I am surprised to read rave reviews of this novel on this website as it is possibly Walters's weakest so far. I agree with a friend who suggested that Walters wrote this book after watching television adaptations of her earlier novels; like "The Breaker", "The Echo" feels more like the groundwork for a film script than a real, effective story in its own right.
The book lacks much of the subtlety and depth of character that usually makes Walters's work so fascinating. It is a competent novel and certainly streets ahead of the crime fiction churned out by lesser writers, but somehow coming from this particular author, it's disappointing. The characters are not so well-developed or well-rounded as in say, "The Ice House", and overall the book simply lacks the verve, passion and excitement that usually make reading Walters so thrilling. Sadly, the storyline just isn't that interesting.
There are redeeming features. Walters's writing style, though considerably lacking the edge and pace of her earlier work, is still very readable. I read through to the end and wanted to know what happened, but the lack of any real suspense or surprises in the story made the finale a let-down.
"The Shape of Snakes" is a return to form after "The Echo" and "The Breaker" and I would recommend skipping both those titles in order to read it.
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