Category Archives: Historical Fiction

March 27, 2013 · 7:00 am

Moloka’i by Alan Brennert

Alan Brennert

You wouldn’t expect such a beautiful cover to be about such a horrible topic. You’re probably looking at that cover thinking “Ooohhh pretty historical fiction about Hawaii!” and you’d be part right, except it’s also about leprosy and how Hawaiians diagnosed with it got shipped off to this island of Moloka’i to be there pretty much forever.

Specifically, this is the story of Rachel Kalama – an adorable 7-year old Hawaiian girl in 1891 who dreams of travelling the world like her dad. That dream gets shattered when some marks appear on her body and she’s declared a leper – she’s taken away from her family and sent to live at the leprosy settlement on Moloka’i, which is pretty much the place lepers live out their lives until they die.

This book slowly sucked me in – it took me a long while to really connect with Rachel, possibly because her story starts at such a young age. But watching her grow up with leprosy and seeing how it affects everyone around her became really interesting, and I ended up reading most of this book in one day. I didn’t really know much about leprosy or how it was such a big issue for Hawaii at one time.

Rachel was a good character, and I like how much fight she had in her in day-to-day situations, as well as her spirit and determination to try to beat leprosy. She also grew close to a lot of great characters – her “aunt” Haleola, her friends Catherine, Kenji, and Leilani. And of course because this is about a girl and her friends struggling with a horrible disease, I teared up a bit here and there.

Overall this was a good book, but I didn’t love it. I have no complaints about it, and I feel like some parts of it will stay with me for a long time, but I don’t think it’s the kind of book I’ll be raving about to friends. Still, if you like unique historical fiction then this book should totally be right up your alley.

Sarah Says: 3 stars

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December 17, 2012 · 5:10 pm

An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon

So many pretty covers... except for the green slime one.

So many pretty covers… except for the green slime one.

 

REMEMBER, THIS IS THE 7TH BOOK! IF YOU HAVEN’T READ THE FIRST 6 THERE WILL BE SPOILERS. YOU KNOW, YOU SHOULD REALLY GO READ THE REST OF THE SERIES AND THEN COME BACK HERE, KAY?

 

Alright, I’m finally done re-reading the Outlander series! Since I spread it out over the last 2 years, I feel like it was a nice and relaxing. Now all I have to do is wait for the 8th book to come out, hopefully sometime next fall!

I’ve only read An Echo in the Bone once before (I’ve read all of the others in the series like 3 or 4 times at least), so I was really excited to see if my opinion of it has changed. And it has! But in case you’re interested, here’s the link to the review from the last time I read it, about 3 years ago. I was actually kind of nice in that review, because I remember being pretty angry about it. I was actually tempted to THROW the book at one point – but I didn’t of course, because it was a big beautiful hardcover.

ANYWAYS. A Breath of Snow and Ashes ended with Jamie & Claire’s house on Fraser’s Ridge burning down, them planning on going to Scotland to get Jamie’s printing press, and Brianna, Roger, and their kids head back to the present. Lots of upheaval, and right on the brink of the Revolutionary War.

A whole lot of stuff happens in this book, because there are four storylines. This really irritated me back when I first read the book. I love these books because I love Jamie and Claire, and it sucked that there was so much time dedicated to Roger/Brianna, Young Ian, and William/Lord John. Having re-read it, and at a much more leisurely pace than last time, it didn’t bug me quite as much. I think maybe I could have done without so many William/Lord John chapters, but I have a better appreciation for them now and their role in the overall story.

So, stuff that happens… well, Young Ian is finally healing after the disaster of his marriage to Emily, and that made me happy. He’s SUCH an awesome character, I really wish that Diana Gabaldon would write a whole series just for him. Or at least a novella. Jamie and Claire go through hell trying to make it across the sea to Scotland, including two major Revolutionary War battles (Ticonderoga and Saratoga). William is getting his first taste of being a soldier, and Lord John is of course working on some kind of political mystery that involves Fergus.

