Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I approached this book with quite a bit of skepticism. I figured it for a "Twilight"-esque saga for adults.
It is a romantic saga, in painstaking detail, and I was right- definitely for adults, but that is about where the validity of my preconceptions ended.
Outlander, part one of the series by Gabaldon, is both devastating and wondrous. The characters are complex, richly described and difficult to forget. Most gratifying is the fact that the complexity of each character causes you to feel complete in your understanding of their motivations, actions and feelings. The story begins with the time travel of the main character. Suspending disbelief, one may really enjoy her encounters with time and customs long past, especially given the breathtaking scenery and setting- The Highlands of Scotland in the 18th century.
Her knowledge of medicine is all that saves her from certain capture, as she instead proves herself useful to almost everyone she meets. Her encounter with Jaime Fraser at first seems inocuous, but their story begins to unravel against the backdrop of civil unrest, cultural devastation and day to day hardship. What is revealed is a deep passionate and requited love that will leave you absolutely breathless and infatuated.
The climax of the book is at once terrible and hideous, but ultimately so tender and awe-inspiring that you wonder how the author could come up with so complicated a picture of the human spirit.

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