Some days--most days--a good book and a hot cup of tea are all I need in order to escape the sometimes wearisome routine of the 9-5 job. A good book should be able to whisk away a person for a half-hour, and sometimes that would be enough to refresh me for another go the next day. But there are some books that transcend mere "distractions" from reality. Some books were lives I fully lived.
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
“Ye are Blood of my Blood, and Bone of my Bone, I give ye my Body, that we Two might be One. I give ye my Spirit, 'til our Life shall be Done.” ― Diana Gabaldon, Outlander
Men in kilts. Check. Time-travel. Check. Romance. Check that three times. Diana Gabaldon's Outlander will stand the test of time as one of the greatest romance, science-fiction, historical-fiction sagas the world has ever seen. This could be because there truly isn't anything like it out there, but Gabaldon wields her pen through the genres in her book like someone buttering their toast. She makes it look that easy. And as someone who studied creative writing for four years, let me tell you it is not easy to blend genres together as smoothly as she does.
Taking place in Scotland between the years of 1745 to 1945, World War II nurse Claire Beauchamp Randall accidentally finds herself whisked away from everything she had ever known after visiting a circle of standing stones while on a honeymoon with her husband, Frank Randall. Left to her own devices in a place and time completely foreign to her--near the year of 1745, Claire is stuck between British soldiers taking her for a spy of the Scottish rebels, and the Scottish Highlanders believing her to be a spy of the British Crown. She meets unlikely allies, and even more unlikely foes while trying to avoid witch-craft accusations, warring clans, a man infamously dubbed "Black Jack," and find her way back to her own time in order to be reunited with Frank. However, a young man named Jaime Fraser, a Scottish outlaw accused of murder, seems to always get in the way of her escape.
Reader, this book is at the top of my list because this is seriously one of my favorite books I've read in at least 5 years. Gabaldon brought history to life through the eyes of Claire, and the mystery behind how Gabaldon's theory of time-travel works is engaging enough to suspend reality.
However, although I love this book, I admit that sometimes the narration takes strange turns that seem to not have any significance to the overall story. But these occurrences happen once, or twice, in a novel chock full of amazing characters (Jaime), descriptions of Scotland's beautiful scenery, and, let's admit to ourselves, Jaime. It's so engaging that my skeptical fiance, Andrew, got himself sucked in when he didn't believe me when I said it could possibly be up to par with Harry Potter. And guess what? Outlander is only book one of the fantastic time-traveling series, and he's on book two (I'm on book 7).
Lastly, I highly, highly recommend listening to the book with narration performed by Davina Porter. She made the characters come alive and helped me keep the wide cast of characters straight due to her range of voices. She's one of the best voice actors I've ever come across; If you're like me and have a long commute to work, I strongly urge you to rent/purchase the audio book. It will make your commute to work something to look forward to each morning.
Erin's Rating: 5 stars.
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