Outlander (20th Anniversary Edition) (Outlander, #1)

by Diana Gabaldon

Twenty years ago, the journey began: Diana Gabaldon swept readers into her mesmerizing world brimming with history, romance, and adventure. To celebrate the series that has captured the hearts of millions, Doubleday Canada will be publishing a special anniversary edition for core Gabaldon fans and new readers alike.

Unrivaled storytelling, unforgettable characters, and rich historical detail are the hallmarks of Diana Gabaldon's novels. Here is the story that started it all, introducing two remarkable characters: Claire Randall and Jamie Fraser. A spellbinding novel of passion and history, that combines exhilarating adventure with a love story for the ages, The Outlander takes readers on an unforgettable journey.

• ISBN10: 0385671083
• ISBN13: 9780385671088
• Publish Date: 5 July 2011 (first published 1 June 1991)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: CA
• Imprint: Doubleday Canada
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 688
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/isbn/9780385671088

Reviews

[mitabird]

3.5 stars

[celinenyx]

So, I finished the giant tome that is Outlander yesterday. It took me about a month, which isn't too shabby, considering its size. Somehow I still feel like I'm reading it - the ending of the book didn't give me the sense of something ending, rather of something starting.

Outlander is the story of Claire, a woman from the 1940s. She is warped to the 18th century, and becomes involved with a young Scotsman called Jamie Fraser.

It's hard to review a book of this length. Obviously, it has a certain quality of writing, or no one would ever finish it. And truly, Ms Gabaldon does a wonderful job of stringing sentences together. She knows how to tear on the reader's heartstrings, she knows how to paint a scene, and she definitely knows how to make her historical setting vivid. The setting of Outlander is absolutely fantabulous. Rarely does a writer manage to truly convince me of a setting - Gabaldon reminds me of Auel in this aspect. It was quite a surprise to discover that Ms Gabaldon had never been in Scotland when she published Outlander. The amount of research that must have gone into this book is staggering, and not once did I feel like I was reading a textbook.

My main gripe with this book is Claire. She is an empty glass, a pair of clear spectacles through which we see the world. She lacks introspection and a rationale. The heroine we are supposed to root for almost isn't there. This kind of heroine is popular in romantic fiction because it enables the reader to imagine herself in the shoes of the heroine without being impeded by the heroines personality. As a result, I would have a hard time to describe Claire to anyone. She's stubborn. A nurse. Loyal, I guess? Honestly though, she could have been Bella Swan if Bella had served in the Second World War and stopped with her angst.

Neither did Ms Gabaldon manage to sell me on Jamie. There was nothing attractive about him, except the fact that he's a stud in a kilt - but 50% of the men in this book are. His only personality traits are stubbornness, adherence to his family, his love for Claire, and being a mutilation-magnet.

About halfway I lost all interest in the main characters, and kept reading to see where the story would lead. Would Claire ever regret having left her modern-day husband? Would Jamie ever stop being beaten up by everyone he meets? How often will Claire be nearly raped? I'm ridiculing it now, but almost every pivotal event in Outlander involves severe violence towards Jamie's physique, or an attempt to get into Claire's undies.

On one hand, Outlander is so rich in world-building and lovable minor characters, yet on the other hand there is this slightly ludicrous plot. It is well-written, and I would hardly call it trash, but it didn't convince me either. I won't continue this series. Someone tell me how often Jamie gets beaten up when it's over.

[flybymoonlight]

This book has been on my reading list for a long time. I've finally gotten around to reading book one. The first hundred pages or so were a little rough for me as I felt it was hard to tell exactly where the story was going. Once I got into it though I was swept away with beautiful imagery and epic characters. I love how well researched this book is. Definitely a must read!

[Kait ✨]

Outlander is a book I have known about for so long I can’t even remember when I first heard of it. I have had it in the back of my mind for years as a book I thought I would like. I love Scotland and especially the highlands, and since that is the main setting of this book I was immediately endeared to it. When my aunt offered to lend me her copies of the series, I was so excited to dive into these massive books – especially with the TV series starting soon! Well. Frankly, I was disappointed. Unfortunately, there was so much in this book that didn’t work for me. Continue reading my review on my blog, Bookish Comforts.