I liked this book a lot better than last time. I took time to appreciate the writing and just enjoy being with the characters again. These are the only books in which I actually MISS the characters when I’m not reading the books. They’re just so real. I’m already looking forward to my next big re-read in another year or two.

That being said, I have two main issues with this book:

1. That it ends on SO many cliffhangers. Diana doesn’t usually do that - all of the other books end on a solid note, with you looking forward to the next book but things more or less wrapped up for the moment. This one literally ends in the middle of a ton of action, confusion, and a ton of stuff happening. It feels… sloppy.

2. This is a big spoiler, but it’s the thing I dislike most in this book. Highlight if you want to read it… Claire heads back to America from Scotland, and Jamie follows later. Except Claire hears that the ship he was on went down and there were no survivors, so she thinks he’s dead. Soooo… she marries Lord John to protect herself and Fergus and his family, which I can understand. But… then her and Lord John sleep together, out of grief or whatever. WHAT. THE. FUCK. This whole situation makes no sense – Claire’s not stupid, she knows that in this day and age plans change and that even though that the ship he was SUPPOSED to be on, it doesn’t mean that he actually was on it. I guess it just bothers me that she so blindly accepts that he died, and she doesn’t even attempt to find out for sure. And then to go and sleep with Lord John, one of his good friends… just what the hell. This was totally unnecessary. UGH.

 

So yeah. I still have some complaints, but overall this book wasn’t as bad as I remember it being. With the exception of how rushed the ending was and that other thing that happens, I really enjoyed it. I can’t wait for Written in My Own Heart’s Blood to come out! I’m sure it’ll be the highlight of 2013.

 

Sarah Says: 4 stars

 

 

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September 18, 2012 · 4:39 pm

A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon

Even though I own 3 copies of this book, I don’t have that pretty UK cover yet… sigh.

 

Yayyyy, another Outlander review! REMEMBER, THIS IS THE 6TH BOOK! IF YOU HAVEN’T READ THE FIRST 5 THERE WILL BE SPOILERS. AND REALLY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH YOUR LIFE? GO READ THESE BOOKS!

And, in case you’re interested here are my reviews for the first five books:

Outlander, Dragonfly in Amber, Voyager, Drums of Autumn, The Fiery Cross

 

So. At the end of The Fiery Cross, stuff was happening. The Frasers were settling down on the Ridge, and there was basically a lot of set-up waiting for the American Revolution to get closer. A Breath of Snow and Ashes starts off pretty much the same, with about 3 years to go until the start of the American Revolution. There are worrisome murders happening throughout the countryside… houses burned down and families being hung. Roger and Brianna have decided to stay, even though they know war is coming. Roger finally decides what he wants to do, as a calling or career. Brianna keeps making and building stuff, usually at the risk of something blowing up. We learn what happened to Young Ian when he was away and why he came back. Claire and Jamie have a really rough time of things in this book – not relationship troubles, but tragedy definitely strikes. There’s plots, intrigue, murder, deception, romance, and action abound in this one.

I flew through this in about a week. Of course, it’s a re-read, but still. That’s impressive for a 950-ish page trade paperback. I forgot how much I like this one. SO much good stuff happens. It rarely gets dull – there’s always something happening. And there are a couple big mysteries in this one, and happily I forgot how they ended up so when I re-read it, it was a surprise :-) Also, I like Brianna a lot more in this book than in the others. She’s so inventive, and the times she did get a little rage-y it was understandable.

And of course, I just love love love Jamie and Claire. I teared up at a couple parts. And, (not that this really spoils anything) the book ends with basically the start of the war. I think that makes me treasure this book a little more… I like seeing the Frasers at home and whatnot, and knowing that they’re about to be thrown into the chaos of war and battles makes me appreciate the more domestic scenes in this book.

I really want to go ahead and re-read #7, An Echo in the Bone now. I’m trying to make myself wait until November, because the 8th book won’t be out until early 2013 (I HOPE) and I want it to stay fresh in my mind before the new release. But since I’ve only read AEITB once before, I’m really, really looking forward to the re-read – even if I remember it being my least favorite.

