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4.15 AVERAGE
4.15 AVERAGE
I never truly viewed Outlander as a family saga until Drums of Autumn, which took a step back from Claire and Jamie, and instead focused on the life and doings of their daughter, Brianna, and her boyfriend, husband, lover or whatever-he-is-to-her, Roger.
Yet even through all the Fraser family drama with Brianna, we got those precious glimpses of intimacy between Claire and Jamie, and all was perfectly right in the world.
The most interesting to me seemed the whole process of settling in the Colonies - finding Fraser's Ridge, building the first cottage, planting and then selling the first crops, acquiring cattle, hunting and all the little things and adventures, and ebbs and flows of fortunes that went with it.
What keeps amazing me with every book and every page I read is the constancy of characters. They have their good days and their bad days, yet they stay true to everything they are. They are real. And they are complicated. And I cannot stand to think of them as book characters. They are real people to me.
Yet even through all the Fraser family drama with Brianna, we got those precious glimpses of intimacy between Claire and Jamie, and all was perfectly right in the world.
The most interesting to me seemed the whole process of settling in the Colonies - finding Fraser's Ridge, building the first cottage, planting and then selling the first crops, acquiring cattle, hunting and all the little things and adventures, and ebbs and flows of fortunes that went with it.
What keeps amazing me with every book and every page I read is the constancy of characters. They have their good days and their bad days, yet they stay true to everything they are. They are real. And they are complicated. And I cannot stand to think of them as book characters. They are real people to me.
I don't want to say too much about this book as it's the fourth in a series and I don't want to spoil but, it was another great installment. I am still in love with this series and with each book, I love it a little bit more. There is a little bit of everything in this series: fantasy, mystery, romance, etc. I definitely recommend!
I absolutely loved this book it was a very slow start so hard to get through but still just as amazing
It’s over. It’s finally over. I’ve been picking up and putting this book down for over a year, and had to restart it several times. Davina Porter made dredging through the 1200 pages possible. I was very much looking forward to Bree’s story and perspective, but found her to be lacklustre and very unlikeable. The constant assaults for the sake of plot points are beyond enough.
As i am re-reading the series, this was the one that got me the first time as not quite fitting with the previous 3. Second time around, this one is a bit of a maddening trial, Jamie, Claire, Breana and Roger, making decisions that do not seem in character and a bit outlandish and ridiculous. I will endeavor to continue and hope book 5 improves my opinion of the series. The time i have invested in listening to the audio versions has been rewarding, if not daunting when i load into Libby and see book 5 at 55 HOURS! lol
I love this series and the different povs and all the details and the spice as always!
I finally completed this beast which I’ve been meaning to read for an entire year! And ohmigosh once I got started I couldn’t put it down! Drums of Autumn is book four in the Outlander series, which I became obsessed with last year due to a trip to Scotland. In this story we follow Claire and Jaime in 18th century America, as well as Brianna and Roger in 1960s America.
Many reviews I’ve seen are divided by the first half and the second half of the book. I personally enjoyed both and see how the first part was important to the second. The first part was definitely a slow burn, setting up the scene of 18th century America, including hardships and day to day life and business. But yes, most of the action happens in the second part where things go from 0 to 100 pretty quickly. There was one scene in particular that was very difficult to read. I particularly loved the ending as things tied up pretty nicely, I am intrigued where the story will go in the next book...
Many reviews I’ve seen are divided by the first half and the second half of the book. I personally enjoyed both and see how the first part was important to the second. The first part was definitely a slow burn, setting up the scene of 18th century America, including hardships and day to day life and business. But yes, most of the action happens in the second part where things go from 0 to 100 pretty quickly. There was one scene in particular that was very difficult to read. I particularly loved the ending as things tied up pretty nicely, I am intrigued where the story will go in the next book...
I'm taking a break from this series for awhile. With "Drums of Autumn," the Outlander series went from being fast-paced fun to insipid drama. At some point, it just got to be too much. The unnecessary raping of every major character, perhaps. Gabaldon's incessant need to bring back every single character, the reoccurring bad guys. Enough already.
I think this is one series that actually benefits from only reading one book per year, rather than reading the entire series all in one go. I absolutely loved the first book, and thoroughly enjoyed the next sequel, but began to labor through the books in the third and fourth. Brianna and Roger have really kept me reading, and now I am not too sure. They have always been over-the-top, action-packed books. But it's just become gratuitous. It feels forced, and "Drums of Autumn" and "Voyager" both lacked over-arching plots to tie the whole thing together, aside from the drama of the main relationships. The political tension is gone. Culloden and the Uprising gave the first two a bigger picture to keep the reader invested. Now, it is all about the Fraser family and there is nothing else. Claire seems to have regressed a bit. I know Gabaldon has more characters to cover and focus on, now, but Claire was much more submissive and less the strong woman I had come to admire. Instead, she rung her hands and couldn't decide whether to support her husband or daughter. Lots of character changes that resulted in suspension of belief for me. Too bad. I will probably try the next one at some point, but it's going to be a while.
I think this is one series that actually benefits from only reading one book per year, rather than reading the entire series all in one go. I absolutely loved the first book, and thoroughly enjoyed the next sequel, but began to labor through the books in the third and fourth. Brianna and Roger have really kept me reading, and now I am not too sure. They have always been over-the-top, action-packed books. But it's just become gratuitous. It feels forced, and "Drums of Autumn" and "Voyager" both lacked over-arching plots to tie the whole thing together, aside from the drama of the main relationships. The political tension is gone. Culloden and the Uprising gave the first two a bigger picture to keep the reader invested. Now, it is all about the Fraser family and there is nothing else. Claire seems to have regressed a bit. I know Gabaldon has more characters to cover and focus on, now, but Claire was much more submissive and less the strong woman I had come to admire. Instead, she rung her hands and couldn't decide whether to support her husband or daughter. Lots of character changes that resulted in suspension of belief for me. Too bad. I will probably try the next one at some point, but it's going to be a while.
I am giving this book 5 stars even though I did not like several things that happened in this one. It is still an epic story and I constantly cannot put the book down because the story is so good to me. Ok. Chapter 46 completely wrecked me. 800 pages in and I could not continue the story. I had to get reassurances from a few people that had already read the book so I could pick it up again. I took the weekend off of reading. Once I continued, I finished it in two days. I do have to say that Brianna and Roger were annoying to me but we will see how things turn out with them. I did not understand the point of the chapters about Roger travelling, but like all the other books, there is a reason for everything and I found out at the end.
"They won't want to pull up stakes and come to the ends of the bloody earth with you!" He smiled, a little wryly. "You did, Sassenach."
"They won't want to pull up stakes and come to the ends of the bloody earth with you!" He smiled, a little wryly. "You did, Sassenach."
I keep reading because I wonder how it will end, but seriously these people need to go and hide somewhere. Just go live in a cave.
(And why haven't more people questioned the crazy anachronisms by this point? After 5 years, someone has to realize Claire is WAY different, and now there are two more of her!)
(And why haven't more people questioned the crazy anachronisms by this point? After 5 years, someone has to realize Claire is WAY different, and now there are two more of her!)