An Echo in the Bone

Where to begin??

For the record, I spent the last...hmm, 4 hours reading this to finish it, when I really should have been doing homework. Oops. But it got to that point where you just have to find out how it ends - the point of no return, shall we call it. Once that jerk took Jem, that was it for me. I looked at the clock, and said "Screw it."

Speaking of Jem, that means that Roger has gone back for no reason at all, and has no way of knowing this unless Brianna (who else?) goes back as well to tell him! If something happens to Roger after all of this, I will be very upset - though I don't think Diana would do it. Speaking of this whole situation, the guy's last name is Cameron, which I totally didn't catch on to until I saw his name show more again when he showed up in the study. So I'm thinking he's a descendant of Jocasta (and also related to Bree?), knows about the gold and recognized it for what it was, and now wants to claim it again. I knew he was up to no good with Roger's book.

I'd accidentally seen a bit of a review earlier that was upset about the cliffhanger ending. For a good 30 pages or so I was absolutely terrified that this one would end with Claire still thinking Jamie was dead, and I really don't think I could have dealt with that for the next however many years until book 8! Not that they got much of a reunion, and Jamie certainly isn't out of the woods yet, but at least they can both live (relatively) happily in my mind until then!

I wasn't terribly interested in the adventures of Willie and Lord John throughout the book though - at least until they became intertwined with Jamie & Claire's story, which I knew they would be eventually. I was always happy to see that the next chapter was about Jamie & Claire or Brianna & Roger.

It really is the characters that make these books though. When I sat down to start this book, it was so nice to reacquaint myself with them, and read about them again. They truly do become like old friends, and I realized (while fuming that Claire might not find out about Jamie, etc.) how desperately I wanted them to be happy. I know it will be a while until I can visit them again (unless I reread the series, which I very well might - at least the first!), but I do look forward to it! show less

An Echo in the Bone is the seventh volume in Diana Gabaldon’s epic Outlander series, and things change up a bit in this book. While there have been other POVs outside of Claire’s and Jamie’s in the past few books, I believe they were limited to Bree’s, Roger’s and Ian’s. With this volume, we have all of those and the addition of a few more, giving the narrative the feel of an ensemble cast. It also takes place in two different time lines, with Bree and Roger having returned to the future and living in 1980, while Claire, Jamie, and the rest are still in the late 1700s, during the American Revolution. There is also action on two different continents, with most of the story taking place in the Colonies, but Claire and Jamie show more eventually return to Scotland, and some characters, including Jamie and Lord John, make trips to France as well. It all definitely keeps the reader on their toes, and I advise paying close attention to the dates in the chapter headings because things tend to jump around a bit. I had no trouble following along, through, and most seasoned Outlander readers shouldn’t either, but I can see how it could get a bit confusing at times. For me, I loved it all and found it very exciting.

Claire and Jamie have always been and will always be the backbone of this series. They’re beginning to age, though not enough yet to truly slow them down much. Claire is still the spitfire heroine we’ve known since the start of the series, just with more gray hair.:-) She’s the consummate, caring doctor, providing advanced medical knowledge to save lives in a variety of circumstances. Jamie is the born leader and warrior, fighting battles on whatever front he finds himself. After surviving the destruction of their home on Fraser’s Ridge, they make the decision to return to Scotland to finally take Ian home to his family after so many years apart and to retrieve the printing press that Jamie left behind so that he can be a warrior of a different sort, taking up the pen instead of the sword. They made this choice, in part, because with Claire’s knowledge of the future, Jamie refuses to fight on the losing side in the Revolution, but to fight for the Americans might mean facing-off against his own son, who is now a British soldier, across a battlefield, a risk he’s not willing to take. However, their plans go awry when the ship they’re sailing on is taken by the British who attempt to press Jamie and Ian into service. By committing piracy, they manage to get back on the winning side, but only if Jamie agrees to serve in the Continental Army for a short time. This leads to all sorts of Revolutionary War misadventures before he and Claire finally reach their goal. But then some shocking things occur in the final chapters, which could put their relationship in jeopardy moving forward. Jamie and Claire are the perfect couple who’ve seen each other through thick and thin. I don’t think I’ve ever read a more well-matched, made-for-each-other pair than they are, and I have no doubt that their love will last for eternity. I would follow these two anywhere and into any circumstances just to read more about them.