 

Sarah Says: 5 stars :-)

 

 

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May 7, 2012 · 7:00 am

Sacre Bleu by Christopher Moore

Sacre Bleu by Christopher Moore

 

Christopher Moore’s most recent novel is about blue. Vincent van Gogh went mad before shooting himself in a cornfield, or did he? In the time before he died, he was raving about a twisted little colorman, and had become terribly afraid of a certain shade of blue. But he was at the height of his painting career, so why would he walk into a cornfield to shoot himself, and then stumble over a mile away to a doctor’s house? His friends are on a mission to figure it out. Lucien Lessard, a baker who desperately wants to be a successful painter, and his friend and fellow painter Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, try to discover the mystery surrounding the tale of the twisted little Colorman and that beautiful, rare blue.

First let me say that Sacre Bleu is a beautiful book. The hardcover is gorgeous, with nice thick pages and a dark blue font. There are a ton of full-color pictures of famous paintings scattered throughout. Also, there is an online chapter guide that features even more paintings, as well as notes from Christopher Moore about different paintings, inspirations, etc. I really hope that the online chapter guide comes out as a companion book, because I would absolutely buy it.

The story itself of Sacre Bleu is so different from what I’m used to seeing from Christopher Moore. There was a bit of mystery too it, but it was a lot about the art too. I learned more about art / paintings / Impressionists than I really ever thought that I would. I was definitely intrigued by the little Colorman and his weird blue sidekick. I liked Lucien, but my favorite character was Henri - he was weird and ridiculous, but also had a sweet side to him. (Plus, he is mentioned in Outlander when Claire meets a man with Toulouse-Lautrec syndrome, though she can’t call it that because Henri Toulouse-Lautrec hadn’t been born yet.) There was kind of a big cast, but Henri really stole the show.

So, I can’t go too much into the details of the book because I don’t want to be spoiler-y. I can say that this isn’t my favorite Christopher Moore novel. It seemed more… serious. Don’t get me wrong, there’s plenty of bawdy humor in it, but for the most part that’s what it was – bawdy sexual humor with a little bit of genuinely weird humor sprinkled in. None of it ever actually made me laugh out loud, which is rare for a Moore novel. However, part of this is just because of the subject matter – a lot of the characters and events are based on real people and things that really happened, so it doesn’t have that element of total Moore wackyness that I’m so used to.

Even though Sacre Bleu wasn’t my favorite and wasn’t the usual hilarious read that I like, I feel like this will stick with me in a way that some of his other novels haven’t. For example, I remember reading Fluke and really liking it, but I don’t remember a lot of the details. I feel like I savored this book so much more as I read, due to the topic and because of all of the pictures and the online guide. It really came to life for me, which makes it a worthy read.

 

Sarah Says: 3.5 stars… (4 stars if the chapter guide comes out in book form, or as an addition to the paperback copy)

 

 

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April 25, 2012 · 9:41 am

The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon

The Fiery Cross covers

Hey guys! So I’ve been very slowly re-reading the Outlander series since 2011, and now it’s time to review book #5, The Fiery Cross. SO REMEMBER THIS WILL BE ALL SPOILER-Y IF YOU HAVEN’T READ THE FIRST FOUR BOOKS. IF YOU DON’T CARE ABOUT THAT SORT OF THING THEN PLEASE, READ ON.

Also, here are my reviews for the first four books:

Outlander, Dragonfly in Amber, Voyager, Drums of Autumn

At the end of Drums of Autumn, everything was pretty hunky-dory. The Frasers are happily setting up their settlement known as Fraser’s Ridge. Brianna had the baby (Jemmy) and Roger gets rescued and decides to stay in the past, even though the baby might not be his, and they agree to get married. Jamie and Claire know that the American Revolution is coming and that they’re likely going to get swept up in it. The book ends with them all at The Gathering, that annual get-together of just about every Scot in the New World.

