Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Eeeee I loved getting inside John's head and seeing the world from his perspective. This book was delicious, so well written and researched and greatly mysterious.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Homophobia, Terminal illness
slow-paced
DNF @ 50%
Nothing at all like the Outlander books. Really boring, just can't get into it at all after multiple failed attempts.
Nothing at all like the Outlander books. Really boring, just can't get into it at all after multiple failed attempts.
I finally got around to picking up Lord John's books while reading my way through A Breath of Snow and Ashes in the Outlander Series. Through the Outlander series I've grown to enjoy Lord John. He is extremely loyal, honorable and has done numerous things for the Frasers that I would deem above and beyond. So I was excited to read a book focused on him.
I felt like he was missing from this book. I'm finding it tough to explain what I mean by this. Only when he was reflecting on Ardsmuir or thinking of Jamie did I feel like I was reading about Lord John. The rest of the book could have substituted any high ranking soldier and not changed overmuch.
I wasn't overly thrilled with the mystery, it seemed fairly average though it was entertaining.
I'm definitely going to fangirl it up and keep reading them, especially because I'm looking forward to The Scottish Prisoner, but overall not impressed.
Audio Notes
Jeff Woodman was an average narrator - he was pleasant enough to listen to but I probably won't be searching him out as a narrator in the future.
I felt like he was missing from this book. I'm finding it tough to explain what I mean by this. Only when he was reflecting on Ardsmuir or thinking of Jamie did I feel like I was reading about Lord John. The rest of the book could have substituted any high ranking soldier and not changed overmuch.
I wasn't overly thrilled with the mystery, it seemed fairly average though it was entertaining.
I'm definitely going to fangirl it up and keep reading them, especially because I'm looking forward to The Scottish Prisoner, but overall not impressed.
Audio Notes
Jeff Woodman was an average narrator - he was pleasant enough to listen to but I probably won't be searching him out as a narrator in the future.
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A wonderful first book in the 3 main John Grey books by Gabaldon. Highly engaging, fascinating peek into the geopolitical world of 18th century regency period England. Over the course of this 3 book series, Gabaldon does an incredible job of peppering the plot with just enough insight into what it would have been like to be a closeted gay man of John Grey’s time— the criminality, the insult, the work-arounds… really interesting stuff.
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Blood, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Alcohol
Minor: Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, Outing, Colonisation, War, Classism
Took a bit to get hooked, but now I can definitely count myself as one of the Lord John Grey fans. Diana's ability to incorporate history into her novels in a fun way is just unparalleled, and LJG is a wonderful character.
Lord John can be described as simply delightful. His humor, his wit and his devotion to his family are delightful in the extreme. I just love being in his head. And as always, Diana Gabaldon’s storytelling is pitch perfect.
In order to truly understand the depth of the story, you need to have read the Outlander series and be privy to Lord John’s undying and unrequited love for a Scottish Highlander named Jamie Fraser.
As an example, here’s Lord John’s reaction after hearing a girl speaking with a Scottish accent:
“In fact, the sound of her speech had unleashed an extraordinary - and quite unexpected - tumult of sensation in his bosom. A mad mix of memory, arousal, and alarm, it was not an entirely pleasant feeling - but he wanted her to go on talking, at all costs.” P. 84
The story in itself is enthralling and the setting in London 1757 very interesting. The combination of Lord John’s personality intertwined with the Outlander Universe was what did it for me: I loved this book!
In order to truly understand the depth of the story, you need to have read the Outlander series and be privy to Lord John’s undying and unrequited love for a Scottish Highlander named Jamie Fraser.
As an example, here’s Lord John’s reaction after hearing a girl speaking with a Scottish accent:
“In fact, the sound of her speech had unleashed an extraordinary - and quite unexpected - tumult of sensation in his bosom. A mad mix of memory, arousal, and alarm, it was not an entirely pleasant feeling - but he wanted her to go on talking, at all costs.” P. 84
The story in itself is enthralling and the setting in London 1757 very interesting. The combination of Lord John’s personality intertwined with the Outlander Universe was what did it for me: I loved this book!
I read this because I like the Outlander series but I didn't enjoy this much at all. I've already committed to reading the whole Outlander chronology so I suppose I'll read all the John Grey novels but I won't be happy about it.