★★★★★ — Five Stars
I have been meaning to read Outlander for years. It is one of those books that seems to be absolutely everywhere, and I think that was partly why I kept putting it off. When a book has been loved by so many people for so long, there is always that little worry that you're going to be the person sitting in the corner wondering what all the fuss is about.
Thankfully, I wasn't.
The story begins in 1945 with Claire Randall, a former combat nurse who is enjoying a second honeymoon in Scotland with her husband, Frank, after the long separation of the war. After visiting an ancient stone circle, Claire suddenly finds herself thrown back through time to 1743. It is a Scotland of clans, suspicion, violence and political unrest, and Claire very quickly discovers that being an independent twentieth-century woman in the eighteenth century is going to cause her more than a few problems.
What surprised me most was just how quickly I became absorbed in Claire's story. This is a big book, and Diana Gabaldon certainly isn't in a hurry. There are long descriptions, lengthy conversations and plenty of time spent simply living alongside the characters. I can understand why some readers find the pacing slow, because this definitely isn't a story that races from one plot point to another. That slower, richly detailed storytelling is something readers seem either to love or struggle with.
For me, though, it worked.
Claire is a wonderful heroine. She's practical, stubborn, intelligent and sometimes spectacularly bad at keeping her opinions to herself. I particularly enjoyed the fact that she doesn't suddenly become an eighteenth-century woman simply because she has landed there. Her knowledge as a nurse gives her an advantage, but her modern attitudes can also make her stand out at precisely the moments when keeping quiet would probably be sensible.
And then, of course, there is Jamie Fraser.
I finally understand.
The relationship between Claire and Jamie is at the heart of the novel, but I wouldn't describe Outlander as simply a romance. It is also historical fiction, adventure and time-slip fantasy, and that mixture is one of its strengths. Other readers have made much the same observation: despite its reputation as a romance, the book crosses genres and contains an enormous amount beyond the central love story.
The Scotland Gabaldon creates feels wonderfully tangible. Castles aren't merely picturesque places in the distance; they are busy, uncomfortable homes filled with people, animals, gossip and politics. There is mud, illness, hunger and danger alongside the sweeping landscapes and romance. I could almost hear the horses in the courtyard and feel the cold coming through the stone walls.
There are some difficult scenes, however, and I don't think this is a book I'd recommend without mentioning them. Violence, including sexual violence, features in the story and becomes particularly disturbing later in the novel. Some behaviour between characters also has to be viewed within the eighteenth-century setting, although understanding the historical context doesn't necessarily make it comfortable to read. This is something other readers have also flagged when recommending the book.
My only real complaint is that there were places where I thought the story could have moved along a little faster. Gabaldon loves detail, and occasionally I found myself thinking, yes, yes, I understand, can we get back to what is happening now please? Then something dramatic would happen and I'd be completely hooked again.
By the end, though, the length didn't matter. I had become so invested in Claire and Jamie that leaving them felt rather like being turfed out of somebody's house after staying there for several weeks.
So yes, after years of wondering whether Outlander could possibly live up to its reputation, I get it now.
And I've just discovered how many books there are in the series.
My poor bookshelf.
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