The Fiery Cross is probably the slowest-paced of all of the books, and it’s the first one in the series that doesn’t make me tear up at some point. That being said, it’s still a great book – you get to see a lot of Jamie and Claire being all domestic and that makes me happy. Also, there’s still a lot of action. There’s both attempted and actual murder, there’s battle, there’s tragedy, there’s romance, etc. Brianna and Roger are trying to get used to married life and get over the scars that Stephen Bonnett left. Roger has to deal with a serious injury that makes him question his purpose. Jamie and Claire are getting new tenants to settle down and are preparing for the revolution coming, only about 3 years away. There’s weddings, gold, snake bites, bears, ghosts, and a favorite character makes a welcome return.

Also, this book has one of my favorite quotes in the series:

“When the day shall come, that we do part,” he said softly, and turned to look at me, “if my last words are not ‘I love you’ – ye’ll ken it was because I didna have time.”

Awww. So even though the plot is a little slower than the other books, this is still a fantastic book and a great addition to the series. It also sets up a lot of important events to come in book #6, A Breath of Snow and Ashes.

 

Sarah Says: 5 stars

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March 21, 2012 · 7:00 am

The Tattooed Duke by Maya Rodale

  • Title: The Tattooed Duke
  • Author: Maya Rodale
  • Publisher: Avon
  • Pages: 371
  • ISBN: 9780062088925

So, browsing about Wegmans earlier this month, I of course was looking at their selection of books and ended up buying two, one of which was this one. The Tattooed Duke I really picked up on a whim. The whole tattoo thing caught my eye because come on, dukes didn’t rock tattoos back in the day, and then I flipped through it for a minute and noticed these funny little chapter subtitles. For example: “Chapter 5: In Which Scrubbing Floors is Romantic” and “Chapter 15: In Which the Duke Does Some Sleuthing”. It looked like fun, so I bought it and I’m happy to say it was really enjoyable.
 
Sebastian Digby has been trotting the globe having adventures when he’s called back to England because his father dies, and he is now the new Duke of Wycliff. He reluctantly returns home to find that the dukes before him have left the estate penniless, and that the elite of London scorn him for his wild ways, too-long hair, and small gold hoop earring. Once they find out about his wild tattoos and outlandish adventures overseas, they turn their back on him and refuse to fund the expedition of his dreams: a trip to the famed land of Timbuktu. Meanwhile, his pretty new housemaid almost makes him want to give up his dreams of exploring Timbuktu so that he can stay in England and flirt with her…
 
Eliza Fieldings is a writer for London’s favorite gossip newspaper, but she might not be for long if she doesn’t complete her latest assignment: to find out everything she can about the badboy duke. So Eliza poses as a housemaid in the Duke of Wycliff’s household, and she finds herself instantly attracted to him. As they grow closer, she’s torn between her desire to get the story so that she can keep her job, and her desire to give in to loving Sebastian. 
 
As you can see this is not your run-of-the-mill historical romance, and I thought it was GREAT. I loved seeing a heroine that isn’t some rich heiress, but also isn’t some poor peasant girl who needs a great marriage to save her finances. She’s an intelligent girl who loves to write, and she has a job and works really hard. Eliza is independent, witty, and tough. She even carries a knife at one point! HELL YES FOR HEROINES WHO CARRY WEAPONS!!!!! That’s the first I’ve ever seen of that in a romance, or in most books really. It should definitely happen more often.
 
Sebastian is a fun hero too – he has a scandalous past, but nothing that he’s ashamed of. He’s also determined not to become just like all the other dukes of Wycliff before him, which means he tries to keep from falling into bed with Eliza, as much as he wants to. He has a sense of wanderlust and refuses to conform to society’s expectations of him, which made him really likable.
 
Besides the great characters, there was no insta-love! Sure, there was insta-attraction, but that’s okay. They actually had conversations and talked to one another a lot, which somehow gets left out of a lot of romances. There was a fun and unique plot as well. For those of you who read romance purely for the sexy times, I’ll warn you that there’s no sex until the end of the novel. That’s how I prefer my romance novels actually, but that’s cause I care more about the characters, story, and romance than the sexy bits.
 
All in all this was a successful and really fun fluffy read. And apparently it’s part of Maya Rodale’s “Writing Girls” series, so there are other books out about some of the secondary characters as well. I’m not too big on series in romance, but I may give one of the others a try.
 
