Outlander
by Diana Gabaldon
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Book Summary Information
Author: Diana GabaldonEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1998-08-10
ISBN: 0385319959
Number of pages: 656
Publisher: Delta
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780385319959
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of Outlander
Book Review: Amazing Historical Time Travel Romance
Summary: 5 Stars
This is one of those books whose reputation precedes them. I've heard this mentioned over and over in romance forums and also from my fellow authors that I knew I had to check it out. Going in I already had so many questions boggling my mind. How did the time travel work in this world? How is it seamed into the contemporary world of the 1940s? How can the heroine, who is already married, run off and marry some dude from the past and brush off her husband?
I was pleasantly surprised as I read through the book. Not only was it engrossing, it was also entertaining. Normally I don't read ginormous tomes as my time is pretty limited. I have to admit once I started on the first few chapters, I kept lamenting over how many pages I had to go to even make a dent in this book. But soon as I kept reading Outlander, I didn't want to stop and my progress didn't matter (although it's still fun to keep track) as much as I wanted to know the characters and their story.
Many have called this a romance even liking it to a Harlequin book. Far from. I like HQN, but this isn't it. To me this is historical fiction with a romantic as a backdrop. Normally a romance would be centered around the hero and heroine who are shown right from the beginning and the relationship is the focus. This book is so much more. It's an adventure, a historical, a family saga, but most of all it's a fabulous tale that spans the ages.
The story begins in 1940s Scotland shortly after WWII. Claire is on her second honeymoon accompanying her husband Frank to the highlands of Scotland on a research trip after spending time away serving as a wartime nurse. During their highland travels, Frank traces his family lineage and much of the traditions and history of Scotland is revealed through their finds. Looking back, some of it is a great setup for what we are shown through Claire's journey back in time.
During one of her walks, Claire runs into a mysterious stone circle with ancient elements called Craigh Na Dun. There her journey truly begins.
I really got into the world and found myself fascinated as Clare was. Gabaldon writes the story as a well researched adventure. I cringed at the harsh punishments and somewhat wild nature of the time. The author really showed the world contrasted from 40s Scotland from the clothing and style, right down to the speech patterns of the people who lived there. It didn't bother me to read the accents and the author's voice is so strong that I could hear their voices (even Claire's) clearly in my head.
I can see why the 'hero' of the story, Jamie Fraser, is well loved by many readers. He's a romantic, eager, noble and honorable character with a complexity that is rarely explored in novels. The fact that he was a virginal hero made it all the more interesting and even more rare. There's a rawness about Jamie and his developing feelings for Claire. I love the way Gabaldon shows the very basic human emotions in a way that the reader identifies and sympathizes with exactly what the character is going through. It clashes with his moments of outrage and then brings us right around to sympathy when we learn of his upbringing. This character skill is matched only by the author's amazing descriptions of time and setting that makes the reader feel as if they are right there in the middle of the story with the characters. Jamie is considered by most to be 'perfect' and in a lot of ways he is as we see how he speaks straight from the heart. Despite what he has seen in his life, he is consumed by the life for his wife which brings out the strong romantic hero in him. But he is very much with flaws due to his anger and stubbornness. Gabaldon gives enough of this complexity to make him real without going over the top.
That said, I'd have to say the antagonist in this piece Captain Jack Randall is a revolting character and is probably one of the most evil and complex villains I've come across in my reading. Kudos to the author for throwing in the twist in connection with Claire's (first) husband. The description when Claire meets him and is subject to his cruelties (which was pretty gut wrenching) was all the more disturbing as she realizes the man before her bared much resemblance to her husband though very much lacking his warmth and sensitivity. This reader felt empathetic to Claire's shocking situation because it was universally human. I couldn't wait until Randall got his comeuppance and wanted so much for it to be at the hands of either Jamie or Claire.
Before I read Outlander I heard about a certain scene that made me cringe right away. Let me tell you it was nothing compared to reading the ordeal it had on the character during and after. It had been a long time before since a book had me in years and I was definitely sympathizing here. I was confused when it was 're-enacted' and was still thinking of it the next day as I realized the depths one would go to bring someone they love from mental anguish.
Normally I don't like first person because it traps the audience in the main character's mind and feels so limiting. I didn't have this problem with Outlander. Claire is a very intelligent and perceptive woman and the way she describes other characters, you get a picture of who and how they are right away. Especially with Jamie's character you know exactly what he's thinking and how he's feeling even in the moments where he dismisses his feelings or tries to hide them. I love his storytelling scenes because they add so much to his character and we see where he's coming from.
There are some pretty sensual love scenes in here. Not in the sense of being crass or crude but very sensual and sexy while being highly emotional. I prefer sensual romance over erotica and the scenes were effective in showing how the characters were feeling during the act indeed. They were raw with passion because they are described as very human and universal in their impact. Never did I feel it was there just to stimulate the audience.
All in all I LOVE this book. It's been a while since I read a book where I can really lose myself in the setting, characters and story and Outlander hit all the right spots. This is definitely going on my keeper shelf to reread over and over again. I can't wait to dive into the next book!
Summary of Outlander
Unrivaled storytelling ... unforgettable characters ... rich historical detail ... these are the hallmarks of Diana Gabaldon's work. Her New York Times bestselling Outlander novels have earned the praise of critics and captured millions of readers.Here is the story that started it all, introducing two remarkable characters, Claire Randall and Jamie Fraser, in a spellbinding novel of passion and history that combines exhilarating adventure with a love story for the ages....
The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon ? when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach ? an "outlander" ? in a Scotland torn by war and raiding Highland clans in the year of Our Lord ... 1743.
Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into intrigues and dangers that may threaten her life ... and shatter her heart. For here she meets James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, and becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire ... and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.
In Outlander, a 600-page time-travel romance, strong-willed and sensual Claire Randall leads a double life with a husband in one century, and a lover in another. Torn between fidelity and desire, she struggles to understand the pure intent of her heart. But don't let the number of pages and the Scottish dialect scare you. It's one of the fastest reads you'll have in your library.
While on her second honeymoon in the British Isles, Claire touches a boulder that hurls her back in time to the forbidden Castle Leoch with the MacKenzie clan. Not understanding the forces that brought her there, she becomes ensnared in life-threatening situations with a Scots warrior named James Fraser. But it isn't all spies and drudgery that she must endure. For amid her new surroundings and the terrors she faces, she is lured into love and passion like she's never known before.
I was lame and sore in every muscle when I woke next morning. I shuffled to the privy closet, then to the wash basin. My innards felt like churned butter. It felt as though I had been beaten with a blunt object, I reflected, then thought that that was very near the truth. The blunt object in question was visible as I came back to bed, looking now relatively harmless. Its possessor [Jamie] woke as I sat next to him, and examined me with something that looked very much like male smugness."Gabaldon creates characters that you'll remember, laugh with, cry with, and cheer for long after you've finished the book. --Candy Paape
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