Reviews with content warning for Suicide - The Echo of Old Books

This book had so much more depth to it than I expected. The dual timelines were interwoven so beautifully giving the story a consistent fluidity. As a highly sensitive person, I was drawn to Ashlynn’s gift as a book empath. What she considered a curse, became the very thing to change her life for the better.

This story is about more than romance, it deals with grief, heartbreak, remorse & survival. It also has some darker undertones surrounding; suicide, anti-semitism & the factions of Nazi supporters building in America during WW2.

It’s been a long time since I’ve felt the need to highlight so many quotes. I felt as if the words had been plucked from my own mind at times.

This is definitely a new favourite of mines that I’ll be recommending to my friends.

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jan1955's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.5

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chacharlotte's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I was gonna give this 5 stars at first, but the last part really lets this book down in my opinion.

It’s too much of a Hallmark happy end for what started out with beautifully written, complicated but compelling characters. I also didn’t like how Ashlyn‘s story was suddenly cast aside in favor of present day Marian‘s viewpoint.

What also bothers me are Ashlyn‘s magic powers, that seem like an afterthought/just thrown in there to give Ashlyn motivation to pursue the story of the two lovers. I think there could’ve been a way to tell this story without the magic - it doesn’t really add much, and it doesn’t really fit the vibe of the rest of the book. If you’re gonna add magic (which I’m not opposed to), I would think it would have more impact on the story and/or the characters. It just seemed kind of lazy?

The “plot twist” was pretty obvious as well, and I don’t think we needed all those chapters with Marian to reveal it. I think this would have been a much better book if Ashlyn had been the one to figure out the misunderstanding and Marian/Hemi’s reunion had been left to the imagination/not happened on page/not happened at all even.

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sdt0087's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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gaby_readsss's review

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emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I got this book for free on amazon prime. I had never heard of this author before, but the title and the cover convinced me to read it.

What a wonderful book this was.
I immediately felt captivated by the writing. The concept of this book is unlike anything I’ve read, which made it so much more special to me.

I loved the dual timelines, the mystery, all the bookish quotes and references, the romance, everything was so so good.

This story was heartbreaking, infuriating, sad, and the ending was so bittersweet to me. It definitely made me tear up.
I love when a book makes me feel so many emotions, and this book was definitely one that I’ll remember.

If you’re a book lover, give this one a try.

This is already one of my favorite reads of 2024!!

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