As I mentioned before, Bree and Roger went back to the future at the end of the previous book to seek life-saving medical treatment for little Mandy. Having purchased Lallybroch, they’re now trying to build a new life for themselves and their children in 1980. Bree starts a challenging new job in a man’s world, working at the local hydro-electric plant, while Roger struggles with deciding whether he’s still meant to be a minister. Meanwhile, their children, Jem and Mandy, try to adjust to life in a different century. At the end of the last book, Bree and Roger discovered a box of old letters that her parents left for them to let them know what happened after they went back through the stones, which they begin to read as a way of reconnecting with the past. However, their seemingly idyllic new life is thrown into disarray when an unexpected visitor shows up, and before they can even recover from that, the stolen Jacobite gold comes back to haunt them in a shocking twist. Bree and Roger are almost equally as well-matched as Jamie and Claire. They experience their ups and downs, but they always seem to find their way back to each other. Their part of the story is pretty much left on a cliff-hanger which I very much look forward to hopefully seeing resolved in the next book.

Ian gets some scenes of his own as he finds himself the target of a vengeful Arch Bug after unintentionally killing someone close to the man. He also wrestles with his divorce from Emily and their seeming inability to have a child. While doing so, he meets up with William and shares an unexpected friendship of a sort with him that keeps popping up throughout the story. Ian finds new love with a young Quaker woman but doesn’t know if his feelings are reciprocated. He also finally makes it home to Scotland and his family but despite being glad to see them again after so many years, he finds himself restless to get back to America, which somehow feels more like home now. Ian is a warrior just like his Uncle Jamie, and they’re like two peas in a pod. Where one goes, the other one can usually be found, because they’re as close as father and son. I was happy to see him finally find someone who holds the promise of a great love for him and hope to see the fruition of their relationship in the next book. Ian definitely deserves it after all that he’s been through.

Jamie’s son, William, gets a number of his own scenes for the first time in the series. He’s a relatively new officer in the British army and eager to fight with them to put down the revolution. However, with his seeming penchant for getting lost, it takes a while before he sees any real action. That doesn’t stop him from getting himself hurt, though, and on one of these occasions, he encounters Ian, a man he doesn’t know is really his cousin. William rather grudgingly likes Ian, and the two form a strange bond that brings them together time and time again. Not only do they share some misadventures, but they also share tender feelings for the same woman, which I hope doesn’t lead to any major conflicts for them in the future, as I think they have the potential to become genuine friends. I loved finally getting to see more of William. It was fun to explore all the physical similarities, as well as the little quirks that he shares with Jamie, despite not knowing who his true father is. At only twenty years old, he’s still young and occasionally a bit foolish, but at the same time, he’s an honorable man and a true warrior, just like both his fathers. I can’t wait to see more of him in future installments.

Then there’s Lord John, and I believe this marks the first time he’s gotten his own scenes in an Outlander novel. Reading these parts was kind of like reading a mini-Lord John story, and as an aside, I’m quite happy I’d read his series before getting to this book. I highly recommend it, because some characters from that series show up in this volume. After an encounter with Percy, his step-brother and former lover, John must return to England and eventually France to investigate some possible spies. While in England, he visits his brother, Hal, whose health is rather poor, and agrees to take his niece, Dottie, to America, ostensibly to marry William. Once back in the Colonies, he sets about getting the best medical care he can for his nephew, another soldier, who was badly wounded and is slowly dying. This eventually brings him into Claire’s sphere again, where some truly shocking things happen between them. I really enjoyed getting a Lord John story in the midst of an Outlander story. I must admit to being blown away by the things that occur and I’ll be very interested to see how this all sorts out.

The final character who gets some of her own POV scenes is Rachel, a young Quaker woman, who along with her brother Denny, are brand new to the series. Denny is a doctor – and a bloody good one, which is rare for the time – who has a surprising connection with another character in the book. Ian brings an injured William to Denny for help and in the process the two young men find themselves falling in love with Rachel, who is not only Denny’s sister, but also his nurse. I really loved getting to know these two characters. As Quakers, it isn’t surprising that they’re both kind and gentle souls but they each have an underlying touch of steel. I’d be thrilled to see Rachel with either Ian or William, though I think she’s already made her choice. It’s just a matter of whether her faith will allow her to be with either of them because of their violent, warrior natures. I was also pleased with where things went for Denny who has a loose connection to the Lord John series. I very much look forward to seeing more of these two in the future.

Overall, An Echo in the Bone was yet another excellent installment of this epic romantic series. It was a little slow at the beginning, but as the story progresses, it builds very nicely. As always, no detail of these stories is a throwaway. Every one is typically the start of a breadcrumb trail that leads to some greater moment later on. It’s also fun to see characters who maybe haven’t been on the canvas in a while pop up again. It never ceases to amaze me how Diana Gabaldon deftly weaves everything together into a cohesive whole, especially with so many characters in different places and time lines. There are also a number of real-life characters of the American Revolution included, which was exciting. Readers will say a teary farewell to one long-time character as well. But perhaps best of all, the slow build-up led to a number of truly jaw-dropping moments toward the end with lots of tantalizing little threads left hanging to tease the reader into the next book. I think this may be the most cliff-hangery book of the series thus far, outside of Dragonfly in Amber, and I’m already chomping at the bit to read Written in My Own Heart’s Blood, the next volume. show less

After seven books, thousands of pages, and hundreds of audiobook hours, anyone reading or listening to An Echo in the Bone soon realizes that the Outlander series just is not what it started out to be. Gone are the witty dialogue, sensual and heart-melting romantic scenes, and fast-paced, thrilling narrative that made the first book so exciting. Instead, one is left with a plodding story, a hugely inflated cast of characters, horrifying descriptions, and sex scenes that are more about scratching an itch than an expression of love. It is a sad state of affairs indeed.

