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The Echo of Precious Things
Madison O'Donnell isn't a best-selling author.
Unpublished, disillusioned, and still grooming dogs at the temp job she took six years ago after moving to Toronto with her best friend, Madison's life hasn't gone at all according to plan.
So she turned her back on the one thing she's wanted more than anything.
Now, on her 25th birthday, with the weight of her roommate's impending move, an invitation to her estranged mother's wedding, and a humiliating run-in with her recent ex, Madison is spiralling full speed into a quarter-life crisis. And everyone can see it.
But a chance encounter with Ben, a kind and free-spirited stranger on a cross-country road trip, provides her with the perfect opportunity to get out of her rut. Desperate to prove she's not stuck, Madison makes the impulsive decision to join Ben and travel back home to Halifax and the family she left behind.
Embarking on an adventure that will change her life forever, Madison must embrace the unexpected, confront the real reasons she moved away, and learn the importance of resilience in the face of grief-or risk staying stagnant and uninspired while life continues to pass her by.
And in the process, she just might find a story worth writing about.
Unpublished, disillusioned, and still grooming dogs at the temp job she took six years ago after moving to Toronto with her best friend, Madison's life hasn't gone at all according to plan.
So she turned her back on the one thing she's wanted more than anything.
Now, on her 25th birthday, with the weight of her roommate's impending move, an invitation to her estranged mother's wedding, and a humiliating run-in with her recent ex, Madison is spiralling full speed into a quarter-life crisis. And everyone can see it.
But a chance encounter with Ben, a kind and free-spirited stranger on a cross-country road trip, provides her with the perfect opportunity to get out of her rut. Desperate to prove she's not stuck, Madison makes the impulsive decision to join Ben and travel back home to Halifax and the family she left behind.
Embarking on an adventure that will change her life forever, Madison must embrace the unexpected, confront the real reasons she moved away, and learn the importance of resilience in the face of grief-or risk staying stagnant and uninspired while life continues to pass her by.
And in the process, she just might find a story worth writing about.
332 pages, Paperback
Published October 7, 2025
7 people are currently reading
54 people want to read
About the author
D. M. Cabral
2 books37 followersD. M. Cabral is an indie author based in Ontario, Canada. When she’s not busy writing, working on film/tv sets, or watching horror movies, she can be found on her YouTube channel as Diane Mariee, creating videos documenting her life and writing journey.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 10, 2025
It takes a LOT for me to give a book five stars, but TEOPT is so deserving of it! You cannot help but fall in love with not only the main characters, but the side characters too. The story is rich with detail, but still moves at a balanced pace, and there are just enough unexpected moments to keep you on your toes. And the ending? Well, I won’t spoil anything, but I can count on one hand the number of times a novel has made me bawl my eyes out, and yet, TEOPT accomplished that… even the second time when I already knew what was coming! It’s a truly great read by a debut author! I can’t wait to see what’s next for D. M. Cabral!
October 7, 2025
✨ A heartfelt, beautifully written journey of self-discovery and healing
This book completely swept me away. From the very first chapter, I was drawn into Madison O'Donnell’s world — her struggles, her humor. The author captures that confusing, messy stage of your twenties with so much honesty and warmth that it feels like reading about a close friend.
What makes this story especially powerful is how it explores the complexity of broken families and strained relationships. Madison’s journey isn’t just about finding herself — it’s about facing the painful parts of her past she’s tried to outrun. The tension between love and resentment, distance and belonging, is portrayed with such tenderness and realism that it’s impossible not to feel every word.
The writing is full of introspection and quiet moments that hit hard. Her spontaneous road trip with a stranger becomes more than an escape — it’s a brave, emotional reckoning with the people and places she left behind.
It’s equal parts heartbreaking and hopeful, reminding us that growth often begins where comfort ends. A stunning debut about forgiveness, resilience, and the messy beauty of starting over.✨
This book completely swept me away. From the very first chapter, I was drawn into Madison O'Donnell’s world — her struggles, her humor. The author captures that confusing, messy stage of your twenties with so much honesty and warmth that it feels like reading about a close friend.
What makes this story especially powerful is how it explores the complexity of broken families and strained relationships. Madison’s journey isn’t just about finding herself — it’s about facing the painful parts of her past she’s tried to outrun. The tension between love and resentment, distance and belonging, is portrayed with such tenderness and realism that it’s impossible not to feel every word.
