The Echo She Left Behind

This is a fast, pleasant, and enjoyable read. Unlike many timeslip novels, Vargas—and thus the novel's main character—isn't interested in why she ended up in a timeslip to begin with, and so the narrative devotes no effort to explaining that point, a choice that I actually found refreshing. That said, at 110 pages, The Echo She Left Behind is too short for the narrative to delve into its many more interesting elements: how the main character learns to adapt to living in the past; how the past society in which she finds herself learns to adapt to her alien and perplexing modern attitudes and behaviors; how her echoes reverberate through the generations to the book's conclusion. We get hints of these things but I wanted more, and I show more would be quite happy if Vargas one day expanded this book into a full-length novel. show less

I enjoyed The Echo She Left Behind. It isn’t a genre I normally read, but it’s a great story that draws you in and has a thoughtful coming-of-age thread about discovering who you really are. It’s the kind of book that’s easy to sink into.

The mix of time travel and historical fiction works really well. Meigan is easy to connect with, and it was fun watching her grow and discover more about herself. Her story unfolds at a nice pace and builds to satisfying ending.

If you want a quick, creative read that feels adventurous and heartfelt, this one is worth picking up.

I received a LibraryThing Early Reviewer copy.