Xishi's beauty is seen as a blessing to the villagers of Yue - where the best fate for a girl is to marry well and support her family. When Xishi draws the attention of Fanli, the famous young military advisor, he presents her with a rare opportunity: to use her beauty as a weapon; one that could topple the rival neighbouring 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.
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.
Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China, A Song to Drown Rivers is an epic novel steeped in myth about womanhood, war, sacrifice, and love against all odds as the fate of two kingdoms hangs in a delicate balance. Ann Liang is a graduate of the University of Melbourne and author of the critically acclaimed YA novels This Time It's Real and If You Could See the Sun - which won the Readings Young Adult Prize 2023.
Born in Beijing, she grew up traveling back and forth between China and Australia, but somehow ended up with an American accent. When she isn't writing, she can be found making overambitious to-do lists, binge-watching dramas, and having profound conversations with her pet labradoodle about who's a good dog. A sweeping adult historical epic, with a love story for the ages, for fans of ARIADNE by Jennifer Saint and SHE WHO BECAME THE SUN by Shelley Parker-Chan.