[adamfortuna]

With the TV series for this book coming out later this year, and this being one of Marilyns favorites, I knew I had to read it before that. Although the characters were intresting, for a story about someone who lived through World War II, and time travels 200 years back to Scotland, this was surprisingly boring. The story is interesting, but I wanted more sci-fi/fantasy/time travel and less romance and political intrigue.

[redjoy53]

I liked this on audio books because you get the accents. Enjoyed the book.

[kimbacaffeinate]

“Sassenach” is the sexiest term of endearment I have ever heard, “aye it is”. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon is one of the greatest books I have ever had the pleasure to listen too. The story some 800 plus pages long is a time traveling historical novel that left me breathless. Gabaldon’s world-building is beyond spectacular as she takes us from 1945 to worn torn Scotland in 1743. Brilliantly detailed she brought Claire Randall’s journey to life. I feel in love with a highlander named James Fraser. He is a young Scots warrior with a kind soul who made me laugh, cry and swoon.

[Berls]

This review appeared first at Fantasy is More Fun

My Initial Reaction...

Where have I been the last 22 years?!?! I started hearing about Outlander for the first time in the spring of this year (2013) and kept hearing that I had to read it, but I'd better prepare myself for one hell of a ride. Well, I tried to prepare myself, but I grossly underestimated how skilled Diana Gabaldon would be at crafting characters that got under my skin and into my heart. One of the greatest romances ever written, in my opinion.

The Characters...

The characters are so incredibly well developed in Outlander, I feel like I now know Claire and Jamie personally. There's a great (and large) supporting cast, but Claire and Jamie easily steal the show.

Claire, affectionately known as Sassenach, is a 1940s wife and war-nurse at the outset of Outlander, vacationing in Scotland with her husband Frank Randall. They've been kept apart for so many years because of the war, so this vacation is almost like a honeymoon for them. Right from the start, I loved Claire. She's stubborn and feisty, and she's got a mouth on her, particularly for the 1940s (not to mention the 1700s!). She's also incredibly smart and resilient. You see glimpses of that intelligence right from the start, not surprisingly since she'd have to be after serving in WWII. But once she lands herself in eighteenth-century Scotland, those qualities come to the fore and she never fails to amaze me with her ability to persevere through truly extraordinary, overwhelming and terrifying situations. 


And then there's Jamie Fraser. He's the ultimate hero. He's so strong and manly, while being incredibly soft and vulnerable at the same time. Some of the things he says just melt (or break) your heart. Every moment with him is a favorite moment for me. I think he may be the most romantic hero I've ever read. He's also a beautifully flawed character. He's not perfect, despite what his many fan clubs might suggest; in fact, he'll piss you off plenty. But his heart is always in the right place. I think the best way to describe him is to let him speak for himself - so I've pulled a couple of my favorite Jamie lines out for you (in no particular order):

[quote style="1"]Does it ever stop? The wanting you? Even when I've just left ye. I want you so much my chest feels tight and my fingers ache with wanting to touch ye again.[/quote]

[quote style="1"]When I asked my da how ye knew which was the right woman, he told me when the time came, I'd have no doubt. And I didn't. When I woke in the dark under that tree on the road to Leoch, with you sitting on my chest, cursing me for bleeding to death, I said to myself, 'Jamie Fraser, for all ye canna see what she looks like, and for all she weighs as much as a good draft horse, this is the woman.[/quote]

The Story...

I have no idea what I was expecting from Outlander - I had heard it was a must-read and one hell of an emotional ride - but it certainly wasn't what I expected. For one, I thought it was more of a sci-fi/fantasy novel than it turned out to be. In fact, with the one exception that the scenario that lands Claire in the 1700s is entirely the stuff of science fiction, this book is historical romance through and through. If you'd asked me if I like historical romances before I picked up Outlander I probably would have said, "not really." Now, I'm a fan.

