Book Reviews of An Echo in the Bone (Outlander, Bk 7)

Can't I give more than 5 stars? The entire series is an annual re-read for me (but may need to become bi-annual for me to get anything else read LOL!); therefore, I eagerly awaited this volume. It certainly did not fail me--the many cliffhangers will make it hard to await the next book in the series, but I now believe (personal opinion only) that there will be at least two more books and I say "keep them coming"!

This is no longer Jamie and Claire alone, but as I have grown to love many of the other characters, I want them to appear each volume as appropriate. William is now grown and needs his tale told, as does Young Ian. I didn't stop caring for and wondering about Brianna, Roger and the kids simply because they are no longer at Fraser's Ridge. John's British perspective on the Revolution is invaluable in helping us understand Loyalist versus Patriot philosophy. Fergus and Marsali deserve to remain as active characters, again because we have loved him since he was rescued by Jamie from the brothel all those long years ago.

This is an epic saga full of historical accuracy and enough daily living that I can retreat away--not into a fantasy, never-extant world, but into human history told by a master. She has covered the Stuart Uprising and now much of the American Revolution...please Ms. Gabaldon, let Jamie, Claire, Michael, Jared, Fergus and the rest take us through the French Revolution as well (that should guarantee your fans at least three more volumes in the tale).

Long live Jamie and Claire and their family!

An Echo in the Bone is the seventh book in the popular Outlander saga. By this time in the series, Jamie and Claire Fraser are in their 50's and early 60's - and still as much in love as they ever were. (May I say how refreshing it is to read about an older couple in love and - dare I say it? - still enjoying an active sex life?) The Outlander series is a blend of adventure, historical fiction, romance and time travel. I think that in Echo there is more historical fiction than anything else, but plenty of the other three also. Echo is set in America and Scotland from 1776-1778, so the historical setting in this case is the Revolutionary War - one of my favorite time periods. And there are major characters on both the American and the Britsh sides, so we get to view the war from both sides.

In the first few books in the series (Outlander, Dragonfly in Amber), the story was told in first-person by Claire. And even though Claire and Jamie's story will always be the main theme of these books, by now there are several other major characters and storylines. So in addition to Claire's narrative in this book, we also have three other main POV's (points of view): young Ian's, Roger and Brianna's family, and Lord John and William (the British contingent). I have read some comments that other readers thought there was too many changes in the POV's, but I had absolutely no problem and thought that those other stories needed to be told.

My only critique is that this book ends with a big cliff-hanger. The last 40-50 pages of the book are a roller-coaster ride and then...Boom! (That's a figurative boom, not a literal one). I really wish that the author had wrapped up a few more things and fleshed out those last few pages a little more. And it's probably going to be at least three years until the next book comes out. Argghhhhhhh!

But even having said that, this book still gets a 4.5* rating from me. There simply is no other series (or even a single book) that has ever "pulled me down the rabbit hole" like the Outlander books do - and this book was no exception. It's now two days after I finished Echo, and I'm still suffering from an Outlander hangover and unable to start any other book. I guess that the good thing about a three year wait is that it will give me plenty of time to re-read the entire series again before the next book comes out. Given the fact that they are all big books (700 to 1000 pages), I'll need the entire three years LOL.

Gabaldon continues to expand the length and breadth of her world in this seventh volume of her series, and has no trouble juggling the various story lines to produce a coherent whole that is a delight to explore. Moving back and forth between Jamie and Claire in the 18th century to Roger and Bree in the 20th, she keeps both major and minor story lines moving at a brisk pace. Although the reader may find slight difficulty remembering minor characters when she brings them back (due to the enormity of her work and the plethora of such characters), she does a good job of reminding the reader of their place on her world's stage. It is 1776, and Jamie and Claire are trying to get to Scotland to bring his nephew Ian back to his parents at last after their home on the Ridge burns down, but are caught in the beginnings of the Revolutionary War. Lord John Grey's adopted son William also finds himself in the thick of the war and despite Jamie's determination to avoid conflict in battle with his unknowing offspring who is his spitting image, the author of course manages to cleverly throw them together in tantalizing moments of near recognition. Roger and Bree have settled at Lallybroch after dealing with their daughter Amanda's heart problem, and struggle to find their place back in the modern world. If you haven't yet acquainted yourself with Gabaldon's epic series, no small review can do justice to the scope of her work - READ IT. It kept me up till 2:20 am, terrified she would leave three major cliffhangers, but sighing with relief at the end as she contented herself with only one. Now I find myself in the familiar dismay I feel at the end of every one of her books, realizing I have at least a year, if not more, to wait before I can find out what happens next.

