Reviews with content warning for Violence - A Song to Drown Rivers

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A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang

50 reviews

libaistan's review against another edition

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adventurous dark sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

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duiel's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

I approached this book as someone who had no familiarity with the story of Xishi, and had never read any of Liang’s books, and in general I enjoyed it.

Starting with the good, Liang made an easy-to-read page turner out of something that could have easily been a slog. Balancing on the inner emotions of the FMC, it did not bog itself down with details. It felt intimate and approachable, and Liang’s writing was pleasant, sensual and lyrical. I gobbled this up in a couple days and couldn’t put it down.

As the book was told in first person and focused mainly on Xishi’s internal struggles, I think that part was quite well done. Her simultaneous

affection and hatred towards the king

felt believable, and the king himself was painted as a complex, interesting character. Simultaneously her

pining for Fanli, her torn loyalty and internal realization st the end of the book made a poignant, moving read. And gosh, that ending.

Where the book faltered was the plot. Sometimes it felt like Liang had to get from point A to point B, but didn’t have any clever ideas, so that plot points often felt forced, handwaved, or sometimes downright unconvincing. There were weird romantic cliches and deus ex machina. Liang’s strengths are obviously with the internal rather than the external workings of the narrative.

I will also note that this book was marketed as both a romance and a fantasy. I can see why fans of either, and especially fans of both, may be disappointed. While this book does have a romantic focus, it’s both shockingly tame (especially considering the subject matter) and

heart-wrenchingly sad.

There is also very little in the way of fantasy, with no supernatural elements at all until about 95% of the way through the book.

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kbrinkman25's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I was frustrated by this book because the sense of timing and investment in characters just seemed off. Maybe the timing was deliberate, as in Xishi is a legend because she was able to entirely retrain her mind, manners, and facial expressions in a little more than two months. But the writing seems to invite you to see Xishi as a whole, flawed, relatable person in spite of her beauty. So is she a superhuman legend, or a regular person in extraordinary circumstances? I'm not sure.

All of Xishi's relationships were also hard to believe because we didn't spend enough time with them. (Spoilers ahead)

Zhengdan seemed set up to be her best friend within the Wu palace,
but she did not do much and then she died in an incredibly anticlimactic way.
Every ally she made in the Wu palace seemed very ill thought out. Counting on the loyalty of people you hardly know,
let alone who tried to poison you,
seems like the naive thinking of someone who only received ten weeks of training.
Then again, they all did exactly as she wanted them to with an astonishing lack or suspicion.
Fanli is tricky because he did seem like a somewhat fleshed out character, just one we spent no time with.

There were a lot of elements to explore in this story about loyalty, war, suffering, and love. For me it boiled down to a lack of space to give all of those elements the nuance they deserved. But I was genuinely surprised by the ending and thought it was done well, so I'm willing to see where this author goes in the future!

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kelseymck's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

I had to take a long pause when it ended to appreciate the beauty of this book. Without ever saying it outright, the author made such a poignant statement about the nature of war and how humanity is far too complex to ever be reduced to such a black and white us-versus-them mentality. It was masterfully done.
Also the tragedy of the love story was a deep ache I felt down to my marrow. A book that can elicit that response - chef’s kiss.

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mamaninja06's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced

5.0

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okiecozyreader's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious reflective fast-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

Fabled bookstore in Waco chose this for their February bookclub pick, and of course, it was a Good Morning America pick.

I’m not a fantasy reader, but this book really captured my attention at the beginning. The audio by Natalie Naudus was so well done. Set in ancient China, inspired by the legend of four beauties. She is recruited to be a concubine for a king to serve as a spy for her kingdom. Apparently, these kingdoms are real, and parts of the story are true Chinese history and some of it is legend.

Once she starts training and goes to the king, it kind of slows down in parts to me, but her relationship with the king was intriguing. I loved this strong female character.

“When men say they want a lover, what they often mean is they want a mirror; they wish to see themselves reflected back at them in the best light.” Ch 6

“Before I made him love me, I needed to make him remember me.” Ch 11

“Be beautiful, be charming, be the most coveted girl in the room, or else you will be nothing. For men, it was so easy; the path to power was so direct. But we had to manipulate and maneuver and claw our way to gain half of what they did.” Ch 14

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starrdragon's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

That was incredible. I’m shook at the ending. I loved this story for its prose.
Just to get it off my chest, this is not history; yet the retelling of the legend of Xishi.
The way this story is told… it’s just *chefs kiss* beautiful. So romantically tragic, all the way through. I cried when the mission came to an end. I don’t have the words to express how much I loved this story.

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lttlrureads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I liked portions of this book but the more I think of it, I felt like the ending was rushed and the main character wasn’t very complex or developed.

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crayolabird's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No

2.5

Xishi's life has been scarred by war. Even in her tiny riverside village, her losses have been heartbreaking. The fact that she has a beauty that is unmatched hasn't taken the edge off of the pain she's felt. So when Xishi is given an opportunity to exact revenge on the kindgom that wreaked such destruction, she is willing, even if that means becoming an infiltrator and a spy as a concubine in an enemy palace.

This retelling of a Chinese legend sounded super promising - and I am glad that I at least have the idea of Xishi in my mind. But I wonder if the "real" Xishi was a more complex character than the one here in this book. Her dialogue often came off as rather simpering, even when she is supposedly with her true love, the man who recruited her to be a spy in the first place. The entire weird love triangle situation here didn't particularly work for me - the king that Xishi is seducing is a one dimensional fop with a brutally violent streak, so it was hard for me to ever really either his or Xishi's emotions when it came to "romance."

I think I just had to suspend my disbelief too many times. Too many questions popped into my head while I was reading that didn't get answered, leaving plot holes that frustrated me. At the same time, I did want to finish it - so I think that even beyond this, I did still want to know how it ended. Of course, I didn't particularly love the ending either, so. There you go. 2.5 stars rounded up to three for being interesting enough to keep me reading until the end and for introducing me to a Chinese legend.

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fantasy_voyager98's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is my first read for 2025,and I absolutely loved this beautiful forbidden romance story.💙✨️
Mrs.Liang's writing style is poetically beautiful,and is truly memorable from start to finish.

The history throughout the story is very organized,and informative. Mrs.Liang's natural talent for storytelling truly shines in the best way,and I truly felt how much she loved writing this amazing retelling for one of the "Four Great Beauties" from Chinese history.

The forbidden romance throughout the story is beautiful,and bittersweet. The fmc,and the mmc are both strong because the love they have for one another never stopped it only grew as time went on.

The plot twist at the end of the story I definitely was not expecting,and I still remember that one moment that made me cry.😭

A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang is perfect for reader's who love:

1.Forbidden romance
2.Fierce warrior Mulan vibes
3.Found family
4.Womanhood
5.Stunning world-building
6.Love against all odds
7.Strong,and clever fmc

This is my first book from Mrs.Liang,and i will definitely be reading more stories from her.✨️

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