Review: An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon
An Echo in the Bone (Outlander #7) – Diana Gabaldon
Hachette Livre Orion, 2009
810 pages
RRP: AU$35
ISBN: 978-075-289848-3
Reviewed by Debbie Wilson
An Echo in the Bone is Diana Gabaldon’s 125th 7th Outlander novel. The year is 1777 and the American rebellion is gathering momentum. Jamie and Claire are in danger (again), travel from America to Scotland (again), and Claire flits between the 1700s and the 1900s (again).
Diana Gabaldon is an undeniably talented novelist. The first novel in the series, Cross Stitch, was a revelation. Time travel, one of my favourite plot devices, tied to Scotland, my favourite country. Articulate, detailed, meaty and innovative… I loved it, recommended it to all my friends, raved about it, couldn’t wait for the next book! Dragonfly in Amber was almost as good. And the one after that, Voyager, was okay, though the glow was dimming. The one after that, Drums of Autumn… I gave up on after a chapter or two. Just couldn’t do it anymore. A couple of years later, The Fiery Cross came out, and I checked to see if a) it had changed, or b) I had changed. Unfortunately not.
Beautifully complex, with meticulous research resulting in outstanding attention to detail, these novels should delight me. Instead, I want to hit the main character, Claire. Often. She and Jamie are just too good to be true – caricatures, almost robots, who suffer none of the human weaknesses the rest of us mere mortals have in spades. They are never too tired to be heroes, never cranky, never make errors of judgement or, perish the thought, need time for themselves. They always say the right thing, always do the right thing. This isn’t educational escapism; it’s a painful reminder of our inability to be as perfect. They’re not people I want to know. They sound like sanctimonious prigs. Maybe I’m taking it all a bit too seriously. But then again, that’s what Claire and Jamie seem to do. Maybe they hadn’t invented humour in the old days…
People may disagree with me. Lots of people may disagree with me. I’m sure fans will love it. In fact, they have, as it’s hit No. 1 on various bestseller lists. And I’m sure it deserves it, given the quality of research and writing. But, as when friends who respect each other argue, we’ll just have to agree to disagree – I’d rather listen to 14-year-old girls squeal at a shopping centre than wade through another samey doorstopper.