*****SPOILERS POSSIBLE********

I'm sorry as a HUGE fan of Diana and her Outlander series I was extremely disapointed and quite frankly angry once I started to read this book. I read these books because I love the Characters, Jamie, Claire, Brianna and Roger NOT William or John Grey.. if I wanted to read about either of them I would buy and read THOSE books. I have NO interest in those characters what so ever and to push them on us, your very LOYAL readers of this series, is a very BAD call..I am sadly only half way through and I don't suspect I will get much furhter as honeslty I dont' want to.. I don't give a crap about William or John Grey so why are they here messing with the series I have grown to cherish and re-read multiple times??? . While I was sitting there reading and getting more and more annoyed and asking myself where's Jamie and Claire, Where's Brianna and Roger, I found myself skipping whole chapters about characters I didn't care about. I finally went to see what others were saying about the book. When I saw they were on the same page as I was and that there was even worse to come, with an ending that does nothing to tie up any loose ends it is said' I am even more convinced the book is going to sit on the shelf and never get finished. It feels like Diana forgot who these books were even about.. You remember don't you? Jamie Fraser, Claire, their daughter Brianna and her husband Roger??? remember them... perhaps she was advised by her publisher to try to incorporate her "other" stories into this to try to push them on the Jamie and Claire fans. For me it has back fired and basically pissed me off. It was a long long wait for this book and this is what I got.. disapointment and a "Lord John and his guest stars the Frasiers" book

Another page turner from Diana Gabaldon! Jamie and Claire along with Ian and Rollo continue to have their travel plans continually interrupted by the Redcoats, war, pirates, and other adventures as they try to get back to Scotland. Readers will meet new characters, experience more history, and see how Will (Jamie's son) is now a Brittish officer. Once again, Claire must leave Jamie in Scotland and travel ahead with Ian to America to perform surgery on wee Henri-Christian. Of course, Jamie is to follow but his travel plans are changed at the last minute, leaving his friend Lord John to come to Claire's aid. The ending? Will this come in another two or three more books?

Very good book but OMG the cliffhangers are going to kill me waiting for the next one.

Number seven in the series about the romance between Jamie and Claire Fraser whose love is inspiring. This one dragged for me but I did finish it. Do enjoy getting to know other members of the family and the Frasers' good friends. And, the ending was exciting but it took way too looong to get there. Particularly enjoyed the author's comments at the back of the novel. Gabaldon could learn to be less verbose in this series and I would enjoy the novels more. However, I did like the ending very much which, of course, sets the reader up for another in the series.

This is the 7th book in the excellent series about Jamie and Claire Fraser and their family. I love this series. This excerpt, while I did still enjoy it, was much slower going, dryer, a bit boring in some places, than the other books for me. The story really picked up in the last 100 pages, and I'm anxious for the next book due to the really fun cliffhangers DG so slyly developed. So, only 3 stars, but I'm still in love with the series!

Diana Gabaldon has a gift for storytelling. She tells stories with in stories as she unravels the mysteries of time, friendship, family and love. With a firm grasp of several time periods as well as the cultural significance of several different countries she continues her tale in this wonderful series. The strikingly different tone in Echo in the bone comes with Gabaldon’s intimacy with her characters. While there have always been additional story lines besides that of Claire and Jamie this 7th novel really diversifies itself in a very practical and yet very personal way. The novel encompasses the story lines and running plot of four sets of characters while remaining true to the original overarching story that we all fell in love with in the first books of the series. The unique difference here is that despite being tied up in four stories at once you never find yourself wanting to skip over one to get to the next- your intimacy and love for each character is so deep that you are unable to ever put the book down. She balances this very well- I can’t wait to see her next novel in this series.

An excellent continuation of the Jamie and Clare saga; far better than A Breath of Snow and Ashes.

Diana Gabaldon has yet given us another 5 star book.
The Love story of Claire and Jamie continues in the midst of war, interwoven with drama and mystery. The stories of love and family that transends time and space is what keeps the reader entranced.
The Book is a fast read because once you start it you cannot put it down.
This is a book that honestly has something for everyone in it as it is not a typical Romance/time travel book but it is so much more.
This is a book that you will remember long after you turn the last page and it will leave you wanting more.