Sarah Says: 4 stars

BTW… Doesn’t the tattoo on the duke look like a face? Luckily the tattoos as described in the book sound much cooler.

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February 29, 2012 · 6:00 am

Review: The Kitchen Boy by Robert Alexander

  • Title: The Kitchen Boy; A Novel of the Last Tsar
  • Author: Robert Alexander
  • Publisher: Viking, 2003
  • Pages: 229
  • ISBN: 067003178x

So, this book has been on my radar ever since reading Jenn’s review of it a while ago. While I knew absolutely nothing about the Romanovs before this, I do really like novels set in Russia, so I knew I had to give it a try. And I was lucky enough to find a copy of this book at the big used book sale in January, in like-new condition! And now I’ve finally gotten around to reading  it, and it was fantastic!

This story is about the murder of the royal Romanovs in 1918. Nikolai and Aleksandra Romanov, their five children, and some household servants were shot to death by the Bolsheviks, but there are no eye witnesses to what happened that horrible night, and no way to confirm or deny the rumors that some of the children actually survived. Until now. Misha, a wealthy American, reveals that he is actually Leonka, the kitchen boy that worked in the Romanov household during those late days, and he claims to have seen exactly what happened that night.

WOW, this was a powerful book. You couldn’t help but grow to care for the Romanov family, and grow upset at their being held hostage. Leonka is a great pair of eyes to see all of this through – Leonka is telling this as an older man, so he’s able to interject his feelings while telling his story, and my heart definitely broke a little for him. And while I’m not an expert on literature set in Russia, I believe the author did a fabulous job capturing the Russian emotion and spirit. Also, there are many Russian words and phrases sprinkled throughout the story, but the author ALWAYS immediately says what it means. I hate when there’s foreign languages in a book but no English explanation, so major props to the author there. Man I want to learn Russian…

The last third of the book was INTENSE. There was so much tension and desperation, and then came the horrible execution scene… I teared up. It was really brutal and horrible. And then there’s this HUGE unexpected twist at the end and I totally did NOT see that coming. I absolutely devoured this book, I read it in practically one sitting.

Anyways, this was a really great historical fiction novel and I’m looking forward to reading Robert Alexander’s other books. And I really want to go read some non-fiction about the Romanovs too, because their story is tragic but absolutely fascinating.

Sarah Says: 5 stars

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February 27, 2012 · 8:34 am

Review: The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory

 

  • Title: The Other Boleyn Girl
  • Author: Philippa Gregory
  • Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 2001
  • Pages: 661
  • ISBN: 0743227441

I first read this book about 7 years ago – I was working at Waldenbooks and whenever I shelved something in the G’s, the cover of this book caught my eye because it was so pretty and shiny. I finally got around to borrowing it and reading it, and I fell in love with it. It was my first real venture into historical fiction, and the first time I really learned anything about the Tudors of England. This is at least the fourth time I’ve read this book.
 
Before I get to the review, I want to say that this book is historical FICTION. Philippa Gregory tends to be criticized because some things in her book aren’t historically accurate – well DUH, it’s fiction. There are going to be some made up bits. If you’re looking for something historically accurate, then read a non-fiction history book. Also, if you’ve seen the unfortunate movie (starring Eric Bana and Natalie Portman), but you haven’t read the book, you really can’t make a judgement on it. It’s a TRILLION times better than the movie. I cannot believe how badly they screwed it up.
 
Anyways, so this is the story of Mary Boleyn, the sister of the famous Anne Boleyn, who was Henry VIII’s second wife. The story starts with Mary as barely a teenager, an innocent girl who falls in love with the King and becomes his mistress, at the encouragement and demands of her greedy family. But when the King’s attention starts to drift, the family orders Anne to catch his eye, and Mary must step aside and assist her rival and beloved sibling to unthinkable heights. Anne’s eventual marriage to Henry VIII and ascension to queenship was absolutley scandalous for it’s time, and it caused a big breech between Rome and the Church of England. It created a tyrant – as some of you know, Henry VIII had six wives in his lifetime, two of which he beheaded.
 
