Outlander

I was swept into this story immediately by the characters and settings. I loved all the vivid descriptions of the country and era. I found the entire book enchanting and I can't wait to get the next one.

I wanted to like this book. I really wanted to like this book. And while I can appreciate the Scottish brogue, the description of the Scottish Highlands, and even the studley Celt wearing Jamie, the novel falls flat. How many times can Claire and Jamie have sex while she's still married to Frank, and this be interesting? I don't particularly like the television series, and I thought maybe if I read the novel I might prefer the book and get a better story, but sadly I was disappointed. If I find myself without something to read, I may pick up book two – but that is not likely.

Being a bit OCD I finished this book despite the fact that I had a lot of reservations about half way through. I certainly would not rush to read any more in this series. I was offended by what I considered a rape scene between Jamie and Claire about a third into the book. My favorite genre is historical fiction and this is more of a love story. As one friend said it's a bit like Fifty Shades of Scotland.

It took me some time to get into the first novel of the Outlander series, but I’m really glad that I stuck it out and continued to read. I thoroughly enjoyed the description of the landscape, the homes, and of the experiences that Claire found herself in as she journeyed throughout the book. I experienced almost every emotion as I read through the tale including, heartbreak, anxiety, sadness, grief, and anger. There was even a point in the book that I was so incredibly angered by a certain action that I almost threw the book across the room and almost made the decision to stop reading it, but I decided that given the time period the author was being true to that, so I didn’t give up. If like me, you really enjoy a good and strong female lead, castles, times far gone, and just a little bit of a love story (okay, sometimes a big one)… you’ll want to read this book. I decided that I would read each Outlander book and then watch the Starz series to compare, so I have two more episodes before I can start Dragonfly in Ember and I’m already itching to start!

Please look for a complete review on my blog, www.coffeecupsandcandor@wordpress.com! I didn’t want to post any spoilers here on Goodreads. :)

So much to love about this book. Starting with time and highland setting i could almost smell the smoke on the brazier and the nip of winter. Wonderfully developed characters that I loved and captain Randall that I hated. A strong female protagonist who could stand her own , no side characters in this story.