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danodog's review against another edition
4.0
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Circa 1900 in the Canadian west. A young woman murders her terrible husband and is on the run from her 2 brother in laws. The characters she encounters along the way are well drawn out as she grows into a self-sufficient woman able to take care of herself as she escapes, survives, learns and grows into a person she never thought she'd be able to become. A very visual and lyrical book.
jsanderulo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
shieldbearer's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Gets one star for the gorgeous writing. But the rest of this story is so poorly constructed and executed. We know nothing about the protagonist's personality by 30% of the way through the book. The author is clearly withholding information to attempt to build suspense, but does so by simply refusing to answer any of the reader's questions and what information we do get is piecemeal. It doesn't inform the character and her actions- and yes, backstory does do this, but it's used to explain Things She Can Do (or Can't) and not Why She Thinks THis Way.
The execution of the protagonist's "madness" is insulting and a plot device at best. As other readers have said, the other characters are the real strength here. It's a shame that some of the elements of "the Widow" were wasted- given the way she acts in the beginning, it seems like she'll actually develop as a person, or at least get some fleshing out. Not so. THings Happen TO Her and she reacts, but why she chooses to react the way she does is never shown even through our understanding of her history. When she steals, she does not feel desperate, just petty and mean- stealing the boots of a poor maid and a pipe that was clearly a beloved keepsake of a departed loved one.
Further insulting is the idea that the horse she stole would "fatten up" because she lets it graze after riding it hard all day. Ok. Sure. And yes, "unlikeable" characters have their place. But she is such a dull character I can't help but feel all the hype around this book is on a surface level- a woman kills her abusive husband! Good for her! And we can't even argue that her trauma and detachment is what makes her so flat - N K Jemisin's Fifth Season has a similar premise with a character in a very similar predicament, and yet even though Jemisin's Essun is far more detached than "the Widow" we still have a clear sense of her personality, what motivates her, why she moves the way she does. "The Widow" just survives through some vague urge. Don't even get me started on the stupid romance and the audacity of her calling the Native man she met who found her horse after it which RAN OFF- a thief.
The part where i quit was the part where she went off on a rant about how "men who take off their shirts are clearly Lording Superior Strength Over Me A Helpless Woman" and detailed how she yelled at a teenager doing manual labor and humiliated him in what seems to be intended as a #girlboss moment. Not only will I be avoiding the rest of this book, I'm never touching anything else written by this author.
The execution of the protagonist's "madness" is insulting and a plot device at best. As other readers have said, the other characters are the real strength here. It's a shame that some of the elements of "the Widow" were wasted- given the way she acts in the beginning, it seems like she'll actually develop as a person, or at least get some fleshing out. Not so. THings Happen TO Her and she reacts, but why she chooses to react the way she does is never shown even through our understanding of her history. When she steals, she does not feel desperate, just petty and mean- stealing the boots of a poor maid and a pipe that was clearly a beloved keepsake of a departed loved one.
Further insulting is the idea that the horse she stole would "fatten up" because she lets it graze after riding it hard all day. Ok. Sure. And yes, "unlikeable" characters have their place. But she is such a dull character I can't help but feel all the hype around this book is on a surface level- a woman kills her abusive husband! Good for her! And we can't even argue that her trauma and detachment is what makes her so flat - N K Jemisin's Fifth Season has a similar premise with a character in a very similar predicament, and yet even though Jemisin's Essun is far more detached than "the Widow" we still have a clear sense of her personality, what motivates her, why she moves the way she does. "The Widow" just survives through some vague urge. Don't even get me started on the stupid romance and the audacity of her calling the Native man she met who found her horse after it which RAN OFF- a thief.
The part where i quit was the part where she went off on a rant about how "men who take off their shirts are clearly Lording Superior Strength Over Me A Helpless Woman" and detailed how she yelled at a teenager doing manual labor and humiliated him in what seems to be intended as a #girlboss moment. Not only will I be avoiding the rest of this book, I'm never touching anything else written by this author.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Misogyny, Mental illness, Racism, Grief, Domestic abuse, Stalking, Child death, Gun violence, Emotional abuse, and Classism
Moderate: Antisemitism and Blood
Minor: Vomit
juliebuckles's review against another edition
4.0
This is not a beach read. I struggled a bit in the beginning -- not rapidly turning pages, but not putting it down, either. The author chooses to withhold the protagonist's name referring to her only as "the widow" until midway through. Without a name, I couldn't connect to this character. In an interview I read at the end of the book, Gil Adamson calls this a literary western, I think the description fits. (Think Cormac McCarthy's No Country for Old Men). But I gave the "The Outlander" four stars because the book and the characters she encounters got under my skin. From the red-headed twins to the dwarf retailer to the minister -- all of them rich, nuanced characters. And now that I'm done (one chapter at a time wins the race), I can't stop thinking about Mary Boulton and the history of which this book was based. It's sudden and violent and I want to know more but I'll let readers experience the surprise on their own.
eleellis's review against another edition
5.0
This novel was published in 2007 and I have no idea how it had escaped my attention.
What a wonderful treat.
It gives nothing away to write the story is about "The Widow" and her flight into the 1903 wilderness to avoid the two, red-haired brothers of the husband that she has murdered. The novel depicts her flight from her past and the two brothers bent on returning her home to face what she has done.
The writing is excellent and flows with such vivid descriptive power that you can almost smell the pines and other odors of nature.
Along the way "The Widow" meets a variety of interesting characters, with the story being told in partial flashbacks.
For those that enjoyed Wolf Road or the writing of William Gay and Daniel Woodrell, The Outlander is for you.
Very highly recommended.
What a wonderful treat.
It gives nothing away to write the story is about "The Widow" and her flight into the 1903 wilderness to avoid the two, red-haired brothers of the husband that she has murdered. The novel depicts her flight from her past and the two brothers bent on returning her home to face what she has done.
The writing is excellent and flows with such vivid descriptive power that you can almost smell the pines and other odors of nature.
Along the way "The Widow" meets a variety of interesting characters, with the story being told in partial flashbacks.
For those that enjoyed Wolf Road or the writing of William Gay and Daniel Woodrell, The Outlander is for you.
Very highly recommended.
deniset's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.5
glamourfaust's review against another edition
5.0
I read this book because it is on CBC's Canada Reads short list. It was excellent. I love the writing style, the storyline, and the characters.
shellybelly's review against another edition
5.0
An abused wife kills her husband and escapes, living in the mountains, taking a lover, and making a life for herself. So good!
amysbrittain's review against another edition
3.0
This is a 3.5...woman on the run in the wilderness at the turn of the 20th century, check. Angst, adventure, mysterious past, odd characters, check. But I was looking for more to grab me. I enjoyed it, but I was hoping for just a little more *there* there.