That being said, despite not meeting my expectations even slightly, this book was incredible. It's 600+ pages (in the eBook) of heart-wrenching, gut-twisting, soul-tearing action, romance, anticipation, sexual trauma, and torture. The romance in this book is probably some of the best I've ever read, in no small part because Jamie. And Claire's situation is so complicated, there are moments you can't help but cry for the struggle she is going through. Romance though it may be, don't expect a light and carefree read. The pages not marked with love are dripping in blood. There's truly horrendous descriptions of torture, seemingly constant violence, injury, and death. And somehow all that manages to be balanced with the perfect amount of truly hilarious moments.

I will say that some scenes seemed superfluous, but I can't help but expect that they weren't cut for a reason. So much happens that I worry it's all important and I just hope I'll remember those little, seemingly unimportant details when/if they become important. It is a bit of a slow starter too, things don't really pick up until the Scotland phase begins. But even the slow parts are enjoyable and the rest is your reward for pushing through them.

Concluding Sentiments...

I think Outlander is a book that everyone should at least try. If you love romance, it'll melt your heart. If your a fan of action - the intense and bloody stuff - you'll not be disappointed. If (like me) you're all about fantasy, Outlander delivers a unique take. And if you like historical pieces, well then this technically was written for you. At 800 pages it's daunting and you'll be emotionally exhausted when it's all said and done. But I bet you'll be glad you read it and you'll be ready to pick up the next one!

Get it on Amazon

[blackbibliophile]

It started really slow but it was a really great book!

[Michael @ Knowledge Lost]

Claire Randall found herself time travelling from 1945 to 1743. She was just back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon but then she walks through an ancient stone circle and finds herself in the midst of a war torn Scotland being raided by the Highland clans. She finds a young Scot warrior and becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire.

Contrary to popular belief, I didn’t read this book along with the Vaginal Fantasy book club; I did it because this is my wife’s favourite series and I needed a romance novel for the Literary Exploration challenge. I’m not really a fan of romances (Wuthering Heights is still the greatest romance of all time) so I wasn’t sure what I was getting into here but be warned, even though I want to talk about all the things that didn’t work for me, it doesn’t mean this wasn’t an enjoyable read.

First of all I want to talk about Claire Randall; here is this strong former combat nurse that finds herself in the past. While she is scared and confused I never felt that her desperation was believable; I felt like the inner turmoil of Claire never really played out and I was left to believe she wanted to be there. Also she is suppose to be portrayed as a strong independent woman but all I saw was a loud mouth nag that put up no fight and just married Jamie with no reluctance at all.

Jamie Fraser suffers from instalove; as soon as he saw Claire he was madly in love with her. Then when they finally got married, the virgin becomes the greatest lover known to man; how is that possible? Also Jamie is supposed to be this great Scottish warrior but all I ever see him do is get into trouble and winding up caught or with severe wounds. Not to mention the abuse towards Claire; sure it was a sign on the time to discipline his wife but this isn’t sexy and is just over done.

Finally the plot; I tend to think this book goes in a repetitive circle, which consists of sex, more sex, conflict, sex, being caught, wife beating and then more sex. This is the entire plot arc and it keeps repeating itself for over 800 pages. Makes me wonder what makes a romance novel, I never felt there was an ounce of romance or love; just lots of sex.

I know this is a series of a great love between Jamie and Claire and there was a flicker of this from Jamie but never felt that come through from Claire. I wonder if sex is a substitute for love here or does this reflect more in the books that follow. Apart from everything I didn’t like about the book, the characters and the writing was pretty good. I wanted more inner conflict from Claire as0 the narrator but that is just a personal preference. I’m always interested in the inner thoughts of a protagonist, especially when they find themselves in an unusual situation.

I’m not sure if I will continue the Outlander series but I would like to think that the romance starts in the next book. I’m curious to know if this is the case; I’m a little hesitant to invest in another 800 pages if it’s just more of the same. Romance novels are not really my thing, but I did like the slight speculative fiction element with the time travel. I hope that aspect of the plot gets explored in greater detail with the other books. Now I’m curious to read The Time Travellers Wife and see how it compares.

This review originally appeared on my blog; http://literary-exploration.com/2013/03/18/book-review-outlander/