The writing is full of introspection and quiet moments that hit hard. Her spontaneous road trip with a stranger becomes more than an escape — it’s a brave, emotional reckoning with the people and places she left behind.
It’s equal parts heartbreaking and hopeful, reminding us that growth often begins where comfort ends. A stunning debut about forgiveness, resilience, and the messy beauty of starting over.✨
October 11, 2025
What an incredible book. The author has a beautiful way of writing and I enjoyed every moment of this book!! 5 stars and I highly recommend as well as the authors book of poetry. Huge fan.
October 13, 2025
I was so happy to receive an e-arc copy of this book in exchange for a review.
I loved it so much! The descriptions of nature along the road trip, were so immersive. The central friendship was beautiful, poignant, vulnerable and amusing — I don’t see platonic soulmates enough in books.
I laughed. I cried. The quarter life crisis was relatable — so were the struggling writer moments.
The strained relationship between Madison and her sister, Ellie, felt realistic in its complexity. I found their brother, Oscar, endearing. I found Madison’s friend group charming. Ben was so lovely. The family dynamics conducted the movement of the story in such a purposeful way. I’m still processing and recovering from that resolution.
I loved it so much! The descriptions of nature along the road trip, were so immersive. The central friendship was beautiful, poignant, vulnerable and amusing — I don’t see platonic soulmates enough in books.
I laughed. I cried. The quarter life crisis was relatable — so were the struggling writer moments.
The strained relationship between Madison and her sister, Ellie, felt realistic in its complexity. I found their brother, Oscar, endearing. I found Madison’s friend group charming. Ben was so lovely. The family dynamics conducted the movement of the story in such a purposeful way. I’m still processing and recovering from that resolution.
October 13, 2025
Wow, what an amazing debut novel. Went into this not knowing what to expect, and left with waves of emotions. So beautifully written. Highly recommend!
September 29, 2025
ARC REVIEW:
I probably should wait until I’m emotionally stable before writing a review, but I quite literally cannot. Diane you crafted something unlike anything I’ve ever read before. The six years you spent on this novel shows so intensely. The characters are all incredible and lively. The story and dialogue flowed so smoothly as well.
I’ve watched the journey on YouTube and to read this was an incredible experience. Not only was the book exquisite, it was heartbreaking. Diane… I need therapy. I haven’t cried this hard because of a book in a WHILE. I love Ben. I feel like I just lost my best friend. I have no idea how you read this book countless times during the editing stages. I genuinely need to just hug you and sob.
I could probably go on forever… long story short. Diane…you did the thing. I am stunned and I will be thinking about your book forever. If Goodreads let me rate more than five stars I would.
A few of my highlights:
“I hope you know that no one has everything figured out. Even the people who look like they do. They don’t. We’re all just making it up as we go.”
“No, running away from difficult situations in my life isn’t an option anymore. No matter how scared or uncomfortable it makes me to stay.”
“Sometimes people do things that make no sense to us, but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong.”
“But if I’ve learned anything in the last few days, it’s that anything worth doing is gonna make you nervous.”
“But one thing I know for sure about stepping out of your comfort zone, and being vulnerable, is that it’s always worth it. Even if it doesn’t go the way you planned.”
“We go days, weeks, months—even years—without speaking to them. And we’re perfectly fine with that because we have this false sense of security that they’ll always be there when we need them.”
I probably should wait until I’m emotionally stable before writing a review, but I quite literally cannot. Diane you crafted something unlike anything I’ve ever read before. The six years you spent on this novel shows so intensely. The characters are all incredible and lively. The story and dialogue flowed so smoothly as well.
I’ve watched the journey on YouTube and to read this was an incredible experience. Not only was the book exquisite, it was heartbreaking. Diane… I need therapy. I haven’t cried this hard because of a book in a WHILE. I love Ben. I feel like I just lost my best friend. I have no idea how you read this book countless times during the editing stages. I genuinely need to just hug you and sob.
I could probably go on forever… long story short. Diane…you did the thing. I am stunned and I will be thinking about your book forever. If Goodreads let me rate more than five stars I would.
A few of my highlights:
“I hope you know that no one has everything figured out. Even the people who look like they do. They don’t. We’re all just making it up as we go.”
“No, running away from difficult situations in my life isn’t an option anymore. No matter how scared or uncomfortable it makes me to stay.”
