Review ~ Outlander ~ Diana Gabaldon #2017HW #ShelfLove

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
Release Date: July 26, 2005
Genre: Adult, Historical, Romance, Time Travel
Source: Purchased paperback
Rating: 5 Bookworms
Challenges: #2017HW, #ShelfLove
Goodreads

Synopsis
The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is just back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenack --an "outlander"-- in a Scotland torn by war and raiding border clans in the year of Our Lord...1743.

Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into the intrigues of lairds and spies that may threaten her life, and shatter her heart. For here James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, shows her a love so absolute that Claire becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire - and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.

So, Outlander has been on my TBR - at my friend Diana's request - for something like 12 years. I think I put it off mostly because...it's a big book. :) And it intimidated me somehow. Now that I've finished it I'm kicking myself for having waited and bowing to Diana's prowess with book recommendations. Diana, I should have known. :)

Since you'd have to live under a rock not to have heard of, read, or watched Outlander, I'm not going to cover what happens in the book so much as how it affected me. And it affected me greatly. Here are a few reasons why:

• Claire - I love her. Her spirit, humor, strength...it all combines to make her this feisty, spit-fire of a woman who speaks her mind and acts according to her conscience no matter that it's 1743. As someone who has, on occasion, daydreamed of living in 1700 Scotland, Claire handles everything with grace (Claire grace, anyway) and aplomb.
• And then there's Jamie. I'm not sure I've "met" a Highlander her - or any her - as brave and compassionate as he. On top of that he's intelligent and open-minded, both valuable assets considering he ends up attached to Claire.
• The romance between Claire and Jamie is... I can't come up with the proper word. Their love is real, true and will stand the test of time. They quarrel but never stop fighting for each other. It's heartening to have been a part of them falling in love.
• The history and detail made for an even more affecting story. The brutality of life during this time period, the clan dynamics and politics, the intrigue and suspense created between the Scots and the English, the imagery of the heather-lined hills and even the thief hole - it was all incredible. Gabaldon wove all these details - even antiquated language - into and around this amazing story.
• Humor. I was grateful for the humor injected throughout the story as it was sorely needed at times. It was typically issued via Claire - speaking her mind - and Jamie more often than not.

I was seriously blown away by Outlander. I'm sorry not to have read it sooner and eager to continue the series. Oh and Dragonfly in Amber, the next in the series, became the first physical book I purchased in 2017!

This is now my favorite #2017HW read so far!

Audio Review ~ My Heart's in the Highlands ~ Angeline Fortin

My Heart's in the Highlands by Angeline Fortin
Narrated by: Kirsten Potter
Release Date: May 24, 2016 (audio)
Genre: Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: Tantor Audio sent me a complimentary copy
Rating: 4.5 Bookworms
Challenges: #2016NewRelease
Goodreads

Synopsis
Sixty-eight seconds. Can a life be lived in sixty-eight seconds? Can the love of a lifetime be discovered and lost in just a minute? Mikah Bauer stepped into the street in front of the Glasgow Museum of Modern Art and found herself lost in a nightmare that became a dream come true when Ian Conagham, the Marquis of Ayr, appeared before her. Mikah found herself living another life, a fairy tale of love and passion such as she never imagined. Then came the nightmare that tore it all away as quickly as fate had handed it to her. Contains mature themes.

I have to admit to choosing this book for two reasons:

1. Highlands = Highlanders
2. Kirsten Potter

Yep. Luckily, in Fortin I've found an author whose storytelling I like. My Heart's in the Highlands is a little difficult to categorize - it's kinda time-travel, it's sort of historical romance, and it's a little contemporary. But it is 100% entertaining.

Do you believe that two souls so deeply in love in one lifetime could meet again in another? I do now.

I love how Fortin had the story unfold - a young woman finding herself in the body of another woman, in the past. I adored seeing Hero and Ian fall for one another. They found a love so deep and profound. I felt it acutely. I liked Fortin's use of reincarnation and the allusions to Mikah experiencing a past life. I liked the subterfuge and the suspense it created in Hero and Ian's life. And I liked how Fortin brought everything back to the present as well as the resolution.

Yes, this is all rather vague. But I think My Heart's in the Highlands is a book to be experienced. Particularly with the excellent narration of Kirsten Potter. Potter excels at expressing the emotion and pacing of a novel. She never fails to have me gasping, experiencing butterflies or goosebumps, or making me bawl my eyes out. Yes, I know the story must be impressive as well but I've not listened to a book yet narrated by Potter that I didn't love. I'm eager to continue this series - I don't believe the stories are linked but I know I'll enjoy the story as well as the narration.

