A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang, 336 pages. St. Martin’s Press, 2024. $32.
Language: PG (5 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: R
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
APPEALS TO: SEVERAL
From a poor family in a kingdom ravaged by war with the Wu, Xishi (20yo) washes raw silk and wishes that she could hold the Wu accountable for their wrongs—especially for the wrongful death of her younger sister. Fanli (22yo), the Yue king’s minister, asks Xishi to be a tribute to the Wu king and a spy for the Yue. In this new battle, Xishi’s overwhelming beauty will be her sword.
Based on Chinese legend, Xishi’s story is hauntingly beautiful. While Xishi is sent to the Wu king as a concubine, there are no vulgar scenes, and it’s even implied that sex is never involved in their relationship. The pressure of Xishi’s situation hangs over readers with little levity to offer contrast, making it hard to put down through to the last page.
The characters are implied Chinese. The mature content rating is for alcohol use, mentions of trafficking, partial nudity, kissing, and innuendo. The violence rating is for assault, blood and gore, mentions of child abuse, corpses, battle scenes, suicide, and murder.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment