Outlander (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "It wasn't a very likely place for disappearances, at least at first glance..." (more)
Key Phrases: Sir Marcus, Sir Fletcher, Ned Gowan (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In Outlander, a 600-page time-travel romance, strong-willed and sensual Claire Randall leads a double life with a husband in one century, and a lover in another. Torn between fidelity and desire, she struggles to understand the pure intent of her heart. But don't let the number of pages and the Scottish dialect scare you. It's one of the fastest reads you'll have in your library.

While on her second honeymoon in the British Isles, Claire touches a boulder that hurls her back in time to the forbidden Castle Leoch with the MacKenzie clan. Not understanding the forces that brought her there, she becomes ensnared in life-threatening situations with a Scots warrior named James Fraser. But it isn't all spies and drudgery that she must endure. For amid her new surroundings and the terrors she faces, she is lured into love and passion like she's never known before.

I was lame and sore in every muscle when I woke next morning. I shuffled to the privy closet, then to the wash basin. My innards felt like churned butter. It felt as though I had been beaten with a blunt object, I reflected, then thought that that was very near the truth. The blunt object in question was visible as I came back to bed, looking now relatively harmless. Its possessor [Jamie] woke as I sat next to him, and examined me with something that looked very much like male smugness."

Gabaldon creates characters that you'll remember, laugh with, cry with, and cheer for long after you've finished the book. --Candy Paape

From Publishers Weekly

Absorbing and heartwarming, this first novel lavishly evokes the land and lore of Scotland, quickening both with realistic characters and a feisty, likable heroine. English nurse Claire Beauchamp Randall and husband Frank take a second honeymoon in the Scottish Highlands in 1945. When Claire walks through a cleft stone in an ancient henge, she's somehow transported to 1743. She encounters Frank's evil ancestor, British captain Jonathan "Black Jack" Randall, and is adopted by another clan. Claire nurses young soldier James Fraser, a gallant, merry redhead, and the two begin a romance, seeing each other through many perilous, swashbuckling adventures involving Black Jack. Scenes of the Highlanders' daily life blend poignant emotions with Scottish wit and humor. Eventually Sassenach (outlander) Claire finds a chance to return to 1945, and must choose between distant memories of Frnak and her happy, uncomplicated existence with Jamie. Claire's resourcefulness and intelligent sensitivity make the love-conquers-all, happily-ever-after ending seem a just reward. Doubleday Book Club main selection, Literary Guild alternate.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 850 pages
• Publisher: Dell (June 2, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440212561
• ISBN-13: 978-0440212560
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.3 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1,522 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,977 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #16 in	Books > Romance > Authors, A-Z > ( G ) > Gabaldon, Diana
  #19 in	Books > Romance > Time Travel
  #63 in	Books > Romance > Historical

• This is item 1 in The Outlander Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

365 of 380 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is the English version of Outlander, October 18, 2005

By	SciFi lover "Amy" (DC Metro Area) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cross Stitch (Paperback)

For those who view this page to see what books other than Outlander that Diana Gabaldon wrote, look somewhere else. This is Outlander but published under a different name in Britain. Since it wasn't stated anywhere, I thought I might clarify it. I loved Outlander so I gave it 5 stars, though 4 1/2 might be more correct.

338 of 353 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Devoured, July 28, 2000

By A Customer

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU COMPLETELY LOST YOUR HEART TO A BOOK? Well, look no further. Diana Gabaldon has created the ultimate escape in The Outlander. Don't let the 850 pages dissuade you. It's the fastest read you'll ever have.

The epic tale begins when Claire Randall, a young combat nurse in World War II, moves to Scotland with her beloved husband to re-ignite their marriage interrupted by the war. Hiking one day, Claire accidentally passes through the stones of an ancient stone circle and wakes up to find herself in 16th century Scotland. Lost, alone, and confused (yet, determined), Claire's path crosses, and is inextricably linked to, a young Highland warrior, James Fraser. (The kind of man women want, and men want to BE.)The story that ensues would make Shakespeare proud--danger, suspense, passion, betrayal, true love, and tragedy. Gabaldon is a master story teller. She shrouds her fantasy in just enough reality as to completely seduce her readers.

The time-travel element as well as the romance, while unconventional for a "serious" historical novel, are handled brilliantly by Gabaldon. Not, for the faint of heart-- the author tackles themes of a violent and sexual nature. However, the story is so realistic and beautifully told, it doesn't come off as a ploy to shock readers. Well-crafted and meticulously researched, The Outlander is historical fiction at it's finest-but never this much fun! The hero and heroine come alive. You'll find yourself living and breathing in their world, anxiously devouring each chapter.

WARNING: have the next three books in the series handy. Once, you turn the last page of Outlander, you won't want to return to the 21st century. I couldn't get to the bookstore fast enough. And, Gabaldon does not disappoint...

320 of 335 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Happily surprised..., December 10, 2001

By	"bookboarder" (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Outlander (Paperback)

I must admit, the synopsis on the back of this tome threw me off. I didn't think I would be much interested in a romance novel based on time travel -- it just seemed way too implausible. However, at the persistence of several friends from a book group, I gave this novel a try. I am certainly grateful that I did. Firstly, this is not merely a romance novel. It involves a romance, to be sure, but this romance is not one you'd find again and again in your average Harlequin. This is an original romance, which so completely describes love that I found myself better understanding love than I did at the onset of the novel. When a novel has the capacity to make you understand something as vague as love, you know it is good.
It is also filled with adventure, religion, and human conscience. A historical novel rarely has the ability to make me understand things about my own presence, and yet, Outlander simply did. I was unable to put this book down, as enraptured as I was by the compelling writing.
The character development is beyond any I have lately read. Dianna Gabaldon has a true gift for understanding human emotion and translating it for the rest of us to understand.
If you fear that the plot seems to be a bit too "outlandish" for you, still, give this one a try. While certain aspects may be unbelievable, the reality is, this novel has so much truth to it, you will be amazed. I was.