Yesterday, in a bout of dissertation escapism, I finished the novel An Echo in the Bone, also known as Outlander 7, by Diana Gabaldon.
And yes, I am aware that this outs me as a fan of swashbuckling time travel adventure romance in Scotland. But be honest: what's not to like about 18th century buff, kilted Highlanders suffused with clan honour and thick Scottish accents? Especially when it's accompanied by some very decent writing.
Sadly, that is where Outlander 7 shoots a bit short of the mark.
While I did enjoy the story in this latest instalment, I think this was mostly due to the fact that I already loved the characters, and was invested in their future. Let me give you the base facts, just so everyone knows what we're talking about:
In 1946, Claire Beauchamp is a former army nurse who takes a trip to Scotland (Inverness) with her husband. On a hike, she accidentally steps through a circle of standing stones, which suddenly transports her back to 1744 - just before the disastrous Jacobite Rising. There, she gets picked up by a roving band of men of Clan MacKenzie, who take her back to their castle because they fear she's an English spy. What follows is a winding tale of intrigue, war, medicine and romance in which Claire marries and falls in love (in that order) with Jamie Fraser and ultimately decides to abandon her first husband to stay in the past (not a spoiler, because you know that just by accepting there are 7 books). The rest of the massive story arc involves Jamie's family, witchcraft, smuggling, piracy, the American colonies and the American Revolutionary War.
Overall, brilliant stuff, and a very engaging read. Were it not that the use of some story elements and plot devices are becoming slightly repetitive. The language is beautiful as ever, and can create drama without the added melo- or sappy Hollywood clichés, but it is not enough to disguise the staleness of some of the personal descriptions and imagery. For example, we know by now that Claire has untameable, curly hair and that this is considered immodest and slightly scandalous by 18th century men. Both this, the description of Jamie's "bold, striking Viking features" and the fact of their undying love for each other do not have to be repeated at every turn.
Same goes for the plot device where Claire is inexplicably superbly attractive to every single man she meets (even though she's in her 50s in the latest book) which causes awkward situations and humorous jealousy from Jamie. Also, the occasions where Jamie is presumed dead and Claire gets entangled in rash action after she goes through a Bella Swan-like swoon at the news, are - while well-written - slightly overused.
This is a crying shame, because I love the story very much. But Outlander 7 did leave me with a feeling that it was too long (same as 6, really), and could have been told in less text. This is mainly because many of the small sub plots (like the presumed death and its fall-out, and the marriage entanglements of some tacksmen) were not necessary for the main plot and story arc, and seemed just to be there to fill the necessary passage of time until the next big event.
What also struck me as being wrong, is that l enjoyed reading what happened to the other characters more than reading what happened to Claire. An Echo in the Bone uses different kinds of perspective - moreso than previous books - with Claire's chapters being in first person and other people's passages in third person. I personally don't think it's a good sign if readers are sometimes itching to skip the main character in favour of other, less prominent characters, and hopefully Diana Gabaldon will have picked up on that when writing Outlander 8, which will hopefully be finished later this year.
To be fair, I did read all seven books one after the other since last Easter, so maybe these criticisms are more noticeable to me than to people who have to wait 2 to 3 years after every volume. I imagine the rediscovery of beloved characters after such a long wait eclipses the slight repetitiveness, and in that case the longer the book, the better.
So, lastly, I have to say that I still do heartily recommend the series - just make sure you start at the beginning - while I myself am no longer in danger of erupting in adoring fangirlish screams. Though I expect these might return with the release of the next part of the series, you never know. Or better yet, the prequel!
I just hope Diana Gabaldon finally found a reliable French-speaker, so that the teeth grindingly obvious linguistic mistakes (which are corrected in subsequent books) will no longer happen: really, anyone could have told you that 'Germaine' is not a traditional boys' name.
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