Have you seen the new television series Outlander, based on the Outlander books by Diana Gabaldon? It goes a bit like this…
The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a wartime nurse, is just back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon in Scotland when she walks through a stone circle which catapults her back in time. Suddenly she is a Sassenach—an “outlander”—in Scotland in the year 1743. Unable to find her way back to her own time, Claire is forced to find a way to survive. She is adopted by clan McKenzie, where she meets the young Scottish warrior, James Fraser. And so begins the story of Jamie and Claire. Spanning over eight books (so far) and two centuries, their story is truly EPIC.
If you HAVE been watching Outlander on television (like me!), you’ll most likely be experiencing withdrawals, as the series is on its mid season break, and won’t return until April 2015. These Outlander withdrawal symptoms are becoming known as ‘Drought-Lander Syndrome’. Symptoms may include speaking with a Scottish accent and a strange attraction to men in kilts. You call all your girlfriends lassies and ask them to call you ‘Sassenach’. You may also have started referring to your family as your ‘clan’ or touching random stones in an attempt to be sent back to 1743 Scotland.
But never fear! All is not lost! Or, as Jamie would say, ‘Dinna fash yerself lassies!”, you don’t need to wait until April 4 2015 (not that I’m counting down or anything) to see what happens next! READ THE BOOKS! Cross Stitch is the first book in the series, followed by Dragonfly in Amber, Voyager, Drums of Autumn, The Fiery Cross, A Breath of Snow and Ashes, An Echo in the Bone and Written in My Own Hearts Blood.
These books are unlike anything you may have read before. If you’ve read them you’ll understand, trying to explain what genre they are is almost painful. Romance? Yes… there’s romance (hunky Scottish highlander romance!)… but…. there’s more than that. Historical? Yes…. its set in Scotland in 1743 (and its VERY well researched) but….there’s more than that! Sci-fi/fantasy? Yes, there’s time-travel (and a little bit of magic)…. but…. there’s more than that! These book defy classification! They are simply unlike any other book I’ve EVER read. Author Diana Gabaldon truly loves her characters and it really shows in her writing. Jamie and Claire are two of the most well written, charismatic characters that I’ve ever read, with a bond that defies logic and transcends time. Gabaldon’s research is so thorough and the books so well written and detailed that you feel like you’re there, living in Scotland in 1743 right alongside Claire and Jamie.
And if you’re an obsessively keen fangirl, just like me (no judgement!), you can follow the author of these fine books, Diana Gabaldon on Facebook here . She is a rather sassy lassie herself, and posts often, about her writing and her life in general, including sneak peeks from book #9, which she is currently working on.