Mary is one of my favorite fictional characters, ever. She’s not brilliant, or particularly witty. But she’s sweet, honest, and is really just trying to keep her head above water in court life. While Anne is depicted as absolutely cold, calculating, and mad with ambition, Mary’s goodness leads her to desire a life away from court, to live in the country with a simple family and away from all of the greed and theatrics of court life. In a world where everyone is only looking out for themselves and a way to advance, Mary just wants to be loved for herself. She just wants a simple life. And while that may be a boring wish to some, it makes for an absolutely fascinating story. I love the complicated family matters, the political conspiracies, the royal intrigues. The story isn’t bogged down with the more boring aspects of court life or dates – everything that happens is vivd and interesting.
 
All of the characters are extremely well done. Everyone has a bright, distinctive personality, from Mary’s good nature to their uncle’s ruthless scheming. Mary and Anne’s brother, George, is a great character – sort of a comic relief character, and a guy who’s dedicated to the family ambitions but is also trying to find his own piece of happiness. Even Anne, who’s kind of nuts and who’s ambition threatens to take the whole family down with her, is a character that I like. Sure, I want to slap her sometimes – but her craziness is infinitely interesting, and you can’t help but cheer for a woman who was trying so hard to make her own way in a world where men ruled.
 
Besides a wonderfully suspenseful story about a broad range of people, the writing is quite beautiful – Philippa Gregory at her absolute best. This is a book in which certain scenes and passages just stick with me, even when it’s been ages since I’ve read it. I’ve read a whole bunch of Gregory’s other novels, and this one is by far my favorite – it has the most interesting characters, the most interesting historical period, and the best writing.
 
Some of my favorite quotes…
 
“When I closed my eyes it was not in prayer, but in a reverie of sensuality.”
 
“For a moment I did not even see the king, I saw only the two of us, bound to be each other’s grief.”
 
“Before anything else I was a woman who was capable of passiona and who had a great need and a great desire for love. I didn’t want the rewards for which Anne had surrendered her youth. I didn’t want the arid glamour of George’s life. I wanted the heat and the sweat and the passion of a man that I could love and trust. And I wanted to give myself to him: not for advantage, but for desire.”
 
 
So yeah, whether you like historical fiction or not, this is a fantastic book. It takes you to another time, and it’s a book you can savor as you read it.
 
I’m so happy I re-read this, at the very least because it’s very wrong that I hadn’t done a review for it on here yet. And because the fact that I devoured all 700-ish pages in only a couple days reassures me that there are still books out there that can keep me reading even when I’m tired.
 
Sarah Says: 5 stars

 

 

 

 

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December 31, 2011 · 11:11 am

The Scottish Prisoner: A Lord John Novel by Diana Gabaldon

 

Yay yay yay!!!! OKAY so for those of you who aren’t familiar with Diana Gabaldon’s books, she’s the author of the Outlander series, AKA the best series EVER. The Outlander series is about the epic awesomeness that is Jamie and Claire Fraser. In that series is a secondary character named Lord John – an Englishman, and a friend of Jamie’s.

Diana Gabaldon also has another series, The Lord John series, that is based on him. They’re much shorter books than the Outlander novels, and they’re written as mysteries – basically little stories that give us glimpses into Lord John’s life when he’s not around in the Outlander series.

THIS book, The Scottish Prisoner, is the latest Lord John novel, but it’s different because it’s the only one that features so much of Jamie Fraser in it as well. The story takes place in 1760, so between the events of the second and third Outlander novels (Dragonfly in Amber and Voyager). Because this is written half in the voice of Lord John and half in the voice of Jamie, I definitely recommend reading the first three books of the Outlander series before reading this book. Most of the Lord John novels are written so that you can just kind of dive in anywhere, but not this one.