1. Highlands = Highlanders
2. Potter = Excellent Narration
3. Fortin = Fantastic story

Blog Tour Spotlight ~ Timeless ~ Crystal Collier

Welcome Crystal Collier here today to share her new book and introduce you to YOUR Maiden of Time doppelganger!

In 1771, Alexia had everything: the man of her dreams, reconciliation with her father, even a child on the way. But she was never meant to stay. It broke her heart, but Alexia heeded destiny and traveled five hundred years back to stop the Soulless from becoming.

In the thirteenth century, the Holy Roman Church has ordered the Knights Templar to exterminate the Passionate, her bloodline. As Alexia fights this new threat—along with an unfathomable evil and her own heart—the Soulless genesis nears. But none of her hard-won battles may matter if she dies in childbirth before completing her mission.

Can Alexia escape her own clock?

BUY: Amazon | B&N

GUEST POST

Have you ever met someone who looks and acts like someone else you know?



These doppelgangers exist in life, so it makes sense they would exist in literature. Today, you can meet your alternate ego in the Maiden of Time trilogy. Answer 5 simple questions to find out which character is most like you. (Some villains included.)

Look at that! You're a story book character. What do you think? Didn't like your match? Maybe should have picked something else? Try again. Share your results. Buy the books and learn more. (Did she really just say that? Yes, yes she did.) You can also enter to INSTANTLY some really cool prizes below.

Who is your ideal book character match? (Inside or outside the Maiden of Time trilogy.)

Crystal Collier is an eclectic author who pens clean fantasy/sci-fi, historical, and romance stories with the occasional touch of humor, horror, or inspiration. She practices her brother-induced ninja skills while teaching children or madly typing about fantastic and impossible creatures. She has lived from coast to coast and now calls Florida home with her creative husband, four littles, and “friend” (a.k.a. the zombie locked in her closet). Secretly, she dreams of world domination and a bottomless supply of cheese.


Find her online HERE.

(Email address is required for awarding prizes.)

**Blog Tour Guest Post ~ Dangerous Reflections ~ Shay West**

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Shay West's Dangerous Reflections. My stop includes all you need to know about the book, an interview with the author, and a guest post.

***

Dangerous Reflections

Alexis Davenport Series #1

Release Date: June 23, 2014

Genre: YA Fantasy, Time Travel

Synopsis
Alexis Davenport wants to go home. She hates her new school, her mother for moving her away from her friends, and her father for walking out.

To make matters worse, Alex is haunted by images of strange girls reflected in her mirror. It’s bad enough juggling homework, a relentless bully, boys, and a deadbeat dad; now, she must save the world from an evil presence hell-bent on changing the past – and our futures. Who knew her A+ in history was going to be this important?

***Guest Post ~ Time Travel***

I have always been fascinated with the idea of time travel. It would be so amazing to travel back in time and observe how people really lived. It’s one thing to use archaeological evidence to hypothesize about how people lived in the past, but to actually be able to observe them going about their daily lives, or to see what their homes looked like and what they ate would be so incredible.

Ah, to see Rome and watch the gladiators perform in the Coliseum, or walk through the streets of an ancient Egyptian city, or watch as druids built Stonehenge. How many mysteries would be solved if only we could travel back in time? Kind of makes me wish the Doctor would arrive with his TARDIS and whisk me off to see something no other modern human has ever seen.

Of course, there is always the danger of screwing up the time line. It could spell disaster if an innocent act by a time traveler inadvertently altered the course of history. The repercussions could be disastrous. This is what makes me thankful that no one has managed to invent a time travel device.

In my Adventures of Alexis Davenport series, fifteen-year-old Alex has the unsavory task of protecting the time line from someone trying to alter the past. Not only that, she also has to deal with all of the other things a teenager has to deal with. This poor girl has a lot on her plate! But she’s spunky with a side of sass thrown in for good measure and can handle anything that comes her way.

Shay West was born in Longmont, CO and earned a doctorate degree in Human Medical Genetics from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical. Dr. West currently lives in Grand Junction, CO with her two cats. When not writing novels, she plays with plushie microbes and teaches biology classes at Colorado Mesa University. She is the author of the Portals of Destiny series and the Adventures of Alexis Davenport series. She has also been published in several
anthologies: Battlespace (military scifi), Orange Karen: Tribute to a Warrior (fundraiser), and Ancient New (steampunk/fantasy).

You can find Dr. West and more of her work at Shay-West.com.

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