Review: An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon

*Warning: Spoiler alert! If you have not read the previous books in the Outlander series what you read below will be considered spoilers. Proceed at your own discretion!*

In the seventh novel in the extremely popular Outlander series, we find Claire Fraser and her husband, Jaime,  in the American colonies during the revolution.  Three major storylines transpire in this lengthy novel: Claire & Jamie’s during the revolution, their daughter and her family in 1980s Scotland, and Lord Grey in Claire & Jamie’s time.  Jamie is planning on returning the family to Scotland so he can obtain his printing press, thereby allowing him to report on the war.  Nothing ever comes easy for the Fraser family and they are wrought with conflict at each stage of their journey.  Meanwhile, Claire & Jamie’s daughter, Bree, learn about her parents progress through a series of letters they wrote to her.  

It’s hard to give a synopsis of the storyline without giving too much away to future readers.  Therefore, I’ll go right to my opinons of the book.  I’ve been a fan of the Outlander series for several years.  Gabaldon never fails to provide well-thought out, developed characters.  I love the relationship shared by Claire & Jamie.  It’s quite the interesting one, given that they are both from vastly different times. They are now residing in Claire’s past, but Jamie’s future.

The storyline is well developed and researched.  I couldn’t help but read other reviews of this book, with readers complaining about the confusing jump in storylines and the unresolved ending.  Flat out, the Outlander books are meant to be savored and enjoyed.  Each book is several hundred pages long; if you rush through the reading you will undoubtably miss out on a lot.  I didn’t find the jump in storylines confusing at all, as each “leap” is clearly indicated or broken up by chapters.  Each of the storylines are melded together at the end, providing for a very satisfying read. The unresolved ending? Hello! This is part of a series. Leaving an unresolved ending forces the reader to crave for the next book in the series. This is fairly typical and not out of the norm.

The great thing about this series is that it falls under several genres: science fiction, historical fiction & romance. It really has a bit of something for everyone.

Although it is possible to pick up any Outlander book and start reading from there, I can’t say enough how much I recommend that you start from the beginning.  Although the author provides adequate back story, one can’t truly get the depth of the characters and the richness of each of the storylines without first reading each of the books. Yes, they are all quite lengthy, but definitely well worth it. 

I do recommend that those that might be put off by each book’s length try the audiobooks.  The narrator is spot-on with the pronunciations of terms that might prove to be difficult if just reading the book alone. 

Just a few warnings before I close. There is a good deal of violence…we are dealing with a few wars here.  None of it is out of context or inappropriate though.  And yes…there is sex.  Jamie and Claire have quite the healthy marriage and Gabaldon doesn’t fail to share this with her readers.  The love scenes aren’t raunchy but some can be quite descriptive.

Ok, bottom line: if you haven’t read any of the Outlander series, I suggest you run out and pick up the first now.  I guarantee you will enjoy it and will become instantly enamored by the characters. So….what are you waiting for? Go!

Thank you to TLC Book Tours for reinvigorating my love of these books and for permitting me to participate in these tours.  Be sure to check out the other stops:

Wednesday, August 4th:  The Literate Housewife Review (Voyager)

Monday, August 9th:  Musings of an All Purpose Monkey (Outlander)

Wednesday, August 11th:  Starting Fresh (An Echo in the Bone)

Thursday, August 12th:  Under the Boardwalk (An Echo in the Bone)

Monday, August 16th:  Planet Books (Outlander)

Thursday, August 19th:  Rundpinne (An Echo in the Bone)

Wednesday, August 25th:  MoonCat Farms Meanderings (An Echo in the Bone)

Monday, August 30th:  Hey, Lady!  Whatcha Readin’? (Outlander)

Tuesday, August 31st:  The Brain Lair (Outlander)

Wednesday, September 1st:  My Two Blessings (Outlander)

Thursday, September 2nd:  Life in the Thumb (An Echo in the Bone)

Tuesday, September 7th:  That’s What She Read (Dragonfly in Amber)

Monday, September 13th:  Suko’s Notebook (Outlander)

Tuesday, September 14th:  Luxury Reading (Outlander)

Wednesday, September 15th:  The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader (An Echo in the Bone)

Thursday, September 16th:  Pop Culture Junkie (Outlander)

Friday, September 17th:  Devourer of Books (Outlander)

Be sure to check back later today and enter to win one of two copies of An Echo in the Bone!