“Sometimes people do things that make no sense to us, but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong.”
“But if I’ve learned anything in the last few days, it’s that anything worth doing is gonna make you nervous.”
“But one thing I know for sure about stepping out of your comfort zone, and being vulnerable, is that it’s always worth it. Even if it doesn’t go the way you planned.”
“We go days, weeks, months—even years—without speaking to them. And we’re perfectly fine with that because we have this false sense of security that they’ll always be there when we need them.”
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 9, 2025
✨A wonderful debut!✨
ARC-Read
„The Echo of Precious Things“ is a deep and thoughtful story about family, friendship, love and healing. We follow Madison, who with the help of a young stranger is finding her way back to connecting with the world and to dare to live and love without resentment or fear.
With her very immersive writing style and story telling, D.M. Cabral sucked me into the novel right from page one. With the realistic portrayal of characters the reading felt effortless and felt often like a movie through the detailed descriptions. This is a book I will definitely be re-reading many times over in the years to come!
10/10 for me! That novel made me hungry for more of D.M. Cabral’s work and I’m sure she’s only just warming up. With her debut she’s showing that she can easily walk beside authors with big names! ✨
ARC-Read
„The Echo of Precious Things“ is a deep and thoughtful story about family, friendship, love and healing. We follow Madison, who with the help of a young stranger is finding her way back to connecting with the world and to dare to live and love without resentment or fear.
With her very immersive writing style and story telling, D.M. Cabral sucked me into the novel right from page one. With the realistic portrayal of characters the reading felt effortless and felt often like a movie through the detailed descriptions. This is a book I will definitely be re-reading many times over in the years to come!
10/10 for me! That novel made me hungry for more of D.M. Cabral’s work and I’m sure she’s only just warming up. With her debut she’s showing that she can easily walk beside authors with big names! ✨
November 10, 2025
Completely atmospheric American roadtrip that is a joy to read, dealing with family dynamics both found and blood related.
A tender and heartfelt story about accepting life and our own decisions as we are all people figuring life out for the first time.
Characters that feel so incredibly real and tangible are tangled together that we encounter, decipher and ultimately hold together.
An absolutely beautiful read.
A tender and heartfelt story about accepting life and our own decisions as we are all people figuring life out for the first time.
Characters that feel so incredibly real and tangible are tangled together that we encounter, decipher and ultimately hold together.
An absolutely beautiful read.
October 14, 2025
D. M. Cabral's debut novel THE ECHO OF PRECIOUS THINGS is a surprisingly heart-warming and well-written book about a young woman at the low-point of her life (recently dumped, underemployed, creatively stalled, and about to lose her roommate and best friend to an overseas education), when she bumps into a lovely young man named Ben and decides to join him on a road trip back to her old hometown to deal with some family issues.
This is not normally the kind of book I would pick up and read, but I've been following Diane Mariee's writing adventures on YouTube for more than 4 years now in which she has meticulously documented the ups and downs of her writing process for "BEN" (the working title for THE ECHO OF PRECIOUS THINGS), and I got hooked -- I just had to see for myself what she'd been working on this whole time, and support her for doing so. I've been waiting patiently and eagerly to read this book for years -- literal years.
And even though I was a bit wary at the start of this book because it was not something I would normally read, yet -- just like with her videos on YouTube -- I got hooked. I read the whole thing in about 3 days, and thoroughly enjoyed it.
What I look for most in a book is good writing, and this book has it. It's very well-written -- which is high praise, indeed, coming from me -- being quick, and engaging. And even though I do have a few small quibbles with a few small things (some awkward formatting glitches where some apostrophes are different from all the rest, and some storytelling gaps where chapters build up to big dramatic moments and then skip over them to merely recap and reflect on them in the next chapter), the rest and bulk of the book is so surprisingly well-done that I easily dismiss and forgive all other errors.
Of the story itself: the book was surprisingly warm and heartfelt. The characters all feel real and engaging. The plot moves along swiftly enough without ever seeming rushed or lagging. THE ECHO OF PRECIOUS THINGS has heart and humor and everything you want from a good book.
I said this about her first book (IN THE INTEREST OF LETTING GO, a unique little poetry collection) and I'll say it again here about THE ECHO OF PRECIOUS THINGS: it was much better than I expected it to be.