So anyways, Jamie is living as a paroled prisoner at Helwater – 14 years after The Rising – thanks to Lord John finding him the position as groomsman in the stables. His daily life is getting on fine until an old-time friend of his, Tobias Quinn, shows up wanting Jamie’s help in a new Jacobite plot. Lord John is in London and brings a packet of papers to his brother Hal - a packet of papers incriminating a member of the army of numerous serious crimes. Within that packet is a poem or verse in a language that they can’t quite make out until they learn that it is Erse – or basically, Irish. Knowing no one else that they can ask without drawing unwanted attention, Hal has Jamie dragged to London from Helwater to try to translate it.

A series of events leads to Jamie and Lord John being forced to travel to Ireland together, to bring justice upon a villainous man and to possibly prevent another doomed Jacobite rising.

So, for reasons that I won’t go into in case people haven’t read the books already, Jamie and Lord John are seriously pissed off at each other in the beginning of this book, and friendship seems impossible. Of course being thrown together against your will has a way of making people get along, and this book is really about how Jamie and Lord John start their friendship after such a rough and almost unforgiveable beginning.

This is definitely my favorite Lord John book, but that probably goes without saying since Jamie is in it so much. While I really like Lord John and think he’s a really fun character in the Outlander series, he actually comes off a little two-dimensional in his own series. We aren’t given enough glimpses into his past personal life, and they’re usually focused more on the mystery at hand that himself. Here, he definitely shines; he’s emotional and passionate and all action-y.

So, basically this is an awesome addition to both the Outlander series, and the Lord John series. PLUS it comes with a sneak peek preview to the next Outlander book, Written in My Own Heart’s Blood, which will hopefully be out sometime in the next two years.

 

Sarah Says: 5 out of 5 stars and READ THE DARN SERIES!

 

 

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October 7, 2011 · 6:30 am

Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon

The old cover, the current cover, the UK cover. All the same AWESOME book.

 I’ve been slowly re-reading the Outlander series this year – this is book #4. So keep in mind, there will be spoilers about the 1st three books here.

So, Jamie & Claire have come to America! The book starts in 1767 in the New World, with them setting off to make a life for themselves with nephew Young Ian and his pet wolfdog Rollo tagging along. (As well as Fergus and family.)They have almost nothing to start off with but as always find ways to survive and eventually they find land to call their own, deep in the woods of North Carolina.

In the present time, which is 1969, Brianna and Roger are continuing their awkward long-distance romance. That is, until Brianna discovers a death notice of Claire and Jamie, and rushes off through the stones and into the past to try to prevent it, with Roger belatedly coming after her to try to protect her. Once reunited in 1760′s America, their relationship seems more solid – until tragedy strikes and changes their lives completely.

So I guess I can’t say much more than that or I’d be getting super-spoilery and you know, if you haven’t read this book yet that would suck for you. LOTS of stuff happening in this one – it doesn’t get boring because there’s always something going on. I love all of the Outlander books almost equally but for different reasons – the first two because I love seeing Jamie & Claire in their first years together, the third book because they’re reunited and off having adventures, and this one because they finally start to get the domestic settled life that they’re been trying for. It’s so exciting to see them coming to America in the pre-Revolutionary War days and carving out a life in the mountains.

I love love love Jamie & Claire. Haven’t I said that a bajillion times on this blog? But it’s true. Jamie has to be the most well-crafted, well-written, well-fleshed out character ever written. And Claire ain’t so bad herself :-) And together they are truly amazing, even though they’re approaching 50 in this book.

Brianna and Roger I am slightly less enthusiastic about. I can say that I like Brianna the most in this book – maybe it’s because we hear her thoughts more. But she still still makes some damn stupid decisions in this book that set off bad shit happening later. And I think that Roger is great, and I’m happy for them and generally want good things for them – they’re no epic couple like J&C though.

And Young Ian! I would love it if Diana Gabaldon gave him is own series – he’s one of my absolute favorite characters in the series.

Anyways, enough of my gushing – this book is just as good as the first three. And so far, even though this is my third re-read – all four have still made me cry. We’ll see if book #5, The Fiery Cross, can do the same – last time I read it I remember thinking that it was one of my lesser favorites. We’ll see.

Sarah Says: 5 bright-ass stars

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