley doesnt have highlighters 😔💔)

Fanli-“i do not need the silk to remember you” she was literally the reason he was sent there 😜 bro was disappointed his secret crush was the girl he was going to have to send away
Fanli - “But what good is the world..if she is gone” (he needs a wee hug fr)
Fuchai - “I dont think I will ever tire of hearing you call me by my name” (Hes so me - A hopeless romantic🥰 )

Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China, A Song to Drown Rivers is an epic historical fantasy about womanhood, war, sacrifice, and love against all odds.
Her beauty hides a deadly purpose.

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.

Thank you NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the ARC.

So. This was most definitely NOT bad by a longshot. As a retelling of the legendary Xishi, it started off unremarkable but decent in the first 20% ... then got MUCH more interesting once she got into the enemy king's palace as a honey trapper, so much so I breezed through that portion quickly ... and then it fell flat hard. The ending left me so dissatisfied; given how Xi Shi's life ended on different accounts, Ann Liang sure picked the most unsatisfactory one. And in a way that robbed her of all agency in life.

You've got such great potential of a honey trap story in Xishi, but it was all rushed, too easy/convenient, far too insufficient palace intrigue, and ultimately felt like one big wasted opportunity. Firstly, it felt too unbelievable that a rural young girl could be trained to be a refined lady skilled in education, the arts, etiquette, and manipulation in all of two and half months. She would be competing with practically a hundred other women who have been groomed for half their lives. At least the original tale of how she took three years was more believable.

Then, what bored me the most was her romance with Fanli, the Yue king's strategist who is the mastermind of the honey trap. Yes, he's handsome and saved her life, but they barely spent enough time developing a proper love story, given that he had to train her in everything and then she's off to carry out her mission. I can somewhat see why Xishi would fall for the first decent man unrelated to her, but Fanli falling *desperately* in love with her felt shoehorned in. I didn't care their romance at all and ended up skimming their scenes. I wanted to read more of Xishi's mission!

The book also did attempt to introduce some moral conflict in Xishi, by having her question that not all of Wu are the enemy like the soldier who murdered her sister and their brutal king. But it all felt like an afterthought and poorly developed. Honestly, while this is marketed as an Adult book, it could've easily been upper YA given how everything felt like a sanitized and simplified tale of what is essentially sexpionage, repackaged for a younger audience. I don't require explicit scenes, but there was not enough cunning or ruthlessness or complexity offered.

While all this sounds like I'm hard on the book, it's because the parts that I DID enjoy felt like it was building up to something great. Xishi's resourcefulness in thwarting a jealous concubine, her strategy to reel in King Fuchai by playing hard-to-get... I wanted more of that, especially when you want me to buy that Fuchai fell in love with her to the point of irrationality.

Lastly, and this is a minor ick ... the book title doesn't make any sense. What song? Xishi doesn't depend on her singing. What rivers is she drowning? There isn't even a made up proverb to allude to that.

DNF after 20%.

The pacing is absolutely insane, you never really stay in.a scene for a while and everything feels extremely rushed. Things just happen without any rhyme or reason but just because the plot needs it to happen.
I basically know nothing about any characters except the FMC and the Love Ineterest are both extremely good looking, the FMC lost her sister and doesnt have a poker-face and the LI is extremely good at everything. They don't really feel like people and the dialogue is very to the point and without much personality in my opinion.
Everything just feels very shallow and while there are a lot of flowery descriptions they too feel empty and like they don't mean anything.

This book will find it's audience in people who enjoy an easy, fast read with nothing much to think about but it's not for me.

I couldn't push myself to read further. Due to a flowery prose and a lacking characterization, I didn't care at all for the protagonist nor the story. The romance was lackluster and there was barely any fantasy element to deserve to be tagged as fantasy. It's a pity that I didn't reach the end, because I know that I would enjoy an anti conventional ending, but I didn't care for the characters.