To write about a very successful romance is always tricky. Outlander, the fiction series written by Diana Gabaldon, has a huge fan crowd. It was so successful that the book was turned into a TV series. As I opened the first book I was unsure of what I was going to find. And as millions of readers before me, I loved it. Finally, a book able to mix history and romance in a successful way! And, on top, you also get heroic fights, Scottish humor and psychological dilemma, all in one book.
Claire Randall and her husband are on holidays in the Highlands in 1945, with the goal to get reacquainted after the horrors of World War Two. Claire, an amateur herbalist, is collecting plants within a cairn when she is suddenly transported in the 18th century Scotland. She encounters the Captain Randall, her husband's ancestor, a psychotic English soldier, but before he can take her into custody, she is saved by a group of Scottish warriors from the Clan MacKenzie. Suspected to be an English spy, they bring her with them to Castle Leoch. On the way, she uses her nursing skills, acquired in England during the war, to heal a young Highlander, Jamie MacTavish. As usual I want to avoid the spoilers so I will stop my summary here.
What I loved is Claire's character. She is a modern woman, very independent and with a fierce temper, who refuses to act as a victim when she ends up in a totally different century, surrounded by violent men, in a time where women are considered inferior. She is torn between two men, her husband, and an Highlander, situation that adds a very interesting emotional dimension to the story.
If you like history and intricate love intrigues, Highlander should be your first choice .
Claire Randall and her husband are on holidays in the Highlands in 1945, with the goal to get reacquainted after the horrors of World War Two. Claire, an amateur herbalist, is collecting plants within a cairn when she is suddenly transported in the 18th century Scotland. She encounters the Captain Randall, her husband's ancestor, a psychotic English soldier, but before he can take her into custody, she is saved by a group of Scottish warriors from the Clan MacKenzie. Suspected to be an English spy, they bring her with them to Castle Leoch. On the way, she uses her nursing skills, acquired in England during the war, to heal a young Highlander, Jamie MacTavish. As usual I want to avoid the spoilers so I will stop my summary here.
What I loved is Claire's character. She is a modern woman, very independent and with a fierce temper, who refuses to act as a victim when she ends up in a totally different century, surrounded by violent men, in a time where women are considered inferior. She is torn between two men, her husband, and an Highlander, situation that adds a very interesting emotional dimension to the story.
If you like history and intricate love intrigues, Highlander should be your first choice .
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publisher: Random House
Photo credits: Fred Pergola
Publisher: Random House
Photo credits: Fred Pergola