I do highly recommend this book for anyone who might be interested in this subject or in this author, and I look forward to reading whatever else she does next.
5 out of 5 stars.
This is not normally the kind of book I would pick up and read, but I've been following Diane Mariee's writing adventures on YouTube for more than 4 years now in which she has meticulously documented the ups and downs of her writing process for "BEN" (the working title for THE ECHO OF PRECIOUS THINGS), and I got hooked -- I just had to see for myself what she'd been working on this whole time, and support her for doing so. I've been waiting patiently and eagerly to read this book for years -- literal years.
And even though I was a bit wary at the start of this book because it was not something I would normally read, yet -- just like with her videos on YouTube -- I got hooked. I read the whole thing in about 3 days, and thoroughly enjoyed it.
What I look for most in a book is good writing, and this book has it. It's very well-written -- which is high praise, indeed, coming from me -- being quick, and engaging. And even though I do have a few small quibbles with a few small things (some awkward formatting glitches where some apostrophes are different from all the rest, and some storytelling gaps where chapters build up to big dramatic moments and then skip over them to merely recap and reflect on them in the next chapter), the rest and bulk of the book is so surprisingly well-done that I easily dismiss and forgive all other errors.
Of the story itself: the book was surprisingly warm and heartfelt. The characters all feel real and engaging. The plot moves along swiftly enough without ever seeming rushed or lagging. THE ECHO OF PRECIOUS THINGS has heart and humor and everything you want from a good book.
I said this about her first book (IN THE INTEREST OF LETTING GO, a unique little poetry collection) and I'll say it again here about THE ECHO OF PRECIOUS THINGS: it was much better than I expected it to be.
I do highly recommend this book for anyone who might be interested in this subject or in this author, and I look forward to reading whatever else she does next.
5 out of 5 stars.
October 10, 2025
The Echo of Precious Things is a fantastic and heartwarming read. The characters are flawed but completely relatable. It’s a story that touches on family struggles, grief in its many different forms, and the different facets of friendships and how they can pull you through some of the most challenging times in your life. There is a wonderful depiction in this story about how sometimes you have to lose yourself and throw out all the plans and structure in order to truly find who you really are and tap into the person you were always meant to be.
What I love the most in this story is the friendship that develops between Madison and Ben. The bond is fast, genuine, and most importantly, it’s strong. It presents a very unique perspective of how you don’t necessarily have to know someone for your whole entire life in order to find someone who is meant to be in your life forever and who knows you deeply. They are truly platonic soulmates and you don’t see stories that often highlight this unique type of relationship.
D.M. Cabral’s writing is innovative, engaging, and insightful. She has done an amazing job telling such a beautiful story and I am excited for all that this writer has to offer in the future. I look forward to reading her next piece of writing and am definitely a fan.
What I love the most in this story is the friendship that develops between Madison and Ben. The bond is fast, genuine, and most importantly, it’s strong. It presents a very unique perspective of how you don’t necessarily have to know someone for your whole entire life in order to find someone who is meant to be in your life forever and who knows you deeply. They are truly platonic soulmates and you don’t see stories that often highlight this unique type of relationship.
D.M. Cabral’s writing is innovative, engaging, and insightful. She has done an amazing job telling such a beautiful story and I am excited for all that this writer has to offer in the future. I look forward to reading her next piece of writing and am definitely a fan.
August 11, 2025
Hey there, I just discovered Diane Mariee's little world today through her annoucement video and learned about her debut novel : The Echo of Precious Things. I fell in love with the title and the cover she shared, and even though I think I am pretty picky about what I read, especially coming from writertubers, I actually got my interested picked by the eloquent way she expressed herself and the working blurb of this book : TEoPT sounds like a breath of fresh air among all these medieval fantasy/romance indie novels and the prologue + 1st chapter were actually good! Can't wait to be able to put my hands on this baby! Stay gold everyone :))
November 29, 2025
This book was sooooo good. I did not expect Ben to die at all. Honestly, I expected Ben and Madison (Maddy) to start dating by the time Ben asks Maddy to sit by him on the hospital bed after his surgery from a stab wound. I tried not to cry from the time he was stabbed through the end of the book, but it did not work. I’m so glad I picked up this book on my kindle. This is one of the best books and one of my 5 star reads of 2025 (since I rate books out of 5 stars instead of 10 stars like some readers on booktok and booktube do).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews