I love a good book (sometimes movies) about time travel. I don't know why. It isn't logical and certainly isn't possible. But I will read just about anything that includes time travel. There are some great ones and then there are some serious stinkers. These are just the ones I love. I'm going to write up posts about my favorites because the more people who read these wonderful books and writers the better. The first book is Outlander by Diana Gabaldon.
Once upon a time, I worked in a bookstore. Every time I would shelve in romance, I would have to restock this book. I could not for the life of me figure out why it was flying off the shelf. One day, out of curiosity, I looked at the book and thought the blurb sounded intriguing. I had no idea what I was in for. I finished it in three days (its humongous.) I read the next one and the next one after that. I couldn't love a book more than I love this one. Also, I had no trouble convincing others how wonderful the books were such was my love for it.
Outlander begins just after World War Two in Scotland. Claire and Frank Randall are taking a much needed second honeymoon when Claire, a former army nurse, disappears. In actuality, Claire has stepped through a cleft in some standing stones and gone back in time to 1746. There, she is assaulted by her husband's ancestor, Black Jack Randall, and rescued by members of the Clan MacKenzie. Thinking she must be a British spy, they spirit her away to the MacKenzie land. It is there that she befriends a young man named Jamie who is unlike the others. They form an unlikely friendship that takes them down a path of political, historical, and family intrigue.
That's all I'm willing to share about the plot. Let's just say there is much romance, political intrigue, and action to keep you interested from the get go. It also helps that Claire and Jamie are two very real characters with motivation that is usually lacking in other romance characters. The other thing about this book is that I refer to it as a romance but it is so much more than that. It's historical and sci-fi. It's romance and suspense novel. It is purely wonderful.
Outlander is the first in the series. There are, I think, seven so far in the series with an eighth coming in 2013. Some are better than others. I happen to think the odd numbered books are the better ones, but that's just me. It is definitely a commitment to read one of Ms. Gabaldon's books but I am so very glad that I did!
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