Making matters worse, Jamie and Claire are no longer the central characters of the story. In fact, readers see more of Willie, Young Ian, Lord John, Bree, and Roger than show more they see of Jamie and/or Claire. It is a shift in focus that may not sit well with fans, as Jamie and Claire are the Outlander series in ways none of the other characters will ever be. Given how many words Ms. Gabaldon devotes to the creaking or aching of their bones, the greying of their hair, and the like, one gets the distinct impression that she is trying to pave the way for the next generation of Frasers, McKenzies, and Murrays to take over the story. It will be interesting to see if that is indeed the case, or if she will end the series upon either Jamie’s or Claire’s death. Of even more importance is whether fans will also follow the next generation or will end their following with Jamie and Claire.

Causing further injury to the series are the poor writing, the excessive melodrama, and the pedantic pacing of the story. Ms. Gabaldon’s reliance on metaphors and similes for descriptions is tedious, while the metaphors and similes she uses are absolutely cringe-inducing and, most of the time, highly inappropriate for the scene being described. She uses these devices so often that a reader begins to dread any descriptive passage in fear of the next horrible metaphor she presents.

There has always been a high level of melodrama in each of these stories, but An Echo in the Bone seems to take it to whole new levels. The last 100-200 pages, or two hours on the audiobook, are particularly bad as Ms. Gabaldon rushes to create cliffhangers for each of her characters and set up interest in yet another Outlander book. The situations are somewhat predictable and mostly comical and just plain weird. If anything, they are good for a good eye roll and snicker of amusement.

Other than the last 100-200 pages, the rest of the story is agonizingly slow and anti-climactic, a trend that first appeared in book four. The story meanders from North Carolina to the high seas to New York, Quebec, Scotland, Paris, and back again, following one character and then another. None of what occurs in the middle of the story has any bearing on the ambiguous last scenes for each character, so it is not as if Ms. Gabaldon were building up to a big finish. Rather, the middle sections feel like exactly what they are – fillers and a chance for readers to get to better know the characters other than Jamie and Claire. One could almost read the first and last 100-200 pages and skip the rest without losing too much or becoming lost. In a novel that is well over 1000 pages, or 46 hours, that is just too much filler.

Of course, Davina Porter remains an outstanding narrator and one of the sole reasons to continue this series. Her performance is spectacular, especially as her voices never change from book to book, and her approach to the narration is conversational in tone. She makes it so easy to forget that she is performing a two-dimensional story. One just wishes she had better material with which to work.

Unfortunately, the multiple endings of An Echo in the Bone make it impossible for long-time readers to obtain the closure they seek. Multiple cliffhangers and open-ended plot lines for all of the major characters mean that their unknown fates will entice readers to continue with the series no matter how readers feel about it. After seven books, fans want to know whether their favorites will live happily ever after, and Ms. Gabaldon makes that impossible with the way she set up the ending. If she used most of the novel to build up for the next book, then a reader might be more excited about continuing. As it stands, fans know they will get answers to the cliffhangers, and the rest of the next story is a complete guess. One can only hope that book eight will finally end this long-winded series and give fans the closure they deserve. show less

Summary: The American Revolution is in full swing, and while its effects haven't quite reached to Fraser's Ridge yet, Claire and Jamie know what's coming. They decide to return to Scotland to get Jamie's printing press, and help the war effort that way, as Jamie's feeling a bit to old to be a regular soldier... plus he does not want to run the risk of facing William, his illegitimate son who is now an officer in the British Navy, across the lines of battle. But of course, nothing in Jamie and Claire's life ever runs according to plan, and they must face press gangs, murderous sea captains, Indians, British troops, blackmailers, supply shortages, medical emergencies, treason, old foes, and new complications before they can face down the show more spectres of the past and finally begin to realize the future that Claire knows is coming.

Oh, also, Brianna and Roger are readjusting to life in the 1980s, and realizing that history may be more malleable than they'd previously thought.

Review: I read in an interview somewhere that Gabaldon wants to continue the Outlander series until 1800. At the time, I dismissed that as flatly impossible... 1800 would make Jamie and Claire pushing ninety, which seems remarkably unlikely, even given Claire's medical training and knowledge of nutrition. In An Echo in the Bone, however, it becomes clear for the first time how Gabaldon means to shift her focus to the next generation. Brianna, Roger, Young Ian, and William take much more of the spotlight in this book, and while the book still resolves around the Jamie and Claire - who, let's be honest, are the characters that everyone loves, and the reason most of us keep reading - it's clear that the torch is preparing to be passed.

