Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

Book Information:

 

Title: Outlander

Author: Diana Gabaldon

Published: 1991

Publisher: Dell Books

Pages: 629

Genre: Historical Romance

My Genre Category: Romance, Historical Fiction, Time Travel

 

 Summary (Courtesy of Goodreads)  

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.

 *This book contains mature reading and may not be suitable 

       for younger readers—my mature rating is R*

My Review

General Comments

This book contains my top choices in genres: romance, historical fiction, and time travel. While looking for time travel books to read, I noticed a lot of comments that referred to Outlander. Of course, I had to read it. [This happened to be the first book I downloaded on my Kindle.] Anyway, I never read any book located in Scotland. By the end of it, I wanted to write my emails in some Scottish slang.

Characters

The characters are very well developed in this story, especially Jamie. Even though the book contains mature content which I do not always care for, I like how Gabaldon pushed her characters into situations. As a situation came up, I would think, "To really push these characters, she should (or not) let...happen." And, it usually happened. Then, I had to read on to find out how they would get out of that mess. The characters, however, did not stop there and continued to move and take a life of their own. The characters stayed pretty close to the attitudes of that time period.

Plot

The plot takes the reader on a wild journey through time and Scotland. There is a lot of historical background and references. The author puts a lot of effort into her research. Reading the book, I wondered if Claire would get back home to her time or stay almost 200 years in the past (from her time). Did she really have a choice? The middle was a little slow, but if you like heavy romance, then this should not be a problem. If you do not, keep reading because the plot picks up again. The characters are thrust into situations that can meet extremes at times.

Writing Style

The writing contains some Scottish Gaelic. Usually a character translates for longer sentences or words, but there are some that reader can understand through context if he/she does not speak the language. I found the writing easy to read and kept me going at a nice pace for such a long book.

Thinking of Reading This Book?

If you like time travel, historical fictions, and Scottish highlanders, Outlander should probably be read at some point in your life. A long book (at 600+ pages) can be intimidating, but do not worry. It will go fast. The only concern would be for the mature content contains language and sexual scenes/descriptions.