A Symphony of Echoes By Jodi Taylor – Book review

The chaotic romp through time continues with A Symphony Of Echoes, the second book in the St Mary Chronicles by Jodi Taylor.

In the second book in the Chronicles of St Mary’s series, Max and the team visit Victorian London in search of Jack the Ripper, witness the murder of Archbishop Thomas a Becket in Canterbury Cathedral, and discover that dodos make a grockling noise when eating cucumber sandwiches.
But they must also confront an enemy intent on destroying St Mary’s – an enemy willing, if necessary, to destroy History itself to do it.

Review

A Symphony of Echoes by Jodi Taylor continues Max’s story (click here for the review of One Damned Thing After another) and her time-travel adventures with St Mary’s along with the rest of her eccentric colleagues.

In the second book, Max heads to the future and has to face her nemesis(s), Isabella Barclay and Ronan again and ends up interim director but after she faces off with Jack the Ripper.

Max continues to be feisty, and funny (even when she has to lead) but vulnerable in this book particularly with her relationship with Leon Farell. I have to admit I wasn’t a big fan of Leon in this book and I did want to throw the book at the wall when reading about their relationship. I preferred Max’s more healthy relationships with her colleagues and friends which forms the heart of the book but her reaction to Leon’s boorish behaviour was hilariously unhinged.

As expected, there is plenty of tea, accidents and mishaps and of course a completely bonkers take on history- I loved the explanation of why Jack the Ripper disappeared from history. The team also head off to Tudor Scotland to stop Mary becoming the Queen of England and Scotland- a complicated scheme hatched by Ronan to save his love Anne.

 We do learn a little bit more about the past (or future) history of St Marys.

Content warning

References to rape, sexual assault, torture and violence (this is in a historical context and boy were they violent in the past!)

Perfect for Fans

Who loves Time travel books

Series: Book two in the St Marys Chronicles

Source: My Own

One Damned Thing after another by Jodi Taylor

I’m finally reading the St Mary Chronicles in order. Read my review of One Damned Thing after Another by Jodi Taylor which introduces the chaotic, tea drinking time travellers.

Meet the disaster-magnets of St Mary’s Institute of Historical Research as they ricochet around History. Their aim is to observe and document – to try and find the answers to many of History’s unanswered questions…and not to die in the process. But one wrong move and History will fight back – to the death. And, as they soon discover – it’s not just History they’re fighting.
Follow the catastrophe curve from 11th-century London to World War I, and from the Cretaceous Period to the destruction of the Great Library at Alexandria. For wherever Historians go, chaos is sure to follow in their wake.

Review

I love time-travel stories and the St Mary Chronicles is one of my favourites. I have dipped in and out of the series ,reading the books in random order ( which works fine for this series) but decided to finally read them in order.