Jamie and Claire aren't going to fade into the background just yet, however; they're both still healthy and spry and getting into all sorts of trouble, and still going at it like randy teenagers whenever the opportunity presents itself (I will admit to mentally editing them back down to their Outlander-era ages whenever they were Doin' It. Plus, there was a rather lengthy discussion on the frequency of red vs. gray hairs above vs. below Jamie's neck that I just really, really didn't need. Aaanyways.) Gabaldon's characters really do feel like family, and while not every episode leads somewhere that advances the plot, almost all of the chapters feel like spending time with old friends.

The exception was William. While we've spent plenty of time with young Ian, and Brianna and Roger, and thus love them (almost) as much as we do Jamie and Claire, this is the first we've really seen of William as an adult... and we get a lot of his POV chapters, and man alive, did I find them dull. This was also the first time where Gabaldon assumed that her Outlander readers had also read the Lord John books... which I haven't, and as a consequence, I was almost completely lost for most of Lord John's POV chapters.

Other than that, though, this book ticked along nicely, with plenty of action, plenty of humor, and more than once where it managed to wring real tears out of my cold dead heart. It's got all of the things that I love about this series, plus it ends with major cliffhangers in just about everyone's storylines, so it's clear that Gabaldon's not done yet. 4 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: Don't start the series here, obviously. But for Outlander fans, this book feels like a return home, as well as a start to plenty of interesting things to come. show less

This is the latest in her series featuring Claire and Jamie. They include the character Lord John, and she's also spun him off into his own series of historical mystery novels. I feel a bit guilty giving the book 5 stars, but I inhaled 800 pages in about 4 days, and that's with consciously slowing myself down to try to make it last. If you're interested in the series, do start with the first one -- Outlander.

The books are set in the mid to late 1700s. Like John MacDonald Fraser's Flashman character, Claire and Jamie's busy lives take them into every major historical event in that period in Scotland and the Americas, plus a bit of France. There's some time travel between the 20th century and the 18th, but the action mostly takes place in show more the past. I wish I could be more analytical as to what I love about them. She makes the historical period feel very real. There are prosaic details, never explained at length, just observed in passing. The characters are well drawn, with both strengths and weaknesses. The plot is always full tilt. The women are every bit as fully realized as characters as the men.

The reason I feel guilty about the 5 stars is that the level of coincidence is absolutely shameless. No one ends up at Culloden, and Valley Forge, and the French court. But damn, it would be interesting (and terrifying) if you did. show less

I'm grateful I didn't read An Echo in the Bone in 2009 when it was published. Five years would've been an excruciating wait for the next book in the Outlander series; the cliffhangers and loose ends are unmatched since Dragonfly in Amber. As it is, I merely have to give myself a little time to decompress before picking up Written in My Own Heart's Blood, which waits on my bookshelves.

Number 7 in the series, An Echo is my favorite so far and the only one I've rated 5 stars. Diana Gabaldon's storytelling powers are magnificent. She has created interesting characters and set them in interesting times. In this case, the interesting times are the American Revolution, which, in this narrative, is largely a civil war as communities and even show more families are divided. [Ms. Gabaldon's portrait of the war may be a more accurate understanding than the prevailing mythology of it as a straight-forward struggle against imperialism.]

Readers who thought the previous three books were a snooze, with too much description of Claire tending her garden or making ether in her home surgery, should enjoy seeing Jamie and Claire back in action and near-constant danger. I found myself wondering, as Claire is about 60 in this book, how she can physically manage so many adventures, but she does reflect on this herself and is keenly appreciative of soft beds and warm fires when she can manage to find them.

The last 200 or so pages of this novel were so gut-wrenching and absorbing that I'll need a few days at least and a couple of buffer books to chill out before the next one, but I know I won't be able to put it off for long. show less

I'm done. That is, I'm finally done with this 800-page tree stump, and I fear I'm also done with this series. Now, I'm normally a dirty-realism kind of reader, and the idea of reading a time-travel romance would normally send me into gales of snobbish laughter. But I picked up Outlander in the days directly following 9/11, having decided that I needed to read something that had nothing to do with anything. To my surprise, I liked it. Appealing protagonist, fascinating historical detail, and good dirty bits as well. I read the books as they came out, and I began to notice a shift in emphasis from the female characters to the males. More war, less physick. (And what is with Gabaldon and her penchant for writing gay male sex scenes???) show more Basically, as the series evolved, it lost what originally attracted me. This book is overlong, overcrowded with people and events, and not likely to gain Gabaldon any new followers. Pity. show less