Diana Gabaldon's An Echo in the Bone has all the makings of what will surely become an epic--battles, revolution, life-changing experiences, death, treason, spies, sex, and more. This mighty tome continues the story of Jamie and Claire Fraser, soul mates who have a way of always getting into trouble.

The American Revolution is underway and Jamie and Claire are inadvertently drawn into the maelstrom. Continuing the story where A Breath of Snow and Ashes left off, fans of the series will be pleased to find that Jamie and Claire are not ready to settle down just yet. The same can be said for Bree and Roger, whose trip through the stones left more than memories of the past.

The story is rich and complex, introducing new characters and reintroducing others from earlier in the series. This being book 7, it's quite a cast. As always, Gabaldon's narrative is incredibly detailed and thoroughly researched, from descriptions of the harsh realities of life on the battlefront to eerily clinical specifics on the practice of field surgery.

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Outlander is one of my favorite series, so I was clamoring to read this book. Though I loved it in the end, it took me a few chapters to really get into it. Claire and Jamie are wonderful as ever, but there are a lot of characters in this book and the narrative shifts to present different points of view (more so than it does in most of the other books in the series). There are at least 5 major narratives in the novel--Jamie and Claire's, Bree and Roger's, Ian's, William's, and Lord John's--and numerous subplots. I wasn't very engaged in William's story at first, I kept wanting to skip past it and move on, but it grew on me. My only peeve was that the ending felt like a tease. Snow and Ashes offered some sense of closure--it offered the possibility of more, but it had a definite end. Echo just leaves you wanting more. I finished it and thought, "This can't be it? Author's Notes? What do you mean Author's Notes? What happened to Jem?!?!" Obviously, I can't wait for the next book!

Gricel @ things-she-read.org ( )

I warn the reader that my comments may contain spoilers, though I will attempt to remain obtuse. As always, I felt right at home holding the massive weight of a long-awaited Gabaldon tome in my hands as I was again transported and mesmerized. No one else can write such a seductive and gripping Romance/Historical/Adventure/Mystery/Suspense/Science Fiction novel. It was a pleasure being reunited with old friends as they are revisited and interact with each other in new and often implausible ways.

Arch Bugg’s transition into the demented monster he became, was a compelling twist to the tale. William’s development into adulthood and transition into his father’s image was also pleasurable. His explosive scene as Claire reveals the sorted truths of his birthright was summed up quite nicely by Jenny Frasier Murray’s quote, “Like father, like son, I see, God help us all!” The new characters, particularly the Hunters; the Quaker siblings, were also a welcomed addition.

I enjoyed the intertwining of the four main storylines, and the ease with which we are transported back and forth from the 20th to the 18th centuries. The clever inter-century communications via the letters and books written by Clare and Jamie kept the ties with their transported families current.

The degree of coincidence in the many circumstances which were constantly thrusting character together in an unlikely manner was often distracting and a bit over the top. But, I suppose we let that slide in the name of spinning a delightful yarn. Claire’s second level of bigamy was also a bit hard to swallow. And the sex scenes with her new hubby were kinky to say the least! Still, they were warm, loving and understandable.

I am, of course looking forward to the next installment in the series due to the plethora of cliff hangers that were left. I would prefer to see an updating or addition to “The Outlandish Companion” first. A handy reference guide with brief bios, storyline summaries, family trees and definitions would be most a welcome reading tool! ( )

If you haven't read either this book or the rest of the series, be forewarned that there will be some brief spoilers ahead. Don't say I didn't warn you . . .

Though An Echo In The Bone might not be my favorite installment in this series, there really is a lot to love about this book. I enjoyed the various mediums that were used to progress the storyline in addition to the prose, such as the letters Bree and company receive from Jamie and Claire. Both of their voices are so vividly crafted that I can easily imagine them with their quills in hand, faithfully recording their daily encounters for their beloved children and grandchildren.

I admit that I haven't always liked Bree much in the past (I found her tongue a bit too sharp at times, without enough kindness to balance it out), but she did grow on me this time around. I love how she wrangled her way into a job position that her prospective employer felt unsuitable for a woman. She reminded me an awful lot of her smooth-talking father in that instance.

Many authors, unless they write for young people (and sometimes even if they do), struggle with making believable characters out of children, but that is not the case with Gabaldon. I loved seeing more of Jem and was highly amused by his encounters with a rat at school and speaking Gaidhlig to his teacher. I also adored Mandy (she's a 'feisty wee baggage," as Jamie puts it).

We also get to see more of Young Ian, which I loved, since he has always been one of my favorite supporting characters. Through him and Jamie's son, William, we get to meet the delightful Hunter siblings, Denny and Rachel. I thought the pair of them were a great addition to the ever-increasing cast of characters.

The latter, however, leads me to the downfalls of this book. It seemed there were so many storylines going on and so many new characters that I found it hard to keep track of them all (who was that Richardson guy again, and what does he have against half of the characters in the book?). I, like most readers, I am sure, am mostly concerned with Jamie and Claire and found myself skipping over great chunks of the book just to see how they were doing the first time around. I confess that I did not read at all about Lord John Gray or William my first run through of the book, though I did the second time and did find myself entertained by the pair of them.

There were also events in the novel that I thought way too much of a coincidence. I thought it highly unlikely that William would be wandering around injured in the middle of Nowheresville, Virginia being chased by random Indians and Ian would just happen to stumble upon him and save him. I was willing to forgive Gabaldon for that because I did enjoy their interaction there and throughout the novel. Suspension of belief at its finest, I suppose.

Other reviewers have also stated that their frustration over the plot of this book not playing out like that of a typical novel, with a distinct beginning, middle, and end, and resolution of conflicts. Like these readers, I was a bit peeved by the cliffhangers present in every storyline at the end of the book, but I found I could handle this if I thought of the book as section of pages that has fallen out of a diary. The characters have recorded their thoughts and actions over an action-packed time period and we'll get to hear about what has happened to them next when we manage to find the rest of said diary (er, when Gabaldon gets around to publishing the next installment however many years down the road).

For these reasons, I couldn't give An Echo In The Bone a full five stars, but I certainly did enjoy it despite these faults. If one doesn't get bent out of shape over these things, I think they will find reading this book as rewarding an experience as I did.

Review cross-posted at http://readingisgoodforyou.wordpress.... ( )

Gabaldon is expanding the story in this installment, adding a lot more narrative about Jamie's son (the echo in the bone), and goes into a lot of detail about Revolutionary war battles and strategy. I have to admit, this book (which I was so looking forward to) disappointed me to a degree. It moves the plot forward, but has no really satisfying conclusion of any plot line within this novel. It feels very "to be continued..." Dang it!
I also have to say it reminds me of any given episode of "24'...every journey goes awry-ships sink or are attacked, it just feels frantic and overwrought at times. (I don't watch 24 anymore, either) I look forward to the next novel, and hope it will be a more rewarding read--this is such a wonderful series and Gabaldon is a gifted writer! ( )

The most recent edition in Gabladon's Outlander series with Claire Fraser having traveled, through standing stones in Scotland, from the 20th century to the 18th. The time is 1776 and the Frasers are in North Carolina about to get mixed up with the intrigues of the American Revolution. Gabaldon tells a wonderful story. Claire and Jamie Fraser are great characters and this novel one of her best. ( )