A Song to Drown Rivers

''Exquisite and devastating. It won''t fail to move you'' - Shelley Parker-Chan, author of She Who Became the Sun 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 as the fate of two kingdoms hangs in a delicate balance. 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 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. 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; she knows she can never let her guard down. But the higher Xishi climbs in the Wu court, the further she and Fanli have to fall - and if she is unmasked as a traitor, she will bring both kingdoms down. ''Stunning and heart-rending'' - Chloe Gong, author of Immortal Longings

Auteur
Ann Liang is the New York Times and Indie bestselling author of the critically acclaimed YA novels This Time It's Real, If You Could See the Sun and I Hope This Doesn't Find You. Her books have sold into over twenty foreign territories. Born in Beijing, she grew up traveling back and forth between China and Australia, but somehow ended up with an American accent. She now lives in Melbourne, where she can be found making overambitious to-do lists and having profound conversations with her pet labradoodle about who's a good dog. A Song to Drown Rivers is her adult historical debut.

Texte du rabat

Inspired by Chinese mythology, She Who Became the Sun meets Daughter of the Moon Goddess in this sweeping adult historical epic with a love story for the ages.

Résumé

'Exquisite and devastating. It won't fail to move you' ­ Shelley Parker-Chan, author of She Who Became the Sun

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 as the fate of two kingdoms hangs in a delicate balance.

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 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.

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; she knows she can never let her guard down. But the higher Xishi climbs in the Wu court, the further she and Fanli have to fall and if she is unmasked as a traitor, she will bring both kingdoms down.

'An elegant historical epic' Samantha Shannon, author of The Priory of the Orange Tree

'Stunning and heart-rending' Chloe Gong, author of Immortal Longings